EBS 280: Introduction to Semantics

Lecture 5
Topic: Contextual Meaning
 Lesson Outline

• Objectives
• Reading
• Context and meaning
• Functions of context
• Summary
• Self-study questions
 Lesson Objectives

• By the end of the lesson, the student should be able to:

1. Explain the term context.
2. Explain the role of context in interpretation.
3. State and explain five functions of context.
 Reading

• Required reading
• Sekyi-Baidoo, Y. (2002). Semantics: An introduction. Kumasi: Wilas Press Ltd. Chapter 9.
 Context and Meaning
• Context is important in the realisation of meaning.
• Since language occurs in a context, there is no way we can effectively
interpret it without taking into consideration the effect of the social,
historical, cultural, visual, audible and totality of the circumstances within
which it is enacted.
 The role of context in meaning
The role of context in meaning is seen at both micro and macro levels.
• Micro level: at this level, context provides the interpretive framework for
classifying any utterance. It helps to define the physical and social
environment within which the utterance is set.
• Aspects of context which provide this interpretative framework are:
• Time, place, occasion or formality, etc.
• The particular act and the ends of the acts
• The participant and participant relationship
 The role of context in meaning cont’d
• At the macro level: at this level, context gives information by which specific
parts of any speech are interpreted. This is in reference to words, phrases,
sentences and even larger parts of any utterance. Context does this by
providing information about the things with which speech is associated.
 Functions of Context

1. To disambiguate structures

üAmbiguity is a situation where a word or an expression has more than one

interpretation. E.g., the word ‘bank’
I am going to the bank. (bank can mean financial institution or river side)
ü Disambiguating the sentence:
a. A non-linguistic context of holding a cheque book will give a clue that the
speaker is going to withdraw some money.
b. I am going to the bank to buy some fish. In this sentence, the linguistic context
of some fish guides us to know that the speaker is going to the river bank.
 Functions of context

2. To supply the referents/antecedents of deictic, reference, and

substitution elements.
üContext helps to point out antecedents or referents to which pronouns
refer. For example:
a. Nelly, Jess, and Mimi were late home.
b. They looked hungry.
• Sentence (b) does not give clear meaning because the referent of they
can only be understood from sentence (a). That is, they refers to the
three persons mentioned in (a).
 Functions of context

3. Context is also used to determine the class and function of language items.

For example:
• Sinking ships are dangerous.
üSinking can be seen as an adjective, modifying the kind of ship that is dangerous.
In the same example, sinking can also be a verb to mean ‘to submerge’, which will
be that it is the act of submerging ship that is dangerous.
 Functions of context
4. Context is used in supplying the meaning of elliptical constructions.

ü Ellipsis is the omission of a word(s) from speech or writing, without them the
structure could still make sense. For example,
a. Ella, my food.
ü In sentence (b), my food would have been discussed earlier, thus, my food tells
the hearer/addressee that ‘I am waiting’ or ‘she should bring the food’.
 Functions of context (cont’d)
5. Context helps us to determine the locution of utterances.
• The meaning of utterance can be said to be its locution. There are three
forms of locutionary forces/meanings (locutionary, illocutionary, and
perlocutionary).
Context and the locution of utterances
i. The locutionary assigns ordinary meaning of an utterance (sentence
meaning).
ii. The illocutionary is about the intention of an utterance, as
declarative, question, command, etc.
iii. The Perlocutionary is the effect of an utterance on a listener or
hearer, or the reaction it causes.
 Context and the locution of utterances
• For example, (a) the food is burning may mean:
• Put off the fire
• Put down the food from the fire
• Turn down the fire.
• The sentence (a) appears a declarative (illocution) but the
listener may consider it a command or request (perlocutionary
meaning).
 Functions of Context

6. Context helps to determine the definiteness of referring

expressions.

This means through context we can tell whether a referring expression

is definite (previously mentioned or has universal uniqueness) or
indefinite
 Summary
• In this lesson we have studied context and meaning by looking at the role
of context in interpretation at both the micro and macro levels.
• We have also discussed the functions of context in semantics such as to
disambiguate structures, to supply referents/antecedents etc.
 Self study questions

• Write the aspects of context which offer interpretation at micro level.

• Explain the ways in which context contribute to meaning.
• Discuss five functions of context in semantics.
 Contributors

Prepared by: Edited by:

• Christopher Ankomah • Dr. Isaac N. Mwinlaaru
• Kingsley M. Yeboah • Mr. Jonas Adu
• Yaa Asantewaa Bediako • Mr. Yaw Kyeremeh Sarkodie