14 QUESTIONS FOR REVISION

Name: Do Viet Dung

Class: K65ENGE
Student code: 653896
1. Give the definition of semantic features? What are their characteristics?
Give an example for each.
a. Semantic features are “the smallest units of meaning in a word.” [Richards et
al, 1987: 254]
b. Characteristics
+ Some semantic features need not be specifically mentioned. For example,
if a word is [+human] it is “automatically” [+animate].
+ Some redundancy rules infer negative semantic features. Thus, semantic
features are often shown in the form of binary oppositions, which can be stated
in terms of pluses and minuses (that is, [+] and [−]): If father is [+human], it is
therefore [−inhuman]. Notice that we identify the meaning of a word according
to its primitive semantic features first, e.g. [+animate], [+human], [+male], etc.;
and then with the assistance of its other semantic features, e.g. [+parental],
[+paternal], etc.

+ Different words may share the same semantic feature. In other words, the
same semantic feature can be found in many different words. For example: Doctor,
engineer, teacher, physicist, chemist, tailor, hairdresser, etc. all share the same
semantic feature [+professional].

+ The same semantic feature can occur in words of different parts of speech.
In other words, words of different parts of speech may share the same semantic
feature. For example, [+female] is part of the meaning of the noun mother, the verb
breast-feed and the adjective pregnant.

+ Fromkin and Rodman [1993: 148-149] confirm that “the semantic

properties of words determine what other words they can be combined with.

(1) My brother is an only child.

(2) The bachelor is pregnant.

1
(1) is strange, or semantically anomalous, because this sentence represents a
contradiction: brother is [+having at least one sibling] while an only child is
[+having no other sibling]; (2) is semantically anomalous for a similar reason:
bachelor is [+male] whereas pregnant is [+female].

2. Give the definition of denotation and connotation? What is the distinction

between them? Give examples to illustrate.

DENOTATION CONNOTATION
what a lexical item means emotions and/or attitudes
towards what a lexical
item refers to
core, central peripheral
referential social, affective
bachelor unmarried man - still single after the
usual age for marrying
- decided by himself to
stay single
- enjoying freedom,
friendship, life, etc.
- ready for his impending
marriage
spinster unmarried woman - still single after the
usual age for marrying
- not decided by herself to
stay single
- left in an unfavorable
state
- a symbol for some
failure in life
December the twelfth month of the bad weather (usually
year, next after November rainy or snowy), dark
evening, grey sky,
slippery streets, holiday
2
 season, Christmas, winter
break, loneliness,
separation from the
beloved

3. What is the difference between primary & secondary meaning? Give

examples.
The first and foremost distinction made in multiple senses of a word is between its
primary and secondary meanings.

1. The primary meaning of a word (or, to be more precise, a

lexical item) is the first meaning or usage that the word
will suggest to most people when it is said in isolation.
The primary meaning of the English noun wing, for instance, is ‘either of
the pair of feathered limbs that a bird uses to fly.’
2. Secondary meanings of a word are the meanings besides
its primary meaning. They are said to be not central but
peripheral.
In addition, secondary meanings of a word are context-bound whereas its
primary meaning is not.
In He usually plays on the wing, for example, wing means ‘side part of
the playing area in football, hockey, etc.’ Such a secondary meaning is
derived from the context denoted by the verb plays.
4. What is the distinction between literal & figurative meaning? Give
examples.
a. “The basic or usual meaning of a word” [Crowther (ed.), 1992: 527] is
usually referred to as its literal meaning.
Some literal meanings are identified via context in the noun wing:

- Part that projects from the side of an aircraft and supports it in the air: the
two wings of an airplane;
- Part of a building that projects from the main part: the east/west wing of a
house;

3
 - Projecting part of the body of a motor vehicle above the wheel: The left
wing of his car was damaged in the collision;
- Part of a political party that holds certain views or has a particular function:
the radical wing of the Labour Party.
b. The figurative meaning of a word is one that is different from its usual
(literal) meaning and which creates vivid mental images for readers or
listeners.
Below are some figurative meanings of the noun wing:

- We hope college life will help him to spread his wings a bit. (= extend his
activities and interests)

- Having a new baby to look after has clipped her wings a bit. (= has prevented her
from achieving her ambition

Wing is an English word that has several closely related but slightly different
meanings. It is said to be polysemous

5. Give the definition of figures of speech. What are the types of figures of
speech? Give an example for each.
A figure of speech is “a word or phrase which is used for special effect, and which
does not have its usual or literal meaning.” [Richards et al, 1987: 105]

a. Simile and metaphor

* Definition

Simile is “the use of comparison of one thing with another, eg. as brave as a lion, a
face like a mask. [Crowther (ed.), 1992: 848]

It is incredible to notice that not all comparisons belong to simile, eg. He is much
taller than his elder brother. Only the comparisons clearly employed as examples
of figures of speech do.

