Reading answers what is meaning

Exam Review

The meaning and power of smell

The sense of smell, or olfaction, is powerful. Odours affect us on a physical, psychological and social level. For the most part, however, we breathe in the aromas which surround us without being consciously aware of their importance to us. It is only when the faculty of smell is impaired for some reason that we begin to realise the essential role the sense of smell plays in our sense of well-being

Questions 1-6

Reading Passage 3 has six paragraphs, A-F.

Choose the correct heading for each paragraph from the list of headings below.

Write the correct number, i-viii, in boxes 1-6 on your answer sheet.

List of Headings

i The difficulties of talking about smells

ii The role of smell in personal relationships

iii Future studies into smell

iv The relationship between the brain and the nose

v The interpretation of smells as a factor in defining groups

vi Why our sense of smell is not appreciated

vii Smell is our superior sense

viii The relationship between smell and feelings

1 Paragraph A
Answer: viii

2 Paragraph B
Answer: ii

3 Paragraph C
Answer: vi

4 Paragraph D
Answer: i

5 Paragraph E
Answer: iii

6 Paragraph F
Answer: v

Questions 7-10

Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.

Write the correct letter in boxes 7-10 on your answer sheet.

7 According to the introduction, we become aware of the importance of smell when

A we discover a new smell.

B we experience a powerful smell.

C our ability to smell is damaged.

D we are surrounded by odours.
Answer: C

8 The experiment described in paragraph B

A shows how we make use of smell without realising it.

B demonstrates that family members have a similar smell.

C proves that a sense of smell is learnt.

D compares the sense of smell in males and females.
Answer: A

9 What is the writer doing in paragraph C?

A supporting other research

B making a proposal

C rejecting a common belief

D describing limitations
Answer: C

10 What does the writer suggest about the study of smell in the atmosphere in paragraph E?

A The measurement of smell is becoming more accurate.

B Researchers believe smell is a purely physical reaction.

C Most smells are inoffensive.

D Smell is yet to be defined.
Answer: D

Questions 11-14

Complete the sentences below.

Choose ONE WORD ONLY from the passage for each answer.

Write your answers in boxes 11-14 on your answer sheet.

11 Tests have shown that odours can help people recognise the belonging to their husbands and wives.
Answer: clothing

12 Certain linguistic groups may have difficulty describing smell because they lack the appropriate
Answer: vocabulary

13 The sense of smell may involve response to which do not smell, in addition to obvious odours.
Answer: chemicals

14 Odours regarded as unpleasant in certain are not regarded as unpleasant in others.
Answer: cultures

Chapter 7 what is «meaning»?

Chapter 7 what is «meaning»?

Language is the amber in which

a thousand precious and subtle

thoughts have been safely

embedded and preserved

(From Word and Phrase by J. Fitzgerald)

The question posed by the title of this chapter is one of those questions which are easier to ask than answer The linguistic science at present is not able to put forward a definition of meaning which is conclusive.

However, there are certain facts of which we can be reasonably sure, and one of them is that the very function of the word as a unit of communication is made possible by its possessing a meaning. Therefore, among the word’s various characteristics, meaning is certainly the most important.

Generally speaking, meaning can be more or less described as a component of the word through which a concept is communicated, in this way endowing the word with the ability of denoting real objects, qualities actions and abstract notions. The complex and somewhat mysterious relationships between referent (object, etc. denoted by the word), concept and word are traditionally represented by the following triangle [35]:

By the «symbol» here is meant the word; thought or reference is concept. The dotted line suggests that there is no immediate relation between word and referent: it is established only through the concept.

On the other hand, there is a hypothesis that concepts can only find their realization through words. It seems that thought is dormant till the word wakens it up. It is only when we hear a spoken word or read a printed word that the corresponding concept springs into mind.

The mechanism by which concepts (i. e. mental phenomena) are converted into words (i. e. linguistic phenomena) and the reverse process by which a heard or a printed word is converted into a kind of mental picture are not yet understood or described. Probably that is the reason why the process of communication through words, if one gives it some thought, seems nothing short of a miracle. Isn’t it fantastic that the mere vibrations of a speaker’s vocal chords should be taken up by a listener’s brain and converted into vivid pictures? If magic does exist in the world, then it is truly the magic of human speech; only we are so used to this miracle that we do not realize its almost supernatural qualities.

The branch of linguistics which specializes in the study of meaning is called semantics. As with many terms, the term «semantics» is ambiguous for it can stand, as well, for the expressive aspect of language in general and for the meaning of one particular word in all its varied aspects and nuances (i. e. the semantics of a word = the meaning(s) of a word).

As Marip Pei puts it in The Study of Language, «Semantics is ‘language’ in its broadest, most inclusive aspect. Sounds, words, grammatical forms, syntactical constructions are the tools of language. Semantics is language’s avowed purpose.» [39]

The meanings of all the utterances of a speech community are said by another leading linguist to include the total experience of that community; arts, science, practical occupations, amusements, personal and family life.

The modern approach to semantics is based on the assumption that the inner form of the word (i. e. its meaning) presents a structure which is called the semantic structure of the word.

Yet, before going deeper into this problem, it is necessary to make a brief survey of another semantic phenomenon which is closely connected with it.

Polysemy. Semantic Structure of the Word

The semantic structure of the word does not present an indissoluble unity (that is, actually, why it is referred to as «structure»), nor does it necessarily stand for one concept. It is generally known that most words convey several concepts and thus possess the corresponding number of meanings. A word having several meanings is called polysemantic, and the ability of words to have more than one meaning is described by the term polysemy.

