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Semantics
*** Shopping-Tip: Semantics
{{linguistics}}
In the main, '''semantics''' (from the
Greek language Greek and in greek letters "σημαντικός" or in latin letters ''semantikós'', or "significant meaning," derived from ''sema,'' sign) is the study of
meaning, in some sense of that term. It should not be confused with the
general Semantics of
Alfred Korzybski, a somewhat different discipline. Semantics is often opposed to
syntax, in which case semantics pertains to what something ''means'', while syntax pertains to the formal structure/patterns in which something is ''expressed'' (for example written or spoken).
Semantics is distinguished from
ontology (study of existence) in being about the use of a word more than the nature of the entity referenced by the word. This is reflected in the argument, "That's only semantics," when someone tries to draw conclusions about what is true about the world based on what is true about a word.
Semantic memory is a term used in neuropsychology to refer to memory for facts, or "knowledge", as opposed to memory for events (
episodic memory).
Several more particular senses of the word can be identified:
In linguistics
'''Semantics''' is a subfield of
linguistics that is traditionally defined as the study of
meaning of (parts of) words, phrases, sentences, and texts. '''Semantics''' can be approached from a theoretical as well as an empirical (for example
psycholinguistic and neuroscientific) point of view. The decompositional perspective towards meaning holds that the meaning of words can be analyzed by defining meaning atoms or primitives, which establish a '''language of thought'''. An area of study is the meaning of
compound (linguistics) compounds, another is the study of relations between different linguistic expressions (
homonymy,
synonymy,
antonymy,
polysemy,
paronyms,
hypernymy,
hyponymy,
meronymy,
metonymy,
holonymy,
exocentric, and
endocentric). Semantics includes the study of
thematic role thematic roles, argument structure, and its linking to
syntax. Semantics deals with '''
sense''' and '''
reference''',
truth conditions, and
discourse analysis.
Pragmatics is often considered a part of semantics, but otherwise is treated as a branch of its own.
See also
*
Semantic class
*
Semantic feature
*
Semantic Change
*
Semantic progression
*
Semantic property
*
Colorless green ideas sleep furiously
*
Sememe
In mathematics and computer science
"'''Semantics'''" is also used as a term in
mathematics and
computer science.
See also
*
Axiomatic semantics
*
Denotational semantics
*
Game semantics
*
Formal semantics of programming languages
*
Operational semantics
*
Semantic spectrum
*
Theory-based semantics
*
Discourse Representation Theory
* OWL [http://www.w3.org/TR/owl-features/]
In logic
Many of the formal approaches to semantics applied in linguistics, mathematical logic, and computer science originated in techniques for the
semantics of logic, most influentially being
Alfred Tarski's ideas in
model theory and his
semantic theory of truth. Also,
inferential role semantics has its roots in the work of
Gerhard Gentzen on
proof theory and
proof-theoretic semantics. One of the most popular alternatives to the standard model theoretic semantics is
truth-value semantics.
See also
*
Formal logic
*
Game semantics
*
General semantics
*
Natural semantic metalanguage
*
Semantic link
*
Semantic network
*
Semantics of logic
*
Semantic web
*
Semiotics
*
Truth-value semantics
Category:Grammar
Category:Semantics
Category:Social philosophy
External links
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alphaWorks Semantics
ast:Semántica
bg:Семантика
be:СÑ?мантыка
br:Semantik
ca:Semà ntica
cv:Семантика (лингвиÑ?тика)
cs:Sémantika
da:Semantik
de:Semantik
es:Semántica
eo:Semantiko
eu:Semantika
fa:معناشناسی
fr:Sémantique
ko:ì?˜ë¯¸ë¡
io:Semantiko
id:Semantik
ia:Semantica
is:Merkingarfræði
it:Semantica
he:×¡×ž× ×˜×™×§×”
lt:Semantika
hu:Szemantika
ms:Semantik
mo:СемантикÑ?
nl:Semantiek
ja:�味論
no:Semantikk
pl:Semantyka
pt:Semântica
ro:Semantică
ru:ЛингвиÑ?тичеÑ?каÑ? Ñ?емантика
sk:Sémantika (náuka)
sr:Семантика
fi:Semantiikka
sv:Semantik
ta:சொற�பொர�ளியல�
tr:Semantik
uk:Семантика
zh:è¯ä¹‰å¦
{{catmore}}
Category:Linguistics
Category:Philosophy of language
Category:Semiotics
de:Kategorie:Semantik
es:CategorÃa:Semántica
fr:Catégorie:Sémantique
io:Category:Semantiko
is:Flokkur:Merkingarfræði
nl:Categorie:Semantiek
pt:Categoria:Semântica
sr:Категорија:Семантика
sv:Kategori:Semantik
tr:Kategori:Semantik
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