Semantics

Question 1

Semantics

Answer 1

the study of how language means

Question 2

What can semantics focus on

Answer 2

1. lexical meaning

2. compositional meaning

Question 3

lexical meaning

Answer 3

how words mean

Question 4

compositional meaning

Answer 4

how phrases, clauses, and sentences mean

Question 5

Whose ideas led to the idea that letters/sounds become meaningful (a sign) because in our heads we combinde the sound or spelling (signifier)

Answer 5

Ferdinand de Saussure

Question 6

Symbolic signs

Answer 6

have no obvious connection between teh sign and teh object

Question 7

What have some theorized that doesn’t sit well with liguists?

Answer 7

lexical meaning is simply a matter of reference, that words simply refer to things that exist outside of language

Question 8

Evidence of the theory that lexical meaning is a matter of reference

Answer 8

1. we share n understanding of dogs, though we don’t share the same dog or the same mental concept of dog
2. dictionary definitions don’t really suffice to explain dog
3. dogs vary a ton, yet we all know they’re dongs

Question 9

How does the idea of reference as an explanation for how words mean get more complicated as we move away from concrete nouns

Answer 9

1. what does ‘happiness’ refer to
2. what does ‘above’ refer to
3. ‘to’ or ‘of’

Question 10

Words don’t mean simply by referring to things outside of language ex.

Answer 10

1. lexical meaning is embedded in thought, in mind
2. what came first, the word or the concet?
3. lexical meaning in contextual
4. lexical meaning is created through syntax
5. lexical meaning is created through word relationships

Question 11

polysemy

Answer 11

when words have multiple meaings

Question 12

ex. 
I want this dog.
I would love to have a dog.
Don't dog me.
That's my dog!

Answer 12

how context and polysemy is part of how words mean

Question 13

Lexical field

Answer 13

a set of words that somehow belong together

Question 14

ex. of lexical fields

Answer 14

household pets, household appliances

Question 15

can any single word belong to multiple lexical fields

Answer 15

yes

Question 16

how word relationships are part of how words mean

Answer 16

lexical field

Question 17

Hyponymy

Answer 17

lexical fields represented hierarchically

Question 18

hypernym

Answer 18

a general term containing more specific terms (hyponyms)

Question 19

If we condsider ‘maple,’ ‘oak,’ and ‘pine’ to be part of the same lexical field, then what is the hypernym and what is the hyponym

Answer 19

hypernym: ‘tree’
hyponym: ‘maple’

Question 20

synonyms

Answer 20

words that are thought to mean the same thing, but the difference between denotation and connotation complicates that idea

Question 21

Antonyms

Answer 21

words with opposite meaning

Question 22

binary antonyms

Answer 22

a pair of words with no middle ground

Question 23

examples of binary antonyms

Answer 23

alive and dead; on and off

Question 24

gradable antonyms

Answer 24

a pair of words at opposite ends of a continuum

Question 25

examples of gradable antonyms

Answer 25

hot and cold

Question 26

converse antonyms

Answer 26

a pair of words that describes the relationship between two items from opposite perspectives

Question 27

examplesof converse antonyms

Answer 27

above and below; parent and child

Question 28

homonyms

Answer 28

words that mean different things but share a word form

Question 29

types of homonyms

Answer 29

1. homophones 2. homographs 3. homophones and homographs

Question 30

homophones

Answer 30

share the same pronunciation | ex. tale and tail

Question 31

homographs

Answer 31

share the same spelling | ex. dove (bird) and dove (verb)

Question 32

homophones and homographs

Answer 32

sink (basin) and sink (verb)

Question 33

two major ways in which the meaning of words change overtime

Answer 33

generalization and specialization

Question 34

generalization

Answer 34

when a word takes on more meanings

Question 35

secialization

Answer 35

a word takes on less meanings

Question 36

ex. of lexical ambiguity

Answer 36

light suit

Question 37

ex. of structural ambiguity

Answer 37

porcelain egg container

Question 38

ex. of both lexical and structural ambiguity

Answer 38

we saw her duck

Question 39

metaphor

Answer 39

thoroughly embedded in our languge; not just poetic usage

Question 40

ex. of common conceptual metaphors

Answer 40

'Time' is money 'understanding' is sight 'significance' is big

Question 41

Idioms

Answer 41

expressions whose meanigns cannot be determined by literal interpretation

Question 42

idioms are...

Answer 42

culturally dependent and we can't vary their stress patterns or syntax

Question 43

Linguistic determinism

Answer 43

thought is entirely determined by language

Question 44

Liguistic relativity

Answer 44

differences in languages create differences in thought

Question 45

objectivism

Answer 45

1. an objective reality exists 2. we can access that reality without language 3. language merely describes the world

Question 46

The relationship between language and thought

Answer 46

1. objectivism 2. linguistic relativity 3. linguistic determinism