Two somewhat naive but frequently asked questions may arise in connection with polysemy:

1. Is polysemy an anomaly or a general rule in English vocabulary?

2. Is polysemy an advantage or a disadvantage so far as the process of communication is concerned? Let us deal with both these questions together. Polysemy is certainly not an anomaly. Most English words are polysemantic. It should be noted that the wealth of expressive resources of a language largely depends on the degree to which polysemy has developed in the language. Sometimes people who are not very well informed in linguistic matters claim that a language is lacking in words if the need arises for the same word to be applied to several different phenomena. In actual fact, it is exactly the opposite: if each word is found to be capable of conveying, let us say, at least two concepts instead of one, the expressive potential of the whole vocabulary increases twofold. Hence, a well-developed polysemy is not a drawback but a great advantage in a language.

On the other hand, it should be pointed out that the number of sound combinations that human speech organs can produce is limited. Therefore at a certain stage of language development the production of new words by morphological means becomes limited, and polysemy becomes increasingly important in providing the means for enriching the vocabulary. From this, it should be clear that the process of enriching the vocabulary does not consist merely in adding new words to it, but, also, in the constant development of polysemy.

The system of meanings of any polysemantic word develops gradually, mostly over the centuries, as more and more new meanings are either added to old ones, or oust some of them (see Ch. 8). So the complicated processes of polysemy development involve both the appearance of new meanings and the loss of old ones. Yet, the general tendency with English vocabulary at the modern stage of its history is to increase the total number of its meanings and in this way to provide for a quantitative and qualitative growth of the language’s expressive resources.

When analysing the semantic structure of a polysemantic word, it is necessary to distinguish between two levels of analysis.

On the first level, the semantic structure of a word is treated as a system of meanings. For example, the semantic structure of the noun fire could be roughly presented by this scheme (only the most frequent meanings are given):

The above scheme suggests that meaning I holds a kind of dominance over the other meanings conveying the concept in the most general way whereas meanings П—V are associated with special circumstances, aspects and instances of the same phenomenon.

Meaning I (generally referred to as the main meaning) presents the centre of the semantic structure of the word holding it together. It is mainly through meaning I that meanings II—V (they are called secondary meanings) can be associated with one another, some of them exclusively through meaning I, as, for instance, meanings IV and V.

It would hardly be possible to establish any logical associations between some of the meanings of the noun bar except through the main meaning:1

Any kind of barrier to prevent people from passing.

Meanings II and III have no logical links with one another whereas each separately is easily associated with meaning I: meaning II through the traditional barrier dividing a court-room into two parts; meaning III through the counter serving as a kind of barrier between the customers of a pub and the barman.

Yet, it is not in every polysemantic word that such a centre can be found. Some semantic structures are arranged on a different principle. In the following list of meanings of the adjective dull one can hardly hope to find a generalized meaning covering and holding together the rest of the semantic structure.

I. Uninteresting, monotonous, boring; e. g. a dull book, a dull film.

II. Slow in understanding, stupid; e. g. a dull student.

III. Not clear or bright; e. g. dull weather, a dull day, a dull colour.

IV. Not loud or distinct; e. g. a dull sound.

V. Not sharp; e. g. a dull knife.

VI. Not active; e. g. Trade is dull.

VII. Seeing badly; e. g. dull eyes (arch.). VIII. Hearing badly; e. g. dull ears (arch.).

Yet, one distinctly feels that there is something that all these seemingly miscellaneous meanings have in common, and that is the implication of deficiency, be it of colour (m. Ill), wits (m. II), interest (m. I), sharpness (m. V), etc. The implication of insufficient quality, of something lacking, can be clearly distinguished in each separate meaning.

In fact, each meaning definition in the given scheme can be subjected to a transformational operation to prove the point.

I. Uninteresting ——> deficient in interest or excitement.

III. Not bright ——> deficient in light or colour.

IV. Not loud ——> deficient in sound.

V. Not sharp ——> deficient in sharpness.

VI. Not active ——> deficient in activity.

VII. Seeing badly ——> deficient in eyesight.

VIII. Hearing badly ——> deficient in hearing.

The transformed scheme of the semantic structure of dull clearly shows that the centre holding together the complex semantic structure of this word is not one of the meanings but a certain component that can be easily singled out within each separate meaning.

This brings us to the second level of analysis of the semantic structure of a word. The transformational operation with the meaning definitions of dull reveals something very significant: the semantic structure of the word is «divisible», as it were, not only at the level of different meanings but, also, at a deeper level.

Each separate meaning seems to be subject to structural analysis in which it may be represented as sets of semantic components. In terms of componential analysis, one of the modern methods of semantic research, the meaning of a word is defined as a set of elements of meaning which are not part of the vocabulary of the language itself, but rather theoretical elements, postulated in order to describe the semantic relations between the lexical elements of a given language.

The scheme of the semantic structure of dull shows that the semantic structure of a word is not a mere system of meanings, for each separate meaning is subject to further subdivision and possesses an inner structure of its own.

Therefore, the semantic structure of a word should be investigated at both these levels: a) of different meanings, b) of semantic components within each separate meaning. For a monosemantic word (i. e. a word with one meaning) the first level is naturally excluded.

Types of Semantic Components

The leading semantic component in the semantic structure of a word is usually termed denotative component (also, the term referential component may be used). The denotative component expresses the conceptual content of a word.

