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Semantics

Semantics. Word meaning Sentence meaning. Word Meaning. Dictionaries only give paraphrases, not fundamental characterizations of word meaning. overcoat : coat worn over indoor clothing terror: state of intense fear fear: to be afraid afraid : fearful.

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Semantics

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  1. Semantics • Word meaning • Sentence meaning

  2. Word Meaning • Dictionaries only give paraphrases, not fundamental characterizations of word meaning. • overcoat: coat worn over indoor clothing • terror: state of intense fear • fear: to be afraid • afraid: fearful

  3. Reference: The entity or entities in the world identified by the word • Same referent • G.W. Bush • president of the United States

  4. If A and B have the same reference… • …they can substitute for each other in a sentence without changing the meaning of the sentence. • G.W. Bush met with members of Congress. • The president met with members of Congress.

  5. But the next sentences don’t have the same meaning. ‘I want to be the president of the U.S.’ vs. ‘I want to be George W. Bush.’

  6. Have a difference sense • G.W. Bush • the president of the United States • Sense: The meaning of a word which is independent of its reference, the word’s mental representation

  7. The following often have the same reference but always have a different sense. • my father • my mother’s husband

  8. The following have sense but no reference. • the king of the United States • werewolf, dragon, unicorn

  9. But sense is also not all there is to meaning. • What is sense - a mental image? • Then what is the mental image of: • car • lecture • forget • food • love • bird

  10. Prototypical reference • For many common nouns, the set of possible referents are clustered around a prototype. • E.g. ‘bird’ • Prototypical exemplars of a category are more readily processed than atypical exemplars.

  11. Semantic Relations among Words • Synonym: A and B mean the same thing; A can be paraphrased by B. A and B have the same reference. • automobile car • big large • purchase buy • throw-up vomit

  12. Antonym • A and B have related but contrastive meanings. • Complementary: alive/dead • Gradable: dark/light, young/old • Reverse: left/right, come/go • Converse: employer/employee

  13. Hyponymy and hypernymy • If B is a hyponym of A, then • the meaning of B is a special case of A • If A is a hypernym of B, then • the meaning of A is a more general instance of B B A

  14. Hyponyms

  15. (Un)productive Hyponym Formation • HypernymHyponym • interesting =>very interesting • car => German car • => Adding a modifier

  16. Not with Compounds • boom box • No: box Yes: sound system • station wagon • No: wagon Yes: car • soap opera • No: opera Yes: TV show

  17. Polysemy: One word has more than one related meaning. • Homophony: One phonetic form has more than one meaning.

  18. “bright” = 1. shining 2. intelligent • => Polysemy • “bat” • 1. winged rodent • 2. baseball equipment • => Homophony

  19. Polysemy vs. Homophony • Polysememous word ‘hard’ • meaning1 meaning2 • “difficult” “durable, solid” • => Single lexical entry

  20. Homophony • Homophones • ‘bat’1 ‘bat’2 ‘rodent’ ‘baseball equipment’ => Distinct lexical entries

  21. Lexical Ambiguity • Due to polysemy: • Do you smoke after sex? • She cannot bear children. • Mary licked her disease.

  22. Due to homophony: • Clinton wins on budget. • More lies ahead.

  23. Lexical or Structural Ambiguity? • The two sisters were reunited after years at the checkout counter. • The woman strolled near the bank. • The judge sentenced the killer to die in the electric chair for the second time. • The girl found a book on Main Street. • The cranes were transported by boat overseas.

  24. What makes the Marx Brothers funny? • In the midst of a battle… • Zeppo: General Smith reports a gas attack. • Groucho: Tell him to take a teaspoon of bicarbonate and half a glass of water. • (Duck Soup)

  25. Groucho: I’ve got a good mind to join a club and beat you over the head with it. • (Duck Soup) • (Marx Brothers examples from P.M. Tiersma. 1985. “Language-based Humor in the Marx Brothers Films”, Indiana Univ. Linguistics Club)

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