… to sense

Unit 3
 Unit 3 – … to sense

I. Sense properties & stereotypes

II. Sense relations

Summary
✓ Sense properties of words
✓ Sense properties of sentences
✓ Stereotypes
 A. Sense properties of words
Q1. What are sense properties of words?
man [+ human; + male; + adult]
woman
child

sense properties
cat
kitten
chair
Q1. What are sense properties of a word?
> smallest units of meaning in a word
>

Q2. What is the sense of a word / expression? (p.95)

> its indispensable hard core of meaning
>

e.g. The sense of CHILD

= [+human; -adult] and
The sense of CAT
= [-human; +animate; +feline] and
N.B. Conversations will get stuck if a speaker seems to
ignore some particular conventions about the sense of words /
expressions.

=> pp. 94, 95

Who ignores or violates the language conventions?
Mary I saw an animal on top of the clothes pole.
John How do you know it was an animal?
Mary I saw it. It was a cat.
John You might have seen a cat, but how can you be so sure it
was an animal?
Mary Of course it was an animal if it was a cat.
John I don’t think so.
Q3. What is meant by a necessary condition / a
sufficient set of conditions on the sense of a predicate?
p.99
a square?

criterion which a thing MUST meet

four-sided
=>

set of criteria which are enough to

GUARANTEE that the predicate
correctly describes that thing
=>
Give a necessary condition and sufficient set of
conditions for the following.

a man?

human

male

adult
 B. Sense properties of sentences p.95

1. Analyticity
1. Cats are animals.
2. Cats are not vegetables.
3. Bachelors are male.
4. Bachelors are unmarried.
=>
=> The truth => determined by the sense properties
of the predicate in the sentence.

N.B. Analytically true vs. Empirically true.

- Roses are flowers. T/F?

- The August Revolution broke out in 1845. T/F?

 2. Syntheticity

5. Cats are clean.

6. Bachelors are lonely.
7. These cats are not animals.

=>
=> The truth / falsehood => determined by the
circumstances
E.g. Queens are kings’ wives. T/F?

TRUE for Catherine de FALSE for Elizabeth II,

Valois, Queen of King Wife of Prince Philip,
Henry V of England Duke of Edinburgh
Practice 1 (p.96)
 3. Contradiction

8. Cats are not animals.

9. Everybody is sick, but
some people are not.
10. Tim was killed but he was
still alive.
=>
=> The falsehood => determined by the senses of the
words in the sentence
=> Opposite of analyticity

Bachelors are married. => contradictory

unmarried. =>
not married. =>

Analyticity Contradiction
Practice 2 (p.97)
C. Stereotype p.101

1. Stereotype vs. Prototype

- Prototype = an object which is typical of a class of
objects
- Stereotype =

with feather, having wings, can fly,

BIRD building nests in a tree, …

BOTTLE made of glass, cylindrical base,

with a narrow neck at the top,…
N.B. People of different cultures may have
different views of the prototype & stereotypes
E.g. a typical woman
=>

❑ active ❑ self-confident
❑ faithful ❑ tender
❑ hard-working ❑ superior to men
❑ energetic ❑ altruistic
2. Stereotype vs. sense
=> sense = hard core of meaning agreed by almost
all people & cultures (conventional)
E.g. woman
SENSE: [+ human, - male, + adult ]
STEREOTYPE:
Practice 3 (p.102)
✓ Synonymy - Paraphrase
✓ Hyponymy - Entailment
✓ Antonymy
✓ Homonymy
✓ Polysemy
 SYNONYM, SYNONYMOUS,
SYNONYMY

- “Bike” and “bicycle” are _________.

- They are ____________ words.

- The relation b/w “bike” and bicycle”

is _____________.