The following list presents denotative components of some English adjectives and verbs:

lonely, adj. ——> alone, without company ……………

notorious, adj. ——> widely known ……………

celebrated, adj. ——> widely known ……………

to glare, v. ——> to look ……………

to glance, v. ——> to look ……………

to shiver, v. ——> to tremble ……………

to shudder, v. ——> to tremble ……………

It is quite obvious that the definitions given in the right column only partially and incompletely describe the meanings of their corresponding words. To give a more or less full picture of the meaning of a word, it is necessary to include in the scheme of analysis additional semantic components which are termed connotations or connotative components.

Let us complete the semantic structures of the words given above introducing connotative components into the schemes of their semantic structures.

The above examples show how by singling out denotative and connotative components one can get a sufficiently clear picture of what the word really means. The schemes presenting the semantic structures of glare, shiver, shudder also show that a meaning can have two or more connotative components.

The given examples do not exhaust all the types of connotations but present only a few: emotive, evaluative connotations, and also connotations of duration and of cause. (For a more detailed classification of connotative components of a meaning, see Ch. 10.)

Meaning and Context

In the beginning of the paragraph entitled «Polysemy» we discussed the advantages and disadvantages of this linguistic phenomenon. One of the most important «drawbacks» of polysemantic words is that there is sometimes a chance of misunderstanding when a word is used in a certain meaning but accepted by a listener or reader in another. It is only natural that such cases provide stuff of which jokes are made, such as the ones that follow:

Customer. I would like a book, please.

Bookseller. Something light?

Customer. That doesn’t matter. I have my car with me.

In this conversation the customer is honestly misled by the polysemy of the adjective light taking it in the literal sense whereas the bookseller uses the word in its figurative meaning «not serious; entertaining».

In the following joke one of the speakers pretends to misunderstand his interlocutor basing his angry retort on the polysemy of the noun kick:

The critic started to leave in the middle of the second act of the play.

«Don’t go,» said the manager. «I promise there’s a terrific kick in the next act.»

«Fine,» was the retort, «give it to the author.»1

Generally speaking, it is common knowledge that context is a powerful preventative against any misunderstanding of meanings. For instance, the adjective dull, if used out of context, would mean different things to different people or nothing at all. It is only in combination with other words that it reveals its actual meaning: a dull pupil, a dull play, a dull razor-blade, dull weather, etc. Sometimes, however, such a minimum context fails to reveal the meaning of the word, and it may be correctly interpreted only through what Professor N. Amosova termed a second-degree context [1], as in the following example: The man was large, but his wife was even fatter. The word fatter here serves as a kind of indicator pointing that large describes a stout man and not a big one.

Current research in semantics is largely based on the assumption that one of the more promising methods of investigating the semantic structure of a word is by studying the word’s linear relationships with other words in typical contexts, i. e. its combinability or collocability.

Scholars have established that the semantics of words characterized by common occurrences (i. e. words which regularly appear in common contexts) are correlated and, therefore, one of the words within such a pair can be studied through the other.

Thus, if one intends to investigate the semantic structure of an adjective, one would best consider the adjective in its most typical syntactical patterns A + N (adjective + noun) and N + l + A (noun + link verb + adjective) and make a thorough study of the meanings of nouns with which the adjective is frequently used.

For instance, a study of typical contexts of the adjective bright in the first pattern will give us the following sets: a) bright colour (flower, dress, silk, etc.), b) bright metal (gold, jewels, armour, etc.), c) bright student (pupil, boy, fellow, etc.), d) bright face (smile, eyes, etc.) and some others. These sets will lead us to singling out the meanings of the adjective related to each set of combinations: a) intensive in colour, b) shining, c) capable, d) gay, etc.

For a transitive verb, on the other hand, the recommended pattern would be V + N (verb + direct object expressed by a noun). If, for instance, our object of investigation are the verbs to produce, to create, to compose, the correct procedure would be to consider the semantics of the nouns that are used in the pattern with each of these verbs: what is it that is produced? created? composed?

There is an interesting hypothesis that the semantics of words regularly used in common contexts (e. g. bright colours, to build a house, to create a work of art, etc.) are so intimately correlated that each of them casts, as it were, a kind of permanent reflection on the meaning of its neighbour. If the verb to compose is frequently used with the object music, isn’t it natural to expect that certain musical associations linger in the meaning of the verb to compose?

Note, also, how closely the negative evaluative connotation of the adjective notorious is linked with the negative connotation of the nouns with which it is regularly associated: a notorious criminal, thief, gangster, gambler, gossip, liar, miser, etc.

All this leads us to the conclusion that context is a good and reliable key to the meaning of the word. Yet, even the jokes given above show how misleading this key can prove in some cases. And here we are faced with two dangers. The first is that of sheer misunderstanding, when the speaker means one thing and the listener takes the word in its other meaning.

The second danger has nothing to do with the process of communication but with research work in the field of semantics. A common error with the inexperienced research worker is to see a different meaning in every new set of combinations. Here is a puzzling question to illustrate what we mean. Cf.: an angry man, an angry letter. Is the adjective angry used in the same meaning in both these contexts or in two different meanings? Some people will say «two» and argue that, on the one hand, the combinability is different (man — name of person; letter — name of object) and, on the other hand, a letter cannot experience anger. True, it cannot; but it can very well convey the anger of the person who wrote it. As to the combinability, the main point is that a word can realize the same meaning in different sets of combinability. For instance, in the pairs merry children, merry laughter, merry faces, merry songs the adjective merry conveys the same concept of high spirits whether they are directly experienced by the children (in the first phrase) or indirectly expressed through the merry faces, the laughter and the songs of the other word groups.

