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Semantics and Meaning Representation
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Semantics and Meaning Representation

A special issue of Languages (ISSN 2226-471X).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 December 2023) | Viewed by 9487

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Rute Costa

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
NOVA School of Social Sciences and Humanities, Linguistics Research Centre of NOVA University Lisbon, NOVA University Lisbon, 1099-085 Lisbon, Portugal
Interests: terminology; lexicography; lexical semantics; ontologies; LOD; corpus linguistics; lexicology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Raquel Amaro

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
NOVA School of Social Sciences and Humanities, Linguistics Research Centre of NOVA University Lisbon, NOVA University Lisbon, 1099-085 Lisbon, Portugal
Interests: computational linguistics; lexical semantics; corpus linguistics; semantics/syntax interface; lexicology; lexicography

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Languages Special Issue Semantics and Meaning Representation focuses on the new challenges that current research on semantics and meaning representation of natural languages must tackle to provide the grounds for today's interdisciplinary needs concerning data science, machine learning, knowledge organisation or artificial intelligence.

Semantics and meaning representation come hand-to-hand in the context of language modeling and processing but also when it comes to dealing with the organisation and use of knowledge. The way natural languages convey information and knowledge requires the representation of the meaning of lexical, syntactic, or pragmatic units, and the representation of the concepts in which the meanings are anchored. But it also requires the understanding on how lexical and conceptual systems interact and how their units are related to each other, allowing dynamic and context-sensitive reasoning, wide-ranging and versatile resources, and interoperability.

Going beyond the purely linguistic perspective (Geeraerts 2010, Riemer, 2015, Truswell 2019, Feist 2022) or the fundamentally formal representation models (Bojar et al. 2019, Hershkowitz and Donatelli 2021), the goal of this Special Issue is to discuss and explore theoretical and applied approaches to semantics and meaning representation that respond to the new challenges, either by presenting specific cases of new semantic/meaning resources, either by discussing the theoretical grounds, applications or short comes of the new paradigms such as the Linked Data or the Semantic Web.

We request that, prior to submitting a manuscript, interested authors initially submit a proposed title and an abstract of 400–600 words summarizing their intended contribution. Please send it to the guest editors ([email protected]|[email protected]). Abstracts will be reviewed by the guest editors for the purposes of ensuring proper fit within the scope of the special issue. Full manuscripts will undergo double-blind peer-review.

References

Bojar, Ondřej, Bernardi, Raffaella, & Webber, Bonnie. 2019. Representation of sentence meaning (A JNLE Special Issue). Natural Language Engineering, 25(4), 427–432. doi:10.1017/S1351324919000172.

Feist, Jim. 2022. Significance in Language: A Theory of Semantics. Routledge.

Geeraerts, Dirk. 2010. Theories of Lexical Semantics. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN-13: 9780198700319 | ISBN-10: 0198700318, x+341 pp.

Hershkowitz, Daniel & Donatelli, Lucia (eds.). 2021. NLP and Semantics. Special Issue. Künstl Intell 35. Organ des Fachbereichs "Künstliche Intelligenz" der Gesellschaft für Informatik e.V.

Riemer, Nick (ed.). 2015. The Routledge Handbook of Semantics. 1st ed. Taylor and Francis.

Truswell, Robert (ed.). 2019. The Oxford Handbook of Event Structure. Oxford University Press.

