C\Moncef Mahfoudhi\Documents\On Linguistics 2005-2015 MM

Lexical Semantics
Exercise 6.1: Traditional Semantics (MM)
1.  (a) Consult a number of dictionaries on the meaning of the word hero. Then
consider the meaning of the word in contemporary usage (in magazines,
newspapers, and casual conversation). Does the dictionary meaning reflect the
current meaning, or would you say that the meaning has changed and that
dictionaries have not kept pace with this change?
  (b) Some dictionaries list the meaning of decimate as 'kill or remove one in
every ten of', while most speakers of English would argue that it means 'destroy a
large proportion of'. How do you account for this discrepancy?

2. For the following words, explain the background or contextual information

which is necessary to understand the meaning of the word.

(a) reconcile 

(b) generous 

(c)  procrastinate 

(d) patient 

(e) reputation 

3. Discuss the following expressions in respect to the concepts of extension and

intension:

(a) the instructor of Linguistics 101

(b) the day before yesterday 

(c)  the capital of Brazil 
 

Exercise 6.2: Basic Semantic Concepts

1 
 
C\Moncef Mahfoudhi\Documents\On Linguistics 2005-2015 MM

1. For the following words, list as many synonyms as you can think of and discuss the
connotations that these synonyms have.

(a) frugal
(b) thin (of a person)

2. Fill in the columns below with the appropriate synonym. In each case, the word in
column A is of English origin and the word in column B is of French or Latin origin.
Can you make a general statement about the connotations of the words in columns A
and B?

A B
feed ____________
____________ conceal
____________ people
begin ____________
____________ aid/assist
mistake ____________
____________ labor
____________ vision
middle ____________
____________ altitude

3. Describe the semantic relationship expressed by each of the following sentences.

(a) I'm allergic to nuts. There are walnuts in the cookies.

(b) Flight 2048 arrives and departs at 8:00 a.m.
(c) George is a pig.
(d) That is a large bat.
(e) I appreciate your help. You helped me.
(f) That is a well-known club.
(g) My brother married a doctor. My male sibling joined in wedlock with a physician.
(h) In walked the corpse.
(i) The corpse is alive.
(j) Professor Mulhausen went to his office. Professor Mulhausen went to the
university.
(k) He cleaned the legs of the piano.
(l) They have a love-hate relationship.
(m) The escaping convict accidentally assassinated the guard.
(n) Jane ate a piece of chicken. Jane ate a piece of poultry.
(o) My husband is living. I am a widow.
(p) She stepped on an idea.

2 
 
C\Moncef Mahfoudhi\Documents\On Linguistics 2005-2015 MM

(q) Edith amused the salad.

(r) My brother is an only child.
(s) He unintentionally committed perjury.
(t) She wore a colorless pink dress.
(u) He dusted the plants.
(v) Othello killed Desdemona. Desdemona died.
(w) He descended from the ground floor to the attic.

4. Determine whether the following are cases of homonymy or polysemy.

(a) fine 'superior in quality'

'a sum of money paid as a penalty'
(b) bank 'an incline of land adjoining a river'
'a financial institution'
(c) monitor 'a pupil who assists a teacher'
'a device that receives video signals from a computer'
(d) tattoo 'a permanent design on the skin'
'a military exercise'
(e) school 'an institution for instruction'
'a large group of fish'
(f) leech 'a bloodsucking worm'
'a physician'
'a hanger-on, a sycophant'
(g) horn 'a structure projecting from the head of an animal'
'a musical instrument'
(h) ear 'the organ for hearing'
'the seed-bearing spike of a cereal plant'
(i) spell 'to name or write the order of the letters in a word'
'a magical formula'
'a period of time'
(j) butt 'to hit with the head'
'a target (for jokes)'
'the larger or thicker end of an object'
(k) pilot 'one who operates an aircraft or ship'
'a television program produced as a prototype of a series'

5. Say what is presupposed by each of the following sentences.

(a) Is Frank playing that loud music?

(b) What I want for my birthday is a new computer.
(c) Alistair didn't go to work today.
(d) Grace stopped playing the piano several years ago.
(e) When did Tara go back to school?
(f) Sally renewed her subscription to People magazine.

