SCHOOL OF POSTGRADUATE STUDIES

FEDERAL UNIVERSITY DUTSEN-MA KATSINA

FACULTY OF ARTS

DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH

COURSE CODE: ENG831

COURSE TITLE: SEMANTICS

SEMINAR TOPIC

CONCEPT OF SEMANTICS

BY

SHAABAN MUHAMMAD SAMBO

PG8/ART/2023/1925

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Introduction

Semantics is the study of meaning in language. We know that language is used to express

meanings which can be understood by others. But meanings exist in our minds and we can

express what is in our minds through the spoken and written forms of language as well as

through gestures, action etc

Semantics simply implies the study of how meaning in language is produced or created.

Semantics encompasses how words, phrases and sentences come together to make meaning

in language. The term semantics simply means the study of meanings. It has been the subject

of discourse for many years by philosophers and other scholars but later was introduced

formally in literature in the late 1800s. Hence, we have philosophical semantics, linguistic

semantics among other varieties of semantics.

Brief History of Semantics

Alfred Korzybski (1879-1950) was the first person to attempt studying semantics as a

distinct discipline, separate from the discipline of philosophy. Incidentally, Korzybski was a

non-linguist who was passionate about introducing a generally acceptable science of

communication. Prior to the work of Korzybski, semantics has been looked at from a non-

scientific perspective but Korzybski’s work was the first formal attempt at bringing in a

scientific model to the study of semantics. Korzybski started by describing all entities and

realities by assigning labels to them. He went further to group the names into three. He had

names for common objects such as chair, stone, cow and so on. He also had labels for groups

and collections like nations, animals, people and so on. Korzybski’s third group of labels do

not have identifiable referents in the outside world. These labels are highly abstract and do

not readily lend themselves to the assignment of concrete reality. These labels are only

assignable to concrete realities by imagination. Such labels include but are not limited to

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freedom, love, and democracy among others. They feature in aesthetics, philosophy and

politics. However, this is not the same with common objects since there seems to be a direct

correspondence between items and linguistic expressions. It is interesting to also know that a

serious difficulty tends to be posed by labels for groups as a result of the wide range of items

within the group. The main challenge with abstract labels stems from the fact that meaning

does not have an objective reference in reality because different people will react to different

words differently. For instance, the word “love” would be viewed differently by different

people as a result of their circumstance or present reality. One person who probably is in a

loving relationship will view it positively while another in an unfulfilled relationship will

view it negatively. Hence, their reactions will be different and will therefore evoke different

emotions from them.

DEFINITIONS OF SEMANTICS BY DIFFERENT SCHOLARS

Semantics is the study of meaning in terms of the linguistics. Semantics begins from the

stopping point of syntax and ends from where pragmatics begins. A separate discipline in the

study of language, semantics has existed for decades. The term semantics was first used by

Breal in 1987 and it does not suggest that there had never been speculations about the nature

of meaning (Ogbulogo (2005). Words, phrases and sentences are used to convey messages in

natural languages. Semantics is the study of meaning systems in language

“Semantics is the study of meaning” (Lyons, 1977). For Hurford and Heasley (1983),

“semantics is the study of meaning in language.” Other scholars define semantics with

different or similar perspectives. For example, Saeed (1997) opines that “semantics is the

study of meaning communicated through language.” According to Lobner (2002), “semantics

is the part of linguistics that is concerned with meaning.” Kreidler’s (1998) definition is also

useful: “Linguistic semantics is the study of how language organizes and express meaning.”

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Indeed, more definitions of semantics will continue to evolve in the literature as the subject

gets expanding research attention in contemporary linguistics

Scholars believe that semantics is not prescriptive; that is, it is not concerned with laying

down standards of semantic correctness or prescribing what the meaning of words and

sentences shall be. Rather, the aim of semantics is to evolve theories that facilitate the

understanding of the nature of meaning.

