Semantics in Linguistics

Semantics in Linguistics

1. 1.1 Semantics is the study of meaning communicated through language

   • It is usually based on
     • The previous knowledge that a person has
       • It has being divided in levels of analysis by some linguistics
         • For Example
           • Phonology
             • Is the study of the sounds of a language and how these sounds combine to form words
           • Syntax
             • Is the study of how words can be combined to form sentences
           • Semantics
             • Is the study of the meaning of words and sentence
               • It has relation with
                 • Discipline like philosophy and psychology

2. 1.2 Semantics and Semiotics

   • Meaning has many uses according with human beings knowledge
     • Addictionally
       • Human beings have the capacity of identify and create signs in order to interpratate and be understood
         • It is Called
           • Signification
             • That is related with
               • Semiotics that is the study of the use of sign systems. (Ferclinand saussure)
                 • Relationship between a sign and the object it represents (C.S Pierce)
                   • ICON: Similanty between sign and what it represents
                   • INDEX: Is where the sign is closely associated with signified
                   • SYMBOL: Is where there is only a conventional link between the sign and it signifier its

3. 1.3 Three challenges in doing semantics

   • It is thought that if language is arbitary everybody has the same meaning of words but there are three challenges that change it.
     • Circulanty: It states that if the definitions of word meaning are given in words, the process might never end.
     • How to make sure that our definitions of a word meaning are exact.
       • It is related with the difference between the mental idea that we have about a concept and the real idea. Addictonaly we have to take into account idiolect, that is an individuals language.
     • Contribution of context meaning
       • The diferents meanings that could have a word according with the context

4. 1.4 Meeting Challenges

   • Here we can know stategies for the three problems.
     • Metalanguage as a Sowtoon
       • First problem circulanty
         • Use a semantic metalanguage lo describe the semantic units and rules of all languages
       • Second Problem relating semantic and encyclopedic knowledge
         • Since desingning meaning representations
           • More over
             • The Knowledge a speaker has of the meaning of words is often compared to a mental lexicon or dictionary
               • Additionally
                 • The real issue is the amount of knowledge that it is necesarry to know in order to use a word
       • Third problem contribution of context meaning
         • It tries to limit the definitions between conventional meaning or literal meaning
           • Besides
             • It is important to take into account the listener is role
               • Furthermore
                 • Listeners have a very active role, using what has been said, to make inferences about what speaker meant
                   • It is called pragmatics.

5. 1.5 Semantics in a model of grammer

   • 1.5.1 Linguistics identify different levels of analysis. Another way of describing this is to say that linguistic knowledge forms district modules or is modularized
     • To Conclude
       • Meaning is a product of all linguistic levels
         • in the other hand
           • Some writers cannot be identified as a separate level autonomous from the study of other levels of grammar
             • It is associated with the theory known as cognitive grammar
   • 1.5.2 Word meaning and sentence meaning
     • Related with
       • The mental lexicon that a person has
         • It is not static b
           • Because
             • Human beings are usually learning and forgettin words
               • Besides
                 • Word meaning and phrases and sentence meaning are different according with its productivity

6. 1.6 Important assumptions

   • 1.6.1 Reference and Sence
     • Words stand a relationship to the world, and make statements about them
       • The relationship by which language hooks into the world
         • It is usually called
           • Reference
       • The Semantic link between elements with the vocabulary sistem
         • It is usually called
           • Sence
   • 1.6.2 Uterance, sentences and propositions
     • Three terms usually used to describe different levels of language
       • The most concrete
         • Utterance
           • It is created by speaking (Or writing) a piece of language
       • Sentence
         • Are the abstract grammatical elements obtained from utterances
       • Propositions
         • Can be represented in various special ways to avoid confusion with various sentences
   • 1.6.3 Literal and non-literal meaning
     • 1. Non- literal uses of language are traditionally called figurative
       • Related with
         • Methaphor, irony, metonymy, synecdoche, hyperbole and litotes
           • It is important to mention that
             • Methaphor is a basic way of organizing our thoughts about the world
     • On the other hand
       • We have literal language theory
         • It states that
           • methaphors and other
             • Non- literal uses of language require a different processing strategy than literal language