3 
 
C\Moncef Mahfoudhi\Documents\On Linguistics 2005-2015 MM

6. Which of the following are factive and which nonfactive?

(a) John criticized Mark for not working hard enough.

(b) John acknowledged that Mark was not working hard enough.
(c) I was hoping that the game was cancelled.
(d) It turns out that the game was cancelled.
(e) The student forgot that the assignment was due today.
(f) The student assumed that the assignment was due today.
(g) It's nice that you could get away.
(h) It's nice to get away.
(i) I realized that he had stolen the money.
(j) I suspected that he had stolen the money.

Exercise 6.3: Structural Semantics

1. Identify the superordinate term in each set.

(a) house, shed, building, garage, cottage, hut

(b) plate, saucer, cup, soup bowl, dish, serving bowl
(c) stream, river, rivulet, creek, brook, tributary
(d) glance, peep, stare, leer, look (at), view, watch
(e) hurricane, tornado, gale, storm, typhoon

2. Identify the relationship of oppositeness expressed in the following sentences.

(a) The window pane is open, but it should be shut.

(b) This class is better than last year's class.
(c) This painting is similar to that one.
(d) He pushed the lever forwards instead of backwards.
(e) This plant was sick, but now it's healthy.
(f) My poor relatives envy my rich relatives.
(g) He ordered a sweet and sour dish.
(h) It is better to give than to receive.

3. Below is one member of a set of scalar adjectives. Identify the other member of the set; if
an alternative member exists (in a different context), list that as well.

(a) hard
(b) strong
(c) short
(d) happy

4 
 
C\Moncef Mahfoudhi\Documents\On Linguistics 2005-2015 MM

(e) light
(f) cheap

4. Give the end-of-scale equivalents for these normal scalar adjectives.

(a) tired
(b) wet
(c) poor
(d) sad
(e) hot

5. Name the structural relation expressed by each of the following pairs of words.

(a) casual/informal (n) intelligent/smart

(b) parent/offspring (o) employ/use
(c) university/college (p) mathematics/history
(d) right/wrong (q) glass/tumbler
(e) right/left (r) doctor/patient
(f) odd/even (s) own/belong to
(g) odd/unusual (t) ancestor/descendant
(h) bring/take (u) predator/prey
(i) rude/polite (v) benefactor/donor
(j) wind/breeze (w) enter/leave
(k) moist/damp (x) rise/fall
(l) present/absent (y) dress/undress
(m) fair/foul (ball)

6. Identify whether the following pairs are examples of antonymy or complementarity. Are
these concepts gradable?

(a) clean/dirty
(b) drunk/sober
(c) fresh/stale

Exercise 6.4: Lexical Fields

Related to the concept of hyponymy, but more loosely defined, is the notion of a lexical
field. A lexical field denotes a segment of reality symbolized by a set of related words. The
words in a semantic field share a common semantic property. Most often, fields are defined
by subject matter, such as body parts, landforms, diseases, colors, foods, or kinship

5 
 
C\Moncef Mahfoudhi\Documents\On Linguistics 2005-2015 MM

relations. Internally, these may be organized as a hierarchy (e.g. royalty, military ranks), as
a meronymy (e.g. body parts), as a sequence (e.g. numbers), or as a cycle (e.g. days of the
week, months of the year), as well as with no discernible order. A thesaurus is generally
organized according to substantive fields (although it also makes use of hyponymy and
synonymy).

The words which are part of a lexical field enter into sense or meaning relationships with
one another. Each word delimits the meaning of the next word in the field and is delimited
by it; that is, it marks off an area or range within the semantic domain. However, there may
be a fair amount of overlap in meaning between words in a domain, and it is often difficult
to find mutually delimiting terms. Within a domain, some words are marked, while some
are unmarked; the unmarked members are more frequent, more basic, broader in meaning,
easier to learn and remember, not metaphorical, and typically one morpheme or single
lexical item. The marked members often consist of more than one lexical item and may
denote a subtype of the unmarked member.

