Introducing Linguistics

This outstanding series is an indispensable resource for students and teachers -

a concise and engaging introduction to the central subjects of contemporary

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1. Andrew Spencer Phonology

2. John I. Saeed Semantics, Second Edition

3. Bar b ara Johnstone Discourse Analysis

4. Andrew Carnie Syntax

Semantics
Second Edition

John I. Saeed

•A Blackwell
'-II Publishing
 © 1997, 2003 by John I. Saeed

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First edition published 1997

Second edition published 2003 by Blackwell Publishing Ltd
Reprinted 2004

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Saeed, John I.
Semantics I by John I. Saeed .- 2nd ed.
p. em. - (Introducing linguistics ; 2)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 0-631-22692-3 (hardcover: alk. paper) - ISBN 0-631-22693-1
(pbk. : alk. paper)
1. Semantics. I. Title. II. Series.
P325 .52 2003
401'.43- dc21
2002007791

A catalogue record for this title is available from the British Library.

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To Joan and Alexander

/
 Contents

List of Figures and Tables XV

Preface XVll

Abbreviations and Symbols XIX

Part I Preliminaries 1

1 Semantics in Linguistics 3

1.1 Introduction 3

1.2 Semantics and Semiotics 5

1.3 T hree Challenges in Doing Semantics 6

1.4 Meeting the Challenges 7

1.5 Semantics in a Model of Grammar 9

1.5.1 Introduction 9
1.5.2 IX0rd nzeaning and sentence meaning 10

1.6 Some Important Assumptions 11

1.6.1 Reference and sense 12
1.6.2 Utterances) sentences and propositions 12
1.6.3 Literal and non-literal meaning 15
1.6.4 Semantics and pragmatics 17

1.7 Summary 19
 viii Contents

Further Reading 19

Exercises 19

Notes 21

2 Meaning, Thought and Reality 23

Introduction 23
?·1
v'2.2 Reference 25
2. 2. 1 Types of reference 25
2.2.2 Names 27
2.2.3 Nouns and noun phrases 28
2.3 Reference as a Theory of Meaning 30
/2.4 Men tal Representations 32
2. 4.1 Introduction 32
2. 4. 2 Concepts 34
2. 4.3 Necessary and sufficient conditions 35
2. 4. 4 Prototypes 37
2. 4. 5 Relations between concepts 38
2. 4. 6 Acquiring concepts 40
2.5 Words, Concepts and Thinking 40
2. 5.1 Linguistic relativity 41
2.5. 2 The language of thought hypothesis 43
2. 5. 3 Thought and reality 44
2.6 Summary 46

Further Reading 47
Exercises 47
Notes 49

Part II Semantic Description 51

)3 wo·r d Meaning 53

! 3.1 Introduction 53
3.2 Words and Grammatical Categories 55
3.3 Words and Lexical Items 55
3.4 Problems with Pinning Down Word Meaning 59
3.5 Lexical Relations 63
3.5.1 Homonymy 63
3.5.2 Polyserny 64
3.5.3 Synonymy 65
3 5. 4
. Opposites (antonymy) 66
3.5.5 Hyponyn1y 68
 Contents IX

3. 5. 6 Merony1ny 70
3. 5. 7 Member-collection 71
3. 5. 8 Portion-nzass 71

3. 6 Derivational Relations 71
3. 6.1 Causative verbs 72
3. 6. 2 Agentive nouns 73

3. 7 Lexical Universals 73
3. 7.1 Colour terms 74
3. 7. 2 Core vocabulary 76
3. 7. 3 Universal lexemes 78

3.8 Summary 79

Further Reading 79

Exercises 80

Notes 83

4 Sentence Relations and Truth 86

4.1 Introduction 86

4.2 Logic and Truth 88

4.3 Necessary Truth, A Priori Truth and Analyticity 94

4.4 Entailment 98

4.5 Presupposition 101

4. 5.1 Introduction 101
4. 5. 2 Two approaches to presupposition 102
4. 5. 3 Presupposition failure 104
4. 5. 4 Presupposition triggers 106
4. 5. 5 Presuppositions and context 107
4. 5. 6 Pragmatic theories of presupposition 109