Metaphor is “the use of a word or phrase to indicate something different from

(though related in some way to) the literal meaning, as in I’ll make him eat his
words or She has a heart of stone.” [Crowther (ed.), 1992: 564]

 Distinction between a simile and a metaphor

4
A simile is an explicit or direct comparison in which something is compared to
something else by the use of a function word such as like or as:

- My hands are as cold as ice. (= My hands are very cold.)

A metaphor is an implicit or indirect comparison in which no function word is

used. Something is described by stating another thing with which it can be
compared:

- He was a lion in the fight. (= He fought bravely and successfully just like a lion in
the fight for food

* Distinction between dead metaphors and live metaphors

Dead metaphors are used so often that they have lost their metaphoric
characteristics: the leg/face of the table, the back of the chair,…

Dead metaphors are in fact idioms or fixed expressions that native speakers of a
language give special meanings and use naturally and unconsciously: these
speakers do not pay attention to the implicit comparison found in any dead
metaphor; they just think directly of its meaning used in a given context:

- He looks as though he hasn’t had a square meal for months. (= a large and
satisfying meal)

Live metaphors are implied or indirect comparisons which have a variety of

figurative meanings through their endless use: Tom is a pig may be interpreted as
Tom is short and fat, Tom is slow and lazy, Tom is greedy, Tom is not intelligent,
Tom is neither intelligent nor ambitious, etc.

Live metaphors can only be understood after the implicit comparison found in any
of them is seriously considered and fully appreciated. Native speakers of a
language use live metaphors intentionally and creatively in order to make their
speech more vivid, figurative, concise, etc.: You are a mist that appears for a little
time and then vanishes. (= You are implicitly compared to a mist that does not last
long, i.e. you come and leave quickly.)

6. What does hyponymy mean? What is the distinction between a

hyponymy & a superordinate? Give examples.
5
 a. Hyponymy is a relation in which the referent of a word is totally included in
the referent of another word. In other words, hyponymy is the relationship
between each of the hyponyms (the “lower” word) and its superordinate (the
“higher” word).

b. Distinction between a hyponym and a superordinate

A hyponym is a word “whose referent is totally included in the referent of
another word (the prefix hypo- in hyponym means ‘below’).” [Finegan,
1994: 165]
Accordingly, a superordinate is a word whose referent covers all the
referents of its hyponyms. (The prefix hyperin hyper(o)nym means ‘over.’)

Hyponyms often exist at more than one level, resulting in multiple layers of
hyponymic relationships:

In this case, blue is a word that has a hyponym and a superordinate at the same
time. Since turquoise, aquamarine and royal blue refer to different shades of blue,
these words are IMMEDIATE hyponyms [Palmer: 1981: 87] of blue. The word
blue in its turn is, along with many other colour terms, an IMMEDIATE hyponym
6
of colour. We thus obtain a hierarchy of terms related to each other through
hyponymic relationships. Similar hierarchies can be established for many lexical
fields:

Note in this case that the word animal appears on two different levels. English
speakers indeed use the word to refer to at least two different referents: animals as
distinct from plants and rocks, and animals (generally mammals other than
humans) as distinct from humans.

7. Give the definition of synonymy. What are its types? Give an example
for each.
a. Synonymy is a relation in which various words have different (written and
sound) forms but have the same or nearly the same meaning.
Eg 1: The two English verbs hide and conceal are synonyms; they both mean keep
somebody/something from being seen or known about.

b. Distinction between true synonymy and partial synonymy

b.1. True synonymy: There are few true synonyms in the lexicon of a language.