The task of distinguishing between the different meanings of a word and the different variations of combinability (or, in a traditional terminology, different usages of the word) is actually a question of singling out the different denotations within the semantic structure of the word.

Cf.: 1) a sad woman,

4) a sad scoundrel (= an incorrigible scoundrel)

5) a sad night (= a dark, black night, arch. poet.)

How many meanings of sad can you identify in these contexts? Obviously the first three contexts have the common denotation of sorrow whereas in the fourth and fifth contexts the denotations are different. So, in these five contexts we can identify three meanings of sad.

All this leads us to the conclusion that context is not the ultimate criterion for meaning and it should be used in combination with other criteria. Nowadays, different methods of componential analysis are widely used in semantic research: definitional analysis, transformational analysis, distributional analysis. Yet, contextual analysis remains one of the main investigative methods for determining the semantic structure of a word.

I. Consider your answers to the following.

1. What is understood by «semantics»? Explain the term «polysemy».

2. Define polysemy as a linguistic phenomenon. Illustrate your answer with your own examples.

3. What are the two levels of analysis in investigating the semantic structure of a word?

4. What types of semantic components can be distinguished within the meaning of a word?

5. What is one of the most promising methods for investigating the semantic structure of a word? What is understood by collocability (combinability)?

6. How can one distinguish between the different meanings of a word and the different variations of combinability?

II. Define the meanings of the words in the following sentences. Say how the meanings of the same word are associated one with another.

1.I walked into Hyde Park, fell flat upon the grass and almost immediately fell asleep. 2. a) ‘Hello’, I said, and thrust my hand through the bars, whereon the dog became silent and licked me prodigiously, b) At the end of the long bar, leaning against the counter was a slim pale individual wearing a red bow-tie. 3. a) I began to search the flat, looking in drawers and boxes to see if I could find a key. b) I tumbled with a sort of splash upon the keys of a ghostly piano, c) Now the orchestra is playing yellow cocktail music and the opera of voices pitches a key higher, d) Someone with a positive manner, perhaps a detective, used the expression ‘madman’ as he bent over Welson’s body that afternoon, and the authority of his voice set the key for the newspaper report next morning. 4. a) Her mouth opened crookedly half an inch, and she shot a few words at one like pebbles. b) Would you like me to come to the mouth of the river with you? 5. a) I sat down for a few minutes with my head in ray hands, until I heard the phone taken up inside and the butler’s voice calling a taxi. b) The minute hand of the electric clock jumped on to figure twelve, and, simultaneously, the steeple of St. Mary’s whose vicar always kept his clock by the wireless began its feeble imitation of Big Ben. 6. a) My head felt as if it were on a string and someone were trying to pull it off. b) G. Quartermain, board chairman and chief executive of Supernational Corporation was a bull of a man who possessed more power than many heads of the state and exercised it like a king.

III. Copy out the following pairs of words grouping together the ones which represent the same meaning of each word. Explain the different meanings and the different usages, giving reasons for your answer. Use dictionaries if necessary.

smart clothes, a smart answer, a smart house, a smart garden, a smart repartee, a smart officer, a smart blow, a smart punishment

a stubborn child, a stubborn look, a stubborn horse, stubborn resistance, a stubborn fighting, a stubborn cough, stubborn depression

sound lungs, a sound scholar, a sound tennis-player, sound views, sound advice, sound criticism, a sound ship, a sound whipping

edible roots, the root of the tooth, the root of the matter, the root of all evil, square root, cube root

to perform one’s duty, to perform an operation, to perform a dance, to perform a play

to kick the ball, to kick the dog, to kick off one’s slippers, to kick smb. downstairs

IV. The verb «to take» is highly polysemantic in Modern English. On which meanings of the verb are the following jokes based? Give your own examples to illustrate the other meanings of the word.

1. «Where have you been for the last four years?» «At college taking medicine.» «And did you finally get well?»

2. «Doctor, what should a woman take when she is run down?»

«The license number, madame, the license number.»

3.Proctor (exceedingly angry): So you confess that this unfortunate Freshman was carried to this frog pond and drenched. Now what part did you take in this disgraceful affair?

Sophomore (meekly): The right leg, sir.

V. Explain the basis for the following jokes. Use the dictionary when in doubt.

1. Caller: I wonder if I can see your mother, little boy. Is she engaged9

Willie: Engaged! She’s married.

2. Booking Clerk (at a small village station):

You’ll have to change twice before you get to York.

Villager (unused to travelling): Goodness me! And I’ve only brought the clothes I’m wearing.

3. The weather forecaster hadn’t been right in three months, and his resignation caused little surprise. His alibi, however, pleased the city council.

«I can’t stand this town any longer,» read his note. «The climate doesn’t agree with me.»

4.Professor: You missed my class yesterday, didn’t you?

Unsubdued student: Not in the least, sir, not in the least.

5. «Papa, what kind of a robber is a page?» «A what?»

«It says here that two pages held up the bride’s train.»

VI. Choose any polysemantic word that is well-known to you and illustrate its meanings with examples of your own. Prove that the meanings are related one to another.

VII. Read the following jokes. Analyse the collocability of the italicized words and state its relationship with the meaning.

1. Ladу (at party): Where is that pretty maid who was passing our cocktails a while ago?

Hostess: Oh, you are looking for a drink?

Lady: No, I’m looking for my husband.

