Chapter 3
Reference and Sense
Entry Test
(1) S, U. “John sang wonderfully last night” is both a sentence (S) and an utterance (U).
Sentence: A grammatically complete unit of words expressing a complete thought. Utterance: A spoken or written instance of a
sentence, considering context.
(2) Yes. Sentences can be true or false, depending on their correspondence to reality.
(3) Yes. Utterances are tied to a particular time and place, considering context.
(4) No. Sentences, in general, are not tied to specific times or places without context.
(5) No. Propositions (the meaning or idea expressed by a sentence) are language-independent.
(6) Yes. Utterances can be true or false, considering the context.
Key Concepts: Sentence: grammatical structure. Utterance: spoken/written instance of a [Link]: meaning/idea
expressed by a sentence. Context: influences utterance meaning
1) Introduction
This unit introduces key concepts in semantics, focusing on the distinction between sense and reference.
Key Terms:
1. Sense: Relationships within language (word meanings).
2. Reference: Relationships between language and the world (identifying specific things).
Main Points:
1. Reference connects language to the world, identifying specific objects, people, or concepts.
2. The same expression can have different referents depending on context.
3. Reference is a relationship between language and the world.
Examples:
1. “My son is in the beech tree” – “my son” refers to a specific person.
2. “this page” – refers to a specific sheet of paper (physical object).
3. “your left ear” – refers to the ear touched in response to the instruction.
2) Practice Questions:
1. Last three words: “touch your left ear”.
2. The thing touched is part of the world (physical ear).
3. Yes, “your left ear” is part of the language.
4. No, “your left ear” refers to the mother’s ear in the given context.
Takeaways:
1. Language expressions can have variable reference.
2. Context determines the specific referent.
3. Reference highlights the connection between language and reality.
3) Let’s dive into the practice questions.
(1) Referent of “the present President of the United States”
(a) In 2007: The referent would be George W. Bush.
(b) In 1996: The referent would be Bill Clinton.
(2) Nature of the phrase “the present President of the United States”
The phrase has variable reference, meaning its referent changes depending on the time and context in which it’s used.
(3) Referent of “the President of the United States”
(a) In a conversation about United States politics in 2007: The referent would be George W. Bush.
(b) In a conversation about United States politics in 1996: The referent would be Bill Clinton.
4) Factors influencing reference : The correct answer is (c) both (a) and (b). The reference of an expression varies according to both
the circumstances (time, place, etc.) in which the expression is used and the topic of the conversation.
It’s interesting to note that some expressions have constant reference, meaning their referent remains the same in most everyday
situations. However, phrases like “the present President of the United States” are examples of expressions with variable reference,
where the referent changes depending on the context. ¹
4) Let’s explore the practice questions.
(1) Does “the moon” have constant reference?*
Yes. In most everyday conversations, “the moon” refers to Earth’s natural satellite.
(2) Does “The People’s Republic of China” have constant reference?*
Yes. This phrase typically refers to the country with that official name.
(3) Does “Angola” have constant reference?*
Yes. This geographical term usually refers to the African country.
(4) Does “Halley’s Comet” have constant reference?*
Yes. This phrase consistently refers to the specific comet named after Edmond Halley.
These examples illustrate constant reference, where expressions reliably point to the same entity.
Key Takeaways:
Constant reference occurs when expressions consistently refer to the same object or concept.
Context plays a crucial role in determining reference in language.
Different expressions can share the same referent (e.g., “Morning Star” and “Evening Star” both refer to Venus).
Additional Examples of Constant Reference:
Historical events (e.g., “World War II”)
Scientific concepts (e.g., “gravity”)
Geographical locations (e.g., “Mount Everest”)
However, as the comment suggests, most language expressions rely on context for reference, leading to variable reference in many
cases.
5) Let’s dive into the practice questions.
(1) Can “the President” and “the Leader of the Republican Party” have the same referent in a 2007 conversation about the
United States?
Yes. In 2007, George W. Bush was both the President and the Leader of the Republican Party.
(2) Can “John” and “the person in the corner” have the same referent?
Yes. If John is the only person in the corner, the phrases refer to the same individual.
6) Next, let’s explore sense and semantic relationships.
(1) “fell over” / “fell down”
S (Same meaning)
(2) “It is that Raymond will be here tomorrow” / “Raymond will be here tomorrow”
S (Same meaning)
(3) “Your gatepost doesn’t seem to be quite” / “Your gatepost seems uneven”
S (Same meaning)
(4) “He painted the fireplace” / “He painted the wall”
D (Different meaning)
(5) “I’ll see you on” / “I’ll see you at”
D (Different meaning)
Key Takeaways:
Sense refers to an expression’s semantic relationships within the language.
Sameness of meaning is a fundamental semantic relationship.
Sense applies to words, phrases, and sentences.
