Unit 10 Study Guide and Exercises
1. Explain the following terms and concepts:
synonymy/synonym *paraphrase*intension * hyponymy/hyponym*symmetrical hyponymy *superordinate term *entailment *transitive relation *Basic Rule of Sense Inclusion *co-hyponyms *sense relations
2. Do you think it is easier to learn words as unique items, or as part of a system involving various kinds of sense relationships? That is, is it easier to learn words when we can relate them in systematic ways or when we learn them separately? Briefly explain.
It is probably easier to learn words as part of a system of interlocking sense relationships, because many, if not most, words share aspects of meaning with each other which recur again and again. These shared aspects of meaning make the acquisition process more efficient. For example, animal, dog, and cat, though clearly different in meaning, share some components of meaning: they refer to living non-human entities, and we know that dogs and cats are subtypes of animal that are commonly used as pets, etc.
3. What is meant by synonymy? Why is it difficult to define this term? Do most synonyms have identical or just similar meanings (or senses)? Do you think true synonymy exists? Try to support your answer with appropriate examples.
Synonymy is a meaning relation between words in which the words share the same or nearly the same meaning. It is difficult to define precisely, in part because true cases are rare if they exist at all. True synonymy likely does not exist, although some cases are close: sofa, couch, and davenport seem very similar in meaning to most people.
4. Identify in the following sentences the pair of words in caps which appear to share the same (or nearly the same) sense. In some (or all) cases it may be difficult to decide, so be ready to explain the difficulty. Same (or nearly the same): 4a and 4b. 4e is unclear. The other cases seem clearly different in meaning.
a. Fred always sleeps on the SOFA/COUCH.
b. The neighbors have a BIG/LARGE family.
c. The winning horse TROTTED/RAN to the finish line.
d. This table is very SMOOTH/FLAT.
e. That is a very HIGH/TALL building.
f. That is a very FLAT/SLIPPERY road.
5. Synonyms usually share some but not all senses. This becomes evident in certain of their uses. For each apparent synonym pair below supply sentences in which the two words can be used interchangably without altering the sense of the sentence, and then give another sentence using one of the words in a different sense (where no interchange is possible with the same meaning).
a. small/little e. cheap/inexpensive
b. hard/difficult f. bright/well-lit
c. long/extended g. sad/dejected
d. lady/woman h. rob/steal
5a. Jane built a small/little house; Jane will arrive in a little/?small while.
5b. That's a hard/difficult project; This floor has a hard/?difficult surface.
5c. I took a long/extended trip; She had a long/?extended face.
5d. She's a pretty lady/woman; The First Lady/?Woman stayed there.
5e. The book is cheap/inexpensive; That's a cheap/?inexpensive joke.
5f. The room was bright/well-lit; He's a bright/?well-lit student.
5g. John looked sad/dejected; Today was a sad/?dejected day.
5h. They robbed/stole from the rich; They robbed/?stole the bank.
i. Do the same for the synonym pairs you identified in 4 above.
6. A special kind of synonymy falls under the heading of euphemism, whereby a culturally or socially disagreeable word is replaced by a more agreeable one with essentially (though not exactly) the same meaning. For each term below try to find several euphemisms which are less harsh, offensive, or explicit. For item (h) try to think of several additional examples. One example is given per item.
a. war (conflict) f. toilet (powder room)
b. crazy (disturbed) g. poor (disadvantaged)
c. damn (darn) h. crippled (handicapped)
d. fired from a job (laid off) i. stupid (slow)
e. blind (visually impaired) h. ___________
7. Sometimes synonyms can have either positive or negative connotations, as shown by the first set below. Try to complete the other examples. A thesaurus may be helpful. Answers will vary widely. Suggestions are given below.
NEUTRAL TERM POSITIVE NEGATIVE
careful scrupulous keep a sharp eye on
save money be frugal be miserly
reserved shy reclusive
levelheaded careful dull
curious inquisitive nosy
slow deliberate lagging
laugh chuckle snicker
talk converse gossip
old mature decrepit
young inexperienced immature
8. What is a paraphrase? How are the notions of synonymy and paraphrase distinguished in semantics?
Paraphrases are sentences that have the same set of entailments: they mutually entail each other. Synonymy evokes the notion of sameness of meaning applied to individual predicates, while paraphrase evokes the same notion applied to entire sentences (or the propositions expressed by those sentences).
