The naming theory

Proposed by the ancient Greek scholar Plato. According to this theory, words are just names or labels for things. Limitations: 1) It‘s applicable to nouns only; 2) Even within the category of nouns, there are still some nouns can not be named by physical objects.
Semantic triangle or triangle of significance (语义三角或意义三角)
THOUGHT/ REFERENCE (ept)
SYMBOL/ FORM…….. REFERENT (所指)
Linguistic element (words, phrases)


grammatical meaning (语法意义): grammaticality (语法性), which is governed by the grammatical rules of the language. semantic meaning (语义意义): is governed by rules called selectional restrictions (选择 限制), i. e. , constraints on what lexical items can go with what others (即对词汇项搭

X entails Y. (Y is an entailment of X.) X 蕴含 Y (Y是 X的一个含义) e.g. X: He has been to France. Y: He has been to Europe. ―He has been to France‖ entails ―He has been to Europe‖ 或者 “He has been to Europe‖ is entailed by ―He has been to France‖. If X is true, Y is necessarily true. If X is false, Y may be true or false. 如果X为真,那么Y必定为假，如果X为假, 那么Y可 能为真也可能为假.
Lexical meaning 词汇意义




Sense and reference (意义和指称) They are related but different aspects of meaning. Sense is concerned with the inherent meaning of the linguistics form. (词典义, 抽象, 与语境无关) Reference means what a linguistic form refers to in the real, physical world. (场景义)


X is a contradiction. (X是一个矛盾) When X is a contradiction, it is invariably false. 当X是一个矛盾时, 它 总是不真实的. e.g. My unmarried sister is married to a bachelor.
(object experienced)
Contextualism


Meaning should be studied in terms of situation, use, context --- elements closely linked with language behavior. J. R. Firth, a leading British linguist is a representative of this approach. Two kinds of context: the situational context and the linguistic context. Eg. The seal could not be found. black hair, black coffee
配的制约).
Predication analysis (述谓结构分析)


proposed by the British linguist G. Leech. In his framework of analysis, the basic unit is called predication, which is the abstraction of the meaning of a sentence. A predication consists of argument(s) (论 元) and predicate (谓词).
Sense relations between sentences


X is synonymous with Y. (X与Y同义) e.g. X: He was a bachelor all his life. Y: He never married all his life. In terms of truth condition, if X is true, Y is true, and if X is false, Y is false. 从真值条件的角度看, 如果X为真,那么Y 也为真，如果X为假, 那么Y也为假.
The conceptualist view


There is no direct link between a linguistic form and what it refers to; rather in the interpretation of meaning they are linked through the mediation of concepts in the mind. Semantic triangle or triangle of significance suggested by Ogden and Richards.


X presupposes Y. (Y is a prerequisite of X.) X 预设Y (Y 是 X的前提) e.g. X: John’s bike needs repairing. Y: John has a bike. ―John‘s bike needs repairing‖ presupposes ―John has a bike‖. If X is true, Y must be true. If X is false, Y is still true. 如果X为真,那么Y必定为真，如果X为假, 那么Y 仍然为真.


X is inconsistent with Y. (X与Y不一致) e.g. X: John is married. Y: John is a bachelor. In terms of truth condition, if X is true, Y is false, and if X is false, Y is true. 从真值条件的角度看, 如果X为真,那么Y 也为假，如果X为假, 那么Y为真.
Behaviorism

Bloomfield defines the meaning of a language form as the “situation in which the speaker utters it and the response it calls forth in the hearer”. ―言者发出该形式的场景和它在听者身上所 起的反应”

Semantics can be simply defined as the study of meaning.
Some views concerning the study of meaning


The naming theory (命名论) The conceptualist view (概念论) Contextualism (语境论) Behaviorism (行为主义论)
We use semantic features to contrast the meanings of different words.
Predication analysis (述谓结构分析) — a way to analyze sentence meaning
Two aspects to sentence meaning:




Bloomfield illustrates his story about Jack and Jill, represented by the figure below. Jill Jack S-----------------r…………s--------------R S: a physical Stimulus r: a verbal response (e.g. say to Jack ‗I am thirsty‖ ) s: a verbal stimulus to Jack R: a non-verbal Response from Jack (e.g. picking the apple for her.
Major sense relations (主要的意义关系)


Synonymy: the sameness or close similarity of meaning. (同义现象) Polysemy: the same one word may have more than one meaning. (多义现象) Homonymy: different words are identical in sound or spelling, or in both. (同音异义) Hyponymy: the sense relation between a more general, more inclusive word and a more specific word. (下义关系) Antonymy: oppositeness of meaning (反义现象)