Semantic
adjective
Relating to the meanings of words or symbols.
The semantic study of language involves understanding how words convey meaning.

Often appears as...
- semantic analysis
- semantic field
Usage tips
Academic
adjective
Relating to or involving the process of understanding information or ideas.
Semantic web technologies can make websites smarter and more interactive.

Often appears as...
- semantic network
- semantic search
Usage tips
Technical
adjective
Relating to the philosophical study of the nature of reality and existence.
Semantic theory in philosophy attempts to explain how we derive meaning from reality.

Often appears as...
- semantic realism
- semantic idealism
Usage tips
Academic
adjective
Relating to the meanings of words or symbols.
The semantic study of language involves understanding how words convey meaning.

Often appears as...
- semantic analysis
- semantic field
Usage tips
Academic
adjective
Relating to or involving the process of understanding information or ideas.
Semantic web technologies can make websites smarter and more interactive.

Often appears as...
- semantic network
- semantic search
Usage tips
Technical
adjective
Relating to the philosophical study of the nature of reality and existence.
Semantic theory in philosophy attempts to explain how we derive meaning from reality.

Often appears as...
- semantic realism
- semantic idealism
Usage tips
Academic
Definition 1 of 3

Context Matters
Meanings can vary in different contexts; knowing context helps clarify semantic meaning.

The semantic meaning of 'draft' changes from an early document version to a cold breeze, depending on the context.
Beyond Dictionary
Word meanings can evolve, so the semantic content extends beyond just dictionary definitions.

Semantic changes have shifted 'awful' from meaning 'inspiring wonder' to 'very bad'.
Cultural Nuance
Semantics can include cultural nuances that aren't immediately obvious to non-native speakers.

The word 'table' semantically implies 'discussion' in a British parliamentary context.
Compare with
contextualinterpretlexicalmorphologicalpragmaticsemioticsignificancesyntactic
Video examples
Keller Rinaudo: A mini...
This allows you to drag and drop these blocks of semantic code and create any behavior for this robot you want. You do not have to know how to code to create a behavior for Romo. And you can actually simulate that behavior in the browser, which is what you see Romo doing on the left. And then if you have something you like, you can download it onto your robot and execute it in real life,
Video examples
A mini robot -- powered...
of semantic code and create any behavior for this robot you want you do not have to know how to code to create a behavior for Romo and you can actually simulate that behavior in the browser which is what you see Romo doing on the left and then if you have something you like you can download it onto your robot and execute it in real life run the program in real life and then if you have
Video examples
Your words may predict...
a bit like we had done for the ancient texts, but not to predict the future onset of psychosis. But then we realized that maybe the most important thing was not so much what they were saying, but how they were saying it. More specifically, it was not in which semantic neighborhoods the words were,
Video examples
How Your Memory Works --...
So as you grow older, you don't lose the information of stuff you've learned. So the stuff, your semantic memory. So this is why you've accumulated a body of knowledge and you've got wisdom now, right? Because now you know how it all fits and you can use that wisdom you've collected.
Video examples
How computers translate...
Finally, it needs to understand the semantics, what the different parts of the sentence actually mean. To translate this sentence properly, the program would refer to a different set of vocabulary and rules for each element of the target language. But this is where it gets tricky.
Video examples
Letting go of God PIPE...
but you know, I don't like that word 'heart,' because it anthropomorphizes God, and I don't like the word, 'his,' either, because that sexualizes God." But I didn't want to argue semantics with these boys, so after a very long, uncomfortable pause, I said,
Video examples
Why we love repetition...
but when it's repeated, your attention shifts to how the guitarist bends a pitch. This also occurs in language, with something called semantic satiation. Repeating a word like atlas ad nauseam can make you stop thinking about what the word means,
Video examples
Dr. Anthony Fauci: Is...
Well, let's get into those semantics then. What conditions would need to exist for the pandemic to be over? You know, that's a call that officially is made by the World Health Organization. You know, my colleagues and I
Video examples
Finding the transformativ...
became aware of this not only a material entropy this lost the meaning that it exists both materially and also it it's a semantic entropy the more the larger the things I was making the less significant they become
Video examples
Richard Baraniuk on...
Imagine Music XML that actually lets you delve into the semantic structure of music, play with it, understand it. It's no wonder that everybody's getting into it, right? Even the three wise men.
Video examples
Keller Rinaudo: A mini...
This allows you to drag and drop these blocks of semantic code and create any behavior for this robot you want. You do not have to know how to code to create a behavior for Romo. And you can actually simulate that behavior in the browser, which is what you see Romo doing on the left. And then if you have something you like, you can download it onto your robot and execute it in real life,
Video examples
A mini robot -- powered...
of semantic code and create any behavior for this robot you want you do not have to know how to code to create a behavior for Romo and you can actually simulate that behavior in the browser which is what you see Romo doing on the left and then if you have something you like you can download it onto your robot and execute it in real life run the program in real life and then if you have
Video examples
Your words may predict...
a bit like we had done for the ancient texts, but not to predict the future onset of psychosis. But then we realized that maybe the most important thing was not so much what they were saying, but how they were saying it. More specifically, it was not in which semantic neighborhoods the words were,
Video examples
How Your Memory Works --...
So as you grow older, you don't lose the information of stuff you've learned. So the stuff, your semantic memory. So this is why you've accumulated a body of knowledge and you've got wisdom now, right? Because now you know how it all fits and you can use that wisdom you've collected.
Video examples
How computers translate...
Finally, it needs to understand the semantics, what the different parts of the sentence actually mean. To translate this sentence properly, the program would refer to a different set of vocabulary and rules for each element of the target language. But this is where it gets tricky.
Video examples
Letting go of God PIPE...
but you know, I don't like that word 'heart,' because it anthropomorphizes God, and I don't like the word, 'his,' either, because that sexualizes God." But I didn't want to argue semantics with these boys, so after a very long, uncomfortable pause, I said,
Video examples
Why we love repetition...
but when it's repeated, your attention shifts to how the guitarist bends a pitch. This also occurs in language, with something called semantic satiation. Repeating a word like atlas ad nauseam can make you stop thinking about what the word means,
Video examples
Dr. Anthony Fauci: Is...
Well, let's get into those semantics then. What conditions would need to exist for the pandemic to be over? You know, that's a call that officially is made by the World Health Organization. You know, my colleagues and I
Video examples
Finding the transformativ...
became aware of this not only a material entropy this lost the meaning that it exists both materially and also it it's a semantic entropy the more the larger the things I was making the less significant they become
Video examples
Richard Baraniuk on...
Imagine Music XML that actually lets you delve into the semantic structure of music, play with it, understand it. It's no wonder that everybody's getting into it, right? Even the three wise men.
Example 1 of 10
Quote examples
Steven Pinker
Canadian Scientist
Semantics is about the relation of words to thoughts, but it also about the relation of words to other human concerns. Semantics is about the relation of words to reality - the way that speakers commit themselves to a shared understanding of the truth, and the way their thoughts are anchored to things and situations in the world.