Let's consider some examples of lexical fields. The field of "parts of the face" (see the table
below, part a) is a substantive field of part to whole. Terms within the field are arranged
spatially and quite clearly delimited, though there is some overlap between terms such as
forehead and temple. Terms such as bridge of the nose or eyelids would constitute marked
members of the field. The field of "stages of life" (see b) is arranged sequentially, though
there is considerable overlap between terms (e.g. child, toddler) as well as some apparent
gaps (e.g. there are no simple terms for the different stages of adulthood). Note that a term
such a minor or juvenile belongs to a technical register, a term such as kid or tot to a
colloquial register, and a term such as sexagenarian or octogenarian to a more formal
register. The semantic field of "water" (see c) could be divided into a number of subfields;
in addition, there would appear to be a great deal of overlap between terms such as
sound/fjord or cove/harbor/bay. The semantic field of "clothing" (see d) is a particularly
rich one, with many unmarked terms (such as dress or pants) as well as many marked terms
(such as pedal-pushers or smoking jacket). The field of clothing might be organized in many
different ways – by sex of wearer, by occasion of wearing, by body part covered, and so on.
Finally, the field of "jewelry" (see e) would seem to include quite well-delimited terms, with
a number of unmarked terms.

Examples of lexical fields: (a) Parts of the Face, (b) Stages of Life, (c) Water, (d) Clothing,
and (e) Jewelry

(a) parts of the face

forehead brow temples
nose nostrils bridge/tip of the nose
septum mouth lips
eyes eyebrows eyelids eyelashes
chin cheeks jaw jowls

(b) stages of life

new-born young adult
infant adult
nursling, suckling grown up person

6 
 
C\Moncef Mahfoudhi\Documents\On Linguistics 2005-2015 MM

baby, babe middle aged person

child, kid senior citizen
toddler, tot mature person
preschooler aged person
youngster senior citizen, senior
adolescent old {lady, man, person}
youth sexagenarian
lad/lass septuagenarian
preteen octogenarian
teenager, teen nonagenarian
juvenile, minor centenarian

(c) water
forms: ice, water, steam, vapor, sleet, rain, snow, hail
bodies of water: ditch, slough, swamp, narrows, strait, inlet, bight, ___bayou, brine, deep,
firth, loch, tarn, well, reservoir, firth, pool, sea, ___ocean, lake, pond, bay, inlet, estuary,
fjord, sound, gulf, lagoon, ___cove, harbor
water in motion: creek, river, waves, billows, stream, rain, brook, ___rivulet, tributary,
spring
frozen water: ice, snow, crystal, sleet, hail, icicle, iceberg, rime, ___hoarfrost, glacier
gas: vapor, steam

(d) clothing
dress (cocktail-, strapless-, shirtwaist-) gown (evening-, ball-)
toga shift jumper smock
jumpsuit suit pantsuit sports coat
vest pajamas nightgown smoking jacket
bathrobe tee-shirt shirt blouse
undershirt turtleneck pants/slacks trousers
shorts knickers cut-offs skorts
culottes skirt peddle-pushers bloomers
underwear panties brassière girdle
hat cap beret tam
toque scarf headband earmuffs
belt tie suspenders gaiters, spats
socks tights pantyhose stockings
gloves mittens muff muffler
shawl cape coat (sports-, rain-, over-, top-, lab-)
jacket parka wind-breaker anorak
sweater pullover cardigan apron

7 
 
C\Moncef Mahfoudhi\Documents\On Linguistics 2005-2015 MM

(e) jewelr
y
ring earring nose-ring brooch
watch wristwatch pocket-watch stud
pin pendant necklace choker
crown tiara bracelet anklet
cufflinks stick-pin tie-clasp belt buckle

Now try to list the possible members of the following semantic fields:

1. vocalization
2. types of roads
3. personality traits

Exercise 6.5: Semantic Features (Nouns)

1. Using the inherent features of nouns discussed in the chapter, analyze the underlined
noun in each of the following sentences:

(a) Have you made plans for tonight?