2. Peggy: I want to help you, Dad. I shall get the dress-maker to teach me to cut out gowns.

Dad: I don’t want you to go that far. Peg, but you might cut out cigarettes, and taxi bills.

3. There are cynics who claim that movies would be better if they shot less films and more actors.

4. Killy: Is your wound sore, Mr. Pup?

Mr. Pup: Wound? What wound?

Kitty: Why, sister said she cut you at the dinner last night.

VIII. Try your hand at being a lexicographer. Write simple definitions to illustrate as many meanings as possible for the following polysemantic words. After you have done it, check your results using a dictionary.

Face, heart, nose, smart, to lose.

IX. Try your hand at the following research work.

a. Illustrate the semantic structure of one of the following words with a diagram; use the dictionary if necessary.

Foot, п.; hand, п.; ring, п.; stream, n.; warm, adj.; green, adj.; sail, n.; key, n.; glass, п.; eye, n.

b. Identify the denotative and connotative elements of the meanings in the following pairs of words.

To conceal — to disguise, to choose — to select, to draw — to paint, money — cash, photograph — picture, odd — queer.

c. Read the entries for the English word «court» and the Russian «суд» in an English-Russian and Russian-English dictionary. Explain the differences in the semantic structure of both words.

Лексикология английского языка

Обсуждение Лексикология английского языка

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(Update 2022) What is meaning? | IELTS Reading Practice Test

Table of Contents

Passage

Why do we respond to words and symbols in the ways we do?

Semantics, in general, is the subdivision of linguistics concerned with meaning. Semantics attempts the systematic study of the assignment of meanings to minimal meaning-bearing elements and the combination of these in the production of more complex meaningful expressions. Elementary word groups may be combined in a relationship of content, forming thematic groups and semantic and lexical “fields”. For example, all the means of expressing the concept of joy in a given language constitute the lexical-semantic field “joy”. Because of the trained patterns of response, people listen more respectfully to the health advice of someone who has “MD” after his name than to that of someone who hasn’t. A “pattern of reactions”, then, is the sum of the ways we act in response to events, to words, and to symbols.

Words and word meanings are one of the most important information cues used in speaking and understanding, as well as in reading. Indeed, a person’s life experience and cultural experience (even reading comic strips) are most relevant to the development of linguistic “meaning making” in any language, which is very important in the communication process. Words from a person’s native language and culture perspective can carry special associations. For instance, the Spanish words for hammock, tobacco, and potato are derived from Tamo words for these items. Therefore, when people’s semantic habits are reasonably similar to those of most people around them, they are regarded as “normal” or perhaps “dull”. If their semantic habits are noticeably different from those of others, they are regarded as “individualistic” or “original”, or, if the differences are disapproved of or viewed with alarm, as “crazy”.

A definition states the meaning of a word using other words. It is clear that to define a word, as a dictionary does, is simply to explain the word with more words. However,defining words with more words usually gets people (especially children) at once into what mathematicians call an “infinite regress”, an infinite series of occurrences or concepts. For example, it can lead people into the kind of run-around that people sometimes encounter when they look up “impertinence” and find it defined as “impudence”, so they look up “impudence” and find it defined as “impertinence”. Yet—and here we come to another common reaction pattern— people often act as if words can be explained fully with more words. To a person who asked for a definition of jazz, Louis Armstrong is said to have replied, “If you have to ask what jazz is, you’ll never know”, proving himself to be an intuitive semanticist as well as a great trumpet player.

Semantics, then, seeks the “operational” definition instead of the dictionary Bridgman, the 1946 Nobel Prize winner and physicist, once wrote, “The true meaning of a term is to be found by observing what a man does with it, not by what he says about it.” He made an enormous contribution to science by showing that the meaning of a scientific term lies in the operations, the things done, that establish its validity, rather than in verbal definitions. An example of operational definition of the term “weight” of an object, operationalized to a degree, would be the following: “weight is the numbers that appear when that object is placed on a weighing scale”. According to it, when one starts reading the numbers on the scale, it would more fully make an operational definition. But if people say—and revolutionists have started uprisings with just this statement “Man is born free, but everywhere he is in chains!”—what operations could we perform to demonstrate its accuracy or inaccuracy?

Next, if this suggestion of “operationalism” is pulled outside the physical sciences where Bridgman applied it, what “operations” are people expected to perform as the result of both the language they use and the language other people use in communicating to them? Here is a personnel manager studying an application form. He comes to the words “Education: Harvard University”, and drops the application form in the wastebasket (that’s the “operation”) because, as he would say if you asked him, “I don’t like Harvard men”. This is an instance of “meaning” at work—but it is not a meaning that can be found in dictionaries.

So far as we know, human beings are the only creatures that have, over and above that biological equipment which we have in common with other creatures, the additional capacity for manufacturing symbols and systems of symbols. When we react to a flag, we are not reacting simply to a piece of cloth, but to the meaning with which it has been symbolically endowed. When we react to a word, we are not reacting to a set of sounds, but to the meaning with which that set of sounds has been symbolically endowed. As a matter of fact, how sound symbolism is processed in our brains has not yet been fully explained in the field.

