Exercise

Give some semantic features of the words.

Uncle:
Crocodile
Bee
Niece
Dragonfly

Semantics 1
Referent, reference and sense

Semantics 2
1. What is referent/reference and sense?
2. Types of references:
Variable Reference
Constant Reference
Co-reference:

Semantics 3
Exercise
Exercise 6: What is identified by the word mean or meaning in
the following examples, i.e. reference or sense? Write R for
reference and S for sense.
______1. When Albert talks about “his former friend”, he means me.
_____ 2. Daddy, what does logic mean?
_____ 3. “Purchase” has the same meaning as “buy”.
_____ 4. Look up the meaning of democracy in your dictionary.
_____ 5. If you look out of the window now, you’ll see who I mean.

Semantics 4
Denotation and connotation

Semantics 5
What is denotation?

What is connotation?

Semantics 6
Distinction between denotation and connotation
DENOTATION CONNOTATION

what a lexical item emotions and/or attitudes towards

means what a lexical item refers to

core, central peripheral

referential social, affective

Semantics 7
Some English words usually have positive connotations
(+); others usually have neutral connotations (∅); still
others usually have negative connotations (−):
EX:
- mother/mom , woman, witch ;
- father/dad, man, the old man;
- slender/slim, thin, skinny;
- plump/chubby, overweight, fat.

Semantics 8
 Word Denotation Connotation
Bachelor

Spinster

December

Semantics 9
Ex: Identify all the possible connotations associated with the word:
Christmas, rose and fox.
Christmas:
 Positive:
 Negative:
Rose:
Fox:

Semantics 10
 Literal meaning
& figurative meaning

Semantics 11