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A. Synonymy – Paraphrase (pp.106-109)
1. = the relationship b/w 2 predicates/predicators having the
same sense (NOT: b/w 2 words)
e.g. This room is bright. vs. This room is light.
2. Synonyms may share one sense in common, but not all
others.
=>
= light (room) = bright
= strong (red) = not heavy
BRIGHT = LIGHT (a) =
= =
… …

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3. Synonyms share all sense properties but one.
infant => [+ human, - old, + formal]
kid => [+ human, - old, - formal]

Other examples:
a. adore, love
=> degree / intensity
b. autumn, fall
=>
c. thin, slim
=>
d. slim, slender
=>
e. lonely, alone
=> 23
 NOTE: Denotation vs. Connotation

• Adore – love
> [+ feeling; + liking / caring]
➢Distinction:
• Alone – lonely
> [+ state; + without company]
➢Distinction:

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Practice 4 (p.107)

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4. Synonyms => usually of the same class, but not always
The house is burning (V) / on fire (PP).
My baby is sleeping (V) / asleep (AP).
5. Synonymous sentences = PARAPHRASES
My baby is sleeping My baby is asleep.
=>
=> 2 kinds of paraphrases

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 Two kinds of paraphrases

a) Lexical paraphrase => making use of synonyms

I have three kids. =
I like table tennis. =
b) Structural paraphrase => giving different structures
The cat chased the mouse. =
It is tough to live with him. =

N.B. Someone stole my bike  My bicycle was stolen.

=>
 Structural paraphrase
< Some common transformational rules
1. Passive structure
2. Extra-position movement
To meet you is nice. =>
3. Tough movement
It’s difficult to deal with him. =>

4. Cleft structure
Peter loves Mary. =>
5. Pseudo cleft structure
John hates doing the housework. =>
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Practice 5 (p.109)

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Practice 6

Paraphrase each sentence in at least 3 ways.

1. Alan kissed Kim passionately.
2. Sue gave a reluctant smile.
3. Mary broke the window with a hammer.
4. A fierce fire burned down the pine forest last
month.
5. New York Harbor is ice-free in all seasons.

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 B. Hyponymy – Entailment (pp.109-116)

WHALE [+animal; +mammal; +big size; +live in water]

 ANIMAL

Mammal Reptile …

dog whale …
 METAL

Gold (Au) Silver (Ag) Copper (Cu) Iron (Fe) Mercury (Hg) …

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(p.111)
= the set of
all animals

= the set of
all cows

Sense properties of “cow”

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 = all shades of
RED
crimson/ blood-
= scarlet (a red,…
kind of RED)

Sense properties of “scarlet”

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Characteristics of Hyponymy
1. = sense relation b/w predicates such that the meaning of
one predicate is included in the sense of the other (=
inclusion) (p.109)
CAT + animal
+ feline …
=> The sense of ANIMAL ____________in the sense of CAT.
=> The sense of CAT ____________ the sense of ANIMAL.
2. Two-way hyponymy (symmetrical)  synonymy
=> mercury quicksilver **

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 METAL

Gold (Au) Silver (Ag) Copper (Cu) Iron (Fe) Mercury (Hg) Quicksilver

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3. ENTAILMENT = hyponymy applied to sentences (p.112)
My cat was stolen. My pet was taken away.

They boiled the pork. They cooked the meat.

Which sentence entails the other?

1. a) I love him.
b) I love him very much.
2. a) The parrot died.
b) Peter killed the parrot.
3. a) Every dog is white.
b) Every big dog is white. 38
39
40
N.B. a) Entailment => cumulative

A rose is a flower ; A flower is a kind of vegetation.

=> A rose is a kind of vegetation

Cumulative entailment

VEGETATION

flowers trees vegetables …

rose daisy …
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N.B. b) Two-way entailment = Paraphrase (p.112)
> John and Mary are twins. =>

> Mary and John are twins. =>

= same set of entailment (mutually entail each

other)
> Therefore,
John and Mary are twins. <=> Mary and John are twins.

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 c) Hyponymy =>  Entailment
With NOT:
They didn’t boil the pork. They didn’t cook the meat.

