I．Brainstorming

Think about the meaning of the two words-- reference and sense?

II. Reference and sense

Linguistic expressions stand in a relation to the world. There are two aspects of meaning.

 Reference

1. Definition

Reference is the relation by which a word picks out or identifies an entity in the world. E.g. the word “dog” denotes a kind of domestic animals.

2. The referential theory

Proper noun donates individuals; common nouns denote sets of individuals; verbs denote actions; adjectives denote properties of individuals; adverbs denote properties of actions (Kempson, 1977).

But the referential theory (The simplest theory of meaning claims that meaning is reference.) fails to account for certain kinds of linguistic expression. 

 Some words are meaningful, but they identify no entities in the real world, such as the words dragon, phoenix, unicorn, and mermaid. 

 It is not possible for some words to find referent in the world, such as the words but, and, of, however, the, etc. 

 Speakers of English understand the meaning of a round triangle although there is no such graph.

 Sense

Sense is the relation by which words stand in human mind. E.g. when you hear the expression dog, you will naturally think about its features.

It is mental representation, the association with something in the speaker’s or hearer’s mind. The study of meaning from the perspective of sense is called the representational approach.

III. Conclusion

Reference is the relation by which a word picks out or identifies an entity in the world. Sense is the relation by which words stand in human mind.