Amsterdam studies in the theory and history of linguistic science. Series IV, Current issues in linguistic theory,
v. 20
0304-0763 ;
Includes indexes.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 235-244) and index.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 235-244).
This study represents a contribution to the theory of meaning in natural language. It proposes a semantic theory containing a set of regular relational principles. These principles enable semantic theory to describe connections from the lexical reading of a word to its figurative contextual reading, from one variant reading of a polysemous lexical item to another, from the idiomatic to its literal reading or to the literal reading(s) of one or more of its component lexical items. Semiotic theory provides a foundation by supplying principles defining motivated expression-content relations for signs generally.