Zebras, Intransigence & Semantic Apocalypse: Problems for Dispositional Metasemantics.

Area of Science:

• Philosophy of Language
• Metasemantics
• Linguistic Theory

Background:

• Dispositional metasemantics posits that word meaning arises from information-conditional dispositions to use terms.
• This semantic theory has recently gained traction, with proponents highlighting its attractive features for understanding meaning.

Purpose of the Study:

• To critically evaluate the 'complete information' dispositional metasemantics.
• To identify potential shortcomings and theoretical challenges posed by this semantic framework.

Main Methods:

• Conceptual analysis of dispositional metasemantics.
• Argumentation against the determinacy of meaning under this view.
• Examination of the explanatory power of dispositional theories.

Main Results:

• The 'complete information' dispositional metasemantics risks rendering word meanings indeterminate.
• The theory fails to preserve the original motivations for adopting dispositional semantic accounts.

Conclusions:

• The proposed metasemantic view faces significant challenges regarding meaning determinacy.
• Further refinement is needed for dispositional theories to maintain their explanatory appeal in semantics.