chapter 5-2 semantics ppt 语义学

O UTLINE

1.What is semantics?

2.Approaches to Meaning

3. Lexical Meaning

(1) Sense and Reference

(2).G.Leechs seven types of meaning

(3).Ambiguity of meaning

4.Semantic Analysis

(1) Semantic features (Componential analysis)

(2) Semantic roles

5.Semantic relations

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3.S EMANTIC A NALYSIS

(1) S EMANTIC FEATURES

(C OMPONENTIAL ANALYSIS)

Componential analysis is a way to analyze word meaning. It was proposed by structural semanticists.

The approach is based on the belief that the meaning of a word can be divided into meaning components, which are called semantic features.

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(C OMPONENTIAL ANALYSIS)

Plus (+) and minus (-) signs are used to indicate whether a certain semantic feature is present or absent in the meaning of a word, and these

feature symbols are usu. Written in capitalized letters.

E.g. man

[+ANIMATE, +HUMAN, +ADULT, +MALE]

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(C OMPONENTIAL ANALYSIS)

E.g. Look at some sentences with good syntactic rules, but with odd semantical meaning.

The bread like the girl.

The bread studied English.

The bread is listening to the music.

S=NP + V+ NP

If subject is a N, N should be ANIMATE BEING, that is +ANIMATE, +HUMAN4

(C OMPONENTIAL ANALYSIS)

So we have to analyze the meaning in terms of semantic features like +/-ANIMATE, +/-HUMAN, +/-MALE, +/-ADULT.

Eg. Boy

[+ANIMATE, +HUMAN, +MALE, -ADULT]

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(1) S EMANTIC FEATURES

(C OMPONENTIAL

ANALYSIS )

E.g.

The ____ is reading a novel.

N [+ANIMATE, +HUMAN, -MALE, -ADULT]

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girl

(1) S EMANTIC FEATURES

(C OMPONENTIAL ANALYSIS) e.g.

MAN GIRL WAITRESS ROOSTER ANIMATE++++ HUMAN+++_

MALE+__+

ADULT+_++

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(2) S EMANTIC R OLES

Huddleston, R. (1984) Introduction to the Grammar of English. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press

According to Huddleston (1984), semantic roles is

a set of semantically defined notions to describe the relationships among a

sentence parts, which is also called

thematic roles.

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(2) S EMANTIC R OLES Most sentences describe situations consisting of an event that involves particular participants, locations, and times.

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⏹

Agent ⏹

Patient/theme ⏹

Instrument ⏹

Experiencer ⏹

Stimulus ⏹Beneficiary/benefactive •Location •Source •Goal •Purpose •Direction •Path

•causer

(2) S EMANTIC R OLES 10Grammatical relations provide labels for the

different types of structural relationships that hold between a head and its argument.

Subject > Od >Oi > oblique (pp)