semantics

noun

se·​man·​tics si-ˈman-tiks 

plural in form but singular or plural in construction

1

: the study of meanings:

a

: the historical and psychological study and the classification of changes in the signification of words or forms viewed as factors in linguistic development

b(1)

: semiotics

(2)

: a branch of semiotics dealing with the relations between signs and what they refer to and including theories of denotation, extension, naming, and truth

2

: general semantics

3

a

: the meaning or relationship of meanings of a sign or set of signs

especially : connotative meaning

b

: the language used (as in advertising or political propaganda) to achieve a desired effect on an audience especially through the use of words with novel or dual meanings

Examples of semantics in a Sentence

More than semantics is at stake. In the case of obesity, the debate has heightened in the wake of major diet-pill recalls last year. Many new diet nostrums are in various stages of testing, and the FDA's bar for approving new drugs is lower for disease treatments than for other problems, such as baldness or skin wrinkles. —Laura Johannes et al., Wall Street Journal, 9 Feb. 1998

Over the years Wierzbicka has gained a distinct reputation for playing hardball with others in the linguistics community. Though her rhetoric can be rather scathing at times, there is no question that her studies in semantics are a force to be reckoned with. —Joseph Hilferty, Word, April 1997

Recent Examples on the Web

There is a plethora of specialized tools that help marketers pick the right semantics and keywords, extract analytics on customer behavior, and even make viable predictions and automate several processes. —Nataliya Andreychuk, Forbes, 24 Jan. 2023

Some may argue that this is more of comeback than a trend, per se, but that’s semantics in my humble opinion. —Meg Donohue, ELLE, 6 Jan. 2023

Imagine a weird, unholy synthesizer whose buttons sample textual information, style, and semantics. —Ian Bogost, The Atlantic, 7 Dec. 2022

In a typical disaster movie, the protagonists would be getting the hell out of dodge instead of debating semantics. —Joey Morona, cleveland, 29 Nov. 2022

Word History

Etymology

semant(ic) + -ics, in part after French sémantique

First Known Use

1874, in the meaning defined at sense 3a

Phrases Containing semantics

• general semantics
• generative semantics

Kids Definition

semantics

singular or plural noun

se·​man·​tics si-ˈmant-iks 

: the study of meanings and changes of meaning

semanticist

si-ˈmant-ə-səst

noun

Medical Definition

semantics

noun, plural in form but singular or plural in construction

se·​man·​tics si-ˈmant-iks 

: the study of meanings:

a

: the historical and psychological study and the classification of changes in the signification of words or forms viewed as factors in linguistic development

b(1)

: semiotic

(2)

: a branch of semiotic dealing with the relations between signs and what they refer to and including theories of denotation, extension, naming, and truth