ENG 507

LESSON 1
SHORT QUESTION:
Explain the difference between semantics and pragmatics.

Semantics is concerned with the literal, de-contextualized, and grammatical meaning of linguistic signs.
It focuses on the conventional meaning of words. Pragmatics, on the other hand, studies the meaning as
communicated by the speaker and interpreted by the listener, including invisible meaning and the
influence of context.

Where is the borderline between semantics and pragmatics, and how can it be
defined?

The borderline can be seen as falling at the division between encoded and inferred aspects of meaning,
truth-conditional and non-truth-conditional aspects, or between sentence meaning and speaker
meaning. Semantics deals with the meanings of linguistic items, while pragmatics is concerned with
what is conveyed in a specific context.

How does Chapman distinguish between semantics and pragmatics in terms of

sentences and utterances?

According to Chapman, semantics is concerned with sentences as linguistic entities, analyzing semantic
facts about language. Pragmatics, on the other hand, is concerned with utterances, which are instances
of the production of sentences or sentence fragments, considering their spatio-temporal and physical
properties.

What is the role of logic in the study of language and meaning?

Logic is concerned with the ways ideas relate, combine, and derive other ideas with confidence. In
linguistic discussions, logicians use propositions as the basic unit. Propositions are the meanings
expressed by declarative sentences, and their logical meaning is determined by the principle of
compositionality.

Explain the difference between explicit and implicit meanings in pragmatics.

Pragmatists are interested in cases where the speaker's intended meaning (implicit) differs from the
literal meaning of words (explicit). Implicit meanings often convey more than what is literally expressed,
and there are shared pragmatic principles between speakers and hearers for intended interpretations.
Pragmatists seek to understand these principles and why speakers heavily rely on implicit meaning.
 LESSON 2

SHORT QUESTIONS:
How is semantics defined as a technical term in linguistics?

Semantics is the study of meanings in language. It encompasses various aspects of language, including
pronunciation, sentence construction, and meanings. However, there is no general consideration to
describe the entirety of meaning.

What is the relationship between semantics and other fields of study, according to
Saeed (2004)?

Semantics has associations with philosophy and psychology, as they also investigate the creation and
transmission of meanings. However, an individual's meaning is not considered a part of the general
study of semantics.

How do linguists position semantics in a linguistic model, according to Palmer

(1997)?

Linguists often place semantics at one end and phonetics at the other end in a linguistic model, with
grammar situated in the middle. Some argue that the purpose of semantics is to establish a component
of grammar parallel to other components such as syntax or phonology.

What is the significant difference between word meaning and phrase/sentence

meaning, as mentioned by Saeed (2004)?

The difference lies in productivity. While it is always possible to create new words, creating new phrase
and sentence meanings is not as frequent. Chomsky emphasizes the creativity of sentence formation,
highlighting the generative grammar's insight that a small set of rules allows the creation of a vast
number of sentences.

According to Palmer (1997), what are some reasons for semantic changes in the
historical development of language?

Semantic changes can result from generalization (e.g., "arrive"), specialization (e.g., "girl"), fortuitous
events (e.g., "money"), new needs (e.g., "car"), and taboo. Taboo often leads to the replacement of
words used for unpleasant things. Historical linguistics or Comparative Philology aims to reconstruct the
history of languages and study their common sources.

What is Psycholinguistics, and why is it relevant to the study of language?

Psycholinguistics is the study of how we process language in both its production and reception. It
explores the relationship between psychology and linguistics. Behaviorist analyses of meaning have
been proposed through the influence of certain psychologists, such as Charles Morris, who focused on
signs and their denotation or signification.

Define Semiotics and its relationship to linguistics.

Semiotics is the general study of the use of sign systems. Linguistic meaning is considered a subset of the
broader human ability to use signs to convey meanings. Scholars like Ferdinand de Saussure view
linguistics as part of Semiotics, which explores the relationship between signifiers and their signifieds.
Terminologies in Semiotics include signifier, signified, and sign, forming the smallest unit of meaning.

What are the types of signs in Semiotics, and how are they distinguished according
to C. S. Peirce?

The types of signs are Icon, Index, and Symbol.

Iconic signs: The signifier resembles the signified, such as a picture representing its real-life subject.

Indexical Signs: The signifier is caused by the signified.

Symbol: A sign where the relationship between the signifier and the signified is arbitrary, relying on
convention rather than resemblance or causation.

