Cognitive synonymy
Encyclopedia
Cognitive synonymy is a property of words or terms distinguished from similarity of mental associations
, connotations, emotive responses, and poetic value
; it is the information that a word or term expresses such that it is synonymous with a different word's cognitive meaning (as opposed to emotion or mental association elicited). In this sense it is a more precise, technical definition of "synonymous," specifically for theoretical (e.g., linguistic
and philosophical) purposes.
If a word is cognitively synonymous with another word, they refer to the same thing without regard to other factors. Further, a word is cognitively synonymous to another word if and only if
all instances of both words express the same exact thing, and the referents are necessarily
identical
.
W.V.O. Quine used the concept of cognitive synonymy extensively in his famous paper Two Dogmas of Empiricism
where two words were cognitively synonymous if they were interchangeable in every possible instance. For example,
Quine notes that if we are referring to the word itself
, this doesn't apply, as in,
As compared to the substitution which is obviously false,
Association of Ideas
Association of Ideas, or Mental association, is a term used principally in the history of philosophy and of psychology to refer to explanations about the conditions under which representations arise in consciousness, and also for a principle put forward by an important historical school of thinkers...
, connotations, emotive responses, and poetic value
Poetry
Poetry is a form of literary art in which language is used for its aesthetic and evocative qualities in addition to, or in lieu of, its apparent meaning...
; it is the information that a word or term expresses such that it is synonymous with a different word's cognitive meaning (as opposed to emotion or mental association elicited). In this sense it is a more precise, technical definition of "synonymous," specifically for theoretical (e.g., linguistic
Linguistics
Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. Linguistics can be broadly broken into three categories or subfields of study: language form, language meaning, and language in context....
and philosophical) purposes.
If a word is cognitively synonymous with another word, they refer to the same thing without regard to other factors. Further, a word is cognitively synonymous to another word if and only if
If and only if
In logic and related fields such as mathematics and philosophy, if and only if is a biconditional logical connective between statements....
all instances of both words express the same exact thing, and the referents are necessarily
Modal logic
Modal logic is a type of formal logic that extends classical propositional and predicate logic to include operators expressing modality. Modals — words that express modalities — qualify a statement. For example, the statement "John is happy" might be qualified by saying that John is...
identical
Identity (philosophy)
In philosophy, identity, from , is the relation each thing bears just to itself. According to Leibniz's law two things sharing every attribute are not only similar, but are the same thing. The concept of sameness has given rise to the general concept of identity, as in personal identity and...
.
W.V.O. Quine used the concept of cognitive synonymy extensively in his famous paper Two Dogmas of Empiricism
Two Dogmas of Empiricism
W. V. Quine's paper Two Dogmas of Empiricism, published in 1951, is one of the most celebrated papers of twentieth century philosophy in the analytic tradition. According to Harvard professor of philosophy Peter Godfrey-Smith, this "paper [is] sometimes regarded as the most important in all of...
where two words were cognitively synonymous if they were interchangeable in every possible instance. For example,
- All bachelors are unmarried men.
- All unmarried men are not married
Quine notes that if we are referring to the word itself
Use-mention distinction
The use–mention distinction is a foundational concept of analytic philosophy, according to which it is necessary to make a distinction between using a word and mentioning it, and many philosophical works have been "vitiated by a failure to distinguish use and mention"...
, this doesn't apply, as in,
- "Bachelor" has less than ten letters.
As compared to the substitution which is obviously false,
- "Unmarried male" has less than ten letters.
See also
- SynonymSynonymSynonyms are different words with almost identical or similar meanings. Words that are synonyms are said to be synonymous, and the state of being a synonym is called synonymy. The word comes from Ancient Greek syn and onoma . The words car and automobile are synonyms...
- Synonym ringSynonym ringIn metadata a synonym ring or synset, is a group of data elements that are considered semantically equivalent for the purposes of information retrieval. These data elements are frequently found in different metadata registries...
- QuotationQuotationA quotation or quote is the repetition of one expression as part of another one, particularly when the quoted expression is well-known or explicitly attributed by citation to its original source, and it is indicated by quotation marks.A quotation can also refer to the repeated use of units of any...
- Analytic-synthetic distinction
- Mental associationAssociation of IdeasAssociation of Ideas, or Mental association, is a term used principally in the history of philosophy and of psychology to refer to explanations about the conditions under which representations arise in consciousness, and also for a principle put forward by an important historical school of thinkers...
- A priori
- W.V.O. Quine
- EmpiricismEmpiricismEmpiricism is a theory of knowledge that asserts that knowledge comes only or primarily via sensory experience. One of several views of epistemology, the study of human knowledge, along with rationalism, idealism and historicism, empiricism emphasizes the role of experience and evidence,...
- Two Dogmas of EmpiricismTwo Dogmas of EmpiricismW. V. Quine's paper Two Dogmas of Empiricism, published in 1951, is one of the most celebrated papers of twentieth century philosophy in the analytic tradition. According to Harvard professor of philosophy Peter Godfrey-Smith, this "paper [is] sometimes regarded as the most important in all of...