Eg 1. Movie, film, flick 26 and motion picture may be considered as synonyms

because they all refer to the same set of referents in the real world. In other words,
they have the same denotative meaning. However, these lexical items differ in their
connotative meanings: movie may strike you as American while film may strike
you as British or as appropriate for movie classics or art movies; flick is used
7
chiefly in very informal contexts whereas motion picture is quaintly outdated and
has connotations as a term from the thirties or forties of the 20th century.

In brief, movie, film, flick and motion picture are not true synonyms.

b.2. Partial synonymy is a relation in which a polysemous word shares one of its
meanings with another word. For example, one meaning of deep is synonymous
with profound in the pair of sentences marked (1)a-b. In other words, deep and
profound can be used interchangeably in (1)a-b. No such interchange can be found
in (2)a-b:

(1)a. You have my deep sympathy.

(1)b. You have my profound sympathy.

(2)a. The river is very deep at this point.

(2)b. The river is very profound at this point.

Partial synonymy leads to collocations: a bunch of keys, a herd of sheep, a school

of ants, a flock of birds, a group of teachers, a gang of thieves, etc.

8. How can paraphrase be defined? What are possible ways to paraphrase

a sentence? Give an example for each.
- “A sentence which expresses the same proposition as another sentence is a
paraphrase of that sentence.” [Hurford and Heasley, 1984: 104]

Eg: This is the best show that I have ever seen.

 This is the most amazing concert I've ever seen.

- Possible ways to paraphrase a sentence
There are a variety of ways that we could paraphrase a sentence:

(1) Change individual words:

1(a) using synonyms: Cats DRINK cream. ⇔ Domestic felines CONSUME the
liquid fat of milk.

8
1(b) using relational antonyms (also called converses): I LENT that book to Jim.
⇔ Jim BORROWED that book from me.

(2) Change sentence structure:

Cats DRINK cream. ⇔ Cream IS DRUNK by cats.

(3) Change both individual words and sentence structure:

Cats DRINK cream. ⇔ The liquid fat of milk IS DRUNK by domestic felines.

To provide a paraphrase we use our knowledge of both the meanings of individual

words and of the English grammar.

9. What is the definition of entailment? What are its characteristics and

types? Give an example for each type.
a. Definition

- “Entailment is a relationship that applies between two sentences, where the truth
of one implies the truth of the other because of the meanings of the words
involved.” [Goddard, 1998: 17]

For example, John was killed entails John died. Obviously, John died could not be
true any time before it was true that John was killed.

b. Characteristics

b.1 “Entailment applies cumulatively. Thus if X entails Y and Y entails Z, then X

entails Z.” [Hurford and Heasley, 1984: 108]

Take the following as an example:

X, Some boys ran down the street entails Y, Some kids ran down the street.

Y, Some kids ran down the street entails Z, Some kids went down the street.

Therefore

X, Some boys ran down the street entails Z, Some kids went down the street.

9
b.2. “Hyponymy involves entailment. To say This is a tulip entails This is a flower,
and This is scarlet entails This is red.” [Palmer, 1981: 87]

The relation between tulip and flower and between scarlet and red brings out the
HIERARCHICAL CLASSIFICATION involved in hyponymy.

c. Types of entailment
There are two types of entailment:

(i) One-way entailment: The entailments of this first type come about
because of hyponymic relations between words:
Eg 1. Alfred saw a bear asymmetrically entails Alfred saw an animal.

If Alfred saw a bear then he necessarily saw an animal; but if Alfred saw an
animal, he could have seen a bear but not necessarily.

(ii) Two-way entailment:

The entailments between a pair of sentences are mutual since the truth of either
sentence guarantees the truth of the other.

Ex1. Paul borrowed a car from Sue symmetrically entails Sue lent a car to Paul.

Ex2. The police chased the burglar symmetrically entails The burglar was chased
by the police.

It is interesting to notice that (1) hyponymic relations between words result in a

great number of one-way entailments; (2) paraphrases are two-way entailments;
and (3) relational pairs of antonyms such as sell--buy, lend--borrow, own--belong
to, etc. do contribute to two-way entailments.

10.What is the definition of presupposition? What are its characteristics &

classifications? Give an example for each.
a. Definition:
Presupposition is “what a speaker or writer assumes that the receiver of the
message already knows.” [Richards et al, 1987: 228] Thus, ‘John doesn’t write
poems anymore’ presupposes that John once wrote poetry.

b. Characteristics

10
(i) The presupposition of an utterance remains the same under its NEGATION:

(1)a. ‘John stopped smoking.