Dr. Rute Costa
Dr. Raquel Amaro
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Languages is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • meaning representation
  • lexical semantics
  • lexical representation
  • lexicon
  • LOD
  • lexicology
  • lexicography
  • terminology
  • knowledge representation

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Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

18 pages, 802 KiB  
Article
Logical Spaces and Subjunctive Tenses
by Rui Marques
Languages 2024, 9(11), 334; https://doi.org/10.3390/languages9110334 - 26 Oct 2024
Viewed by 615
Abstract
Apparently, Subjunctive tenses express temporal location, and, in some constructions, the past subjunctive can also express modal values. A long-standing debate exists over whether—even in the latter case—verbal tenses are temporal operators or whether in some constructions they convey temporal meaning, and in [...] Read more.
Apparently, Subjunctive tenses express temporal location, and, in some constructions, the past subjunctive can also express modal values. A long-standing debate exists over whether—even in the latter case—verbal tenses are temporal operators or whether in some constructions they convey temporal meaning, and in others they have a modal value, maybe derived from their basic temporal meaning. The assumption that the basic meaning of subjunctive tenses are of a temporal nature is challenged by the fact that the future subjunctive, which exists in Portuguese, has the same temporal interpretation as the present subjunctive, with which it is in complementary distribution. Moreover, no clear modal difference is observed between the future and present subjunctive tenses. In this paper, I present arguments against the separation of the temporal and modal values of the subjunctive tenses. I posit, instead, that a semantic analysis of subjunctive morphemes must consider ordered pairs of times and possible worlds; only in this way can we adequately capture the observed data and allow a comprehensive view of the system of subjunctive tenses in Portuguese (which will be extendable to Romance languages in general). If we accept this proposal, then the modal as temporal information associated with subjunctive tenses follows naturally, including the systematic futurate reading of subjunctive temporal clauses. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Semantics and Meaning Representation)
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24 pages, 575 KiB  
Article
Toward a Representation of Semantic Change in Linked Data
by Anas Fahad Khan and Francesca Frontini
Languages 2024, 9(6), 215; https://doi.org/10.3390/languages9060215 - 12 Jun 2024
Viewed by 801
Abstract
In this article, we introduce a new framework, the Intensional–Ontological Model (IOM), for representing meaning, and especially for representing semantic change, in linguistic linked data resources. This framework, which makes use of previous work in the literature on lexical semantics and ontologies, is [...] Read more.
In this article, we introduce a new framework, the Intensional–Ontological Model (IOM), for representing meaning, and especially for representing semantic change, in linguistic linked data resources. This framework, which makes use of previous work in the literature on lexical semantics and ontologies, is intended to help clarify what we mean when we model semantic change and to assist in elaborating different ontology patterns for doing so. In this work, we assume a simple architecture, one which is at the basis of the well-known OntoLex-Lemon vocabulary and which consists of one or more lexicons linked to an ontology. Our model, which is based on this architecture and informed by previous work on word senses and ontologies, is intended to provide a clear interpretation for the modelling of both onomasiological and semiasological changes, in both static and dynamic versions. This article describes how the IOM framework represents word meaning as the relationship between a word and an ontological concepts in the ’static’ case, demonstrating that the IOM is compatible with OntoLex-Lemon (while at the same time providing a greater level of detail as to the meaning of the ’sense’ and ’reference’ relationships). It then goes on to detail how the IOM can help us understand how to model semantic shifts in linked data lexical resources with a focus on conceptual change and the addition of temporal information to semantic shift data. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Semantics and Meaning Representation)
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19 pages, 1017 KiB  
Article
Exploring Semanticity for Content and Function Word Distinction in Catalan
by Neus Català, Jaume Baixeries and Antoni Hernández-Fernández
Languages 2024, 9(5), 179; https://doi.org/10.3390/languages9050179 - 14 May 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1834
Abstract
In the realm of linguistics, the concept of “semanticity” was recently introduced as a novel measure designed to study linguistic networks. In a given text, semanticity is defined as the ratio of the potential number of meanings associated with a word to the [...] Read more.
