现代英语词汇学语义特征.ppt

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1、Modern English Lexicology,Unit 4词的语义特征,apple,banana,potato,fruit,vegetable,Health food,Concept,categorization,subcategorization,(王寅)范畴化是一种基于体验，以主客体互动为出发点，对外界事物进行主观概括和类属划分的心智过程，是一种赋予世界以一定结构，并使其从无序转向有序的理性活动，也是人类认识世界的一个重要手段。范畴化是人类认识世界的一种基本认知方式。对比和概括是范畴化过程的两个主要手段(有一定先天成分)。范畴化具有体验性，规则性，无意识性，创造力，想象力等特征。,第

2、四章：词的语义特征,语义特征（semantic features）是对人类抽象活动的一种概括。，属于元语言（metalanguage）。用来描写任何语言的语义。如：具有语义特征A，记作+A；不具有语特征A，记作-A。“The analysis of word meaning is often seen as a process of breaking down the sense of a word into its minimal components”(Leech 1981:84)The meaning of words are made up of combinations of the

3、ir sense components.Minimal distinctive feature or properties.What make up the sense of word and in turn define the word.,A very simple example of this is provided by the words man,woman,boy,girl,and other,related words in English.,These words all belong to the semantic field the human race,and the

4、relation between them may be appropriately represented by a two-dimensional field diagram:,The dimensions of meaning themselves will be termed as semantic features and components.,Another way to represent these senses is to write formulae in which the dimensions of meaning are expressed by feature s

5、ymbols like HUMAN and ADULT.The meanings of the individual items can then be expressed by combinations of these features:,These formulae are called the COMPONENTIAL DEFINITIONS of the items concerned:they can be regarded,in fact,as formulated dictionary definitions.,These formulae are called the COM

6、PONENTIAL DEFINITIONS of the items concerned:they can be regarded,in fact,as formulated dictionary definitions.The term COMPONENTIAL ANALYSIS has often been used for the method of analysis illustrated here,that of reducing a words meaning to its ultimate contrastive elements.It bears some resemblanc

7、e to the mathematical process of factorizing a number,e.g.10=125.,The meaning of words is not an un-analyzable whole.There are smaller than the meaning or word.Word is regarded as a complex of different semantic features and components.Componential analysis refers to an approach by linguists to desc

8、ribe meaning of words and phrases.A process aiming at breaking down the meaning of a word into minimal distinctive features or properties.The analyzing process of word meaning by breaking down the sense of word into its minimal components,or sense components.,A particular characteristic of component

9、ial analysis is that it attempts as far as possible to treat components in terms of binary opposites,(oneparticularfeatureinacontrastingpair)e.g.MALE and FEMALE.,6.subtle/delicate A.There is a very subtle difference between“citizen rights”and“human rights”.B.This is a delicate situation.We must hand

10、le it with great care.C.She looked very delicate,but she was very energetic and had a strong will.Delicate:需要谨慎处理和对待 becoming ill easily;not strong 容易生病的;不强壮的Subtle:有洞察、领悟事物细微差别和微妙关系的能力 not easy to detect or describe;fine;delicate/organized in a clever and complex way巧妙的/able to see and describe fin

11、e and delicate differences;sensitive 敏锐的,6.subtle/delicate A.There is a very subtle difference between“citizen rights”and“human rights”.B.This is a delicate situation.We must handle it with great care.C.She looked very delicate,but she was very energetic and had a strong will.,Subtle:adj.a.not easy

12、to notice,understand,or explain difficult to understand 难理解微妙的 e.g.subtle differences in meaning b.clever in arrangement,esp.so as to deceive people 精妙的 e.g.a subtle plan c.very clever in noticing and understanding e.g.a subtle mind,Delicate:adj.a.needing careful handling,esp.because easily broken o

13、r damaged e.g.Be careful with those wine glasses theyre very delicate.b.needing careful treatment in order to avoid failure or trouble e.g.a delicate situation The negotiations are at a very delicate stage.c.easily made ill e.g.a delicate child d.finely made in a way that shows great skill e.g a del

