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Introduction to Semantics and Pragmatics

The document provides an overview of semantics and pragmatics, explaining the meanings of words and sentences, as well as their usage in real-life contexts. It covers various aspects of semantics, including lexical semantics, compositional semantics, and theories of meaning, while pragmatics focuses on context, deixis, presupposition, and speech acts. The document highlights the importance of understanding both the literal meanings and the implications of language in communication.

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rosejosephine878
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3 views7 pages

Introduction to Semantics and Pragmatics

The document provides an overview of semantics and pragmatics, explaining the meanings of words and sentences, as well as their usage in real-life contexts. It covers various aspects of semantics, including lexical semantics, compositional semantics, and theories of meaning, while pragmatics focuses on context, deixis, presupposition, and speech acts. The document highlights the importance of understanding both the literal meanings and the implications of language in communication.

Uploaded by

rosejosephine878
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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📘 Semantics and Pragmatics

🔹 I. SEMANTICS – (What words and


sentences mean)
✅ What is Semantics?
Semantics is about what words and
sentences mean. It’s like learning the
meanings of everything people say.
🧩 Parts of Semantics:

1. Lexical Semantics (What words mean)


This part talks about how one word can
mean something, and how words go
together.
🧠 Easy Ideas:
Synonymy: Two words mean almost
the same.
big / large, small / tiny
Antonymy: Two words mean the
opposite.
hot / cold, fast / slow
Gradable: You can go between them
→ tall / short
Complementary: One is totally
opposite → alive / dead
Relational: They go together → buy /
sell, parent / child
Hyponymy: One word is a type of
another.
Apple is a kind of fruit, dog is a kind
of animal
Homonymy: One word, two different
things.
Bat (animal), bat (used in games)
Polysemy: One word, many related
meanings.
Mouth of a person, mouth of a river
Collocation: Words that like to stay
together.
Fast food, make a mistake
Semantic field: A group of words that
go together.
Colors: red, blue, yellow
2. Compositional Semantics (What a
sentence means)
This means putting words together to
understand a whole sentence.
🧠 Example:
The cat chased the mouse.
→ The meaning comes from putting
the words together correctly.
3. Sense and Reference
Sense: What the word is about in your
head.
Reference: What the word points to in
real life.
🧠 Example:
“The President of Nigeria”
→ Sense = a leader
→ Reference = the real person who is
president now
4. Denotation vs. Connotation
Denotation: The exact meaning.
Snake = an animal with no legs.
Connotation: The extra feeling or
idea.
Snake = danger, betrayal
5. Theories of Meaning
These are different ideas about how
words mean things:
Referential Theory: Words point to
things.
Use Theory: Words mean what we use
them for.
Truth-Conditional Theory: A sentence
means something if we know when it's
true or false.
Componential Analysis: Breaking
words into tiny meaning parts.
Man = [+human], [+adult], [+male]

6. Semantic Roles (Who does what?)

7. Ambiguity (When something can mean two


things)
Lexical Ambiguity: One word means
more than one thing.
Bat (animal or baseball bat)
Structural Ambiguity: A sentence can
mean more than one thing.
She saw the man with the telescope.
(Did she use the telescope or did the
man have it?)
🔸 II. PRAGMATICS – (What words mean
when we use them in real life)
✅ What is Pragmatics?
Pragmatics is about how people use
words in real situations. It’s not just
about the meaning, but how and why we
say things.
🧩 Parts of Pragmatics:

1. Context
Context means where, when, and why
we say something.
🧠 Example:
“It’s cold in here.”
→ Could mean:
It's cold.
Close the window, please.
Give me a jacket.
2. Deixis (Pointing Words)
These are words that change meaning
depending on the speaker.
3. Presupposition (What we already know is
true)
It’s something we believe is true before
someone says anything.
🧠 Example:
“John stopped smoking.”
→ We believe John used to smoke.
4. Implicature (Saying something without
really saying it)
It’s when you hint at something.
🧠 Example:
A: “Can you pass the salt?”
B: “It’s right there.”
→ Means: “You can get it yourself.”
5. Speech Acts (What words do)

6. Politeness and Face (Being nice with


words)
Positive face: Wanting to be liked.
Negative face: Wanting freedom (no
pressure).
🧠 Example:
“Can you please help me?” → Polite
“Maybe we could go now?” → Soft
suggestion
7. Maxims of Conversation (The Rules of
Talking)

8. Discourse and Pragmatics


This means how sentences go together in
a talk or story.
🧠 Example:
“I went to the shop. I bought bread.”
→ The two ideas are connected.

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