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Non-literal meaning
 So far….

Literal meaning:
➢the meanings of words and sentences are essentially
independent of the context or occasion of use
➢the meaning of a composite expression is essentially
compositional

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 The last unit…

Non-literal meaning
or
Figurative meaning
➢Idiomatic or fixed expressions
➢Metaphor
➢Metonymy
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What to
01 Idioms
cover?
02 Metaphor

03 Metonymy
 1. Idioms

Examples:
Let the cat out of the bag:
=> Reveal a secret
Take the bull by the horns
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=> Takes chare of theLayout Clean Text Slide for your Presentation
situation
to allow themselves to behave much
more freely than usual and enjoy
themselves
let their hair down for washing

in a party
physically carried something over a pile of hot coals
speak angrily to someone because they have done
something we disapproved of

Said something by accident that embarrassed or

upset someone
❑ Many idioms are not compositional: the meanings are
not made of by combining the literal senses of the
individual words in each phrase.

❑ Some idioms are partly compositional => metaphor

 Example

My car is a lemon.
Dr Jones is a butcher.
 Seem anomalous if meaning is taken literally.
 May take partial figurative meaning

My car is a lemon. My car is defective

Dr Jones is a butcher. Dr Jones is not a good doctor
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 something about Frank’s behaviour is untrustworthy

Jane lives near the bottom or lower part of the mountain

Sam is sloppy or disorganized.

Marie is sitting at the end of a rectangular table usually

reserved for an important person.
 How to interpret the meaning?
1: interpreted as though they are actually literally true
2: various kinds of inference strategies are used to give the
intended non-literal interpretation within the context in which
the sentence is uttered
 2. Metaphors
presented by George Lakoff and Mark Johnson (LJ) in their influential book
Metaphors We Live By (1980)

Speakers make use of a familiar area of knowledge, called the

source domain, to understand an area of knowledge that is
less familiar, the target domain.
My car is a lemon. My car is defective
Dr Jones is a butcher. Dr Jones is not a good doctor

Source domain Target domain

My car, Dr Jones, a lemon, Negative aspect of a lemon

a butcher (sour) => defective car
Negative aspect of a
butcher (messy and rough)
=> not good doctor
❖ Metaphors need to be standardized => ‘fixed by convention’
(LJ 1980: 54)
=> become common ways of expressing negative judgements
about cars and doctors in English
❖ Impossible to say: my car is a pear/apple, Dr Jones is a baker
❖ These examples illustrate idioms originally reflected from
metaphorical relationships which have become fixed over
time.
❖ LJ: language does not only have frozen metaphorical
expressions
❖ 3 types of metaphors: structural metaphors, orientational
metaphor and ontational metaphors
Structural metaphors
LIFE IS A JOURNEY
TIME IS MONEY

IDEAS ARE MONEY

Orientational metaphors

Example:
I’m feeling up today,
That movie boosted my spirits Happy is up.
Her spirits rose at the news.
 Conscious is up.
Health is up.
Having control is up.

Being good is up.

Standard/virtue is up.
4. Quantity is up.
5. Status is up.
Ontological metaphors
- Taking abstract concept as a physical entity
- Examples:
(1) Inflation is lowering our standard of living.
(2) Inflation is increasing every year.
(3) The negative aspects of inflation far outweigh
the positive ones.
(4) Inflation is ruining our economy.
(5) We have to fight inflation or it will conquer us.
Personification

(1)That theory explains everything you need to know

about metaphor.
(2)I think that life has cheated me out of any hope of
happiness.
(3)Cancer finally caught up with him.
3. Metonymy
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