(1)b. ‘John didn’t stop smoking.’

(1)a-b both presuppose that John once smoked cigarettes

(ii) The presupposition of an utterance remains the same under its

INTERROGATION:

(4)a. ‘John stopped smoking.’

(4)b. ‘Did John stop smoking?’

(4)c. ‘Why did John stop smoking?’

(4)a-c all presuppose that John once smoked cigarettes.

(iii) The presupposition of an utterance may be cancelled under its EXTENSION:

(5)a. ‘She didn’t feel regret at the over-cooked meat.’

(5)b. ‘She didn’t feel regret at the over-cooked meat because it was in fact well-
done.’

(5)a presupposes that the meat was overcooked while (5)b presupposes that the
meat was well-done.

c. Classification

There exist a number of different types of presupposition.

C1. The existential presupposition

 A possessive noun phrase (abbreviated to NP) ⇒ a complete statement: X

had / has / will have + an indefinite NP
1. ‘They haven’t spoken to each other since their last
week’s quarrel.’
(countable noun: singular) their last week’s quarrel

The utterance presupposes that they had a quarrel last week.

11
  A definite NP ⇒ a complete statement
There is/was/are/were (not)+ an indefinite NP (+adjunct of place)

There exist/exists/existed + an indefinite NP (+adjunct of place)

2. ‘The American girl next door is having a party.’

the American girl next door (countable noun: singular)

The utterance presupposes that (1) there is an American girl next door, (2) there is
a girl from the USA living next door.

 A definite NP ⇒ an indefinite NP
3. ‘The book you gave me is worth reading.
the book (= which/that) you gave me

The utterance presupposes that you gave me a book.

C2. The factive presupposition

4. ‘Nobody realized that Kelly was ill.’

The utterance presupposes that Kelly was ill.

C3. The non-factive presupposition

5. ‘I imagined that Kelly was ill.’

The utterance presupposes that Kelly was not ill.

C4. The lexical presupposition

6. ‘The Brazilian team beat the French team again.’

The utterance presupposes that the Brazilian team beat/had beaten the French team
before.

C5. The structural presupposition

A Wh-question ⇒ a complete statement

7. ‘Where did you buy the bike?’

The utterance presupposes that you bought a bike. (The speaker assumes that the
hearer already knows what the bike is.)

12
A Wh-embedded clause ⇒ a complete statement

8. ‘I was eating popcorn when Mike smashed the television

set.’
The utterance presupposes that Mike smashed the television set. (The speaker
assumes that the hearer already knows what the television set is.)

C6. The counter-factual presupposition

An if clause ⇒ a complete statement

9. ‘If I had enough money, I would buy that house.’

“if I had enough money” The utterance presupposes that I do not have enough
money.

An embedded clause after ‘wish’ ⇒ a complete statement

11. ‘They wish they could go on vacation now.’

“they could go on vacation now” The utterance presupposesthat they cannot go
on vacation now.

A clause with a modal perfect verb form ⇒ a complete statement

12. ‘You shouldn’t have seen such a horror film.’ The utterance presupposes
that you did see/saw a horror film.
In brief, it is believed that “presuppositions are closely linked to the words and
grammatical structures that are actually used in the utterance and our knowledge
about the way language users conventionally interpret them” and that
“presuppositions can be drawn when there is little or no surrounding context.”
[Peccei, 1999: 22]

11. How can conversational implicature be defined? What are its

characteristics? Give examples.

a. Definition: Conversational implicature promises to bridge “the gap between

what is literally said and what is conveyed.” [Levinson, 1983: 98]

Example: A: ‘Coffee?’
13
B: ‘It would keep me awake all night.’

B’s utterance may implicate that B would rather not drink coffee.

b. Characteristics

b.1. People may draw somewhat different conversational implicature from a

certain utterance. For example, not everyone infers from (6)a that Mike was not
very keen on the dessert:

(6)a Annie: ‘Was the dessert any good?’

Mike: ‘Annie, cherry pie is cherry pie.’

Mike’s utterance may implicate that he was not very keen on the dessert.

