For examples:
1. I like to run.
2. The engines run well.
3. They run a mail – order house.
In standard British English, the word run means something different in each of the sentences. In other words, the word of run has more than one the linguistics
meaning based on the context of the sentence or dictionary.
2.6.2 Speaker Meaning
Speaker meaning is what speaker means in producing an utterance. Although words can’t be used to mean something what they do not mean, there is a tendency of
a speaker to use a word to mean something different from what words mean literally. In saying, you are clever the speaker may mean
‘you are bright’ intelligent. Because the word clever means ‘bright mentally’, ‘have intelligence’ in English or he
may mean the opposite of what the word means. i.e. ‘you are stupid’.
The speaker meaning is classified in two parts, they are literal meaning and non literal meaning.
2.6.2.1 Literal Meaning
Siregar 1992 says, “If we are speaking literally, then we mean what our words mean
”. Literal is actual words, or the real means not use figurative or symbolic. When the speaker speaks literal, he or she
doesn’t have hidden meaning in his or her words.
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The following examples illustrate the literal meaning: 1.
I am standing now. 2.
My little brother goes to school everyday. 3.
They are playing football in the yard.
All the sentences above are easily understood as long as the speakers mean what they say lexically. In literal meaning there is no misunderstanding or
misinterpretation between the speaker and the listener.
2.6.2.2 Non Literal Meaning
Siregar 1992:10 says, “We sometimes mean something different from what
our mean, in other words, we sometimes speak non- literally”. People sometimes
speak non literal. When the speaker speaks non literally, therefore, means something different from what the words mean. It is the opposite of literal meaning. In
additional the words or sentence which is spoken by the speaker have hidden meaning beside the lexical meaning.
Everyday people may find many non literal meaning such as in novel, lyrics of song, the Holy Bible, etc. Non literal meaning is very needed to make our
sentences or language more beautiful. The following example illustrate the non literal meaning is My pen is dancing on paper now. This sentence has non-literal
meaning and it means I am writing on paper now.
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There are so many terms of non literal meaning, such as figure of speech, figurative expression and figurative language. Seed 1997:16 says,
“Non literal language is traditionally called figurative language which is described including by
irony facetious way of speaking, hyperbole exaggerated way of speaking, metaphor, simile, personification and litotes.
And the term ‘figurative language’ will be used in this thesis.
2.7 Figurative Language
