Transcript Semantics - GEOCITIES.ws

Semantics
2nd class
Chapter 5
Semantic Properties
Do these words share the same semantic
class? Do they share the same semantic
properties?
Chess
Tennis
Hockey
Soccer
+game
+game
+game
+game
Hair, bear (n), hare, maid (woman servant), heir, bear
(v), wind [wind], maid (old, unmarried woman), bow [bow],
bear (to tolerate), wind [waind], bear (to support), made
(v), bare (adj.), bear (to carry), bow [bau]
Homonym Homograph Heteronym Polysemou
s
s
s
s
words
Review
• Practice Quiz
Other terminology
• Metonym
• Retronym: word combinations that
used to be redundant but no longer
are (e.g., surface mail, whole milk)
Metaphors
• Greek: “transfer”
• “All the world’s a stage
And all the men and women merely
players
They have their exits and their
entrances.” (Shakespeare)
Conceptual Metaphors
• TWO conceptual domains
one concept is understood in terms
of the other.
Conceptual Metaphors
• Example:
• you’re wasting my time
• he’s living on borrowed time
• I lost a lot of time when I got sick
• how are spending your time these days?
• the flat tire cost me an hour
Target domain (more abstract): time
Source domain (more concrete): money
Metaphor: TIME IS MONEY
Example:
 he attacked every weak point of my argument
 his criticisms were right on target
 I demolished his arguments
 I’ve never won an argument with him
Target domain (more abstract): argument
Source domain (more concrete): war
Metaphor: ARGUMENT IS WAR
• HAPPY IS UP; SAD IS DOWN.
• I'm feeling up. That boosted my
spirits. My spirits rose. You're in
high spirits. Thinking about her
always gives me a lift.
• I'm feeling down. I'm depressed.
He's really low these days. I fell into
a depression. My spirits sank.
Phrase Meanings
• Verb phrases and thematic roles
– Noun phrases may have different semantic relationships
with the verbs they are used together with. The
relationship depends on the verb that is used.
– In the sentence “the boy found a book”,
• the boy is the one who performs an action, or the doer of
the action (of finding). The boy is called the agent:
• the NP ‘a book’ is the one or thing that undergoes an action.
“A book” is called the theme:
• Agent and theme are the semantic relationships between
the verb and the noun phrases, which is called the thematic
roles of the verb.
Phrase Meanings
– Besides agent and theme, there are some other thematic roles.
– He stays in the hotel.
•
Location: the place where an action takes place.
•
Goal: the place to which an action is directed.
•
Source: the place from which an action originates.
•
Instrument: the means by which an action is performed.
•
Causative: a natural force that causes a change.
•
Experiencer: one who perceives something.
•
Possessor: one who has something
– Put the book on the desk
– Walk from the school
– Write with a pen
– The wind damaged the roof.
– Helen heard Robert playing the piano.
– The tail of the dog wagged furiously.
Semantics x Pragmatics
• Semantics: worried about meaning of
words or sentences taken out of
context
• Pragmatics: worried about
appropriateness of language in use
Example
• “There is a snake behind you.”