LINA02H3 : Chapter 6.docx
Document Summary
Chapter 6 semantics: the analysis of meaning semantics the study of meaning in human language. 6. 1 the nature of meaning: semantic relations among words: synonymy have the same meaning in some or all contexts (i. e. vacation, holidays) *perfect synonymy is rare. Antonymy are opposites with respect to some component (i. e. dark, light) Polysemy a word has two or more related meanings (i. e. bright: (a) shining" (b) intelligent") Homophony a single form has two or more entirely distinct meanings (i. e. light: (a) not heavy" (b) illumination") *homophones do not have to be spelled identically; write and right are homophones. Polysemy and homophony create lexical ambiguity relies on context; surrounding words and sentences make the intended meaning clear: semantic relations among sentences: Paraphrase have the same meaning (i. e. (a) the police chased the burglar (b) the burglar was chased by the police) *must have the same truth conditions, active sentences = ambiguous, passive sentences can only have 2nd meaning.