Additional Examples: Synonyms (e.g., “happy” and “joyful”). Hyponymy (e.g., “dog” and “animal”). Antonymy (e.g., “hot” and “cold”)
7) Understanding sense and reference helps clarify language meaning and interpretation.
Let’s explore the practice questions.
(1) “Rupert took off his jacket” / “Rupert took his jacket off”
Yes, they mean nearly the same thing.
(2) “Harriet wrote the answer down” / “Harriet wrote down the answer”
Yes, they mean nearly the same thing.
(3) “Bachelors prefer redheads” / “Girls with red hair are preferred by unmarried men”
Yes, they mean nearly the same thing.
Key Takeaways: Sense explores semantic relationships within language. Word order can affect meaning, but sometimes doesn’t.
Context influences interpretation.
Additional Examples: Synonyms (e.g., “big” and “large”) Idiomatic expressions (e.g., “kick the bucket” meaning “to die”) Figurative
language (e.g., metaphors, similes)
8) Understanding sense and semantic relationships helps uncover nuances of language meaning.
Excellent practice exercises.
(1) Does “bank” have the same meaning in:
“I have an account at the Bank of Scotland” / “We steered the raft to the other bank of the river”. No
(2) Does “bank” have the same meaning in:
“The DC-10 banked sharply to avoid a crash” / “I banked the furnace up with coke last night”. No
Analysis:
The word “bank” exhibits polysemy, having multiple distinct senses:
1. Financial institution (Bank of Scotland)
2. Riverbank (river’s edge)
3. Aeronautical term (banking, or tilting, an aircraft)
4. To cover or heap (banking up a furnace)
Key Takeaways:
Polysemy: words with multiple related or unrelated senses.
Homonymy: words with identical spelling but different meanings.
Context disambiguates word senses.
Additional Examples: “bow” (front of a ship, ribbon tied around a package) “spring” (season, coiled metal object). “cloud” (weather
phenomenon, data storage)
9). Excellent clarification on the term “word” and its usage in semantics.
Word-form vs. Lexical Item
Word-form: sequence of letters and phonemes (e.g., “bank”)
Lexical Item: distinct meaning or sense (e.g., “bank” as financial institution, riverbank, etc.)
Practice Exercises
(1) Two sentences illustrating different meanings of “The chicken is ready to eat”:
“The roasted chicken is ready to eat.” (chicken is food)
“The chicken is ready to eat its breakfast.” (chicken is an animal)
(2) Two sentences illustrating different senses of “He greeted the girl with a smile”:
“Smiling warmly, he greeted the girl.” (he was smiling)
“He greeted the girl, who was smiling at him.” (girl was smiling)
(3) Two sentences illustrating different senses of “He turned over the field”:
“The pilot banked the plane and turned over the field.” (changed direction)
“The farmer turned over the field, preparing it for planting.” (tilled the soil)
Key Takeaways : Sentences can have multiple senses (ambiguity).Context disambiguates word [Link] items can have
multiple related or unrelated senses (polysemy, homonymy).
10) Excellent discussion on sense and reference.
Key Takeaways:
1. Sense and reference differ:
Reference: relation between expression and thing/person in the world.
Sense: abstraction representing meaning, independent of reference.
2. Every expression with meaning has sense, but not every expression has reference.
3. Sense is an abstraction, grasped by language users when understanding expressions.
Practice Exercises
(1) Dictionary lookup:
You find an expression with the same sense.
(2) Dictionary contents:
A dictionary is full of words.
(3) Learning meanings through reference:
Yes, a foreigner can learn initial word meanings through reference (pointing).
(4) Learning meanings through dictionary:
No, a foreigner cannot learn initial word meanings solely through an English dictionary (requires prior understanding).
Insights : Dictionaries provide sense explanations, not [Link] learning requires understanding sense, not just
reference. Sense is a fundamental aspect of linguistic meaning.
11). Let’s analyze the practice exercise:
(1) “almost”
No (does not refer to a thing in the world)
(2) “probable”
No (does not refer to a specific thing)
(3) “and”
No (logical operator, not a thing)
(4) “if”
No (conditional operator, not a thing)
(5) “above”
No (relational term, not a specific thing)
These words are examples of:- Modals (almost, probable) - Conjunctions (and). - Conditionals (if) - Prepositions (above)
They contribute to sentence meaning (sense) but do not directly refer to objects or entities in the world.
Key Takeaways: Not all meaningful expressions have reference. Logical operators, modals, and relational terms have sense but no
[Link] and reference are distinct aspects of linguistic meaning.
12) Let’s review the answers:
(1) When looking up a word in a dictionary, you find: An expression with the same sense.
Dictionaries provide definitions, which explain the sense (meaning) of words.
(2) A dictionary is: Full of words. Dictionaries contain linguistic information, not physical objects.
(3) Can a foreigner learn initial word meanings through reference (pointing)? Yes.
