The ABCs of Semantics

This book suits secondary and post secondary students. It examines various interpretations of the basic and macro syntactic units of language,viz. the word and sentence,henceforth lexical and sentential interpretations.The lexical meaning has been captured using both traditional and contemporary theories of semantics. However, the author has proposed a two-tier theory, the Concept-Symbol theory, to bridge the gap inherent in the traditional theories. The category of lexical interpretations closes with the way the meaning of lexical items changes synchronically and diachronically. Moreover, the book has explored the macro syntactic unit of language, the sentence. Various interpretations of the sentence have been provided, and in order for a sentence to be meaningful, syntax and semantics should be paired together. Finally, the question of different semantic roles played by different referents of NPs in a sentence has been addressed. This makes a sentence to be interpreted in a broader way: one should be able to recognize arguments available in a sentence and their associated semantic roles.