(b) He had the flu last week.
(c) The group made its way through the forest.
(d) He has a very healthy appetite.
(e) We have managed to stay within our budget.
(f) She spilled the coffee grounds on the floor.
(g) Have you any grounds for making such a claim?
(h) After the long boat trip, it felt good to stand on solid ground.
(i) Do you like seafood?
(j) My grandparents are coming for visit.
(k) A herd of caribou crossed the road.
(l) Our vacation begins next week.
(m) She has symptoms of the flu.
(n) You should take responsibility for the planning.
(o) The scenery here is so beautiful.
(p) Where is the receiver?
(q) My clothes need to ironed.
(r) The doctor prescribed bed rest.
(s) The scissors are missing.
(t) Are there any requirements for this course?

8 
 
C\Moncef Mahfoudhi\Documents\On Linguistics 2005-2015 MM

2. Give two different feature analyses for each of the following.

(a) bank
(b) response

Exercise 6.6: Semantic Features (Verbs)

1. Analyze the predicates in the following sentences using the inherent verbal features
[±STATIVE] [±DURATIVE] [±TELIC] [±VOLUNTARY]

(a) The skaters are practicing.

(b) She skated around the rink.
(c) She skates gracefully.
(d) She bumped into another skater.
(e) He polished her skates for her.
(f) Pam has a cold.
(g) Pam recently recovered from her illness.
(h) Pam caught a cold last week.
(i) Pam was coughing loudly.
(j) Pam cured herself with large doses of vitamin C.
(k) Charles and Julia got married yesterday.
(l) The ceremony lasted an hour.
(m) They have been engaged a long time.
(n) Julia's mother was crying.
(o) He studied for the test.
(p) The test began at 9:00.
(q) While studying, he drank lots of coffee.
(r) He is happy with the results.
(s) After the exam, he got drunk.

2. Often the same verb can denote a number of different situations. Below are verbs used in
several different ways. Analyze using the four inherent features of verbs.

(a) HEAR I heard a strange noise.

I hear well.
I heard a Mozart symphony last night.
I hear the waves.
(b) LIE The book is lying on the desk.
He is lying on the bed.
Then he lay down.
(c) HELP She is helping him.
She is helping him wash the car.

9 
 
C\Moncef Mahfoudhi\Documents\On Linguistics 2005-2015 MM

(d) IDENTIFY He finally identified the insect.

She identifies with her idol.
(e) DRESS She dresses well.
It took ten minutes for her to dress.
(f) SINK The house is sinking.
The ship is sinking.
(g) REGRET She regrets her words.
She regretted it as soon as she said it.
(h) TASTE The dinner tastes good.
He bent over and tasted the soup.
Then he tasted the mint in the drink.

3. Any particular verb may fit into a number of different syntactic contexts, and as a result
may form different situation types. For example, the verb write may appear in a sentence of
the form N – V (He is writing) or N – V – N (He writes songs), both of which are activities.
Or it may appear in a sentence of the form N – V – PP (He writes on the board), which is
likewise an activity.

Answer the following using the verb play.

(a) (i) Give a sentence of the form N – V (– N) which is an activity.

(ii) Give a sentence of the form N – V – PP which is an activity.
(iii) Give a sentence of the form N – V – Prt which is an activity.
(b) (i) Give a sentence of the form N – V – N [+COUNT] [+SINGULAR] which is
an accomplishment.
(ii) Give a sentence of the form N – V – N [+COUNT] [+PLURAL] which is an
accomplishment.
(iii) Give a sentence of the form N – V – PP which is an accomplishment.
(c) Give a sentence of the form N – V – N [–COUNT] which is an activity.

4. Answer the questions in (3) in respect to the verb read.

Exercise 6.7: Modal Auxiliaries

1. Determine whether the following sentences with modal expressions, in normal readings,
have deontic or epistemic meaning or are ambiguous:

(a) I must be getting sick.

(b) You may be pregnant.
(c) Nitric acid will dissolve zinc.
(d) John must leave now.
(e) He can miss the class.
(f) You could clean your room.
(g) He must have passed the examination.
(h) You might have fallen.

10 
 
C\Moncef Mahfoudhi\Documents\On Linguistics 2005-2015 MM

(i) Cocktail parties can be boring.

