Natural Language Processing · TEE · papers
Q3a · Semantics, pragmatics and two ambiguities
2023-01-30 · re-exam · recovered AI paper
Previous examination · complete worked answers
Question. Differentiate semantics and pragmatics. Explain ambiguity in “Time flies like an arrow” and “He crushed the key to my heart”. [10 marks]
Answer
Semantics concerns conventional meaning and composition; pragmatics interprets an utterance using speaker intention and situation. “It is cold here” can semantically report temperature and pragmatically request closing a window.
| Sentence | Readings / cause |
|---|---|
| Time flies like an arrow | Ordinary reading: time(N) flies(V), with like an arrow as comparison. Alternative imperative: time(V) the flies(N) as one times an arrow; lexical-category and structural ambiguity. |
| He crushed the key to my heart | Literal key/crushing versus figurative destruction of affection or emotional access. Lexical/semantic ambiguity and metaphor need pragmatic context; there is no supplied situation proving a single intended reading. |