14、icate piece of workmanship e.(of a taste,smell,etc.)pleasing but not strong and perhaps not easy to recognize.e.g.a delicate flavour/smell,Subtle:-understandableDelicate:+breakable,第四章：词的语义特征,描述如下：,+,+,+,+,+,+,+,+,+,+,+,+,+,+,-,+,+,-,-,-,-,+,-,+,+,+,+,+,-,+,+,+,+,-,-,+,+,-,+,+,-,-,+,+,+,+,+,+,Compon

15、ential analysis enables us to have an exact knowledge of the conceptual meaning of words.Two words are synonymous if they contain all the same sense components,e.g.both father and male parent can be given the same definition+HUMAN+ADULT+MALE+MARRIED even though they clearly differ in connotation,the

16、 one(Which one?And what exactly?)having connotative meaning,the other evoking no association.,Semantic features usually used to distinguish nouns include ANIMATE,MALE,VEGETABLE,ADULT,ABSTRACT,COUNTALBE,etc.Semantic features to distinguish verbs include DYNAMIC,STATIVE,CAUSATIVE,VOLITIVE,COMPLETIVE D

17、URATIVE,etc.,Five types of dynamic verb:Activity verb:Abandon,ask,call,help,learn,listen,look at,play,say,work,write Process verb:Change,deteriorate,grow,mature,slow down,widen Sense verb:ache,feel,hurt,itch Transitional verb:arrive,die,fall,land,leave,lose Momentary verb:hit,jump,kick,knock,nod,tap

18、,Two types of stative verb:Sense and cognition verb:abhor(痛恨），adore（崇拜），astonish,believe,desire,detest（厌恶）,feel,hate,like,love,realize,recall,know Relational verb:Apply to(everyone),be,belong to,concern,consist of,contain,cost,depend on,deserve equal,seem,belong to,consist of,Kill=causeXdieYdie=caus

19、eXdieXThe flowers have died.The frost killed the flowers.Look=seeX+volitiveSee=seeX-volitiveJohn was looking intently at the pictures on the wall and didnt see him.My dog was walking.I was walking my dog.,Dynamic vs.stative,How to distinguish dynamic and stative verbs?Consider learn and know.1.Be ab

20、le to be used in progressive aspect or not?(1)He is learning English.(dynamic)(2)*He is knowing English.(stative)2.Be able to be used in pseudo-cleft sentence or not?(3)What I did was to learn English.(dynamic)(4)*What I did was to know English.(stative),3.Be able to be used in embedded sentence or

21、not?(5)I persuade her to learn English.(dynamic)(6)*I persuade her to know English.(stative)4.Be able to be used in imperative sentence or not?Kick the ball!*Own the house.,Dynamic adjectives can be used in imperative sentences and progressive aspects and embedded sentences.Consider:(1)a.Be careful.

22、(dynamic)b.*Be tall.(stative)(2)a.He is being cruel.(dynamic)b.*He is being clever.(stative)(3)a.I told the girl to be honest.b.*I told the girl to be short.,A knowledge of the semantic features of words helps us to choose the right word or collocation.Some words require a human subject while some d

23、o not.For example,verbs of perception and cognition usually take a human subject as in John forgave your rudeness,but a tree or a door cannot forgive unless used metaphorically.Question:Now could you express such semantic feature of forgive?+HUMAN SUBJECT-,Advantages of CA,1.Componentialanalysishelp

24、stocharacterizesenserelations(suchassynonymy,antonymy,polysemy,andhyponymy)andthereforeenablesustohaveanexactknowledgeoftheconceptualmeaningofwords.Forexample,1)father/male parent-(synonymsindenotation,containingallthesamesensecomponents)Human+Adult+Male+Married+OldergenerationCf.Hewasafather tothes