With ALL / EVERY:

All my roses have thorns All my flowers have thorns.

With gradable pairs:

I saw a big mouse. I saw a big animal.

M
L
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Practice 7

Write entailments.
1. Alan kissed Kim passionately.
2. Sue gave a reluctant smile.
3. Mary broke the window with a hammer.
4. A fierce fire burned down the pine forest
last month.
5. New York Harbor is ice-free in all seasons.
6. My flowers do not have thorns.
 SUMMARY

Sense synonymy paraphrase hyponymy entailment

relation
sense Similarity Similarity Inclusion Inclusion
b/w predi. b/w senten. b/w predi. b/w senten.
2-way 2-way
hyponymy entailment

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C. Antonymy

Which ones are not antonyms?

1. hot – cold
2. doctor – patient
3. table – chair
4. boil – cook
5. boil – grill

pp.120-126
 Traditionally => words with opposite
meanings
Currently =>

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 1. Binary antonyms

Examples
true ≠ false
dead ≠ A B
pass ≠
A B

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1. Binary antonyms / Complementary pairs
= predicates which come in pairs & b/w them exhaust
all relevant possibilities
=> either X or Y is true / false; no exceptions
N.B.

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Practice 8 (p122)
 2. Converses
Examples
- parent vs. child [x] parent [y]  [y] child [x]
- husband vs. wife [x] husband [y] 
- bigger vs. smaller [x] bigger [y] 
- own vs. belong [x] owns [y] 
- give vs. receive
I give a book to Mary  Mary receives a book from me.

[x] gives [y], [z]  [z] receives [y], [x]

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2. Converses / Relational opposites
= 2 or 3 things / people are mentioned in the
opposite order
N.B. [x] ___ [y]  [y] ____ [x]
[x] ____ [y], [z]  [z] _____ [y], [x]

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Practice 9 (p123)
3. System of multiple incompatibility
Examples
- spring, summer, autumn, winter Sp Su

- hearts, clubs, diamonds, spades Au Wi

- south, north, east, west

-
-
=> closed class

- red, yellow, blue, green, …

-
=> open-ended class
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3. System of multiple incompatibility (SMI)
= including all the terms that are mutually
incompatible (exclusive), and that cover all the
relevant area
N.B. 

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Practice 10 (p124)
 4. Gradable pairs
Examples

YOUNG OLD

N.B. NOT young old

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4. Gradable antonyms
= at opposite ends of a continuous scale of values
N.B.
“NOT” A B
TESTS => very + (big / small; old / young)
=>
(converses: [x] older [y]  [y] younger [x])
Applied to sentences => Contradiction
E.g.
Practice 11 (p125)
 Summary

1. Binary => NOT A  B

2. Converses =>

3. SMI =>
4. Gradable =>
Practice 12: Determine the types of antonymy.

1. yin – yang
2. doctor – nurse
3. doctor – patient
4. humane – inhumane
5. human – non-human
6. niece – nephew
7. black – white
8. white – non-white (n)
9. bigger – smaller
10. slow – fast
 D. Homonymy

1. a) Should I wear a bow tie or a necktie to the

dinner party?
b) They bow their heads in shame.
2. a) Please say this sentence aloud.
b) Am I allowed to leave now?
3. a) How much is this diamond ring?
b) I’ll ring you up later.
 HOMONYMY
1. No sense relations b/w predicates => unrelated
meanings
=> just similarity in sound or orthographic forms
2. Classification
[a] Full homonymy  sound  spelling

[b] Homophony  sound ≠ spelling

[c] Homography ≠ sounds  spelling

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3. A source of lexical ambiguity & humor
=> causing confusion
Example:
Customer Waiter!
Waiter Yes, sir?
Customer What’s this?
Waiter It’s [bi:n] soup, sir.
Customer Never mind what it has [bi:n]. I want to
know what it IS now.