Simply put, the key point of semantics lies in, not the words definition, but our own semantic reactions, which occur when we respond to things the way they “should” be, rather than to the way they are. If a person was to tell a shockingly obscene story in Arabic or Hindustani or Swahili before an audience that understood only English, no one would blush or be angry; the story would be neither shocking nor obscene— indeed, it would not even be a story. Likewise, the value of a dollar bill is not in the bill, but in our social agreement to accept it as a symbol of value. If that agreement were to break down through the collapse of our government, the dollar bill would become only a scrap of paper. We do not understand a dollar bill by staring at it long and hard. We understand it by observing how people act with respect to it. We understand it by understanding the social mechanisms and the loyalties that keep it meaningful. Therefore, semantics belongs to social studies and potentially underpins the integrity of the social sciences.

Questions

Questions 27 – 31
Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.
Write your answers in boxes 27-31 on your answer sheet.

27 What point is made in the first paragraph?
A. The aim of education is to teach people to read.
B. Semantics focuses on the definition of words.
C. Printed words only carry meaning to those who have received appropriate ways to respond.
D. Writers should ensure their works satisfy a variety of readers.

28 According to the second paragraph, people are judged by
A. their level of education.
B. the closely-related people around them.
C. how conventional their responses are.
D. complex situations.

29 What point is made in the third paragraph?
A. Standard ways are incapable of defining words precisely.
B. A dictionary often provides clear definitions of words.
C. Infinite regress is a common occurrence in a dictionary.
D. Mathematicians could define words accurately.

30 What does the writer suggest about Louis Armstrong?
A. He is a language expert.
B. He demonstrated there are similarities between music and language.
C. He provided insights into how words are defined.
D. His good skill in music helped him do research in other fields.

31 What does the writer intend to show with the example of the “personnel manager”?
A. The manager hates applicants from Harvard University.
B. Meaning can be unique to one person.
C. The manager has a bad memory of Harvard University.
D. People’s behaviour usually doesn’t agree with their words.

Questions 32-35
Do the following statements agree with the views of the writer in Reading Passage?
In boxes 32-35 on your answer sheet, write

YES if the statement agrees with the views of the writer
NO if the statement contradicts the views of the writer
NOT GIVEN if it is impossible to say that the writer thinks about this

32 Some statements are incapable of being proved or disproved.
33 Meaning that is unique to an individual is less worthy of study than shared meanings.
34 Flags and words are both elicited responses.
35 A story can be entertaining without being understood.

Questions 36 – 40
Complete each sentence with the correct ending, below.
Write the correct letter, A-H, in boxes 36-40 on your answer sheet.
36 A comic strip
37 A dictionary
38 Bridgman
39 A story in a language the audience cannot understand
40 A dollar bill without public acceptance

Reading: A Skill to Develop

Reading is a receptive action which is one of the four basic skills of communicating in a language. It is reciprocally associated with writing. Writing and reading are parallel to speaking and listening. However, writing and reading are the tangible skills of communication whereas speaking and listening are the intangible skills of communication.

Every literate person can write and read at least in one language. Basically, reading is the ability to look at and understand the meaning of the written words, letters, or symbols. But reading as a skill means much more than that. Reading is a complex process of identifying/recognizing written signs, comprehending the signs, and constructing a meaning of the signs. Reading skill develops when someone takes less time to comprehend the signs and constructs meaning accurately. Different people may read a text differently and make different meanings. However, there is always something universally comprehensive in a text and a person with good reading skill comprehends that easily.

Necessity

Improving the reading skill is necessary for so many reasons. Firstly, reading is the first step towards literacy in any language. It gives validity to the written form of language and brings it into action.

Secondly, reading is the first step of education. You may learn a lot of things through real-life experience and by listening to the people around you but reading will provide you with an experience which cannot be gained in real life. In fact, reading will equip you with a sign discerning system. This sign discerning system will eventually equip you with a sign making skill which is called writing. Education without a written form language cannot stable. So, reading is undoubtedly the first step towards education.

Thirdly, reading provides readers with a scheme for writing. Reading provides you with many sources of knowledge, information, feelings, ideas, content, style and language from which you can enjoy a lot of benefits. Reading and writing frame and complete one another.

Lastly, a good reading skill helps you in many cases like tests and exams. If you read a text efficiently, half of the job will be done. Improving your reading skill will make you think and act faster in exams and in real life situations also.

Purposes of Reading

Reading for Pleasure:

Reading with the purpose of pleasure is the most common purpose of reading. It involves the text based on the interests of the reader. When a reader reads a text with the purpose of pleasure, s/he tends to connect it with his prior knowledge and experience. In this case, s/he reads to stimulate his/her intellect and to satisfy the emotional demand of his/her mind.

Reading for Literal Understanding:

When someone reads with the purpose of comprehending something s/he wants to know, the person usually reads with the mindset of a literal understanding of the words s/he is reading and builds up a general idea of those words. A reader with the purpose of literal understanding looks for the answers of the basic who, what, when, where and how questions.

Reading for Analysis and Interpretation:

When a reader employs his/her critical thinking abilities and skills through questioning the commonly accepted meaning and exposes new interpretations or something implied in the text, s/he reads with the purpose of analysis and interpretation.

Reading answers what is meaning

What is an ASBO Reading Answers is an academic passage. IELTS Reading is the second task of the IELTS exam. IELTS reading contains four reading passages and a total of 40 questions, each of 1 mark. The 40 questions of IELTS reading need to be answered in 60 minutes. The raw score is converted to a band score on a scale of 0-9.

What is an ASBO Reading Answers discusses anti-social behaviour that is politically incorrect and the steps taken by the US government to control crimes and contains three types of questions:

The IELTS reading passage topics are versatile and include subjects like environmental science, animal science, psychology, commerce, etc.

