Compositional Semantics: An Introduction to the Syntax/Semantics Interface

448 Pages·2014·1.841 MB·English

by  Pauline Jacobson

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OXFORD TEXTBOOKS IN LINGUISTICS
Compositional Semantics
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OXFORD TEXTBOOKS IN LINGUISTICS
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OUPCORRECTEDPROOF–FINAL,22/7/2014,SPi
Compositional Semantics
An Introduction to the
Syntax/Semantics Interface
Pauline Jacobson
1
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To the memory of my parents,
Florence and Nathan Jacobson (Florie and Jake)
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Contents
Sectionsandexercisesmarkedwith*aremoreadvancedand/orlesscentral
(andonsomeoccasionsintendedasopen-endedspeculation).Thesemaybe
skippedwithlittleornoconsequenceforlatersections.
Acknowledgments xv
Foreword:OnUsingthisBook xvii
Part I: Foundational Concepts: Building a Fragment
1. Introduction 3
1.1. Goals 3
1.1.1. Compositionalsemanticsand(someof)the
goalsofsemantictheory 4
1.1.2. DirectCompositionality—anditsroleinthistext 8
1.2. Abriefnoteonthehistoryofsemanticswithin
modernlinguistictheory 10
1.3. Thenotionofa“fragment”anditsuseinthistext 12
*1.4. Anintriguingpuzzle 13
1.5. Appendix:SetsandFunctions 19
1.5.1. Sets,members,andsubsets 19
1.5.2. Union,intersection,andcomplement 21
1.5.3. Orderedpairs,relations,equivalencerelations,
andpartitions 21
1.5.4. Functions 24
2. Semanticfoundations 27
2.1. Model-theoreticsemantics 27
2.2. Truthconditions 28
2.3. Possibleworlds 31
2.3.1. Introducingthenotion 31
2.3.2. Characteristicfunctionofaset 35
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viii CONTENTS
2.3.3. Notationandterminology 36
2.3.4. Talkingaboutworlds 37
2.4. Times 41
3. Compositionality,DirectCompositionality,
andthesyntax/semanticsinterface 42
3.1. Buildingafragment:Firststeps 43
3.2. Implicaturesvstruthconditions 46
3.3. Foldinginworlds(andtimes) 48
3.4. Negation:Afirstpass 49
4. Expandingthefragment:Syntacticcategories
andsemantictypes 52
4.1. Nounphrases 52
4.2. Intransitiveverbs/verbphrases 58
4.3. Abrieflookatlexicalsemantics 60
4.4. Backtothecompositionalsemantics 62
4.5. Illustratingthesyntactic/semanticcomposition 63
5. Transitiveverbs:Resolvinganapparent
syntax/semanticsmismatch 66
5.1. Firstpass:StrawMan’ssolution 67
5.2. AbandoningDirectCompositionality 70
5.3. HiddenSconjunction? 73
5.4. Backtothedrawingboard:Curry’edfunctions 76
5.4.1. Recastingthemeaningoftransitiveverbs 76
*5.4.2. Curryingmoregenerally 79
5.4.3. SolvingStrawMan’sproblems 80
*5.5. Anoteonthree-placeverbs 84
6. CategorialGrammar 88
6.1. Basics 89
6.2. Syntax/semanticscorrespondence 92
6.3. Refinements 94
*6.4. Somefurtherobservationsaboutsyntax:Casemarking
andagreement 96
6.5. Furthergeneralizingtherules 98
6.6. and,or,negation,andcase-markingprepositions 100
6.7. Summary:Thefragmentsofar 104
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CONTENTS ix
7. Theautonomyofsyntax? 107
7.1. Goodsyntax—badsemantics 108
7.2. Badsyntax—goodsemantics 111
8. Adjectives,nouns,determiners,andmore 113
8.1. Predicativeadjectives 113
8.2. Nouns(“commonnouns”) 116
8.3. the 118
8.4. Prenominaladjectivesandunaryrules 120
8.4.1. Anadditionalbinaryrule? 120
8.4.2. Interlude:Unaryrules(“typeshift”rules;
morphologicalrules) 121
8.4.3. Backtoadjectives 124
8.4.4. Areallnounmodifieradjectivesintersective? 126
8.5. Relationalnouns 128
8.6. Summary:Thefragmentsofar 131
9. Interlude:Thesemanticsofvariablesandthe
lambdacalculus 133
9.1. First-order predicatelogic(modified) 134
9.1.1. Variables 134
9.1.2. Quantifiers 138
9.2. Thelambdacalculus 144
9.2.1. Lambdaabstraction 144
9.2.2. Lambdaconversion 147
9.3. Namingmodel-theoreticobjects 151
Part II: Enriching the Domain
10. ReturningtoEnglish:Generalizedquantifiers 157
10.1. “NPs”withquantificationaldeterminers 157
10.1.1. Firstpass:Individuals? 158
10.1.2. Secondpass:Setsofindividuals? 159
10.1.3. Thirdpass:Englishasfirst-orderlogic?
StrawManmakesacameoreappearance 160
10.2. Generalizedquantifiers 162
10.2.1. Thesemantics 162
10.2.2. Thesyntax 165
10.2.3. Extendingtotheotherquantifiedcases 166