In the realm of linguistics, the concept of “semanticity” was recently introduced as a novel measure designed to study linguistic networks. In a given text, semanticity is defined as the ratio of the potential number of meanings associated with a word to the number of different words with which it is linguistically linked. This concept provides a quantitative indicator that reflects a word’s semantic complexity and its role in a language. In this pilot study, we applied the semanticity measure to the Catalan language, aiming to investigate its effectiveness in automatically distinguishing content words from function words. For this purpose, the measure of semanticity has been applied to a large corpus of texts written in Catalan. We show that the semanticity of words allows us to classify the word classes existing in Catalan in a simple way so that both the semantic and syntactic capacity of each word within a language can be integrated under this parameter. By means of this semanticity measure, it has been observed that adverbs behave like function words in Catalan. This approach offers a quantitative and objective tool for researchers and linguists to gain insights into the structure and dynamics of languages, contributing to a deeper understanding of their underlying principles. The application of semanticity to Catalan is a promising pilot study, with potential applications in other languages, which will allow progress to be made in the field of theoretical linguistics and contribute to the development of automated linguistic tools. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Semantics and Meaning Representation)
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28 pages, 529 KiB  
Article
A Novel Approach to Semic Analysis: Extraction of Atoms of Meaning to Study Polysemy and Polyreferentiality
by Vanessa Bonato, Giorgio Maria Di Nunzio and Federica Vezzani
Languages 2024, 9(4), 121; https://doi.org/10.3390/languages9040121 - 27 Mar 2024
Viewed by 1296
Abstract
Semic analysis is a linguistic technique aimed at methodically factorizing the meaning of terms into a collection of minimum non-decomposable atoms of meaning. In this study, we propose a methodology targeted at enhancing the systematicity of semic analysis of medical terminology in order [...] Read more.
Semic analysis is a linguistic technique aimed at methodically factorizing the meaning of terms into a collection of minimum non-decomposable atoms of meaning. In this study, we propose a methodology targeted at enhancing the systematicity of semic analysis of medical terminology in order to increase the quality of the creation of the set of atoms of meaning and improve the identification of concepts, as well as enhance specialized domain studies. Our approach is based on: (1) a semi-automatic domain-specific corpus-based extraction of semes, (2) the application of the property of termhood to address the diaphasic and the diastratic variations of language, (3) the automatic lemmatization of semes, and (4) seme weighting to establish the order of semes in the sememe. The paper explores the distinction between denotative and connotative semes, offering insights into polysemy and polyreferentiality in medical terminology. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Semantics and Meaning Representation)
19 pages, 4170 KiB  
Article
Are We Talking about the Same Thing? Modeling Semantic Similarity between Common and Specialized Lexica in WordNet
by Chiara Barbero and Raquel Amaro
Languages 2024, 9(3), 89; https://doi.org/10.3390/languages9030089 - 7 Mar 2024
Viewed by 1775
Abstract
Specialized languages can activate different sets of semantic features when compared to general language or express concepts through different words according to the domain. The specialized lexicon, i.e., lexical units that denote more specific concepts and knowledge emerging from specific domains, however, co-exists [...] Read more.
Specialized languages can activate different sets of semantic features when compared to general language or express concepts through different words according to the domain. The specialized lexicon, i.e., lexical units that denote more specific concepts and knowledge emerging from specific domains, however, co-exists with the common lexicon, i.e., the set of lexical units that denote concepts and knowledge shared by the average speakers, regardless of their specific training or expertise. Communication between specialists and non-specialists can show a big gap between language(s), and therefore lexical units, used by the two groups. However, quite often, semantic and conceptual overlapping between specialized and common lexical units occurs and, in many cases, the specialized and common units refer to close concepts or even point to the same reality. Considering the modeling of meaning in functional lexical resources, this paper puts forth a solution that links common and specialized lexica within the WordNet model framework. We propose a new relation expressing semantic proximity between common and specialized units and define the conditions for its establishment. Besides contributing to the observation and understanding of the process of knowledge specialization and its reflex on the lexicon, the proposed relation allows for the integration of specialized and non-specialized lexicons into a single database, contributing directly to improving communication in specialist/non-specialist contexts, such as teaching–learning situations or health professional-patient interactions, among many others, where code-switching is frequent and necessary. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Semantics and Meaning Representation)
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