4.6 Summary 110

Further Reading 110

Exercises 111
Notes 114

5 Sentence Semantics 1 : Situations 116

5.1 Introduction 116

5.2 Classifying Situations 117

5. 2. 1 Introduction 117
5. 2. 2 verbs and situation types 119
5. 2. 3 A systenz of situation types 123
5. 2. 4 Tense and aspect 124
5. 2. 5 Con1paring aspect across languages 130
5. 2. 6 Combining situation type and aspect 133
X Contents

5.3 Modality and Evidentiality 135

5. 3.1 Modality 135
5.3.2 Mood 138
5. 3. 3 Evidentiality 141

5.4 Summary 143

Further Reading 143

Exercises 144

Notes 147

6 Sentence Semantics 2: Participants 148

6.1 Introduction: C lassifying Participants 148

6.2 Thematic Roles 149

6.3 Grammatical Relations and Thematic Roles 154

6.4 Verbs and Thematic Role Grids 156

6.5 Problems with Thematic Roles 158

6.6 The Motivation for Identi fying Thematic Roles 161

6.7 Voice 164

6. 7. 1 Passive voice 164
6. 7. 2 Comparing pass ive constructions acros s languages 168
6. 7. 3 Middle voice 170

6.8 Summary 174

Further Reading 174

Exercises 175

Notes 178

7 Context and Inference 181

7.1 Introduction 181

7.2 Deixis 182

7. 2. 1 Spatial deixis 182
7. 2.2 Grammaticalization of context 186
7. 2. 3 Extensions of spatial deixis 186
7. 2. 4 Pers on deixis 187
7. 2. 5 Social deixis 188

7.3 , Reference and Context 189

7.4 I<nowledge as Context 190

7. 4.1 Discourse as context 191
7. 4. 2 Background knowledge as context 192
7.4.3 Mutual knowledge 193
7. 4. 4 Giving bacl?-ground knowledge to conzputers 194

7. 5 Information Structure 196

 Contents XI

7.5.1 11-ze in fo rrn ation status of non1inals 196

7.5.2 Focus and topic 199
7.5.3 lnforntation structure and comprehensz'on 201

7.6 Inference 202

7.7 Conversational Implicature 204

7. 7.1 Grice's Jnaxinzs of conversational cooperation 204
7.7.2 Generalizing the Gricean n1axin-zs 207
7.7.3 Relevance theory 208

7.8 Summary 210

Further Reading 212

Exercises 212

Notes 217

8 Functions of Language: Speech as Action 219

8.1 Introduction 219

8.2 Austin's Speech Act Theory 222

8.2.1 In trodu c ri o n 222
8.2.2 Evaluating perforn-zative utterances 224
8.2.3 Explicit and inzp li c it peifornzatives 225
8.2.4 Statements as peiformarives 226
8.2.5 Three fa ce ts of a speech acl 227

8.3 Categorizing Speech Acts 228

8.4 Indirect Speech Acts 230

8.4.1 Introduction 230
8.4.2 Understanding indirect speech acts 232
8.4.3 Indirect acts and politeness 234
8.5 Sentence Types 237

8.6 Summary 239

Further Reading 240

Exercises 240

Notes 242

Part Ill Theoretical Approaches 245

9 Meaning Components 247

9.1 Introduction 247

9.2 Lexical Relations in CA 248

9.2.1 Binary fea ture s 249
9.2.2 Redun da n cy r ules 249
9.3 IZatz's Semantic Theory 250
xii Contents

9. 3. 1 Introduction 250
9. 3. 2 The I(atzian dictionary 251
9. 3. 3 Projection rules 251

9.4 Grammatical Rules and Semantic Components 254

9. 4. 1 The mezhodology 254
9. 4. 2 Thematic roles and linking rules 257

9.5 Components and Conftation Patterns 262

9.6 Jackendoff's Conceptual Structure 266

9. 6. 1 Introduction 266
9. 6. 2 The sen1antic components 267
9. 6. 3 Localist sernantic fields 269
9. 6. 4 Complex events and states 270
9. 6. 5 THINGS: Semantic classes of nominals 271
9. 6. 6 Cross-category generalizations 272
9. 6. 7 Processes of semantic conzbination 273