9. Supply as many paraphrases as you can for each of the following sentences. Remember that each paraphrase must have the same set of entailments as the original sentence. Answers will vary considerably. One possible paraphrase is given per item.
a. I gave the book to my friend. I gave my friend the book.
b. Your child took out the garbage. Your child took the garbage out.
c. It is likely that Fred will win the race. Fred will likely win the race.
d. John is easy to please. It's easy to please John.
e. The sales clerk received the money from me. I received the money from the sales clerk.
f. Some students have a job. Not all students have a job.
10. What is meant by hyponymy? When predicates are organized according to their hyponymic relationships with each other the resulting tree diagram is sometimes called a taxonomy.
Hyponymy is a meaning relation between predicates involving meaning inclusion, where the meaning of one predicate is included in that of another. Example: rose is a hyponym of flower, because the meaning of flower is contained in the meaning of rose.
11. Organize each of the following groups of words into a taxonomy in which the superordinate terms and their hyponyms are properly arranged with respect to each other. Be sure to identify which terms are superordinate and which are hyponyms (and which are co-hyponyms). Identify any problems you might have in organizing the data, and supply additional data if you can think of them. It may be helpful to sketch a tree diagram. Are you aware of any other disciplines in which such taxonomies are used?
a. hammer, screwdriver, wrench, awl, tool, pliers
b. capenter, electrician, craftsman, plumber
c. mammal, human, animal, amphibian, reptile, frog, snake
d. shatter, crack, break, smash, fracture
e. man, woman, husband, bachelor, wife, human, widow
Unit 10 Study Guide and Exercises
1. Explain the following terms and concepts:
synonymy/synonym *paraphrase*intension * hyponymy/hyponym*symmetrical hyponymy *superordinate term *entailment *transitive relation *Basic Rule of Sense Inclusion *co-hyponyms *sense relations
2. Do you think it is easier to learn words as unique items, or as part of a system involving various kinds of sense relationships? That is, is it easier to learn words when we can relate them in systematic ways or when we learn them separately? Briefly explain.
It is probably easier to learn words as part of a system of interlocking sense relationships, because many, if not most, words share aspects of meaning with each other which recur again and again. These shared aspects of meaning make the acquisition process more efficient. For example, animal, dog, and cat, though clearly different in meaning, share some components of meaning: they refer to living non-human entities, and we know that dogs and cats are subtypes of animal that are commonly used as pets, etc.
3. What is meant by synonymy? Why is it difficult to define this term? Do most synonyms have identical or just similar meanings (or senses)? Do you think true synonymy exists? Try to support your answer with appropriate examples.
Synonymy is a meaning relation between words in which the words share the same or nearly the same meaning. It is difficult to define precisely, in part because true cases are rare if they exist at all. True synonymy likely does not exist, although some cases are close: sofa, couch, and davenport seem very similar in meaning to most people.
4. Identify in the following sentences the pair of words in caps which appear to share the same (or nearly the same) sense. In some (or all) cases it may be difficult to decide, so be ready to explain the difficulty. Same (or nearly the same): 4a and 4b. 4e is unclear. The other cases seem clearly different in meaning.
a. Fred always sleeps on the SOFA/COUCH.
b. The neighbors have a BIG/LARGE family.
c. The winning horse TROTTED/RAN to the finish line.
d. This table is very SMOOTH/FLAT.
e. That is a very HIGH/TALL building.
f. That is a very FLAT/SLIPPERY road.
5. Synonyms usually share some but not all senses. This becomes evident in certain of their uses. For each apparent synonym pair below supply sentences in which the two words can be used interchangably without altering the sense of the sentence, and then give another sentence using one of the words in a different sense (where no interchange is possible with the same meaning).
a. small/little e. cheap/inexpensive
b. hard/difficult f. bright/well-lit
c. long/extended g. sad/dejected
d. lady/woman h. rob/steal
5a. Jane built a small/little house; Jane will arrive in a little/?small while.
5b. That's a hard/difficult project; This floor has a hard/?difficult surface.
5c. I took a long/extended trip; She had a long/?extended face.
5d. She's a pretty lady/woman; The First Lady/?Woman stayed there.
5e. The book is cheap/inexpensive; That's a cheap/?inexpensive joke.