Pointing out referents can help learners associate words with concepts.
(4) Can a foreigner learn initial word meanings solely through an English dictionary? No.
Dictionaries require prior understanding of some words; pointing or context is necessary for initial learning.
Key Takeaways: Dictionaries provide sense [Link] learning requires understanding sense and reference. Initial
language learning benefits from contextual or gestural cues.
13). Excellent discussion on propositions, sense, and translation.
Propositions : A proposition is a unit of meaning that expresses a complete, independent thought.
Practice Answers:
(1) “Johnny has got a new teacher” – Yes (proposition)
(2) “A new teacher” – No (phrase, not a complete thought)
(3) “Johnny” – No (proper noun, not a complete thought)
(4) “This is the house that Jack built” – Yes (proposition)
14). Translation and Sense
Similar senses can be expressed across languages.
Practice Answers:
(1) Do “M. Berger s’est rasé ce matin” and “M. Berger shaved himself this morning” express the same proposition?
Yes (same overall meaning)
(2) Do the two sentences have the same sense?
Yes (same meaning, with reservations about nuances)
(3) Do “ce matin” and “this morning” have the same sense?
Yes (equivalent meanings)
(4) Do “s’est rasé” and “shaved himself” have the same sense?
Perhaps (similar, but with nuances)
(5) Does “ein unverheirateter Mann” have the same sense as “an unmarried man”?
Yes (equivalent meanings)
Key Takeaways: Propositions represent complete, independent [Link] can be preserved across languages, despite
nuances. Translation may involve approximations, not exact equivalences.
15) Excellent discussion on sense, dialects, and reference.
_Dialects and Sense_
(1) Do “pavement” (British) and “sidewalk” (American) have the same sense? Yes
(2) Do “pal” and “chum” have the same sense? Yes
(3) Can expressions with different social connotations have the same sense? Yes
Key Takeaways: Sense can be preserved across [Link] words can convey the same meaning. Social connotations don’t
necessarily affect sense.
16) _Reference and Utterance_
(1) Is it one utterance or two when two people say “John is putting on weight”? Two
(2) Would the referred “John” be the same or different? Almost certainly, two different Johns
Key Takeaways: Utterances are specific acts by speakers on particular [Link] depends on context, including speaker
and occasion. Same sentence, different utterances, can refer to different entities.
17) Excellent discussion on reference, sense, and meaning.
Practice Exercises:
(1) “Helen meant that rock-hard object” – R (reference)
(2) “Albert means me” – R (reference)
(3) “What does unique mean?” – S (sense)
(4) “Purchase has the same meaning as buy” – S (sense)
(5) “Look up the meaning of apoplexy” – S (sense)
(6) “You’ll see who I mean” – R (reference)
Key Takeaways: “Mean” and “meaning” can indicate both reference and sense. Context disambiguates intended meaning.
Idealization helps simplify complex meaning issues.
Key Concepts:
1. Sense: abstract concept representing meaning, independent of reference.
2. Reference: relation between expression and thing/person in the world.
Takeaways:
1. Sense and reference are fundamental to meaning studies.
2. Reference is relatively straightforward.
3. Sense is more elusive, but its usefulness becomes clearer with study.
4. Semanticists continue to refine understanding of sense.
Influential Figure: Gottlob Frege (German philosopher) demonstrated the importance of the sense/reference distinction.
Exercise
Here are the answers to the questions:
1. Key terms and concepts: - Sense: abstract concept representing meaning - Context: situation influencing interpretation -
Reference: relation between expression and thing/person - Dialect: regional/language variation - Referent: thing/person
represented by expression - Proposition: unit of meaning expressing complete thought
2. Different expressions with same referent:
Example: “The CEO” and “John Smith” (same person)
3. Same expression with different referents:
Example: “Bank” (financial institution or riverbank)
4. Invariable referent: “The Sun”.
No referent: “Maybe” (modal word)
5. Explanation: Every meaningful expression has a sense (meaning), but not every expression directly refers to a specific thing/person
in the world.
6. Dictionary definition:
- Typical definition: explanation of sense (meaning)
- Native speaker knowledge: includes nuances, context, and associations
- Complete entry: impossible due to complexity and variability of language
7. “The Evening Star” / “The Morning Star”:
Same referent (planet Venus), different senses (astronomical contexts)
8. “The President of the United States” / “The Commander-in-Chief” / “The Leader of the Republican Party”:
Same referent (person holding office), different senses (roles/responsibilities)
9. “Visiting relatives can be boring”:
Context influences interpretation (relatives, visiting, boredom)
10. “The planet Mars”:
Fixed referent (specific planet)
11. “Smoking grass can be dangerous”:
Context and sense disambiguate meaning (smoking grass vs. Lawn care)
These answers demonstrate understanding of Unit 3 concepts, applying them to various examples.