9.7 Pustejovsky's Generative Lexicon 276

9. 7. 1 Event structure 277
9. 7. 2 Qualia structure 281

9.8 Problems with Components of Meaning 283

9.9 Summary 284

Further Reading 285

Exercises 285

Notes 290

10 Formal Semantics 292

10.1 Introduction 292

10.2 Model-T heoretical Semantics 295

10.3 Translating English into a Logical Metalanguage 296

10. 3. 1 Introduction 296
10. 3. 2 SimpLe statenzents in predicate logic 296
10. 3. 3 Quantifiers in predicate logic 298
10. 3. 4 Son1e advantages of predicate logic translation 301

10.4 T he Semantics of the Logical Metalanguage 302

1 0. 4. 1 Introduction 302
10. 4. 2 The semantic interpretation of predicate logic
symbols 303
10. 4. 3 The don1ain 304
10. 4. 4 The denotation assignment function 304

10.5 Checking the Truth Value of Sentences 305

10. 5.1 Evaluating a simple statement 306
10. 5. 2 Evaluating a cornpound sentence with A 'and' 306
10. 5. 3 Evaluating sentences with the quantifiers 'V and 3 308

10.6 Word Meaning: Meaning Postulates 310

 Contents XIII

10.7 Natural Language Quantifiers and Higher Order

Logic 312
10. 7. 1 Restricted quantifiers 313
10. 7. 2 Generalized quantifiers 314
10. 7. 3 The strong/weak distinction and existential there
sentences 316
10. 7. 4 Mono tonicity and negative polarity items 318
10. 7. 5 Section summary 320

10.8 Intensionality 320

10. 8. 1 Introduction 320
10. 8. 2 Modality 322
10. 8. 3 Tense and aspect 324

10.9 Dynamic Approaches to Discourse 327

10. 9.1 Anaphora in and across sentences 327
10. 9. 2 Donkey sentences 329
10. 9. 3 DRT and discourse anaphora 329

10.10 Summary 334

Further Reading 335

Exercises 336

Notes 339

11 Cognitive Semantics 342

11.1 Introduction 342

11.2 Metaphor 345

11. 2.1 Introduction 345
11. 2. 2 J\!Ietaphor in cognitive senzantics 347
11. 2. 3 Features of metaphor 348
11. 2. 4 The influence of metaphor 351

11.3 Metonymy 352

11.4 Image Schemas 353

11. 4. 1 Containment scherna 354
11. 4. 2 Path schema 355
11. 4. 3 Force sche1nas 356
11.5 Polysemy 357
11. 5. 1 Prepositions 358
11. 5. 2 Modal verbs 362

11.6 Mental Spaces 364

11. 6. 1 Connections between spaces 365
11. 6. 2 Referential opacity 368
11. 6. 3 Presupposition 371
11. 6. 4 Section summary 373

11.7 Langacker's Cognitive Grammar 374

11. 7. 1 Nouns, verbs and clauses 374
11. 7. 2 Construal 376
XIV Contents

11.8 Summary 378

Further Reading 379

Exercises 379

Notes 382

References 385

Index 406
 Figures and
Tables

Figures

1.1 Components of grammar 9

1.2 Reference and sense in the vocabulary 12
2.1 Conceptual networks 39
5.1 Simple tenses 125
5.2 Complex past tense 126
9.1 Projection rules 252
9.2 Conceptual structure of example 9.81 as a tree structure 268
9.3 Conceptual structure of example 9.82 as a tree structure 268
9.4 Conceptual structure of example 9.84 as a tree structure 269
9.5 Semantic classes of nominals 272
10.1 Instants in the flow of time 325
10.2 Intervals of time 326
11.1 Containment 354
11.2 Path schema 356
11.3 Compulsion 356
11.4 Blockage 357
11.5 Removal of restraint 357
11.6 Prototypical above-across sense of over 360
11.7 Sam walked over the hill 360
XVI List of Figures and Tables