Section 1

Read the Passage to Answer the Following Questions

What is an ASBO Reading Answers

Ask somebody to make a list of crimes and they will probably come up with the usual suspects that you or I would: murder, robbery, assault burglary and so on. They might even include acts which are merely’ against the law’ like parking on a double yellow line. But if you ask them to make a list of anti-social behaviours, you are getting into an area where there is going to be considerable disagreement. This didn’t stop the UK government which introduced Anti-Social Behaviour Orders, or ASBOs, in 1998 as part of the Crime and Disorder Act – legislation designed to deal with practically all aspects of criminal activity and disorderly behaviour.

The idea is that ASBOs are sanctions designed to deal with issues that affect everyone in the community and as such are civil sanctions, not criminal ones, and need the cooperation of the community to be effective. For example, a private individual cannot apply for an ASBO; he or she must make a complaint to the police or local authority, who will then work together to gather more information and build up evidence. This involves getting witnesses, among whom will no doubt be neighbours and acquaintances, to make statements to the authorities. When the authorities are satisfied that they have enough evidence, the local council applies to the magistrate’s court to have an ASBO imposed.

We still haven’t decided what constitutes anti-social behaviour. It doesn’t have to be physical violence, of course, but is far easier to identify and deal with if it is. What about threatening behaviour? We’re not talking here about direct threats such as ‘if you come round here again, I’ll beat you up!’, but situations perceived as threatening. Let’s say a pensioner or a person of timid disposition is on their way home and they run into a group of young people who are shouting, swearing and kicking a ball about and who happen to make a few unkind remarks as the person passes. Let’s say the person is alarmed or feels threatened by the situation. Does it merit getting the ASBO process going?

In fact, young people merely hanging out in public places, however boisterous their behaviour might seem to be to some people, are not considered to be indulging in anti-social behaviour. However, there is a proviso. Such behaviour in its own right is not considered anti-social unless it is thought it is being done with other, more serious, behavioural attitudes involved. This, of course, can be very subjective. A person faced with an ASBO can argue in their defence that their behaviour was reasonable and unthreatening. This too is subjective, and both sides’ claims are open to wide interpretation. Something else that has to be taken into account here is that ASBOs are made on an individual basis even if that person is part of a group of people committing anti-social behaviour. If a case reaches the magistrate’s court, witnesses can be called to provide further evidence for or against the defendant. However, the magistrate, as well as considering the complaints made against the defendant, will take into account his or her family situation, welfare issues, and whether or not he or she has been victimised or discriminated against It is worth bearing in mind, though, that witnesses can be intimidated or otherwise persuaded not to appear in court and give evidence.

When the Crime and Disorder Act came into force, ASBOs were generally intended to be a measure to deal with adult anti-social behaviour, yet within the Act, it states that an order can be applied for against any individual over the age of ten years old. It is a striking fact that the majority of ASBOs imposed since the law was enacted have been handed out to young people and children. The question is, have they been effective? The government, naturally, claims that they have brought about a real improvement in the quality of life in communities around the country. Nay-sayers, such as civil rights campaigners, claim the measures are far too open to abuse. Some say they go too far and some that they don’t go far enough and lack bite. However, a genuine impediment to their effectiveness is that to impose an ASBO takes a lot of time and paperwork, involving the cooperation of community, police and local council, and they are very expensive to implement- One estimate is that an ASBO can cost in excess of £20,000. What all this means is that ASBOs are being used very rarely in many parts of the country. So the jury is still out as to how effective they really are.

Section 2

Solution and Explanation
Question 1-3
Choose THREE letters A-H.
NB: Your answers may be given in any order.
Which THREE of the following statements are true of ASBOs, according to the text?

Answer 1: C. Swearing is one of the offences referred to in the Crime and Disorder Act.

Explanation: As mentioned in the passage, swearing or use of foul and abusive language is an offense in the Crime and Disorder Act. To quote the Crime and Disorder Act it is behavior that causes harassment or distress to one or more people who are not in the same household as the perpetrator. This includes, among many other things, foul and abusive language, threatening behavior, etc.

Supporting sentence: This includes, among many other things, foul and abusive language, threatening behaviour, shouting, disorderly conduct, vandalism, intimidation, behaviour as the result of drug or alcohol misuse, graffiti and noise which is excessive, particularly at night.

Keywords: threatening behaviour, shouting, disorderly conduct, vandalism, intimidation, behaviour

Location in the passage: Paragraph B

Read More IELTS Reading Related Samples

Answer 2: E. It is not illegal for young people to gather in groups in public places.

Explanation: The passage clearly expresses that young people hanging out in groups in public places are not considered as a part of illegal activity. In the reading passage, it is mentioned that young people sometimes go to hang out in public places, but their boisterous behavior may not appear to be anti-social behavior to some people.

Supporting sentence: Young people merely hanging out in public places, however boisterous their behaviour might seem to be to some people, are not considered to be indulging in anti-social behaviour

Keywords: public places, boisterous their behaviour, not considered to be indulging in anti-social behaviour

Location in the passage: Paragraph E

Answer 3: F. An ASBO cannot be served on a group of people behaving in a disorderly manner.

Explanation: ASBOs are served on an individual basis. There is a clear mention that ASBOs are made on an individual basis in case the person is a part of the group where people are engaged in anti-social behavior and activities. Therefore, this statement agrees with the content of the passage.

Supporting sentence: ASBOs are made on an individual basis even if that person is part of a group of people committing anti-social behaviour.

