Bài giảng môn Ngữ nghĩa học (Semantics) - Unit 5: Predicates - Trương Văn Ánh

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1. Semantics Sai Gon University truongvananh@cvseas.edu.vn
2. UNIT 5: PREDICATES The PREDICATOR of a simple declarative sentence is the word (sometimes a group of words) which does not belong to any of the referring expressions and which, of the remainder, makes the most specific contribution to the meaning of the sentence. Intuitively speaking, the predicator describes the state or process in which the referring expressions are involved.
3. PREDICATOR AND REFERRING EXPRESSION Ex: Ho Chi Minh is patriotic. When we talk about Ho Chi Minh, we have his image in our minds. So Ho Chi Minh is a referring expression. When we pronounce patriotic, we have no image in our minds although it has sense. Patriotic is called a predicator. Ex: He yawns. He is a referring expression. Yawn is called a predicator. It has sense.
4. Ex: Mai is in the room. Mai is a referring expression. In is a predicator. Room is a referring expression. Ex: He is a Japanese. He is a referring expression. Japanese is a predicator. A predicator may be a verb, an adjective, a preposition and a noun. In a sentence there are two major semantic roles: a referring expression and a predicator.
5. A predicator may be an adjective, a verb, a preposition or a noun, but it must not a referring expression.  In a sentence, there must be a predicator.
6. A PREDICATE is any word (or sequence of words) which (in a given single sense) can function as the predicator of a sentence. Ex: hungry/patriotic, in, crook/Japanese, asleep, hit/yawn, show, bottle, are all predicates; and, or, but, not, are not predicates.
7. PREDICATE AND PREDICATOR Ex: A beautiful young woman left a baby. Beautiful is a predicate. Young is a predicate. Woman is a predicate. Baby is a predicate. Leave is a predicator. In the example there are four predicates.
8. Ex: Hoa is beautiful. Beautiful is a predicator. Ex: Hoa is young. Young is a predicator. Ex: Hoa is a woman. Woman is a predicator. Ex: It is a baby. Baby is a predicator. In a sentence there is only a predicator. In other sentences, predicator may be predicate.
9. Ex: Hoa has a beautiful baby.
10. Like a predicator, a predicate may be an adjective, a verb, a preposition or a noun, but it must not a referring expression.  In a sentence, there must be a predicator, so others are predicates. * He is tall and handsome.  A predicator is a role. (A role in a sentence may consist of two or more words).
11. PREDICATOR AND ARGUMENT Ex: Hoa visits the pagoda. Hoa is an argument (referring expression). Visit is a predicator. Pagoda is an argument (referring expression)
12. The DEGREE of a predicate is a number indicating the number of arguments. It is normally understood to have in simple sentences. Ex: Asleep is a predicate of degree one (often called a one-place predicate) He is asleep. Love (verb) is a predicate of degree two (a two-place predicate) Diep loves Lan.
13. Give (verb) is a predicate of degree three (a three-place predicate) He gives me a book. Elect (verb) is a predicate of degree three (a three-place predicate) We elected Ms Duc Linh our monitor. > The red words are called arguments in the sentence. The number of the arguments is the number of degree of predicates.  degree: Predicator > Predicate of degree
14. The predicates of a language have a completely different function from the referring expressions. The roles of these two kinds of meaning-bearing element cannot be exchanged. Thus John is a bachelor makes good sense, but Bachelor is a John makes no sense at all. Predicates include words from various parts of speech, e.g. common nouns, adjectives, prepositions, and verbs. We have distinguished between predicates of different degrees (one- place, two-place, three-place). The relationship between referring expressions and predicates will be explored further in the next unit.
15. Summary Speaker meaning Sentence meaning Utterance Sentence Proposition Sense Reference Referent: Variable, constant, co-referent Referring expression Opaque context Equative sentence Predicator Predicate Degree of (Arguments)
16. GOOD LUCK!