The meaning of words is an important aspect of understanding any language. But sometimes, that meaning can be more nuanced than what is found in a dictionary.
This is especially true in English, where words are taken from different sources, used in various applications, and often have double meanings. Semantics and pragmatics, two important branches of linguistics, deal with these meanings but in distinct ways.
What is Semantics?
Semantics studies the meaning of words, phrases, and sentences. It focuses on linguistic meaning independent of its context.
There are two main categories of semantics, lexical and phrasal. Lexical semantics is focused on the individual meaning of words while phrasal semantics study how smaller units of discourse (i.e. words) combine to form the meaning of larger units (i.e. sentences).
Consider the sentence, “I could drink an ocean.” If you examine this semantically, you would look at the grammar, vocabulary, and conceptual meaning of the sentence and its parts. A fair conclusion would be that the speaker is incredibly thirsty.
What is Pragmatics?
Like Semantics, Pragmatics studies the meaning of words, phrases, and sentences but with the added consideration of their context. It looks beyond the technical and literal details of language and sees how manner, time, place, nonverbal cues, and more can impact meaning.
A big part of what pragmatics study is ambiguity—the difficulty to infer meaning without first understanding context. You could interpret a sentence in many different ways but only by knowing the context can you identify which is the correct meaning.
Consider the sentence, “Break it down.” If you look at this pragmatically, you’ll have to base its meaning depending on the situation it was given in. It could be an order to demolish something, show off your dance moves, simplify a presentation, or start packing things away.
Usually, you resolve ambiguity unconsciously. But when someone specifically crafts a sentence that’s meant to be ambiguous, it sometimes takes a second for you to understand. You’ll see this in many jokes and wordplays.
Difference between Semantics and Pragmatics
It’s easy to confuse semantics and pragmatics as they are closely similar. They are both main languages of linguistics and are concerned with the meaning of words in a language.
The key difference that you need to keep in mind is that semantics only looks at words, phrases, and sentences in the literal sense. Pragmatics takes this a step further by also considering the intended meaning of language. So semantics is context independent while pragmatics is context dependent.
Semantics has a narrower scope as it only deals with meaning in a general sense, using the general rules used in a language. The meaning of a word or expression and their relation to one another remains constant.
On the other hand, pragmatics also looks at the implied meaning of language in addition to the literal. It considers different contextual factors such as time, place, tone, the speaker’s intended meaning, and the listener’s inferences.
Semantics has a more theoretical understanding of meaning. Pragmatics takes a more practical approach, as it looks at how language is used and how different usage can create multiple meanings.
| Semantics | Pragmatics |
|---|---|
| Study of words and their meaning in a language. | Study of words and their meaning with emphasis on their context. |
| Focuses mainly in the literal sense of a word, phrase, or sentence. | Focuses on the intended meaning of a word, phrase, or sentence. |
| Studies the literal sense | Studies both the literal, intended, and inferred sense |
Chances of Miscommunication
Language is constantly evolving, especially when people are so creative with it. You’ve probably used words in ways that they’re not intended for. New words are created and added to official dictionaries. Or maybe, old words gain new meanings as their use cases change.
This is why meaning can be so nuanced. There’s just too many factors affecting how words and larger units of discourse are delivered and understood. Inevitably, it also leads to miscommunication.
Consider idioms and other expressions. These are phrases or sentences whose true meanings differ from their semantic meanings, such as:
- up in the air (still undecided)
- spill the beans (reveal a secret)
- break a leg (good luck)
- bring home the bacon (achieve success)
- call it a day (stop working on something)
Learning the pragmatic meaning of these phrases can take time, especially if its a new language to you. An unfamiliar idiom won’t make sense to you, but things suddenly click when you understand the intended meaning of it.
Also remember, people love using words in different ways such as in slangs, colloquialisms, and jargons. Taken semantically, they don’t make sense. You’ll have to pay attention to how, when, and why they’re used.
Here are few such words currently used that often confuses older generations:
- Woke (being aware of important societal issues and information)
- Spill the tea (share gossip, especially ones of a sensitive nature)
- Salty (being irritated or resentful especially after losing or being slighted)
- Ghosting (ending a relationship by suddenly stopping all sources of communication)
- No cap (“no lie”, “for real”)
What’s your take on semantics and pragmatics? Share it in the comments below!
If you enjoyed this post, then you might also like:
- Semantics vs Syntax: What’s the Difference?
- The Garden Path Sentence: Getting Rid of Sentence Ambiguity
- How to Use Contractions: Rules and Examples
- Starting Sentences with Conjunctions: Is It Ever Okay?
Cole is a blog writer and aspiring novelist. He has a degree in Communications and is an advocate of media and information literacy and responsible media practices. Aside from his interest in technology, crafts, and food, he’s also your typical science fiction and fantasy junkie, spending most of his free time reading through an ever-growing to-be-read list. It’s either that or procrastinating over actually writing his book. Wish him luck!
