 Presuppositions and entailments

Two aspects of what is communicated but not said

 Presupposition
A is something the speaker assumes to be the case prior to make an utterance.  A
presupposition is something the speaker assumes to be the case prior to making an
utterance. Speakers, not sentences, have presupposition. •

An entailment is something that logically follows from what is asserted in the

utterance. Sentences, not speakers, have entailments. Speakers have presuppositions
while sentences have entailments.

A presupposition is something that the speaker assumes to be the case prior to making
an utterance. It’s the speakers, not the sentences that have presuppositions.

Example : Mary’s brother bought three horses.

Presupposition: Mary exists, Mary has a brother, Mary has only one brother, Mary’s
brother is rich. = speaker’s subjective presupposition, all can be wrong.

Entailment: Mary’s brother bought something, bought three animal, two horses, one
horse etc. = the speaker’s beliefs are right or wrong.

There are several types of presuppositions.

1. Existential Presupposition:
The speaker presupposes the existence of the entities.

Ex:
Marie’s house is new.

 Marie exists.
 Marie has a house.

2. Factive Presupposition:
Certain verbs or constructions indicate that something is a fact.

Ex:
I regret believing him.
 I believed him.

I’m glad it’s over.

 It’s over.

3. Lexical Presupposition:
The speaker can convey another meaning using one word
He called me again.
  He called me before.

She gave up smoking.

 She used to smoke.

4. Structural Presupposition:
Use of certain words and phrases makes some presuppositions.

When did you call her?

 You called her.

Why did you buy this dress?

 You bought a dress.

5. Non- factive Presupposition:

Certain words indicate that some things are not true.

I pretended to agree with her.

 I did not agree with her.

She dreamt she was rich.

 She is not rich.

6. Counterfactual Presupposition:
It implies that what is presupposed is not true, and the contrary is true.

If he hadn’t been my friend, I wouldn’t have helped him.

 He is my friend.

What is an Entailment?

Entailment is the relationship between two sentences/propositions, where the truth of one
proposition implies the truth of the other since both of them are involved with the meaning of
words. It’s the sentences, not speakers that have entailments. Entailments also depend on the
meaning of the sentence, not the meaning of the context.

For example,

1. The terrorists assassinated the king.

2. The king died.
3. The terrorists assassinated someone.

b) and c) are true because sentence a) is true. Thus, their truth depends on the meaning of the
utterance.
Entailment is not a pragmatic concept. It is defined as what logically follows from what is
asserted in the utterance, symbolized by II-. Sentences, not speakers, have entailments. Dr.
Shadia Y. Banjar 22

Background vs. Foreground entailment • In one occasion, one sentence can has a number of
background entailments but one foreground entailment. • Foreground entailments which is
defined by stress, is more important for interpreting intended meaning. • The speaker will
necessarily produce a very large number of background entailments but the speaker will
indicate how these entailments are to be ordered. How? It can be done by stress and by using
special structures. So that the hearer will understand which entailment is assumed to be more
important for interpreting intended meaning.
What is the difference between Entailment and Presupposition?

Meaning:

Entailment: Entailment is the relation between sentences or propositions.

Presupposition: Presupposition is an assumption a speaker makes prior to making an

utterance.
Speakers vs Sentences:

Entailment: Sentences have entailments.

Presupposition: Speakers have presuppositions.

Truth:

Entailment: The negation of the first sentence will affect the truth of the second sentence.

1. The king was assassinated.

 The king died.

2. Negation: The king was not assassinated.

 The king died. →  not true.

Presupposition: The negation of the first utterance may not affect the second sentence.

1. Her car is new.

 She has a car.

2. Negation: Her car is new.

 She has a car.→ presupposition is not changed.