R.

Albu, Semantics
WORKSHEET 4

OPPOSITENESS AND DISSIMILqRITY OF SENSE

A triaditional view of antonymy is that it is simply 'bppositeness of meaning". This view is not
adequate, as words may be opposite in meaning in different ways, and somswords have no real
opposites.
E(ERCISE I. Quickly, what would you say are the opposiEs of the following words?
(L) hot (2) thick {3) buy (4) lend (s) mate {6) dad (7) tunch (B) tiquid
Notice that hof is not the opposite of coldin the same way as borrowisthe opposite of tend, thickis
not the opposite of thin in the same way as dadisthe opposite of alive.

We will define four types of oppositional relationships:

r BINARY ANTONYMY (COMPLEMENTARITY) Binary antonyms are predicates which
mme in pairs and behnteen them exhaust all relerant possibilities. If the one predicate is applicable,
then the other c:nnot be, and vice verca. Fxample: trueand fal*.lf a sentence is true, it cannot be
false. If it is false, it cannot be true.

n(ERCISE 2. Are the following predicates binary antonyms?

(1) chalk - cheese (4) dead - alive
(2) same - different (5) manied - unmarried
(3) copper - tin (6) love - hate

Sometimes two binary antonyns can combine in a set of predicates to produce a four-way contrast.
D€RCISE 3 Place the words in the boxes in the chart:.

Make up a chart and fill in the words fuchelor; spinster, husfune wife.
r CONVERSENESS If a predicate describes a relationship betwen two things (or people)
and some other predicah describes the same relationship when the two things tor peoptel'ar6
mentioned in the opposite order, then the two predicates are CONVERSES of each other.'
D(ERCISE 4. Are the following pairs of expressions converses?
(1) below - above (4) conceal - reveal
(2) grandparent - grandchild (5) grmter than - less than
(3) love - hate (6) own - belong to

In both types of antonymy discussed, the antonyms come in pairs. In the case of converses, they
fgrm a relational pair, m they are not true antonyms. In the case of complementaries, tney nrtry nit
the area to which they can be applied. Such a pair can be thought as a miniature semantic system.
Thus, male and female behrueen them constitute the English sex svstem , tnte and false are tne
members of the truth system etc. Other such systems can have threg four or any number of
members. -->

o MULTIPLEINCOMPATIBIUry
D(ERCISE 5 (1) What would you call the system of opposites to which the words springand
summerboth belong?
(2) How many members does this system have altogeffrer?
(3) What would you callthe system to which stidand gasfr}lang?
(4) Can you think of an example of a seven-member system?
(5) Four-member systems are quite common. How many can you think oP
What these systems have in common is that (a) all the terms in a given'system are mr.ltually