11.8 The above sense of over 361

11.9 The covering sense of over 361
11.10 Multiplex version of the covering sense of over 362
11.11 Person-image connector 366
11.12 World-mind connector 367
11.13 Image-person conne ctor 367
11.14 First interpretation of In the filrn) Michelle is a witch 369
11.15 Second interpretation of In the film) Michelle is a witch 370
11.16 Transparent reading of example 11.37 370
11.17 Op a que reading of example 11.37 371
11.18 Prototypical event scheme 375
11.19 Profiling within the a ctio n chain 376

Table

8.1 Possible Somali markers of sentence type 238

 Preface

This is an introduction to semantics for readers new to the subject. The aim
of the book is not to propose a new theory of semantics, nor to promote any
single current approach but to give the reader access to some of the central
ideas in the field and an introduction to some of its most important writers.
Semantics, however, is a very broad and diverse field and keeping the book
to a manageable size has involved a fairly firm selection of topics. Inevitably
this selection will not please everyone but I hope readers will be able to gain
a fee] for what doing semantics is like, and gain the background to proceed
to more advanced and specialized material in the primary literature.
The book assumes no knowledge of semantics but does assume a general idea
of what linguistics is, and some familiarity with its traditional division into
fields like phonetics, phonology, morphology, syntax, etc. Thus it would be
useful if the reader had already looked at a general introduction to linguistics.
The book is organized into eleven chapters, which are grouped into three
main sections. Part I, Preliminaries, consists of the first two chapters and
is concerned with the place of semantics within linguistics and its relations
with the disciplines of philosophy and psychology, which share some of the
same interests. Part II, Semantic Description, is the main part of the book
and introduces central topics in the analysis of word and sentence meaning.
Part III, Theoretical Approaches, reviews three important semantic theor­
ies: componential theory, formal semantics and cognitive semantics.
Each chapter includes a set of exercises to allow the reader to explore the
issues raised, and suggestions for further reading. These will be a small
XVIII Preface

selection of works which provide accessible investigations of the chapter's

topics. In the text there are a large number of references to the semantics lit­
erature. These will frequently be works which are too specialized to attempt
before the reader completes this book, but are given so that any particular
interests may be followed up.
Examples from different languages are given in the transcription of the
original source, and are commented on only when it is germane to the
discussion. A list of symbols and abbreviations used in this text is given in
the Abbreviations and Symbols list on pp. xix-xx.
I have used this book as a text in my courses in the Centre for Language
and Communication Studies, T rinity College Dublin. I would like to thank
my students for their responses and comments which have been invaluable
in getting the text into its present form. I am indebted to Philip Jaggar,
Mark Keane, James Levine and Feargal Murphy, who read the entire manu­
script and made many suggestions, which improved the book and saved me
from my worst mistakes. I am also grateful to those who commented on
particular sections, discussed specific language data, and provided me with
source materials, in particular Abdullahi Dirir Hersi, Jim Jackson, Jeffrey
IZallen, Ruth IZempson, Patricia Maguire, Cathal 0 Hainle, Sarah Smyth,
Tony Veale and Sheila Watts. I am also indebted to two anonymous reviewers
of a preliminary draft who made detailed and very helpful suggestions.
None of the above is of course responsible for how the book turned out in
the end; that is entirely my responsibility. The first draft of the book was
written while I was enjoying the academic hospitality of the Department of
African Languages and Cultures of the School of Oriental and African
Studies, University of London. I would like to thank the members of that
department, in particular Dick Hayward and Philip Jaggar, for making my
time there so enjoyable and profitable. That visit was supported by the
Trinity College Dublin Arts and Social Sciences Benefactions Fund. I would
like to acknowledge the encouragement and support of my colleagues in
CLCS who make the Centre such a stimulating and enjoyable environment
for research and teaching. In particular, I would like to thank its Director,
David Little, for technical and administrative support in writing this book
and John Duggan for help with all things computing.
For this second edition I would like to thank all of the colleagues, readers
and users of this book who sent me their comments. I would like to thank
in particular Barbara Abbott, Martin Emms, T im Fernando, Jeffrey !(allen,
Tadaharu Tanomura, Ib Ulbaek and Carl Vogel. I would also like to thank
the anonymous reviewers who commented on the proposed revisions. I have
made changes throughout the book that I hope will improve it but time and
space constraints have meant that I have not been able to reflect all of the
valuable comments I received. Finally I owe my greatest debts to Joan for
her patience and support and to Alexander for getting me away from it all.
The extract from the screenplay of Interiors in chapter 7 is used by kind
permission, © 1977 United Artists Corporation. All rights reserved.