5f. The room was bright/well-lit; He's a bright/?well-lit student.
5g. John looked sad/dejected; Today was a sad/?dejected day.
5h. They robbed/stole from the rich; They robbed/?stole the bank.
i. Do the same for the synonym pairs you identified in 4 above.
6. A special kind of synonymy falls under the heading of euphemism, whereby a culturally or socially disagreeable word is replaced by a more agreeable one with essentially (though not exactly) the same meaning. For each term below try to find several euphemisms which are less harsh, offensive, or explicit. For item (h) try to think of several additional examples. One example is given per item.
a. war (conflict) f. toilet (powder room)
b. crazy (disturbed) g. poor (disadvantaged)
c. damn (darn) h. crippled (handicapped)
d. fired from a job (laid off) i. stupid (slow)
e. blind (visually impaired) h. ___________
7. Sometimes synonyms can have either positive or negative connotations, as shown by the first set below. Try to complete the other examples. A thesaurus may be helpful. Answers will vary widely. Suggestions are given below.
NEUTRAL TERM POSITIVE NEGATIVE
careful scrupulous keep a sharp eye on
save money be frugal be miserly
reserved shy reclusive
levelheaded careful dull
curious inquisitive nosy
slow deliberate lagging
laugh chuckle snicker
talk converse gossip
old mature decrepit
young inexperienced immature
8. What is a paraphrase? How are the notions of synonymy and paraphrase distinguished in semantics?
Paraphrases are sentences that have the same set of entailments: they mutually entail each other. Synonymy evokes the notion of sameness of meaning applied to individual predicates, while paraphrase evokes the same notion applied to entire sentences (or the propositions expressed by those sentences).
9. Supply as many paraphrases as you can for each of the following sentences. Remember that each paraphrase must have the same set of entailments as the original sentence. Answers will vary considerably. One possible paraphrase is given per item.
a. I gave the book to my friend. I gave my friend the book.
b. Your child took out the garbage. Your child took the garbage out.
c. It is likely that Fred will win the race. Fred will likely win the race.
d. John is easy to please. It's easy to please John.
e. The sales clerk received the money from me.
I received the money from the sales clerk.
f. Some students have a job. Not all students have a job.
10. What is meant by hyponymy? When predicates are organized according to their hyponymic relationships with each other the resulting tree diagram is sometimes called a taxonomy.
Hyponymy is a meaning relation between predicates involving meaning inclusion, where the meaning of one predicate is included in that of another. Example: rose is a hyponym of flower, because the meaning of flower is contained in the meaning of rose.
11. Organize each of the following groups of words into a taxonomy in which the superordinate terms and their hyponyms are properly arranged with respect to each other. Be sure to identify which terms are superordinate and which are hyponyms (and which are co-hyponyms). Identify any problems you might have in organizing the data, and supply additional data if you can think of them. It may be helpful to sketch a tree diagram. Are you aware of any other disciplines in which such taxonomies are used?
a. hammer, screwdriver, wrench, awl, tool, pliers
b. capenter, electrician, craftsman, plumber
c. mammal, human, animal, amphibian, reptile, frog, snake
d. shatter, crack, break, smash, fracture
e. man, woman, husband, bachelor, wife, human, widow
11a: Superordinate: tool; the other terms are hyponyms of tool
11b: Superordinate: craftsman; the other terms are its hyponyms
11c: Superordinate: animal; mammal, amphibian, and reptile are hyponyms of animal; human is a hyponym of mammal, frog is a hyponym of amphibian, and snake is a hyponym of reptile
11d: Superordinate: break; the other terms are hyponyms of break
11e: Superordinate: human; man and woman are hyponyms of human; husband and bachelor are hyponyms of man; wife and widow are hyponyms of woman
12. Explain what it means to say that hyponymy involves entailment.
Both are one-way meaning relations in which the meaning of one is included in that of the other. But hyponymy is a one-way relation between individual predicates, whereas entailment is a one-way relation between sentences (or more precisely, between the propositions expressed by the sentences).
13. For each sentence below give another sentence which the first one entails, and then give one which the first does NOT entail. Answers will vary considerably. One example is given for each.
a. John is a bachelor. Entails John is unmarried. Does not entail John is sad.
b. John is a widower. Entails John is a man. Does not entail John is rich.
c. Mary is divorced. Entails Mary was married. Does not entail Mary is old.
d. This is a tulip. Entails This is a flower. Does not entail This is pretty.
