SEMANTIC (BASIC STUDIES)
By AGUS RAHMANSYAH/BSI V A
ENGLISH LETTERS DEPARTMENT
ADAB FACULTY
THE STATE INSTITUTE FOR ISLAMIC STUDIES
SULTHAN THAHA SYAIFUDDIN JAMBI 2009
Acknowledgments
First and foremost, I would like to thanks to Allah SWT, the Arrahman and Arrahim that owns every spirit and life, that has always been giving the best and the worst in live, an abundant gift, so I can finish this assignment, and do not forget peace be upon him to Muhammad SAW who has brought us from the darkness to the lightness.
Secondly, thanks very much for all which have helped the writer for finishing this paper, especially for our lecturer, Mr. Johannes, S.S. which has given support and time to writer for finishing this paper, and also for all friends in English letter V A thanks very much.
In this paper surely still has any mistaken, as well in writing or in grammars, because of that the critics and suggestion from all reader is importance for better writing then.
As the writer, I hope this paper could to help for all reader it as well for enrich the knowledge or as reference, and also especially for my friends in English Literature V A, Adab Faculty.
Jambi, January 2009
Writer
TABLE OF CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
TABLE OF CONTENTSCHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
CHAPTER II
CONTENT
2.1. Proverb
2.2. Idiom
2.3. Antonym
2.4. Synonymy
2.5. Homonymy
2.6. Hyponymy
2.7. Polysemy
2.8. Collocation
CHAPTER III
CONCLUSION
BIBLIOGRAPHY
CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
In analysis a language we will familiar with the term of linguistic, because linguistic is scientific which study about language. One of the subfield of linguistic is semantic. Semantic is the study of the meaning of words, phrases, and sentences[i]. In Oxford English Dictionary, Semantic is the study of the meanings of words and phrases[ii]. Semantics is the technical term used to refer to the study of meaning. Semantic will not be concerned with the meaning of utterances, but only with the meaning of sentences and we cannot study semantic without assuming a great deal about grammar and other aspects of the structure of language.
In an encyclopedia online explains that Semantics is the study of meaning in communication. The word is derived from the Greek word σημαντικός (semantikos), "significant", from σημαίνω (semaino), "to signify, to indicate" and that from σήμα (sema), "sign, mark,".In linguistics it is the study of interpretation of signs as used by agents or communities within particular circumstances and contexts. It has related meanings in several other fields. The word semantic in its modern sense is considered to have first appeared in French as sémantique in Michel Bréal's 1897 book, Essai de sémantique'. In International Scientific Vocabulary semantics is also called semasiology. The discipline of Semantics is distinct from Alfred Korzybski's General Semantics, which is a system for looking at non-immediate or abstract meanings[iii].
Semantics is the subfield that is devoted to the study of meaning, as inherent at the levels of words, phrases, sentences, and even larger units of discourse (referred to as texts). The basic area of study is the meaning of signs, and the study of relations between different linguistic units: homonymy, synonymy, antonymy, polysemy, paronyms, hypernymy, hyponymy, meronymy, metonymy, holonymy, exocentricity / endocentricity, linguistic compounds. A key concern is how meaning attaches to larger chunks of text, possibly as a result of the composition from smaller units of meaning. Traditionally, semantics has included the study of connotative sense and denotative reference, truth conditions, argument structure, thematic roles, discourse analysis, and the linkage of all of these to syntax[iv].
Base on the statement above I can conclude that semantic is the studies about the meaning of words in sentence, but not in utterance. In this paper I will give the explanation some parts of semantic, that is Proverb, Idiom, Antonym, Synonymy Homonymy, Hyponymy, Polysemy, Collocation
CHAPTER II
CONTENT
2.2. Proverb
In an encyclopedia online, Wikipedia, explains that proverb (from the Latin proverbium), also called a byword or nay word, is a simple and concrete saying popularly known and repeated, which expresses a truth, based on common sense or the practical experience of humanity. They are often metaphorical. A proverb that describes a basic rule of conduct may also be known as a maxim. If a proverb is distinguished by particularly good phrasing, it may be known as an aphorism[v].
Proverbs are often borrowed from similar languages and cultures, and sometimes come down to the present through more than one language. Both the Bible (Book of Proverbs) and medieval Latin have played a considerable role in distributing proverbs across
2.2. Idiom
Idiom is a phrase where the words together have a meaning that is different from the dictionary definitions of the individual words, which can make idioms hard for ESL students and learners to understand.[vii]. In other words we can make a simple definition the idiom is a combination of two words or more which have difference meaning from base words or dictionary definition. We can know the meaning of idiom from idiom dictionary or others sources.
For example of idiom are:
As in sentence: If something is excessive or annoying, it is a bit much[viii].
-look for
As in sentence: I look for some one who care to this school
2.3. Antonymy
In an encyclopedia online antonym is Word that is opposite in meaning to another word. The following are antonyms: good and evil; slow and fast; hot and cold. There are three different types of antonym: gradable, complementary, and converse[ix].
1. Gradable antonyms
These describe something which can be measured and compared with something else. For example, if one car is traveling at 120 km/75 mi per hour and one at 60 km/37 mi per hour, one is fast and the other is slow. Other examples are small and big; hot and cold; dry and wet; clean and dirty.
2. Complementary antonyms
Here there is no comparison or scale; it is a matter of being either one thing or another. Examples are alive and dead: you are either alive or dead, not somewhere in-between. Other examples are single and married; male and female.
3. Converse antonyms
These antonyms depend on each other. For example, buy and sell. You cannot buy something without someone else selling it to you. Other examples are borrow and lend; wife and husband. in other source (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AntonymOpposite (semantics)), converse antonym is called by the term Relational antonyms (Converses) are pairs in which one describes a relationship between two objects and the other describes the same relationship when the two objects are reversed, such as parent and child, teacher and student, or buy and sell.