In brief, “unlike presuppositions and entailments, implicatures50 are inferences51

that cannot be made in isolated utterances. They are dependent on the context of
the utterance and shared knowledge between the speaker and the hearer.” [Peccei,
1999: 30]

b.2 Conversational implicature can be suspended or denied. Since conversational

implicature is part of what is communicated and not said, the speaker can explicitly
suspend or deny that he/she intended to communicate such meaning in different
ways.

The speaker can suspend the implicature that the hearer only won five dollars by
using the expression at least, as in (8)b; the speaker can deny the implicature by
either adding further information, often following the expression in fact, as in (8)c
or reinforcing the implicature with additional information, as in (8)d:

(8)a. ‘You have won five dollars.’

b. ‘You have at least won five dollars.’

c. ‘You have won five dollars, in fact, you’ve won ten!’

d. ‘You have won five dollars, that’s four more than one.’

b.3 Conversational implicatures are “conclusions drawn from utterances on

particular occasions and not from isolated sentences … In this respect the problem
14
of implicature resembles the problem of how a hearer arrives at the indirect
illocutions of utterances.” [Hurford and Heasley, 1984: 280]

b.4 Grice’ theory of conversational implicature

Grice [1975, 1978] has proposed a way of analyzing conversational implicature

based on the co-operative principle and its four basic maxims of Quality, Quantity,
Relevance, and Manner.

The co-operative principle makes your contribution such as is required, at the stage
at which it occurs, by the accepted purpose or direction of the talk exchange in
which you are engaged

The maxim of Quality tries to make your contribution one that is true, specifically:
(i) do not say what you believe to be false (ii) do not say that for which you lack
adequate evidence

The maxim of Quantity (i) make your contribution as informative as required for
current purposes of the exchange (ii) do not make your contribution more
informative than is required

The maxim of Relevance makes your contribution relevant The maxim of Manner
be perspicuous53, and specifically: (i) avoid obscurity54 (ii) avoid ambiguity (iii)
be brief (iv) be orderly

(9) A (to a passer-by): ‘I am out of petrol.’

B: ‘Oh; there is a garage just around the corner.’

B’s utterance may implicate that the garage is probably open and A may obtain
petrol there.

Another way in which implicatures may be derived is where the speaker

deliberately and ostentatiously breaches or (as Grice put it) flouts the maxims:

(10) A: ‘Let’s get the kids something.’

B: ‘Okay, but I veto I-C-E C-R-E-A-M-S.’

15
B’s utterance may implicate that it is not allowed to mention ice cream directly in
front of the kids.

In this example, “B ostentatiously infringes the maxim of Manner (be

perspicuous) by spelling out the word ice-creams, and thereby conveys to A that B
would rather not have ice-creams mentioned directly in the presence of the
children, in case they are thereby prompted to demand some.” [Levinson, 1983:
104-105]

12.What is Grice’s theory of conversational implicature? Give examples.

Grice [1975, 1978] has proposed a way of analyzing conversational implicature
based on the co-operative principle and its four basic maxims of Quality, Quantity,
Relevance, and Manner.

The co-operative principle makes your contribution such as is required, at the stage
at which it occurs, by the accepted purpose or direction of the talk exchange in
which you are engaged

The maxim of Quality tries to make your contribution one that is true, specifically:
(i) do not say what you believe to be false (ii) do not say that for which you lack
adequate evidence

The maxim of Quantity (i) make your contribution as informative as required for
current purposes of the exchange (ii) do not make your contribution more
informative than is required

The maxim of Relevance makes your contribution relevant The maxim of Manner
be perspicuous53, and specifically: (i) avoid obscurity54 (ii) avoid ambiguity (iii)
be brief (iv) be orderly

(9) A (to a passer-by): ‘I am out of petrol.’

B: ‘Oh; there is a garage just around the corner.’

B’s utterance may implicate that the garage is probably open and A may obtain
petrol there.

Another way in which implicatures may be derived is where the speaker

deliberately and ostentatiously breaches or (as Grice put it) flouts the maxims:
16
(10) A: ‘Let’s get the kids something.’

B: ‘Okay, but I veto I-C-E C-R-E-A-M-S.’

B’s utterance may implicate that it is not allowed to mention ice cream directly in
front of the kids.