14. Hyponymy and synonymy refer to relations between pairs of words., while entailment and paraphrase refer to relations between pairs of sentences. Supply the correct terms in the blanks.
Hyponymy is to entailment as synonymy is to paraphrase.
15. What does the Basic Rule of Sense Inclusion have to say about the entailment relationship between the following two sentences?
a. Mary bought a house.
b. Mary bought a building.
Sentence a entails sentence b, because the house is a hyponym of building.
16. Why does the Basic Rule of Sense Inclusion NOT work for the following pairs of sentences? How must it be amended to work here?
a. Mary did not buy a house.
b. Mary did not buy a building.
Sentence a does not entail sentence b, even though house is a hyponym of building. If the sentences contain a negative, such as not, then the entailment relation is reversed: here sentence b entails sentence a.
c. Mary bought all the houses in town.
d. Mary bought all the buildings in town.
Parallel to the relation between 16a and 16b: here sentence c does not entail sentence d, even though house is a hyponym of building. If the sentences contain the universal quantifier all, then the entailment relation is once again reversed: here sentence d entails sentence c.
17. Consider the following pair of sentences. Is there any entailment relation existing between them? Explain why or why not.
a. Mary bought a big house.
b. Mary bought a big building.
No entailment relation exists between either sentence in 17, even though house is a hyponym of building. This is likely due to the presence of the gradable adjective big modifying house and building in each sentence. Somehow this upsets the relation between hyponymy and entailment described in the Basic Rule of Sense Inclusion.
11a: Superordinate: tool; the other terms are hyponyms of tool
11b: Superordinate: craftsman; the other terms are its hyponyms
11c: Superordinate: animal; mammal, amphibian, and reptile are hyponyms of animal; human is a hyponym of mammal, frog is a hyponym of amphibian, and snake is a hyponym of reptile
11d: Superordinate: break; the other terms are hyponyms of break
11e: Superordinate: human; man and woman are hyponyms of human; husband and bachelor are hyponyms of man; wife and widow are hyponyms of woman
12. Explain what it means to say that hyponymy involves entailment.
Both are one-way meaning relations in which the meaning of one is included in that of the other. But hyponymy is a one-way relation between individual predicates, whereas entailment is a one-way relation between sentences (or more precisely, between the propositions expressed by the sentences).
13. For each sentence below give another sentence which the first one entails, and then give one which the first does NOT entail. Answers will vary considerably. One example is given for each.
a. John is a bachelor. Entails John is unmarried. Does not entail John is sad.
b. John is a widower. Entails John is a man. Does not entail John is rich.
c. Mary is divorced. Entails Mary was married. Does not entail Mary is old.
d. This is a tulip. Entails This is a flower. Does not entail This is pretty.
14. Hyponymy and synonymy refer to relations between pairs of words., while entailment and paraphrase refer to relations between pairs of sentences. Supply the correct terms in the blanks.
Hyponymy is to entailment as synonymy is to paraphrase.
15. What does the Basic Rule of Sense Inclusion have to say about the entailment relationship between the following two sentences?
a. Mary bought a house.
b. Mary bought a building.
Sentence a entails sentence b, because the house is a hyponym of building.
16. Why does the Basic Rule of Sense Inclusion NOT work for the following pairs of sentences? How must it be amended to work here?
a. Mary did not buy a house.
b. Mary did not buy a building.
Sentence a does not entail sentence b, even though house is a hyponym of building. If the sentences contain a negative, such as not, then the entailment relation is reversed: here sentence b entails sentence a.
c. Mary bought all the houses in town.
d. Mary bought all the buildings in town.
Parallel to the relation between 16a and 16b: here sentence c does not entail sentence d, even though house is a hyponym of building. If the sentences contain the universal quantifier all, then the entailment relation is once again reversed: here sentence d entails sentence c.
17. Consider the following pair of sentences. Is there any entailment relation existing between them? Explain why or why not.
a. Mary bought a big house.
b. Mary bought a big building.
No entailment relation exists between either sentence in 17, even though house is a hyponym of building. This is likely due to the presence of the gradable adjective big modifying house and building in each sentence. Somehow this upsets the relation between hyponymy and entailment described in the Basic Rule of Sense Inclusion.