2.4. Synonymy
Synonymy is used to mean ‘sameness of meaning’. It is obvious that for the dictionary maker many sets of words have the same meaning; they are synonymous, or are synonyms of one another[x]. In oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary synonym is a words or expression that has the same or nearly the same meaning as another in the same meaning as another in the same language. For example, ‘Big’ and ‘large’ are synonyms, or “woman” and “female”, and “high” and “tall” and so on.
2.5. Homonymy
The word "homonym" comes from the conjunction of the Greek prefix homo- (ὁμο-), meaning "same", and suffix -ṓnymos (-ώνυμος), meaning "name". Thus, it refers to two or more distinct words sharing the "same name".[xi]
Homonym is one of a group of words that share the same spelling and the same pronunciation but have different meanings, usually as a result of the two words having different origins. Some sources only require that homonyms share the same spelling or pronunciation (in addition to having different meanings), but these are the definitions most other sources give for homographs and homophones respectively. The state of being a homonym is called homonymy. Examples of homonyms are stalk (which as a noun can mean part of a plant, and as a verb to follow/harass a person), bear (animal) and bear (carry), left (opposite of right) and left (past tense of leave), can (a metal container in which food and drink is sold) and can (able to do something)
2.6. Hyponymy
Hyponym or hyponymy is a word or phrase whose semantic range is included within that of another word. For example, scarlet, vermilion, carmine, and crimson are all hyponyms of red, which is, in turn, a hyponym of colour. According to Fromkin and Rodman, hyponyms are a set of related words whose meaning is specific instances of a more general word. For example, red, white, blue, etc., are hyponyms of colour)[xii].
2.7. Polysemy
Polysemy ([pəˈlɪsəmi] or [ˈpɒliˌsɛmi]) (from the Greek polisimeía {πολυσημεία} = "multiple meaning") is the capacity for a sign (e.g. a word, phrase, etc.) or signs to have multiple meanings (sememes), i.e. a large semantic field. This is a pivotal concept within social sciences, such as media studies and linguistics[xiii].
Polysemy is a word or phrase with multiple, related meanings. A word is judged to be Polysemous if it has two senses of the word whose meanings are related. Since the vague concept of relatedness is the test for polysemy, judgments of polysemy can be very difficult to make. Because applying pre-existing words to new situations is a natural process of language change, looking at words' etymology is helpful in determining polysemy but not the only solution; as words become lost in etymology, what once was a useful distinction of meaning may no longer be so. Some apparently unrelated words share a common historical origin, however, so etymology is not an infallible test for polysemy, and dictionary writers also often defer to speakers intuitions to judge polysemy in cases where it contradicts etymology. The example of polysemy is
Head, as in this example:
I think there is a difference in your head. (in this sentence head is part of body) but in She is a headmaster (in this sentence head is a leader/ cheap of school).
2.8. Collocation
Collocation is defined as a sequence of words or terms which co-occur more often than would be expected by chance. Collocation comprises the restrictions on how words can be used together, for example which prepositions are used with particular verbs, or which verbs and nouns are used together[xiv]. In Oxford Learner Dictionary give a meaning that collocation is a combination of words in a language, that happens very often and more frequently than would happen by chance, or the fact of two or more words often being used together, in a way that happens more frequently than would happen by chance. Such as middle manager, handsome man or in other example of collocation such “Bank” will collocate with account, manager, money, teller, deposits, lending, and so on.
CHAPTER III
CONCLUSION
Base on the explanation before I can give a conclusion that learning about semantic is very important for English Student. If we do not seriously learn about semantic, we will get difficulty in understanding the sentence with grammatical, mainly in meaning. By learning the semantic we can know the meaning of word which has differentiation, such as in Homonymy, there is a word with same spelling and pronunciation but difference in meaning, we can know that the meaning of the word will depend on the context in where the words are using. Or another such as Idiom, when we find the some words is put together, if we do not know that it is idiom we will get the confusing about the meaning of the words, because idiom has the difference meaning from the base words. Finally all of the parts in semantic such as collocation, synonymy, hyponymy, antonymy, proverb and polysemy is very important to learn especially for English Student and also for every body who want to know about the theory of language.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
PALMER, F. R., Semantics A New Out Line,
INTERNET
http://encyclopedia.farlex.com/antonymy. [ Accessed in December. 15th, 2008, at 11. 45 Am ]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collocation. [ Accessed in January. 17th, 2009, 08.12. Am ]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyponymy [Accessed in January. 17th, 2009, at 08.27. Am ]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polysemy [ Accessed in January. 17th, 2009, 08.26. Am ]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homonym. [ Accessed in January. 17th, 2009 at 08.24. Am ]
http://www.usingenglish.com/reference/idioms/. [ Accessed in January. 17th 2009, at 08.15. Am ]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proverb. [ Accessed in January. 17th, 2009, at 08.10. Am ]
.
DICTIONARY
Hornby, A. S. Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary 7th Edition,
End Notes
[i] Victoria Fromkin et all, An Introduction to Language ( 3rd Ed ),
[ii] A.S Hornby, Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary of Current English,
[iii] Available in http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Semantics. Accessed in
[iv] Ibid.
[v] Available in http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proverb. Accessed in
[vi] Ibid.
[vii]Available in http://www.usingenglish.com/reference/idioms/. Accessed in
[viii] Ibid.
[ix] Available in http://encyclopedia.farlex.com/antonymy. Accessed in
[x] F. R. PALMER, Semantics A New Out Line,
[xi] Available in http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homonym. Accessed in
[xii] Available in http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyponymy Accessed in
[xiii] Available in http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polysemy Accessed in
[xiv]Available in http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collocation. Accessed in
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