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Group 1 Week 1-2

1. Formal semantics is concerned with studying meaning in natural languages using tools from logic, mathematics, and computer science. It aims to provide a precise account of how linguistic expressions convey meaning. 2. Key concepts in formal semantics include the principle of compositionality, which states that the meaning of a complex expression is determined by the meanings of its parts, and analyzing meaning through truth conditions, which specify when a sentence is true or false. 3. Formal semantics relies heavily on concepts from set theory and functions to build its framework for analyzing meaning, such as using functions to model relationships between syntactic structures and their meanings.

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27 views

Group 1 Week 1-2

1. Formal semantics is concerned with studying meaning in natural languages using tools from logic, mathematics, and computer science. It aims to provide a precise account of how linguistic expressions convey meaning. 2. Key concepts in formal semantics include the principle of compositionality, which states that the meaning of a complex expression is determined by the meanings of its parts, and analyzing meaning through truth conditions, which specify when a sentence is true or false. 3. Formal semantics relies heavily on concepts from set theory and functions to build its framework for analyzing meaning, such as using functions to model relationships between syntactic structures and their meanings.

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Widya
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Group 1

1. Fajerianti Sukirman
2. Rini Amalia Ramnur
3. Yunisa Amalia Nur
4. Widya Fitri Seprina Binti Asrial

WEEK 1 THE CONCEPTUAL FOUNDATIONS OF FORMAL


SEMANTICS

Formal semantics is a branch of linguistics concerned with the systematic study of meaning
in natural languages using formal tools from logic, mathematics, and computer science. It aims
to provide a precise and rigorous account of how linguistic expressions (words, phrases,
sentences) convey meaning. Here are some key concepts in formal semantics:

1. The Overarching Program of Formal Semantics:

The overarching program of formal semantics is to develop a theory of meaning that


can capture the regularities and systematic patterns underlying how we interpret
language. This theory should be:

● Explanatory: It should be able to explain why certain sentences are true or false,
ambiguous or unambiguous, and entail or are entailed by other sentences.
● Predictive: It should be able to predict the meaning of novel expressions based
on the meanings of their constituent parts and the rules that combine them.
● Formal: It should be expressed in a formal language (like logic or set theory)
that allows for precise definitions, proofs, and theoretical arguments.
2. The Principle of Compositionality:

Compositionality is a fundamental principle in formal semantics that states that the


meaning of a complex expression is determined by the meaning of its parts and the way
they are combined. In simpler terms, the meaning of a whole is built up from the
meanings of its individual parts.

For example, the sentence "The cat is on the mat" can be broken down into smaller
units like "the," "cat," "is," "on," and "mat." Each of these units has its own meaning,
and the meaning of the entire sentence is determined by how these individual meanings
are combined according to the rules of grammar.

3. The Different Dimensions of Meaning:

Formal semantics recognizes different aspects or dimensions of meaning conveyed by


language:

● Assertion: This refers to the literal propositional content of a sentence, what it


claims to be true or false about the world. For example, the assertion of the
sentence "The cat is on the mat" is that there exists a cat that is situated on top
of a mat.
● Presupposition: These are background assumptions that are taken for granted
by the speaker and are necessary for the utterance to be felicitous (meaningful)
even if not explicitly stated. For instance, the sentence "The king of France is
bald" presupposes that there is a king of France, even though this is not true in
the real world.
● Implicature: These are indirect or conversational inferences that are conveyed
by an utterance beyond its literal meaning. For example, the utterance "It's nice
of you to help" can implicate that the speaker thinks the help was unexpected or
not obligatory.
4. Analyzing Meaning via Truth-Conditions:

One common approach in formal semantics is to analyze the meaning of sentences by


providing their truth-conditions. Truth-conditions specify the circumstances under
which a sentence is true and under which it is false. For example, the truth-condition of
the sentence "The cat is on the mat" might be: "There exists an entity x such that x is a
cat and x is on the mat." If this condition is satisfied in a given situation, then the
sentence is true in that situation; otherwise, it is false

Analyzing sentences through truth-conditions allows formal semantics to provide a


precise framework for understanding the meaning of natural language expressions. By
breaking down sentences into their truth-conditions, linguists and philosophers can
systematically examine how different components of a sentence contribute to its overall
meaning, shedding light on the intricate ways language represents and interacts with
the world.
QUESTIONS

• How does formal semantics use the principle of compositionality to analyze the
meaning of complex sentences?

• Why does formal semantics use truth conditions to analyze whether a sentence is
true or false?

WEEK 2 THE FORMAL FOUNDATIONS OF FORMAL SEMANTICS

Formal semantics heavily relies on concepts from set theory and functions to build its rigorous
framework for analyzing meaning. Here's a brief overview of these essential elements:

1. Basics of Set Theory:


● Sets: A collection of unique elements with no specific order. Elements are
denoted by curly braces `{}` and separated by commas. Example: `{1, 2, 3,
"apple"}`.
● Membership: The symbol `∈` indicates if an element belongs to a set. Example:
`2 ∈ {1, 2, 3}` is true, but `4 ∈ {1, 2, 3}` is false.
● Operations: Sets can be combined using various operations:
○ Union (∪): Combines elements from both sets, removing duplicates.
Example: `{1, 2, 3} ∪ {2, 3, 4}` equals `{1, 2, 3, 4}`.
○ Intersection (∩): Elements present in both sets. Example: `{1, 2, 3} ∩
{2, 3, 4}` equals `{2, 3}`.
○ Difference (∖): Elements in the first set but not the second. Example:
`{1, 2, 3} \ {2, 3, 4}` equals `{1}`.
● Power Set: The collection of all possible subsets of a set. Example: The power
set of `{1, 2}` is `{{}, {1}, {2}, {1, 2}}`.
2. Basics of Functions:
● Mappings: Functions map input values (domain) to output values (range). They
are often denoted by `f(x)`, where `x` is the input and `f(x)` is the corresponding
output.
● Example: `f(x) = x^2` squares an input number. Here, the domain is all real
numbers, and the range is all non-negative real numbers.
● Multiple Arguments: Functions can take multiple inputs and return a single
output. Example: `g(x, y) = x + y` adds two numbers.
● Default Arguments: Functions can have default values for some arguments.
Example: `h(name="World")` greets someone by name, with "World" as the
default.

Formal semantics utilizes functions to model various relationships, such as the mapping
between syntactic structures and their meanings or the relationship between contexts and the
interpretation of expressions.

QUESTION

• How does the concept of a function relate to the mapping between syntactic structures
and their meanings in formal semantics?

REFERENCES

https://ojs.ehu.eus/index.php/ASJU/article/download/8355/7517/31329

https://scholar.harvard.edu/files/chierchia/files/2006_formalsemantics.pdf

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/228006897_An_Introduction_to_Formal_Semantics

https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/cambridge-handbook-of-formal-semantics/formal-
semantics/E8870A509F0CEC209D9C96FDDB815C76

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