Toward a Deeper Lexical Semantics

A recurrent problem in lexical semantics is how "deep" the analysis of words and phrases should be. We argue for a deeper analysis of lexical meanings and for relatively rich representations. In particular, we argue that meanings do not form a homogeneous class of mental representations. Rather, they draw on intricate combinations of material from a number of independent domains, each with its own computational affordances. Also, many words can only be characterized in terms of larger frames of knowledge. Frames often encode cultural conventions, as in the case of shortstop, which can only be understood in the context of the frame of the description of a baseball game. In other words, the system of word meanings is heterogeneous in two ways: in terms of domains and in terms of the forms of representation.