LESSON 3

SHORT QUESTIUON:

What are "Reference" and "Sense," and who introduced these terms?

"Reference" and "Sense" were introduced by Friedrich Ludwig Gottlob Frege. "Reference" pertains to
the relationship between an expression and what it stands for on specific occasions of utterance, while
"Sense" is decontextualized meaning abstracted from numerous occurrences in texts, focusing on intra-
linguistic relations.

How is "Reference" defined by Lyons (1977) and Saeed (2004)?

According to Lyons (1977), "Reference" is the relationship between an expression and what it stands for
on particular occasions of its utterance. Saeed (2004) defines it as the relationship by which language
looks onto the world, often called reference, representing meanings of words in the real world.

What is the difference between "Reference" and "Sense"?

"Reference" deals with the relationship between an expression and what it stands for in the real world,
while "Sense" is a decontextualized meaning abstracted from linguistic elements' relationships,
concerned with intra-linguistic relations.

Define "Utterance," "Sentence," and "Proposition."

"Utterance" is a natural unit of speech bounded in articulation, representing a particular piece of

language spoken or written in a specific context. A "Sentence" is a well-formed string of words obeying
grammatical rules and may contain multiple propositions. A "Proposition" is a declarative sentence
uttered to make a statement about some state of affairs in the external world.

How do "Utterance," "Sentence," and "Proposition" differ in terms of abstraction

and concreteness?

"Utterance" is the most concrete level of language, representing a specific piece of language spoken or
written in a particular context. "Sentence" is at a higher level, representing a complete expression
formed by combining propositions. "Proposition" is the lowest level, representing words in the lexicon
with meaning.

Define "Literal Meanings" and "Non-Literal Meanings" according to Saeed (2003).

"Literal Meanings" are conventional meanings described by a dictionary, reflecting factual accuracy in
neutral language. "Non-Literal Meanings" involve deliberately describing something in untrue or
impossible terms to achieve special effects, known as figurative language, and are associated with
symbolic meaning.

What are the three different schools of thought on the distinction between
semantics and pragmatics?

Semanticism: Views semantics, morphology, and syntax as pure linguistics, excluding pragmatics due to
its perceived reliance on personal interpretation.

Pragmatism: Argues that real conversation takes place within pragmatics, considering semantics alone
as partial and incomplete.

Combined Approach: Asserts that both semantics and pragmatics are crucial, with pragmatics providing
non-literal meanings and semantics offering literal meanings.

LESSON 4
MCQS:
What is the focus of semantics in relation to language?
A. Phonetics

B. Syntax

C. Meaning

D. Grammar

Answer: C. Meaning

In the context of semantics, what is the significance of the verb "mean" in various sentences?

A. It represents syntactic structure.

B. It conveys emotions.

C. It indicates intention, sign, or natural-conventional meaning.

D. It serves as a grammatical marker.

Answer: C. It indicates intention, sign, or natural-conventional meaning.

What is the relationship between meaning and language, according to Palmer (1997)?

A. Meaning is unrelated to language.

B. Meaning is connected to language through lexicon and grammar.

C. Language is irrelevant to the study of meaning.

D. Meaning exists independently of language.

Answer: B. Meaning is connected to language through lexicon and grammar.

What characterizes "Meaning Holism" according to Quine (1960)?

A. Meaning is solely dependent on syntax.

B. Meaning depends on the relationship with other words.

C. Meaning is arbitrary and varies individually.

D. Meaning is fixed and universal.

Answer: B. Meaning depends on the relationship with other words.

What is the "Idea Theory of Meaning" primarily concerned with?

A. Lexical semantics

B. Syntax
C. Concepts, thoughts, or ideas in the mind

D. Phonetics

Answer: C. Concepts, thoughts, or ideas in the mind

What is the main criticism faced by the Idea Theory of Meaning?

A. It lacks a psychological basis for concepts or ideas.

B. It relies too heavily on grammar.

C. Concepts are universal and consistent.

D. Ideas have a language-like nature.

Answer: A. It lacks a psychological basis for concepts or ideas.

According to the theory that "Meanings are out in the world," what is emphasized about language?

A. Language is an arbitrary social convention.

B. Language reveals universal patterns from the structure of the mind.

C. Language is fixed and unchanging.

D. Language is irrelevant to meaning.

Answer: B. Language reveals universal patterns from the structure of the mind.