J.I.S.
 Abbreviations
and Symbols

ACC accusative case

ADJ adjective
ADV adverb
AG agent
AI=> adjectival phrase
Al{T article
CI�ASS classifier
DECL declarative
D�ET determiner
ERG ergative
f feminine gender
FUT future tense
GEN genitive case
IMP imperative
IMPERF imperfective aspect
IMPERS impersonal
I�T instrument
Ii'TDIC indicative mood
LO location
m masculine gender
N noun
NO MIN nominative case
 Context and Inference 217

·.:. � .
. . . � . .

. c. <more than, as mapy as>

d. <five, fou_r>
. e: <non.e·, not all> ·-

7·.8 Below is a joke from the British comedian Les Dawson.(l979)�

Discuss the boy's behaviour in terms of Grice,'s conversatiqn,a]!
maxims: 4 ...
#,

',
'

� ;"'\�·�· �-·:
'• - - •, •
-� ..: --�·
> : • •
.,. • v•., • • •,

... ·Not too that partioul�t. Ja�L A. salesman found· him. &ittiPJt :.·. > )�.:.
bright� .

.
·. ·, - .. .' ():n, the dOOJ;Ste.p· ·One «d-ay.' ,1.$. your mother at ·ho-me .sonrty?'. ·a¢�.
. :. · ._ .

·
· >. asked. ''Y�s/ replied the bo_y" .s� the s:alesman ktiockect_on t�e door_··_·:··�:" .
_·· < : _ . _ .

.
·,.for a few minux�s, then · tr�i�4.: ,riogirlg ·rb� bell;, fjnally b·e. te��9���gl_.� '<:_. , _:. · . ..

��{-;,::,:··:::: :.··,;���:�:e;�!ea���t�i;e�;�t��:
't�:�;<·ii�useL;.-
. �a�e·\:(?i:�:·!)u�a��;./.· ;. :;
thisi�n
• -
· :�.: • ':;",
re,p ly,
· . 0 ',, • •
• '
' ,' ,

> :· ' t�-e

' ·

' • •
'·only
I> , ... I • 0

1 In this transcription, ' = low tone, e.g. e.

2 Lyons ( 1977: vol. 2, 668ff.) distinguishes between textual deixis, where ref­
erence is made to the surface form of words and sentences and impure tex­
tual deixis, where reference is made to some underlying unit of discourse like
a point made, or an argument. He gives an example of the former involving an
anaphoric use of it:

A: That's rhinocerous.
B: A what? Spell it for me.

where B is using it to refer not to a real rhinocerous but to the word rhinocerous
just used by A. In this distinction, our examples here are of the impure variety.
3 In chapter 5 we saw that tense is a deictic system too: dividing zones of time
around the current act of speaking, i.e. the speaker's position in time.
4 Other examples of such spatial metaphors include the one below which is the
normal Irish equivalent to English I enjoyed it:

Bhain me taitneamh as.

rook I enjoyment out of.it
'I enjoyed it.'