Quote examples
Shailene Woodley
American Actress
Acting is fun and I refuse to get involved in the semantics and the politics of strategy and breaking out of something or doing something because you need to do something else. For me it's all about what fuels my soul and if I'm passionate about a screenplay then that's what I'll do next.

Quote examples
Felix Frankfurter
American Judge
All our work, our whole life is a matter of semantics, because words are the tools with which we work, the material out of which laws are made, out of which the Constitution was written. Everything depends on our understanding of them.

Quote examples
John Lanchester
British Journalist
Money is like poetry because both involve learning to communicate in a compressed language that packs a lot of meaning and consequence into the minimum semantic space.

Quote examples
Talulah Riley
English Actress
Initially, I studied philosophy, because it claimed to give you answers to the meaning of existence, but it didn't: It was basically a semantics game.

Quote examples
Willard Van Orman Quine
American Philosopher
Uncritical semantics is the myth of a museum in which the exhibits are meanings and the words are labels. To switch languages is to change the labels.

Quote examples
Hari Nef
American Actress
Being a woman is an option, being trans is an option, and they're options that appeal to me. We need to listen to people - not labels, not semantics.

Quote examples
Tom Stoppard
English Dramatist
The thing about talking about human rights is that when one bears in mind the sharp end of it, one does not want to worry too much about semantics.

Quote examples
Len Wein
American Cartoonist
When someone writes to tell me something I've written made them laugh or cry, I've done my job and done it well. The rest is all semantics.

Quote examples
Betty Buckley
American Actress
If we're for one another, we're feminists. The rest is semantics.

Quote examples
Steven Pinker
Canadian Scientist
Semantics is about the relation of words to thoughts, but it also about the relation of words to other human concerns. Semantics is about the relation of words to reality - the way that speakers commit themselves to a shared understanding of the truth, and the way their thoughts are anchored to things and situations in the world.

Quote examples
Shailene Woodley
American Actress
Acting is fun and I refuse to get involved in the semantics and the politics of strategy and breaking out of something or doing something because you need to do something else. For me it's all about what fuels my soul and if I'm passionate about a screenplay then that's what I'll do next.

Quote examples
Felix Frankfurter
American Judge
All our work, our whole life is a matter of semantics, because words are the tools with which we work, the material out of which laws are made, out of which the Constitution was written. Everything depends on our understanding of them.

Quote examples
John Lanchester
British Journalist
Money is like poetry because both involve learning to communicate in a compressed language that packs a lot of meaning and consequence into the minimum semantic space.

Quote examples
Talulah Riley
English Actress
Initially, I studied philosophy, because it claimed to give you answers to the meaning of existence, but it didn't: It was basically a semantics game.

Quote examples
Willard Van Orman Quine
American Philosopher
Uncritical semantics is the myth of a museum in which the exhibits are meanings and the words are labels. To switch languages is to change the labels.

Quote examples
Hari Nef
American Actress
Being a woman is an option, being trans is an option, and they're options that appeal to me. We need to listen to people - not labels, not semantics.

Quote examples
Tom Stoppard
English Dramatist
The thing about talking about human rights is that when one bears in mind the sharp end of it, one does not want to worry too much about semantics.

Quote examples
Len Wein
American Cartoonist
When someone writes to tell me something I've written made them laugh or cry, I've done my job and done it well. The rest is all semantics.

Quote examples
Betty Buckley
American Actress
If we're for one another, we're feminists. The rest is semantics.

Example 1 of 10
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