(j) She could be discouraged.
(k) I will marry her.
(l) You ought to be ashamed of yourself.
(m) You can't be serious.
(n) Harris has to retire next year.
(o) He might try a bit harder to pass the course.
(p) She can be very obstinate.
(q) Guests may not use their cellular phones in the restaurant.
(r) Only experts can advance to the next stage of the competition.
(s) She must be careful with her money.
(t) Grant is in New York now, I guess.
(u) The movie shouldn't be violent.
(v) The revised paper could be better.
(w) My uncle can wiggle his ears.

2. Identify and name the modal element in each of the following and say whether it is
[+EPISTEMIC] or [+DEONTIC].
(a) It's not likely that he will want to help.
(b) There isn't any necessity to tell her the results.
(c) The event will have to be cancelled, I guess.
(d) I insist that you are guilty.

Exercise 6.8: Prototypes

1. For the concept of furniture, list the core, or prototypical, members and the peripheral
members. Justify your distinction between core and periphery. What are the defining
characteristics of this concept?

2. Among the terms in the following, name the basic level term(s) and the lower-level terms
in each case.

car, hearse, fire engine, jeep, station wagon, van, truck, pick-up truck, tow truck, delivery
van, humvee, semi-trailer truck, diesel bus, flatbed truck, bus, taxi(cab), cement mixer,
tanker truck, sports utility vehicle (SUV), hybrid, dump truck, garbage truck, sports car,
convertible, sedan, coupe, roadster, minivan, school bus, trolley bus, panel truck, camper
van, recreational vehicle (RV)

Exercise 6.9: Figurative Language

11 
 
C\Moncef Mahfoudhi\Documents\On Linguistics 2005-2015 MM

1. Give the selectional restrictions for the following words:

(a) study
(b) surprise
(c) slither
(d) invest

2. Identify the type of figurative expression in each of the following:

(a) a smooth wine

(b) an autobiography of her life
(c) passive aggressive
(d) wildlife management
(e) Orders are orders.
(f) an endowed chair
(g) a hard-hitting report
(h) the paper
(i) a loud color
(j) a new initiative
(k) The pen is mightier than the sword.
(l) a new set of wheels
(m) "Death, thou shalt die". (John Donne)
(n) a bitter reproach
(o) the hands of a clock
(p) blood, sweat, and tears
(q) an on-off relationship
(r) The traffic is crawling.
(s) search one's soul
(t) Enough is enough.
(u) room and board
(v) live on borrowed time
(w) table linen
(x) an aide
(y) The law is the law.
(z) be under the weather
(aa) sell for money
(bb) circumnavigate around
(cc) working vacation
(dd) close proximity

12 
 
C\Moncef Mahfoudhi\Documents\On Linguistics 2005-2015 MM

(ee) extinct life

3. Explain what is "wrong" with each of the following expressions using semantic features
and the notion of selectional restrictions.

Example: a fatherless orphan

Answer: fatherless has the feature [–FATHER], while orphan also has the feature [–
FATHER]; thus, this expression is tautological.

(a) pregnant pause

(b) eloquent silence
(c) misery loves company
(d) bitter reproach
(e) joint partnership

4. Give a focus and vehicle interpretation of the following metaphors.

(a) "My thoughts are ripe in mischief". (Shakespeare)

(b) "But ye lovers that bathen in gladnesse". (Chaucer)
(c) "That time of year thou mayst in me behold / When yellow leaves, or none, or few,
do hang / Upon the boughs ..." (Shakespeare)

5. State the image schema upon which each of the following metaphors is based. (Do not
simply paraphrase the metaphors.)

(a) That's food for thought.

(b) He is a giant among film directors.
(c) Let me put in my two cent's worth.
(d) She is a member of the upper class.
(e) His health is declining.
(f) His mood is down/depressed.
(g) One can't predict what Wall Street will do.

6. What is the one image schema underlying these metaphors?

13 
 
C\Moncef Mahfoudhi\Documents\On Linguistics 2005-2015 MM

to be in the thick of things

fall outside my realm of experience
be in sight, go out of view
be in love/out of love
be in a rage/in a funk/in a good mood
 

14