25、epoorchildren.Thewishisfather tothethought.(愿望是思想之父。),2)“sh”(叔),“ji”(舅)and“uncle”“sh”+Human+Male+Oldergeneration+Differentlineality+Paternalside+Juniortofather“ji”+Human+Male+Oldergeneration+Differentlineality+Maternalside+Juniorseniortofather“uncle”+Human+Male+Oldergeneration+Differentlineality+Mat

26、ernalorpaternalside+Juniororseniortofather3)man(asapolysemant)A.Human+Adult+Male(asin“Ihavealwaysregardedhimasamanofintegrity.”)B.Human+AdultMale(asin“Allmenmustdie.”)C.Human(asin“Manmustchangeinachangingworld.”),2.Componentialanalysishelpsinwordchoiceandcollocation.e.g.cost+Inanimatesubject;spend+A

27、nimatesubjectlook+Volitive adverb;see-Volitiveadverbelapse+Subjectreferringtotime(e.g.Amonth/weekelapsed.*Abicycleelapsed.)frighten+Animateobject(e.g.Tomfrightenedme.*Tomfrightened thelamp.),admire+Animatesubject(e.g.Olgaadmirestheteacher.*Virtueadmires Olga.)stick+Momentary(e.g.Heput thekeyinhispoc

28、ket.Hestuck thekeyinhispocket.*Hestuck thekeyslowly/carefullyinhispocket.)IndictionarieslikeLongmancodesaresuppliedtoshowusagebasedonsemanticanalysis.e.g.usu.sing.,usu.innegatives,nopass.,notinprogressiveforms,A,F,aftern.,nocomp.,etc.,SomedisadvantagesofCA,Componentialanalysisworkswellwithgroupsofwo

29、rdsthatsharecertainfairlyobvioussemanticproperties,butitisimpossibletoextendcomponentialanalysistotheentirevocabularyforthefollowingreasons.1)Notallwordscanbeanalyzedonthebasisofsemanticopposition.e.g.friendship,love,kindness,beauty,happiness,hostility,etc.+Abstractonly?window,door,cloud,mountain,ho

30、me,etc.+Physicalobject?,2)Sensecomponentsarenotenoughtodefineaword.e.g.manHuman+Adult+MalebiologicallyCf.man(asin“Beaman!”)?man(toakid:withbeard,acoarsevoice,inpants,etc.)?,3)Someruleshaveexceptions.e.g.angry+Animate?anangryscene(acceptable)sleepless+Animate?asleeplessnight(acceptable)impossible+Wit

31、hinanimatenoun?YourethemostimpossiblepersonIveevermet,The chief drawback of componential analysis is the impossibility of making a list of the infinite number of semantic features.On the basis of semantic oppositionNot fit into such sets of contrasts,Kindness,window,cloud.abstract,physical objectsTh

32、e analysis of word meaning into its sense components is not enough.Be a man!Many words often used figuratively without observing the normal“usage rules”.Threaten ones enemy.Threaten ones security.,4)Incapableofanalyzingthevariousassociativemeaningofwordse.g.threaten+AnimateobjectTheydidsoonlytothrea

33、tentheirenemy.(acceptable)?Whatyouvedonehasthreatenedmysecurity.(figurative)comb+HairHerarelycombshisair.?Theycombedtheislandforsignsofashipwreck.(figurative),Main types of Word meaning,One difficulty in the study of meaning is that the word meaning itself has different meanings.It is often accepted

34、 that word meaning can be classified into the following types:Grammatical meaningLexical meaningDenotative meaningAssociativemeaningContextual meaning,1)Grammatical meaning,Grammatical meaning is the component of meaning identical in individual forms of different words.For instance,the tense meaning

35、 in the word forms of verbs(worked,studied,taught,etc),or the plural meaning(girl,girls,child,children,etc).Word classInflectional paradigm,2)Lexical meaning:,Lexical meaning is the meaning of an isolated word in a dictionary.This component of meaning is identical in all the forms of the word.For ex