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 Practice 13: Find the meanings of
these full homonyms.

1. long (adj, v)

2. flat (adj, n)

3. bank (n)

4. bear (v, n)

5. bat (n)
 Practice 14: Find the homonymous words
to complete the sentences.
1. //
(a) Don’t _____ oil into the sink.
(b) This liquid may help to clean your _____.
(c) ______ him! He’s got three accidents this month.
(d) My cat has her left ______ injured.
2. //
(a) Where did you buy that ______?
(b) Do you know the name of our new ______?
3. /`/
(a) I don’t understand these ______.
(b) What are those ______ made of?
4. //
(a) Her lecture’s _____ me to death.
(b) Jane has a seat on the ______ of directors.
5. //
(a) You should put a _____ between these words.
(b) He’s using the _______ and stick approach to
persuade them.
(c) This is an 18-_______ gold ring.
6. //
(a) Where is the crime _______?
(b) I’ve _______ that film three times.
7. //
(a) We need an emergency ______.
(b) He was appointed as an ______ to the president.
8. /()/, //
(a) Jack became the only ______ to that huge fortune.
(b) To _____ is human.
(c) I can’t bear the ______ pollution here.
(d) _____ long, they returned.
9. //
(a) OK. ______ see you there tomorrow.
(b) The couple are walking down the _____.
(c) I hope to visit the paradise ______ of Bali next
year.
Practice 15: Say aloud these homographs.

1. minute (time) – minute (very small)

2. desert (Sahara ~) – desert (v)
3. close (v) – close (= near)
4. invalid (person) – invalid (visa)
5. bow (one’s head) – bow (and arrow)
 E. Polysemy
Example: HAND

1. body part
2. of a clock / watch
3. help
…
 POLYSEMY
1. Words having 2 or more closely related senses
developed by extension (=> same ROOT)
=>
E.g. NECK
a. part of the body
b. narrow part of a bottle
c. flesh of an animal’s neck
N.B. Distinction b/w Polysemy & Homonymy
=> based on dictionary entries for words
→ meanings in ONE entry =>
→ meanings in ≠ entries =>
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 Determine the semantic
relationships of these words.

1. Don’t ring me after 9. I’ll be sleeping then.

2. This engagement ring looks gorgeous.
3. The children sat on the floor in a ring.
=> ring 1 – ring 2 => ?
=> ring 2 – ring 3 => ?

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Practice 16 (p.132)

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2. a source of lexical ambiguity
Example
Customer: I’d like a book, please?
Bookseller: Something light?
Customer: That doesn’t matter. I have my car with me.

N.B.
(a) Lexical ambiguity < ambiguous word < polysemy, homonymy
Wait for me near the bank. I need a seal now.
Structural ambiguity < ambiguity of structures
The policeman hit the man with an umbrella.
??? The lamb is too hot to eat.

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(b) Referentially versatile word => referring to a wide range of
different things / people (= multiple referents) => ambiguity
e.g. “What should be done now?” –“We should call the police.”
WE → excluding listener
WE → including listener
(c) Referentially vague concept => no absolute distinction due to
≠ views of gradable pairs
e.g. He is SHORT.
=>
She is the BEST student.
=>

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 CONCLUSION
▪ Knowledge of semantic relations => help
successful communication
▪ Ambiguity used in creative writing => making
jokes
▪ Context or additional information =>
disambiguating or clarifying sentences
e.g.

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 Practice 17: Identify the sense relations of
each pair of predicates or predicators.
1. Is this substance flammable / inflammable?
2. This cup is valuable / invaluable.
3. A bicycle is usually convenient / inconvenient.
4. Have you ever seen a football match?
Did you see my match box?
5. What a dull lecture. / What a dull man.
6. She was given a gem / gemstone.
7. She was given an emerald / a gem.
8. He is her better / worse half.
9. You can take a tomato or a potato.
10. Where is my hair / hare?