NGỮ NGHĨA HỌC.

UNIT 3

UNIT OUT LINE

I. TYPES OF MEANING
A. WORD MEANING
1. Denotative meaning
2. Connotative meaning
B. SENTENCE MEANING
1. Literal meaning
2. Figurative meaning / Figures of speech

A. WORD MEANING
1. Denotative / Literal / Descriptive / Referential meaning
The denotative dictionary meaning
can be described by a set of semantic features
describes something => called descriptive meaning
refers us to something in the world => called referential meaning
Ex: A pig: a domestic animal, having 4 legs & a tail, hairy, usually raised for meat
A father: a male human, adult, married, having children …
2. Connotative / Figurative / Social / Affective meaning
The connotative + implied, additional meaning
+ shows people’s emotions and / or attitudes => affective meaning
+ may vary with individual or community => social meaning
+ may be used positively or negatively by speaker
Ex: + The word pig in “He is a pig” may means connotatively:
He is a pig => - Lazy
- Greedy
- Stupid
- Dirty
+ As connotative meaning, the word woman may means positively devotion,
patience, generosity …, and negatively frailty, inconstancy, irrationality …

B. SENTENCE MEANING
1. Linguistic / literal meaning
The linguistic meaning of a sentence depends on:
- The meanings of the constituent words
- The syntactic functions of the units in the sentence (subject, object,...)
- The semantic / participant roles of the noun phrases in the sentence.
Compare the following sentences:
(1) The lion bit the hunter.
(2) The hunter bit the lion.
(3) The hunter was bitten by the lion
First, to understand the meaning of the sentences, we must know the meanings of the words
‘lion, bite, hunter’. However, we can use exactly the same words to form different sentences
with the same or different meanings.

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 (1) The lion bit the hunter # (2) The hunter bit the lion
S O S O
The two sentences (1) & (2) have different meanings because the words have different syntactic
functions.
(2) The hunter bit the lion # (3) The hunter was bitten by the lion.
S O S O
The sentences (2) & (3) have different meanings although the words have the same syntactic
functions.
(1) The lion bit the hunter = (3) The hunter was bitten by the lion.
S O S O
The sentences (1) & (3) have the same meaning although the words have different syntactic
functions. What makes the meaning of the two sentences similar or different? It is what is called
semantic / participant roles which is the most important factor.

SEMANTIC or PARTICIPANT ROLES: the role performed by a noun phrase in relation to the verb
Types
 Agent (A): the one that initiates an action (person/ animal + action verb)
Ex: Paul opened the door
 Patient (P): the one that suffers from or is affected by the action (action verb)
Ex: Paul opens the door ; The door opened at the first blow of wind
Paul is boiling water ; Water boils at 100OC
 Experiencer (người trải nghiệm) (E): the one that experiences a feeling/ sensation/ perception …
(a person / an animal + a non-action verb)
Ex: Paul loves Mary
I recognize that I’m wrong
The boy wants a candy
The teacher remembers meeting me somewhere
 Stimulus (động cơ kích thích) (S): the one that causes a feeling / sensation (emotion verb)
Ex: Paul loves Mary
I’m afraid of ghost
The book of the teacher makes me very happy
The film interests me a lot
 Recipient (R) (the receiver): the one that receives a physical object
Ex: He gave me a book last night
 Benefactive (B) : the one that benefits from an action
Ex: I do all this for you
I sent him a gift for his son
 Instrument (I): the one that is used to perform an action (implying a user)
Ex: I open the door with a hammer
Paul used a key to open the door
 Cause (C): the one that causes an action to happen (not implying a user)
Ex: The door opened suddenly at the blow of the wind
Paul was hurt with a knife (implying someone using a knife to hurt him)
I
Paul was hurt by a knife (not implying the user of the knife)
C
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  Locative (L): the place where an action happens
Ex: I was born in Đà lạt
HCM city is a good place to live
 Temporal (T): the time when an action happens
Ex: Yesterday, I saw you at the supermarket

Back to the 3 previous examples, we see:

(1) The lion bit the hunter # (2) The hunter bit the lion
S/A O/P S/A O/P
(2) The hunter bit the lion # (3) The hunter was bitten by the lion.
S/A O/P S/P O/A
The above sentences have different meanings because they have different semantic roles although
they may have the same syntactic functions (2) & (3).
(1) The lion bit the hunter = (3) The hunter was bitten by the lion.
S/A O/P S/P O/A
The two sentences have the same meaning because they have the same semantic roles although the
syntactic functions are different.

Exercise 15: Identify the semantic role of the noun phrases in the following sentences
1. The student (Agent) couldn’t finish (action) the assignment (patient) because the library (patient)

was closed (action).

2. The couple (agent) raced (action) the horses (patient) through the meadow (locative) yesterday

morning (temperal).

3. The teacher (Experiencer) was angered (non-action) by the rowdy students (stimulus).

4. I (experiencer) recall (non-act) hearing my brother (agent) say (act) that (patient).

5. Tom (Agent) lent (act) me (recipient) enough money (patient) to pay (act) the rent (patient).

6. At the reunion (Temperal) he (A) ran into (act) his cousin Karl (P).

7. The farmer (A) went to the field (L) before dawn (T).

8. The building (P) was constructed in a commercial zone (L).

9. A big tree (P) was rooted up by the storm (C) last night (T).

10. I (Experiencer) enjoy reading books (P) in my free time (T).

11. The immigrants picked strawberries in the early June.

12. He never turned in his budget report on time.

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13. The unlucky customer had the undercooked meat sent back to the chef.

14. Traffic was backed up at the intersection because of the accident.

15. I’m very glad to meet you here after so many years.

16. The book you gave me on Teacher’s Day was worth reading.

17. An unfair attitude toward the poor will contribute to the problem of poverty.

18. After the yolk is separated from the white, it must be boiled immediately.

19. Nutritionists recommended that foods from each of the four basic groups be eaten regularly.

20. It was thought for many centuries that the world was flat.

21. His ingenuity never ceases to amaze me.

22. The hurricane destroyed half of the island.

23. Angela offered the job to her former rival.

24. In the morning we left San Francisco for Austin.

25. Zelda gets angry whenever Scott lies her.

26. The remains will be shipped to Cleveland on Wednesday.

27. The boy seems to be interested in the film shown at NH cinema last night.

28. He hates being disturbed at table.

29. As the storm raged, the waves grew higher and higher.

30. He enjoys going fishing on the lake at sunset.

31. The snow melts at the morning sunshine.

32. The chickens are ready for us to eat in 5 minutes.

33. Do you like the book I sent you?

34. Acid can dissolve a corpse in 5 minutes.

35. The man who loves her must be insane.

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36. Alan was sent a special gift on her birthday.

37. Many TV programs today help students to improve their study a lot.

38. The prisoner killed the guard then disappeared into the forest.

39. The beer made from rice drinks very well.

40. Putting one hand in the pocket, he walked around the front yard.

41. Joining the club is a good way of meeting new people.

42. She (experiencer) wants to know if anyone (agent) has an umbrella (patient) to lend her

(recipient).

43. Harold doesn’t like making speeches in front of the class.

44. Trembling with fear, she opened the letter.

45. Delayed by the bad weather ©, the plane (patient) arrived in Hanoi (L) one hour late.

46. My first job (Stimulus), cleaning the floor (patient), made me (Experiencer) exhausted.

47. The door ajar (Stimulus) made the girl (Experiencer) worried.

48. We (A) watched the brown river (P) swollen with rain ©.

49. A house (P) surrounded by a large, deep ditch (I) provides us (Be) with a safe shelter (P).

50. This bed (Locative) sleeps comfortably.