What is Semantics
Semantics is the area of linguistics that studies the meaning of words and expressions. The meaning of words allows us to differentiate concepts, whether they are concrete (such as between cat and dog) or abstract (as between happiness and sadness).
It also allows us to correctly interpret statements such as He closed his mouth. The meaning of mouth implies that it can be closed. However, it would be very difficult to interpret He closed the forksince in its meaning there are no features that open or close.
There are a series of semantic relationships, of various kinds, that occur between words. We move on to look at some of the most relevant concepts to better understand Semantics, such as semantic features and fields and different relationships of words based on meaning.
Semantic features
We can break down the meaning of words into minimal units called be more. In the end, the be more They are traits that are shared or not: that is, the differences or coincidences that we find.
What is the difference between a curtain and a sheet? The answer may be simple: one is used to keep out light and another to sleep on. We can identify the following semes (or even more), ranging from the most general to the most specific:
Significant Sema 1 Sema 2 Sema 3 Rectangular fabric curtain to block light Rectangular fabric sheet for sleeping
Let’s now imagine the difference between a tiger, a cat and a rabbit. At first glance, it is clear, but let’s see which semes they share and which they don’t:
Tiger: animal, mammal, carnivore, feline, large size, wild
Cat: animal, mammal, carnivore, feline, small size, domestic
Rabbit: animal, mammal, herbivore, leporid, small size, wild
We could add more to the previous semes, such as striped fur, big ears, retractable claws, etc.
Semantic fields
A semantic field or semantic family is a set of words that share semes. A mosquito, a whale, an octopus, and a dog share the seme “animal.” Therefore, they belong to the semantic field of “animals.”
We can create different fields depending on the semes they share:
The octopus and the whale also belong to the semantic field of “marine animal”, since they share the seme “marine”. The whale also belongs, together with the dog, to the semantic field of “mammal animal”, because they share the seme “mammal”. “.
However, we could not create the semantic field of “pet” since only the dog has such a seme. Yes, animals such as cats, canaries and any other animal purchased in a pet store can belong to this semantic field.
Examples of semantic fields:
House (share the semes of “objects” and “house”): chair, table, bed, sofa, lamp, door. Herbivorous animals (share the semes of “animals” and “herbivores”): zebra, cow, giraffe, wildebeest, deer.Classroom (they share the semes “objects” and “classroom”): blackboard, table, chair, projector, notebook.Food (they share the seme “to eat”): steak, legume, egg, corn.
Synonymy and antonymy
Both synonymy and antonymy are semantic relationships that are established by the similarity or distinction between meanings.
We talk about synonymy when two or more words they mean the same. For example, excellent, extraordinary and sublime They are synonyms because they represent the same meaning.
It can be recognized that they are synonyms because they can be exchanged in the same statement without changing the meaning:
His English exam was excellent/extraordinary/sublime
More examples of synonyms:
Do and elaborateFinish and finishBegin and beginWalk and walk
It must be taken into account that many words are only synonymous in certain contexts, such as acquire and buy:
Acquired/bought a new bicycle
acquired computer knowledge (not bought)
There is antonymy when a word means the opposite than the other. For example, happy and sad with antonyms, just like high and low.
More examples of antonyms:
Start and finishOn and offBeautiful and uglySmooth and rough
Polysemy
In the study of Semantics, phenomena such as polysemy appear. It consists of the same word has different meanings.
The word mouse It has several meanings, including ‘small rodent’ and ‘device connected to a computer’.
When a word is polysemous, several meanings appear in the dictionary. The meanings are numbered and each one indicates a different meaning.
For example, the word cape It is polysemic, and appears this way in dictionaries (we select four meanings and, therefore, four meanings):
Cape
From the Latin caput ‘head’.
1. Each of the extremes of things.
2. End or small part that remains of something.
3. Handle.
4. In some trades, thread or thread
Source: Dictionary of the Spanish Language (adjusted to the content).
More examples:
Home (ʻbuilding, family, offspring, commercial establishmentʼ)
Fence (ʻdelimitation fence, advertising sign, obstacleʼ)
Fire (‘phenomenon with flame and heat, bonfire, place for cooking, shot’)
Capital (ʻrelative to the head, main city, heritage, economic assetsʼ)
Homonymy
Semantics (the meaning of words) allows us to distinguish between words that, a priori, are the same, such as homonymy.
Homonymy occurs when two or more words are pronounced the same, but have different meanings. In other words: they are different words, with different meanings, but they are pronounced the same.
For example, handle (ʻfrom the verb roast) and handle (ʻpart to hold’), are pronounced the same, but their meanings and etymologies are different and not related.
In dictionaries, homonymous words have different entries: if the term you are looking for appears more than once, they are homonymous.
Homonyms are divided into homophones and homographs.
Words homophones They are pronounced the same, but have different spellings:
Reserved (ʻfrom the verb to silence) and crook (walking stick). They are homophonous in places where there is no distinction between and and ll.
Vast (ʻbroadʼ) and coarse (rough)
Had (ʻfrom the verb have) and tube (ʻhollow cylinderʼ)
Home (ʻhousing) and hunt (ʻfrom the verb hunt). They are homophonous in places where there is no distinction between yes and z.
Words homographs They are pronounced and written the same:
Book (ʻfrom the verb rid) and book (‘pages joined at the spine’)
Cobra (ʻfrom the verb charge) and cobra (reptile)
Boat (ʻcontainerʼ) and boat (ʻshipʼ)
Lime (ʻcitrus fruitʼ) and lime (ʻfiling toolʼ)
Hyponymy and hyperonymy
The meaning of a word generally does not appear in a “pure” way, but appears encompassed within another meaning.
This is what hyponymy consists of: one meaning is included in another. Let’s take as an example the terms German shepherd, hot dog either yorkshire. All of them are hyponyms of the word dog.
All the yorkshire They are dogs, but not all dogs are yorkshire (there are many races). Therefore, dog It has a broader meaning that encompasses all dog breeds.
Thus:
yorkshire is the hyponym of dog
Dog is the hypernym of yorkshire
At the same time, dog is the hyponym of the hypernym mammal. All dogs are mammals, but not all mammals are dogs.
The same relationship occurs between the hypernym fungus and the hyponyms chanterelle, mushroom, black truffle and boletus.
More examples:
Hypernymous Hyponym mollusk snail, squid, octopus, clam bird hummingbird, hoopoe, blackbird, canary footwear sandals, boots, moccasins, clogs spider tarantula, black widow, brown recluse
See also:
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Yule, George. (2007). The language. Madrid. Akal Editions.
Abad Nebot, Francisco (2011). Presentation of Semantics. Madrid. Ramón Areces University Publishing House.