In this example, “B ostentatiously infringes the maxim of Manner (be

perspicuous) by spelling out the word ice-creams, and thereby conveys to A that B
would rather not have ice-creams mentioned directly in the presence of the
children, in case they are thereby prompted to demand some.” [Levinson, 1983:
104-105]

13.What is the definition of speech acts? What are its classifications? Give
an example for each.
4.4.1 Definition

“A speech act is an UTTERANCE as a functional unit in communication.”

[Richards et al, 1985: 265]

4.4.3 Classification

There are five main types of speech acts, according to Searl [1981]:

4.4.3.1 The representative describes a state of affairs in the world: asserting,

stating, claiming, affirming, making hypotheses, describing, predicting, reporting,
etc. The representative can generally be characterized as being true or false.

(3) Tom: ‘Where are you from?’ David: ‘I’m from Canada.’

‘I’m from Canada’ is a representative: David directly gives a piece of information

concerning where he was born and grew up.

4.4.3.2 The commissive commits the speaker to a course of action: promising,

vowing, threatening, offering, etc.

(5) Jenny: ‘If you don’t stop fighting, I’ll call the police.’

Bill: ‘Call them at once to turn your brother in.’

17
‘I’ll call the police’ is a commissive: Jenny directly threatens to call the police if
Bill and her brother don’t stop fighting.

(6) Alice: ‘When will I receive my reimbursement?’

Victor: ‘Authors always pay their debts.’ (= ‘I’ll pay you back later.’)

‘Authors always pay their debts’ is a commissive: Victor indirectly promises to

pay Alice back later. 4.4.3.3 The declarative changes the world by bringing about
or altering the state of affairs it names: dismissing, sentencing, naming,
announcing marriage, etc.

(7) Vicar: ‘I now pronounce you man and wife.’ [at the wedding ceremony held in
a church]

‘I now pronounce you man and wife’ is a declarative: the vicar is directly
announcing the legal and permanent union between a man and a woman as
husband and wife, simultaneously changing their marital status.

4.4.3.4 The directive intends to get the listener to carry out an action:
commanding, requesting, begging, warning, challenging, inviting, suggesting,
giving advice, etc.

(9) Ed: ‘The garage is a mess.’

Faye: ‘Clean it up.’

‘Clean it up’ is a directive: Faye directly orders Ed to make the garage tidy.

4.4.3.5 The expressive indicates the speaker’s psychological state(s) or

feeling(s)/attitude(s) about something: greeting, apologizing, complaining,
thanking, etc.

(11) Desk clerk: ‘I beg your pardon. I’ll be right back.’

Client: ‘No problem.’

‘I beg your pardon’ is an expressive: the desk clerk directly apologizes to the client
for his/her absence for a while.

18
4.4.3.6 The rogative refers to a special kind of directives which deals with
requests for information and which is typically in form of a question.

(13) Tom: ‘Where are you from?’

David: ‘I’m from Canada.’

‘Where are you from’ is a rogative: Tom directly asks/requests David for some
information on his nationality or origin.

14.What is the difference between locution, illocution and perlocution?

Give examples.
Distinction between locution, illocution and perlocution

a. “A locutionary act is the saying of something which is meaningful and can be

understood. For example, saying the sentence “Shoot the snake” is a locutionary
act if hearers understand the words shoot, the, snake and can identify the particular
snake referred to.

b. An illocutionary act is using a sentence to perform a function. For example,

‘Shoot the snake’ may be intended as an order or a piece of advice.

c. A perlocutionary act is the results or effects that are produced by means of

saying something. For example, shooting the snake would be a perlocutionary act.

15. What aspect of semantics did you enjoy most? Discuss it? (2 pts)’

My favorite aspect of semantics is speech acts. It is an utterance as a

functional unit in communication. It is also quite near to everyone’s everyday
existence. An individual’s speech act is anything they say that not only conveys
information but also performs an action. For example, in this sentence:

“I would like this chocolate cake; could you please pass it to me?”

It is a speech act since it indicates the speaker’s desire to get the cake while
also expressing a request that someone deliver the cake to them.

19
 In regular conversation, we pay attention not just to the phrases we say to
one another, but also to the speech acts that those utterances are used to perform:
requests, cautions, invitations, promises, apologies, forecasts, etc.

20