Keywords: committing anti-social behaviour, individual basis

Location in the passage: Paragraph E

Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.

Answer: C. anti-social behaviour is difficult to define.

Explanation: The writer suggests that anti-social behavior is difficult to define. The writer clearly suggests that anti-social behavior is a broad term and it is difficult to define. In case, people ask them to prepare a list of anti-social behaviors and activities, it will be seen that we are getting towards an area with considerable disagreement.

Supporting sentence: You ask them to make a list of anti-social behaviours, you are getting into an area where there is going to be considerable disagreement.

Keywords: considerable disagreement

Location in the passage: Paragraph A

Answer: C. that most of those served with ASBOs were youngsters

Explanation: Most of those served with ASBOs were youngsters and this surprised the writer about the imposition of ASBOs. Paragraph F clearly explains that the majority of the ASBOs were imposed on youngsters. The reason behind this can be different but youngsters are much proline to these anti-social behaviors compared to the elders.

Supporting sentence: It is a striking fact that the majority of ASBOs imposed since the law was enacted have been handed out to young people and children

Keywords: majority of ASBOs, young people and children

Location in the passage: Paragraph F

Answer: A. There isn’t enough evidence to decide.

Explanation: In the writer’s opinion, ASBOs have not seemed to be effective or ineffective. Actually, there isn’t enough evidence to decide. Since ASBOs are used very rarely, there isn’t enough evidence to support their effectiveness. More research and facts are needed to draw a conclusion on the effectiveness of ASBOs.

Supporting sentence: What all this means is that ASBOs are being used very rarely in many parts of the country. So the jury is still out as to how effective they really are.

Keywords : used very rarely, parts of the country, how effective they really are

Location in the passage: Paragraph F

Complete the sentences.

Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the passage for each answer.

Explanation: The official definition says that anti-social behavior is behavior that can cause alarm or distress. According to the passage, the Crime and Disorder Act says that it is the behavior that causes or is can cause harassment alarm or distress to others who are not in the same household as the perpetrator. This keyword clearly represents the official definition of anti-social behavior.

Supporting sentence: To quote the Crime and Disorder Act it is behaviour which ’causes or is likely to cause harassment alarm or distress to one or more people who are not in the same household as the perpetrator’

Keywords: cause harassment alarm, same household as the perpetrator

Location in the passage: Paragraph B

Explanation: Along with swearing and destruction of public or private property, making excessive noise is considered anti-social behavior. It includes all those things which are considered anti-social, for example, foul and abusive language, threatening behavior, shouting, disorderly conduct, vandalism, intimidation, behavior as the result of drug or alcohol misuse, graffiti, and noise.

Supporting sentence: It includes foul and abusive language, threatening behaviour, shouting, disorderly conduct, vandalism, intimidation, behaviour as the result of drug or alcohol misuse, graffiti and noise which is excessive, particularly at night

Keywords: foul and abusive language, threatening behaviour, shouting, disorderly conduct, vandalism, intimidation, behaviour as the result of drug or alcohol misuse, graffiti and noise

Location in the passage: Paragraph B

Explanation: ASBOs are considered to be part of Civil law rather than criminal law. In the paragraph, it is clearly mentioned that ASBOs are a part of civil law rather than criminal law. The ASBOs are designed in a way that they can deal with the issues that affect everyone present in the community. It includes civil sanctions, not criminal ones.

Supporting sentence: The idea is that ASBOs are sanctions designed to deal with issues that affect everyone in the community and as such are civil sanctions, not criminal ones.

Keywords: civil sanctions, not criminal ones

Location in the passage: Paragraph C

Answer: Make a complaint

Explanation: Citizens have to make a complaint to either the local council or the police before any action can be taken. Any individual needs to file a complaint either to the police or to the local authority before any action is taken. Here, a private individual is unable to apply for an ASBO. That individual must make a complaint to the police or local authority about it.

Supporting sentence: A private individual cannot apply for an ASBO; he or she must make a complaint to the police or local authority

Keywords: he or she must make a complaint to the police or local authority

Location in the passage: Paragraph C

Answer: Witness/neighbour/ acquaintance

Explanation: In their efforts to collect evidence the authorities may call witnesses to get more information. In the passage, the information in support of this is given. In order to collect information, the authorities will look out for witnesses which can be neighbors or acquaintances. It involves that the person needs to get witnesses that include neighbors and acquaintances. It will be required to make statements.

Supporting sentence: This involves getting witnesses, among whom will no doubt be neighbours and acquaintances, to make statements to the authorities.

Keywords: get witnesses, neighbours and acquaintances

Location in the passage: Paragraph C

Explanation: ASBOs are issued at a Magistrate. Towards the end of Paragraph C, it is mentioned that The keyword explains that ASBOs are issued by the Magistrate court. It affirms the answer given here. First, the local council needs to apply to magistrate court. It is the magistrate court that has the authority to impose the ASBOs.

Supporting sentence: The local council applies to the magistrate’s court to have an ASBO imposed.

Keywords: magistrate’s court, ASBO imposed

Answer: Physical violence

Explanation: Physical violence is the most straightforward form of anti-social behavior to determine. This reading passage explains that physical violence is one of the easiest recognizable anti-social behavior. It may not always be physical violence, however, physical violence makes it easier to identify the problem. Also finding ways of dealing with these will be easier.

Supporting sentence: It doesn’t have to be physical violence, of course, but is far easier to identify and deal with if it is.

Keywords: Physical violence, far easier, identify and deal with

Location in the passage: Paragraph D