MEETING 3

SENSE, REFERENCE, REFERENT

Reference and Sense-1

• Reference : the relation between unit of language and the entity in

the world

• The relationship between

• and the expression ‘heart’
• and the expression ‘star’
Reference and Sense-1

• Referent
• ----- Referent of the expression ‘heart’

• ----- Referent of the expression ‘star’

Sense

• The relationship inside the language that creates meaning.

• It is related with the complex system of relationship between one
linguistic element with other linguistic elements such as (word-word,
phrase –phrase, etc).
• E.g.
• Every house has got a main bedroom.
• Every –house has different sense with individual word, every and
house
Reference

• The relationships between language and the world

• It deals with the relationship between the language elements (word,
phrase, and clause) and the non linguistic elements (the world of
experience)
• E.g
• William Shakespeare lived in this house
William Shakespeare indicates a person while this house indicates a thing
KINDS OF REFERENCE-1

Variable reference
1 expression
> 1 referents
My ear
KINDS OF REFERENCE-2

Constant reference
1 expression
1 referent
The sun
KINDS OF REFERENCE-3

>1 expressions
?? 1 referent
The morning star
Venus The evening star Venus
Sense

• Relationship between linguistics units

• E.g. antonymy, synonymy
Conclusion
• Reference : relationship between a unit of language and an entity in
the world
• Referent : the entity referred by reference
• Kinds of reference : variable, constant , ..
• Sense : the relationship between units of language
Discussion

• Group work:
• Make up a conversation containing three kinds of reference and
explain the differences of the reference