5 The study of the role of cultural or comtnon-sense knowledge is an important

focus of investigation in the field of study known as the ethnography of
communication. See Schiffrin (1994: 137-89) for an introductory survey.
6 The term mutual knowledge is often used as a more inclusive term than our
use of background knowledge, i.e. to cover knowledge gained from all the
sources mentioned above_, including deixis, the discourse and background
 Functions of
Language:
Speech as
Action

f8.1 Introduction

lin this chapter we maintain our focus on language use and we look at the
1 1dea that part of the meaning of an utterance is its intended social function.
�t seems clear that learning to communicate in a language involves more
;than acquiring the pronunciation and grammar. We need to learn how to
1ask questions, make suggestions, greet and thank other speakers. In other
words, we need to learn the uses to which utterances are conventionally put
in the new language community and how these uses are signalled, if we are
to use the language in a realistic way. Similarly, as hearers, part of under­
standing the meaning of an utterance is knowing whether we have been
asked a question, invited to do something, etc. In a terminology introduced
by J. L. Austin (1975), which we discuss in section 8.2, such functions of
:language are called speech acts.
In the last chapter we discussed areas of meaning which highlight the role
of context and speaker-hearer interpretation. We recognized that if we admit
a distinction between semantics and pragmatics, some of these topics, e.g.
conversational implicature, seem to fall under pragmatics, while others, like
reference and deixis, seem to straddle the semantics-pragmatics divide. The
study of speech acts occupies a similar border area. In many cases the
intended function is linguistically coded: languages often have, for example,
412 Index

Rappaport Hovav, M., 178n, 179-80n, semantic field, 269-70

257-61 see also lexical field
RECIPIENT thematic role, 152, 155, semantic roles see thematic ro]es
157-8, 165- 6, 179n semantic shift, 77
recursion, 10-11 semelfactive see situation type
redundancy rules, 249-50 semiotics, 5, 17
reference, 12, 23-9, 30 -2, 36, 46, 303, sense, 12, 32, 46, 49n, 58, 323
323, 344, 364, 371, 373 sense enumeration, 281
causal theory, 28, 36, 48 sentence type, 222, 237-9
and context, 189-90 set theory, 303, 340n
coreference, 202-3 short-hands, 189-90
description theory, 28, 36 signifier/signified, 5
names, 27 signs, 5
nominal, 26, 28 simile, 345
referential opacity, 321-2, 368-71 sincerity
opaque contexts, 369-71, 336 in speech acts, 225, 243
referential theory of meaning see situation type, 117-34, 267-71, 277,
denotational theory of meaning 325
register, 65 accomplishment, 123, 143, 280
relevance theory, 208-10 and aspect, 133 -4
Rendille, 77 arelic, 122-3
representational theory of meaning, durative, 121, 123, 124, 143, 273
24-5, 46, 292 dynamic, 118, 120-1, 143
restrictive quantifier see quantifier inchoative, 72, 120-1, 270-1,
resultative adjective, 72 278-9
reverse see antonyms iterative, 121, 273
rheme, 218n process, 278
Role and Reference Grammar, 11 punctual, 121-2
Rosch, Eleanor, 37, 39, 76 resultative, 120-1, 122
R-principle, 207- 8 semelfactive, 123 -4, 273
Russell, Bertrand, 28, 29, 104-5 state, 118, 123, 124, 143, 267-9,
Russian, 130-3, 147n, 173 277-8
relic, 122-3
Sadock, Jerrold M., 227, 238 -9, 243n transition, 278
Sanskrit, 171 Smith, Carlotta S., 123 -4, 131-2
Sapir, Edward, 33, 42, 56-7 Somali, 77, 171-2, 180n, 185, 199-200,
de Saussure, Ferdinand, 5, 12, 83n, 343 237- 8
scalar implicature, 207- 8 sound symbolism, 21n
scanning, 378 souRCE thematic role, 150, 178n,
Schank, Roger, 195 -6 260-1
scripts, 195 -6 Spanish, 140, 173, 183, 188, 262- 4
Searle, J.R., 221, 228-30, 231-4, 242n, speech acts, 219-44
343 categorizing speech acts, 228-30
selection restrictions, 252-3, 283 idiomatic quality of, 233 - 4
semantic components, 247-91 indirect speech acts, 230-7
distinguishers, 251, 257 and politeness, 234-7
markers, 251, 257 Sperber, Dan, 109-10, 208-10
in motion verbs, 262-6 spray/load verbs, 166-7, 257-61
see also componential analysis Stalnaker, R., 109, 193