THE NATURE OF SEMANTICs

In semantics, we study the meaning of words and sentences of languages. Linguistic

semantics studies meaning in a systematic and objective way. Since meaning as a concept is

not static, a great deal of the idea of meaning still depends on the context and participants in

the act of communication. There is a strong connection between meaning and

communication. Communication as used here is the exchange or relay of information,

message, attitude, feelings or values from one person to another. This is done mainly by the

use of language. It is often expressed that language is a system, which uses a set of symbols

agreed upon by a group. These symbols can be spoken or written, expressed as gestures or

drawings. The symbols employed in language must be patterned in a systematic way. Indeed

language is organised at four principal levels – sounds (that is phonetics/phonology), words

(that is phonology, sentences (that is syntax) and meaning (that is semantics). Indeed,

phonology and syntax are concerned with the expressive power of language while semantics

studies the meaning of what has been expressed. Knowledge of grammar is an aspect of the

innate cognitive ability of human beings. The power of interpretation complements that

innate ability. Interpretation is an aspect of semantics. Therefore, language acquisition or

learning includes not only the knowledge of the organisation of sounds and structures, but

also how to associate meaning to the structures. Semantics can, therefore, be characterised as

the scientific study of meaning in language.

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SEMANTICS AND OTHER RELATED DISCIPLINES

We recall that philosophy has been linked to the earliest postulation about meaning. There are

still other disciplines that are relevant to semantics. A very strong ally of semantics is logic- a

branch of philosophy. Logical systems are known to exhibit coherent and consistent models

for evaluating thought. Thus, logical postulations are the ideal but may not always reflect the

real world in matters of language. Semantics is also related to sociology and anthropology

because of the connection between language and culture. The whole essence of cultural

relevance in language justified the reliance on context for the meaning of expressions. Of

particular interest to semantics is the intricate system of kinship terms and colour expressions.

By relying on the distinction between deep and surface meaning and the power of the human

brain to generate many paraphrases of a single structure, semantics is related to psychology.

Indeed, the mentalistic approach to meaning and language use in the tradition of generative

grammar is a psychological issue. Furthermore, the approaches adopted by behavioural

semantics in the stimulus – response connection in meaning are a purely psychological affair.

Semantics is also related to communication theory. Information is carried and processed in

the communication system passing through the channel and the medium. The minimalisation

of noise and the processing of feedback are aspects of the communication system. These are

achieved by ensuring logical thinking.

MAJOR CONCERNS OF SEMANTICS

Semantics is associated with different issues related to meaning including naming, concept,

sense and reference. Naming as a semantic process derives from the understanding that words

are names or labels for things. The major problem with this naming view of semantics is that,

it is only nouns and nominal expressions that can be analysed semantically. In addition,

abstract nouns like love, hatred, truth will be difficult to explain since they are not living

things.

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(i) There is a red bull in the park

This will have meaning, only if there is a red bull in a particular park. Thus, sentences

that are lies may not be interpreted. Concepts mediate between the mind constructs and

objects in the real world. Saussure’s sign theory and Ogden and Richards, semantic triangle

derives from the conceptual approach to semantics. The approach emphasises the power of

the mind to make images and to associate these images to objects and ideas. The approach is

highly mentalistic, relying on the ability to associate one thing with another. This ability of

association may not yield universal understanding. That explains why language experts

develop dictionaries to aggregate meaning on a universal basis. Interestingly, the production

of dictionaries relies heavily on denotations and connotations, two major angles to the study

of meaning. Reference relates to things, people and events in the world. It is the object or

entity to which a linguistic expression relates. Thus, the referent of the word “boy” is a

human being called boy. If meaning were restricted to reference, many words without

obvious referents will be left out. It will be difficult to explain the meaning of prepositions,

conjunctions and other grammatical unit. Again, several linguistic expressions may relate to

single referents. To avoid these limitations, semanticists use the words denotation and

connotation to distinguish between meaning based on ostensiveness (that is, pointing) or

reference and extension. Another interesting area of concern for semantics is sense. Sense

explains the system of linguistic relationships, which a lexical item contracts with others. If

that relationship is paradigmatic, we have synonymy, antonymic, and so on. However, if the

relationship is syntagmatic, we have collocation.

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Classifications of meaning

Semantics deals with meaning without any reference to the context of the situation.

