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CHAPTER II THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
A. Semantic
1. Definition of Semantic
Semantic is the technical term used to refer to the study of meaning, and since meaning is a part of language, semantics is a part of linguistics.
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Unfortunately, „meaning’ covers a variety of aspects of language, and there is no general agreement about the nature of meaning, what aspects of it may properly
be included in semantics, or the way in which it should be described. Semantics is the study of meaning as conveyed through signs and
language. Semantics can refer to the literal or intended meaning of speakers and writers. Semantics is studied in many branches of science and consequently how
meaning is studied may vary. Understanding how facial expressions, body language, and tone affects meaning, and how words, phrases, sentences, and
punctuation relate to meaning are two examples of what Semanticists study. The study of linguistic meaning of morphemes, words, phrases, and
sentences is called Semantics.
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A further difficulty with semantics is that meanings do not seem to be stable but depend on speakers, hearers, and context.
Yet if linguistic is scientific, it must be concerned not with specific instances, but
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F.R. Palmer, Semantic New York: Cambridge University, 1981, p.1.
15
Victoria Fromkin and Robert Rodman, An Introduction to Language Fort Worth: Harcourt Brace College Publishers, 1998, p. 158.
with generalizations. For this reason, it is generally assumed that a distinction can be made between the linguistic system and the use made of that system by speaker
and hearers.
2. Concept of Meaning
According to the Swiss linguist, Ferdinand de Saussure every linguistic signs consists of two components, they are signified, and the sign that will be
given a meaning. It is a kind of concept or thoughtreference from a certain sign, and the second is signifier, the sign that will have sound component and concept
meaning component.
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Another definition of meaning according to Ogden and Richards can be illustrated as a triangle, as follows:
Thought or Reference
Symbol Referent
According to the triangle, the „symbol’ is, of course, the linguistic element
– the word, sentence, etc., and the „referent’ the object, etc., in the world of experience, while „thought or reference’ is concept. There is no direct link
between symbol and referent between language and the world – the link is via
thought or reference, the concepts of our minds.
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16
F.R. Palmer 1981, op.cit. p.5.
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Ibid, p.24.
Semantics does not only explain about concept of meaning from communication system, but also it explains concepts of meaning from lexical and
grammatical side known as lexical as lexical and grammatical meanings. The first, lexical meaning dictionary meaning is a meaning that is composed of smaller
meaningful parts, or it is the meaning from dictionary directly.
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For example, the word „tables’ has a definite meaning, besides table has reference as a noun. The
lexical meaning based on Advanced Dictionary in English Language, table is a piece of furniture that consists of a flat top supported by legs. Thus, semantic
meaning or lexical meaning is the real description about a concept of meaning. The second, grammatical meaning is a meaning caused by grammatical process of
affixes, reduplication, and composition. For example, go – going – gone, have
gone, etc. Different languages have some different grammatical systems.
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3. Non-Literal Meaning
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