36、ample,The word-forms:go,goes,went,gone,going,possesses different grammatical meanings of tenses,persons,and so on.In each of these forms we find the same lexical meaning expressing the process of movement.Denotative meaning Associative meaning,A denotative meaning:the conceptual meaning.The central

37、factor in linguistic communication.The referential meaning given in the dictionary,denotative meaning is the same meaning for all speakers of a given language.That is to say,it is the extensional meaning of a word.The word book,for example,can be understood by anyone who is engaged in any profession

38、.So denotative meaning is called the dictionary meaning.,Associative meaning is the secondary meaning supplemented to the conceptual meaning.It differs from conceptual meaning in that it is open-ended and indeterminate,liable to influence of such factors as culture,experience and religion.Reflected

39、meaning.First,reflected meaning is the meaning which arises in cases of multiple conceptual meaning,when one sense of a word forms part of our response to another sense.On hearing,in a church service,the synonymous expressions The comforter and The Holy Ghost,both referring to the third person of th

40、e Trinity,we may have different reactions to these terms.The comforter sounds warm and comforting,while the holy ghost sounds awesome.,B.Associative meaning/Reflected Meaning,In a church service,the synonymous expressions The Comforter and The Holy Ghost,both refer to the Third Person of the Trinity

41、,but the reactions to these terms can be conditioned by the everyday non-religious meanings of comfort and ghost.,a connotative meaning:the emotional association which a word or a phrases suggests in one mind.,Connotative meaning is the intentional meaning which a word suggests or implies.It include

42、s the stylistic reference and the emotive charge proper to the word.Wine glasses,goblets are similarly shaped like drinking vessels,but the words do not mean the same thing.The speaker uses one word rather than the other to give additional,connotational meaning.In a simpler example,march,stagger,str

43、oll,bounce.Each of these words contains the content of walk.But the connotative meaning adds extra meaning,I dont want my daughter to marry a Red.African countries are going red.You must be green to believe that.The passengers turned green with sea-sickness.He was in the blues because of his failure

44、 in the exam.I always suspected he was yellow/yellow-bellied.,Associative meaning of“Woman”If the word woman is defined conceptually by three feature(+human,-male,+adult),then the three properties human,adult,and female must provide a criterion of the correct use of that word.,But there is a multitu

45、de of additional,non-criterial properties that we have learnt to expect a referent of woman to possess.,They include not only physical characteristics(biped,having womb),but also psychological and social properties(gregarious,subject to maternal instinct),and may extend to features which are merely

46、typical rather than invariable concomitants of womanhood(capable of speech,experienced in cookery,skirt-or-dress-wearing).,Still further,connotative meaning can embrace the putative(推定的)properties of the referent,due to the viewpoint adopted by an individual,or a group of people or a whole society.,

47、So in the past woman has been burdened with such attributes(frail,prone to tears,cowardly,emotional,irrational,inconstant)as the dominant male has been pleased to impose on her,as well as with more becoming qualities such as gentle,compassionate,sensitive,hard-working.,beauty incarnate,b.stylistic m

48、eaning,stylistic meaning is that which a piece of language conveys about the social circumstances of its use.Common words,formal words,informal words.the social relationship between the speakers or correspondentsThe occasionSubject matterThe mode of discouse,青楼艳妓 Butterfield 8灵欲春宵 Whos Afraid of Vir

49、ginia Woolf,We have a scale of status usage,for instance,descending from formal and literary English at one end to colloquial,familiar,and eventual slang English at the other.We may contrast conceptual synonyms with respect to their varying stylistic overtones:Cant cannotTired fatiguedAd advertiseme

50、ntJob positionLeave depart,We may contrast conceptual synonyms with respect to their varying stylistic overtones:Steed(poetic)domicile(formal,official)Horse(general)residence(formal)Nag(slang)abode(poetic)Gee-gee(baby)home(general)Cast(literary)diminutive(very formal)Throw(general)tiny(colloquial)Ch