Quotes About Semantics

When I use a word,' Humpty Dumpty said in rather a scornful tone, 'it means just what I choose it to mean—neither more nor less.' 'The question is,' said Alice, 'whether you CAN make words mean so many different things.

The question is,' said Alice, 'whether you can make words mean so many different things.

Again, the first o in borogoves is pronounced like the o in borrow. I have heard people try to give it the sound of the o in worry. Such is Human Perversity.

Cuando yo uso una palabra -insistió Humpty Dumpty con un tono de voz más bien desdeñoso- quiere decir lo que yo quiero que diga…, ni más ni menos.

Cuando yo uso una palabra —insistió Humpty Dumpty con un tono de voz más bien desdeñoso— quiere decir lo que yo quiero que diga..., ni más ni menos. —La cuestión —insistió Alicia— es si se puede hacer que las palabras signifiquen tantas cosas diferentes. —La cuestión —zanjó Humpty Dumpty— es saber quién es el que manda..., eso es todo.

So here's a question for you. How old did you say you were?' Alice made a short calculation, and said 'Seven years and six months.' 'Wrong!' Humpty Dumpty exclaimed triumphantly. 'You never said a word like it!' 'I though you meant How old ARE you?' Alice explained. 'If I'd meant that, I'd have said it,' said Humpty Dumpty. Alice didn't want

The first o in borogoves is pronounced like the o in borrow. I have heard people try to give it the sound of the o in worry. Such is Human Perversity.

Quando eu uso uma palavra', disse Humpty Dumpty num tom bastante desdenhoso, 'ela significa exatamente o que eu quero que signifique: nem mais nem menos

Cuando yo utilizo una palabra significa lo que yo quiero que signifique, ni más ni menos.

Things do not have meaning. We assign meaning to everything.

Propositions are true or false. Images are not.

In the contexts of religion and politics, words are not regarded as standing, rather inadequately, for things and events; on the contrary, things and events are regarded as particular illustrations of words.

Ah, this is obviously some strange usage of the word 'safe' that I wasn't previously aware of.

In the same way, consider bungalow versus house versus building . . . starlet versus girl versus female . . . Colt versus revolver versus firearm . . . steak versus meat versus food.

A word is not a crystal, transparent and unchanged; it is the skin of a living thought and may vary greatly in color and content according to the circumstances and time in which it is used.

This is the difficulty with learning a language: not always knowing if words contain more than they say.

Ceux qui disent que le S est un serpent ont un problème avec leur S...

People didn't even agree on what the terms always and never meant! If you're like most people, you were pretty surprised by these results. Most of us aren't aware of the wide range of what these words mean to different people. We assume that when we use a term, other people use it in the same way we do and mean the same thing we do.

I say 'incantation' a lot, when what I really mean 'incarnation.' It's a programmed mistake.

Proper names are rigid designators.

Why isn't there a special name for the tops of your feet?

Words can have no single fixed meaning. Like wayward electrons, they can spin away from their initial orbit and enter a wider magnetic field. No one owns them or has a proprietary right to dictate how they will be used.

I hate 'girlfriend' because it sounds so temporary. It's very junior high.

If words are not things, or maps are not the actual territory, then, obviously, the only possible link between the objective world and the linguistic world is found in structure, and structure alone.