What is the difference between semantics and pragmatics

I. Different definitions

1. Semantics: Semantics refers to one of the branches of semiotics. The discipline of the relationship between symbols or linguistic signs (words, sentences and other expressions) and the objects to which they refer.

2. Pragmatics: Pragmatics refers to one of the branches of semiotics. The discipline of the relationship between symbols or linguistic signs (words, sentences and other expressions) and their interpreters.

Two, the object of study is different

1, semantics: semantics study focuses on the system of linguistic expression of meaning and does not deal with specific applications. Pragmatics also study the meaning of language, but more focused on the meaning of language in specific contexts, speech acts, presuppositions, conversational meanings and so on. But in the study of formal semantics, the boundary between the two is no longer so important, and many scholars have formalized the content of pragmatics.

2. Pragmatics: the rules of pragmatics include social pragmatics and pragmatic language rules. For example, for politeness, there are different pragmatic rules in China and the West. Chinese people show modesty to others' praise out of politeness, while foreigners accept and thank others' praise out of politeness as well.

Third, different usage

1, semantics: generative semantics is a branch of semantics within generative linguistics popular in the 1960s and 1970s, a theoretical camp between early structuralist linguistics and later formal semantics.

Generative semantics draws on structural semantics for its analysis of morphemes, and compares it with the phonemic differentiation theory of generative phonology, which asserts that the deepest structure of language is the morphemes, and that the surface sentence forms are obtained through various means of syntactic change and lexicalization

2. Pragmatics: Both parties to the discourse, who come from different backgrounds, will usually judge each other's behaviors in accordance with their own cultural viewpoints, and then it is highly likely that both parties to the discourse will judge each other's behaviors according to their own cultural viewpoints. Then both parties are very likely to encounter pragmatic errors in cross-cultural communication. For example, Chinese people use "Lao" to address others to show respect and friendship, "Lao Zhang" may be only 30 or 40 years old, while "Zhang Lao" may be a 70 or 80 years old respected elder. old man.

In Western culture, a woman's age is a private matter, and the word "old" in her name can be interpreted as a reference to her age.

Baidu Encyclopedia - Pragmatics

Baidu Encyclopedia - Semantics