predictable vs non-predictable meaning
black bird, flight deck - predictable
hotdog, black sheep in the family - not predictable
explain animacy hierarchy
humans naturally view situations from the point of
view of any human beings involved, and if there are non, of other living creatures – they tend to construct active sentences
1st person>2nd person>3rd person>proper names>humans>nonhumans/animates>inanimates
implicature hierarchy
AGENT > RECIPIENT(BENEFACTIVE) > THEME/PATIENT > INSTRUMENT > LOCATION
explain unmarked young-old relationship
In many pairs of gradable adjectives (antonyms), the two words are not equal. One word is Unmarked (neutral/standard), and the other is Marked (specific/loaded).
Old = Unmarked
How old is you sister? -could be any age
Young = Marked
How young is your girlfriend? -implication that she’s young
explain sense vs reference
reference – the relationship by which language hooks onto the world
sense – semantic links between elements within the vocabulary system
Semiotic Triangle
Symbol: The word/sound (e.g., “Dog”).
Thought/Reference (Sense): The concept in your head (a furry, four-legged pet).
Referent: The actual animal barking outside.
explain Grice maxims
Grice’s maxims
*QUALITY
– Try to make your contribution one that is true;
Do not say what you believe is false;
Do not say that for which you lack adequate evidence
*QUANTITY – Make your contribution as informative as is required;
Do not make your contribution more informative as is required
*RELEVANCE – Make your contribution relevant
*MANNER – Be perspicuous;
Avoid ambiguity and obscurity;
Be brief and orderly
violating Grice’s maxims – the speaker secretly breaking Grice’s maxims (e.g. by lying)
name 5 kinds of evidence
evidentiality – the indication of the nature of evidence for a given statement
- BELIEF – the information is already held by the speaker, who makes no overt reference to
evidence, e.g.: I think that democracy … - INDUCTION – the speaker concludes the information from evidence, without specifying the
type of evidence, e.g.: The exit must be blocked - SENSORY EVIDENCE – information from perceptual evidence, e.g.: It smells like …
- HEARSAY EVIDENCE – information acknowledged as being told to the speaker by others, e.g.:
They are supposed to be having an affair - DEDUCTION – the speaker uses a hypothesis to predict a fact, e.g.: The snow should melt
more quickly near the sea
what types of modality are there
- epistemic - possibility and necessity with regard to knowledge (She must have done it.)
- deontic - permission and obligation according to some system of rules (She must do it.)
The difference between accomplishments and activities
- Activity (Process without a Goal)
An activity is something you “do” that flows over time but has no built-in finish line. You can stop at any moment, and it is still true that you did it.
Features: [+Duration] (It takes time) | [-Telic] (No End Goal)
Example: “John walked in the park.”
- Accomplishment (Process with a Goal)
An accomplishment involves a process that takes time (duration), but it must reach a specific endpoint (the “climax”) to be complete. If you don’t reach the end, the action didn’t happen.
Features: [+Duration] (It takes time) | [+Telic] (Has an End Goal)
Example: “John walked to school.”
are words like you and now deictic and why
yes. you = person deixis, now = temporal deixis (others: spatial (place),
Analyze the participants in the sentence
Agent = the one who deliberately does the action
Natural force = entity that perfors the action with no conciousness
Patient =entity that undergoes the action and changes its state. This is the most profound change (“John smashed the window.” - The window changes from whole to broken, “The sun melted the ice.”)
Theme = entity that is moved or located, but does not change its physical state (“John threw the ball.”)
Experiencer = entity (must be a living being) that receives sensory or emotional input (Mary saw the smoke, John fears the dog…)
Percept = thing that causes the feeling in the Experiencer
Instrument - The object used by the Agent to perform the action
Benefactor - The entity for whose benefit the action is performed
Goal - The direction towards which the action is directed
Source - The direction from which the action originates.
7 types of meaning
Conceptual Logical content Needle = Thin, sharp, steel instrument
Connotative Real-world association Needle = Pain, illness, drugs, knitting
Social Social context/Dialect Steed (Poetic) vs. Horse (General) vs. Nag (Slang).
Affective Speaker’s emotion “ You’re a tyrant” (Dislike) vs. “You’re firm” (Approval).
Reflected Shadow of other meanings Cock (Rooster) is avoided due to the anatomical meaning.
Collocative Habitual partners Heavy rain (not Strong rain).
Thematic Word order / Emphasis Active vs. Passive voice.
sign/signified
Signifier - The sound “Apple”
Signified - The idea of a red, round fruit
The Sign - The combination of the sound + idea