According to Leech (1974) there are at least seven types of meaning in semantics. They are

as follows:

1. Conceptual Meaning

2. Connotative Meaning

3. Social Meaning

4. Affective Meaning

5. Reflected Meaning

6. Collocative Meaning

7. Thematic Meaning

Conceptual meaning

In semantics, conceptual meaning is the literal or core sense of a word. This type of meaning

is also known as logical, cognitive, or denotative content. It refers to the dictionary meaning,

which indicates the concepts. Conceptual meaning aims to provide an appropriate semantic

representation of a sentence. It is the base for all the other types of meaning.

If a person wants to relate one particular meaning of any word with another particular

meaning, he/ she need to know the concept of the word. For example, the meaning of the

word ‘Woman’ can be specified as-

• Is a human

• Not a male

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• Is an adult

Connotative Meaning

Connotation points to a meaning that uses a particular word beyond its conceptual meaning.

That means when a word has more than one meaning, it is called connotative meaning.

These meanings may vary from society to society, culture to culture, or person to person.

They include not only physical characteristics but also psychological and social properties.

This type of meaning is open-ended. For example, some people say women are soft-hearted,

submissive, while others say they are frauds, cheaters, etc. They define women with their

psychological perspectives.

It is also unstable. For example, in the past, women were attributed as frail, cowardly,

irrational, and inconsistent. They are now treated as strong- willed, hard workers, etc. In the

future, they will probably be treated differently.

Social Meaning

It is a type of meaning based on the aspects of society. When people from a particular society

define language in their way, that is called social meaning. This meaning is based on dialect.

The dialect of London differs from the dialect of the USA in regards to pronunciation,

vocabulary, and grammar.

Time: The language of the sixteenth century differs from the nineteenth century.

Province: The language of English literature like simile, metaphor, irony etc. differs from the

language of science and law.

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The conceptual meaning and the social meaning of any piece of language would be different.

The words ‘domicile’, ‘residence,’ ‘abode,’ ‘home’ all refer to the same thing, but each word

belongs to a particular situation of use.

• Domicile (very formal situation)

• Residence (formal situation)

• Abode (poetic situation)

• Home (general situation)

Affective Meaning

Refers to the speaker’s feelings, emotions, attitude towards the ongoing context: the pitch

level, intonation, and tone of the speaker changes based on the situation. For example, if

we talk with a motherless child, we will be very emotional, and we will talk in a very soft

manner. In the same way, when we become angry, our voices become louder.

Reflected Meaning

In semantics, reflected meaning is an event whereby a particular word or phrase is correlated

with multiple sense or meaning. It is a kind of irony.

A poet could not but be gay,

In such a jocund company.

For example, by using the word gay, the poet tries to mean something joyful. However, this

word usually refers to homosexuality.

Collective Meaning

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A collocation is a familiar grouping of words, especially words that habitually appear

together and convey meaning by association. In collective meaning, a particular word

goes with another particular word .Pretty and handsome share familiar ground in the

meaning ‘good-looking, ‘but these words are different at their appropriate use case.

•Pretty is appropriate for – girl, woman

• Handsome is appropriate for – boy, man

Thematic Meaning

Thematic meaning is a preference between alternative grammatical structures like

active-passive, simple to complex, complex-compound, etc. That means the meaning of a

sentence will be the same, but the structure will differ from each other. It deals with

how speaker portrays the message through word choice, the order of the words used, and

emphasis

For examples

• He is so weak that he cannot work. (This is a complex sentence.)

• He is too weak to walk. (This is simple sentence.)

Some Theories of meaning include:

1 Ideational theory of meaning

2 Referential theory of meaning

3 The usage theory of meaning

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Conclusion

We can safely conclude that while syntax, for instance provides the basis for the structure of the

sentence, but it is semantics that holds the key to meaning. This means that semantics is critical to

communication.

REFERENCES

Ogbulogo C. (2005). Concepts in Semantics. Lagos:

Sam Iroanusi Publications.

Geoffrey n. Leech (1974). Semantics the study of meaning london

Kreidler Charles W. (1998). Introducing English Semantics. London

Routledge.

Lobner, Sebastian (2002). Understanding Semantics. Arnold: London:

Blackwell.

Lyons, John (1977). Semantics, Vol.1 Cambridge

: Cambridge University Press.

Saeed, John I. (1997). Semantics. Oxford

: Blackwel

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