Semantics

Semantics-concerned with the investigation of meaning in a language without any reference to the context of situation

The study of linguistic meaning of morphemes, words, phrases and sentences is the field of semantics.

Linguistic semantics deals with the conventional meaning conveyed by the use of words, phrases and sentences of a language.

Subfields of semantics:Lexical semanticsSentential semanticsLexical semantics: Concerned

with the meaning of words and the meaning relations among words and phrases.

Sentential semantics: concerned with the meaning of syntactic units larger than the word

Collocative meaning:Linguistic communication

includes the communication of something which tends to occur in the context of another word, it is known as collocative meaning.

For exp: Pretty and handsome, share common ground in the meaning but can be distinguished by the range of nouns.

Types of meaning

Conceptual meaning: Logical, cognitive and denotive content or briefly ‘sense’ is believed to play the central role in linguistic communication. This type of meaning is labeled ‘conceptual meaning’.

This type indicate that the structure lie at the foundation of all linguistic patterning.

The principal of contractiveness and structure represent the way language is organized respectively on the paradigm or vertical and syntagmatic or horizontal axes of linguistic structure.

For the analysis of any sentence we need to establish a phonological, syntactic and semantic representation and the stages by which one level of representation can be derived from another.

Connotative Meaning:A meaning of meaning can be what is

communicated by virtue of what language refers to.

Connotative meaning first be considered to be related with real world experience one associates with an expression when one uses or hears it.

Connotative meaning is compared with conceptual meaning since convocations considerably according to culture, historical period and the experience of the individual.

This type of meaning is open ended just like our knowledge about the universe is open ended.

Social meaning: In linguistic communication, the context of situation in which language is used performs a crucial role. Social meaning is based on situation of the society.

Crystal and Davy have recognized several dimensions of socio-stylistic variation: dialect time,province,status,modality and singularity.

Hyponyms: Some words or terms are used to refer to classes, groups, types and the like. Each class, groups, types, kinds and the like. Each class, group, type or kind possesses some members.

Some items are included in one item.

A hyponym is a word whose meaning is encompassed by the meaning of the other word.

Homonyms: The words which are pronounced and written in the same way, but convey different meanings. For exp: Lie-Please lie down.

Don’t lie, tell the truth.Homophones: words that are

pronounced in the same way, but written differently and often have different meanings. For exp: no and know, so and sew

Prototypes: The idea of characteristic instances of the category is known as the prototype.

The concept of prototype helps to explain the meaning of certain words.

Polysemy: When we encounter two or more words with the same form or related meanings then it is polysemy.

Synonyms: When a word posses the same or nearly the same meaning as another word, it is called a synonyms.

Antonyms: Two forms with different meanings are called antonyms.

Antonyms are divided into two main types, gradable and non- gradable.

Exp:I am bigger than you and she is smaller than you( Gradable)

My grandfather is not alive,(my grandfather is dead-non gradable)