UGED1111D/E Logic 2020/21 Summer Term

Lecture 2 Ordinary Language and Meaning Analysis: Class Exercise

1) Determine whether the following statements have the same literal meaning. If not, explain
what the difference is.1
a) Everyone is not sick.
b) Not everyone is sick.

c) Do not say anything if the police are here.

d) Do not say anything in case the police are here.

e) Nothing that is good is cheap.

f) Nothing that is cheap is good.

g) There are many restaurants and the best one is The French Laundry.
h) There is no restaurant better than The French Laundry.

2) Determine whether each of the following statements is ambiguous. If so, identify the
possible interpretations.2
a) Newspaper headline: “Lack of Brains Hinders Medical Research”
b) Bring your birth certificate or your passport and your identity card.

1
Lau (2011), Chapter 2 “Thinking and Writing Clearly”, pp.19-20
2
Ibid. Chapter 5 “Linguistic Pitfalls”, p.51
3) Identify which linguistic pitfall is committed in each of the passages below. Then briefly
explain your answer by applying the corresponding definition.

(a) unsubstantial meaning 語意虛浮 (b) conceptual confusion 概念混淆

(c) conceptual distortion 概念扭曲 (d) absolute vacuity 絕對空廢

(e) relative vacuity 相對空廢

a) 記者：局方是否不鼓勵學校自行驗水，以確定鉛含量沒有超標？

局長：校方如果自行驗水，須依足程序，否則的話，結果會不準確。

b) 我只是一名低級職員。所以即使我犯了低級錯誤，也是情有可原。

c) 民主不是萬能的，因民主無法解決民主不能解決的問題。

d) 2009 年 9 月 28 日，浙江省永嘉縣法院開庭審理了平陽縣委原常委、常務副縣長徐定錦
涉嫌受賄、濫用職權案。令法庭意想不到的是，徐定錦當庭發表了雷人語錄：“我從來都
是收物不收錢，收禮不受賄，不能算犯罪！” (摘自 “中國人大新聞”， 2009/9/29; 思方
導航，p.38)

e) 很多人經常將平等二字掛在嘴邊，但平等的社會真的是理想的嗎? 難道我們想每一個人
的智商、高度、體重和樣貌全部平等嗎?

f) Invigilator: The exam will last for 2 hours. Students will not be allowed to go to washroom
towards the end of the exam.

g) 你不可在街上大聲讀出自己的名字，因這是侵犯私隱的行為。

i) 危疾保險條文：本計劃會為投保者患癌症提供兩次保障。