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Tema4 - Truth-Conditional Semantics

The document discusses truth-conditional semantics and how it relates to semantic meaning and competence. It explains key concepts like possible worlds, truth conditions, and how semantics can analyze relationships between expressions like synonymy, entailment, tautology, contradiction and contrariness.

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velocipollo3000
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107 views

Tema4 - Truth-Conditional Semantics

The document discusses truth-conditional semantics and how it relates to semantic meaning and competence. It explains key concepts like possible worlds, truth conditions, and how semantics can analyze relationships between expressions like synonymy, entailment, tautology, contradiction and contrariness.

Uploaded by

velocipollo3000
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Tema 4.

Truth-conditional semantics

1
Tema 4. Truth-conditional semantics

“Knowledge of meaning involves (at least) the knowledge


of the conditions under which a sentence is true and those
under which it is false”. (Portner 2005: 13)

‘Knowledge of meaning’ = semantic competence

Conditions = features, description


True: accurate description
False: inaccurate description

2
Tema 4. Truth-conditional semantics

The circle is inside the square

3
Tema 4. Truth-conditional semantics

The circle is inside the square

4
Tema 4. Truth-conditional semantics

Terminological issues:

• Truth-conditions have nothing to do with actual truth or


falsehood (truth-value)

• The meaning of a sentence (its proposition) is a set of truth-


conditions.

• Truth-conditions have to be evaluated against a world (or possible


worlds)

• The extension of a complex expression is, then, the set of all


possible worlds in which it is true.

5
Tema 4. Truth-conditional semantics

Possible worlds:

• Speakers share a great deal of background information


• We evaluate our addressee’s background information

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Tema 4. Truth-conditional semantics

If I start a conversation with:

Will John come to the party?

I assume:
• There will be a party
• You and I know someone named John (i.e. John exists)
• He may or may not come to the party

So, worlds are necessary both in communication and sentence


interpretation.

7
Tema 4. Truth-conditional semantics

Advantages of truth-conditional semantics:

• Logical words: The circle is inside the square and the circle is dark

8
Tema 4. Truth-conditional semantics

Advantages of truth-conditional semantics:

• Logical words

But:

• John and Mary visited the country


• One more step and I’ll kill you

• a tall young man


• a potential/alleged criminal

9
Tema 4. Truth-conditional semantics

Advantages of truth-conditional semantics:

Semantic relations: synonymy

• The square is bigger than the circle (5)


• The circle is smaller than the square (6)

10
Tema 4. Truth-conditional semantics

Synonymy: two expressions with the same truth-conditions

p: The train tracks are under the bridge.


q: The bridge is over the train tracks.
Tema 4. Truth-conditional semantics

Synonymy
p: The glass is half full.
q: The glass is half empty.
Tema 4. Truth-conditional semantics

Semantic relations: entailment

• The circle is inside the square (9)


• The square is bigger than the circle (10)

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Tema 4. Truth-conditional semantics

Entailment
The man killed the rat.
>>The rat is dead

If the proposition p is true, than all the truth


conditions of p must also be satisfied, i.e. all
entailments of p must be true.
Tema 4. Truth-conditional semantics

Advantages of truth-conditional semantics:

Semantic relations: tautology (true in all possible worlds)

• The teacher is the teacher

True
True True True

True True
True
True True
True True
True …
True
15
Tema 4. Truth-conditional semantics

Advantages of truth-conditional semantics:

Semantic relations: contradiction (empty set in all possible worlds)

• The teacher is not the teacher

16
Tema 4. Truth-conditional semantics

Contradictory propositions

p: John Perry is alive.


q: John Perry is dead.

Two expressions both cannot be true, nor can


they both be false.

They are mutually opposed; one is the denial or


negation of the other.
Contrary propositions

p: All students are hard workers.


q: No students are hard workers.

The expressions cannot both be true, but one


expression can be true and the other false or
both can be false.

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