1.2.5. Discuss the main issues given in 1.1.1 and 1.1.2 focusing on the following questions.

1. What was the first English word you learned? What is your favorite English word? Does it confirm nouns being the easiest words to identify across languages?

2. Is it always possible to restore a gapped utterance to its former original form?

3. Your interlocutor says: “Point taken”. Could you restore their full statement? Would you restore it? (Would you if you could?) Can you bring it back to its original form of expression? Is it possible to do so? Is it necessary to do so? Does the original form of a gapped utterance actually exist? Does the full counterpart of a gapped utterance really exist?

4. What do we actually do when we retrieve the missing parts of a gapped utterance?

5. Under what circumstances can we communicate gapped utterances? Those with skipped (omitted) entities? Those with omitted predicates?

6. How is sense made? What is the sense making process called?

7. What is predication? What is the predicate in its broad logical meaning?

1.2.6. Choose the closest association. In this task, you will give definitions matching proper synonyms given in the second and fourth columns of Table 1. Before you start doing so, study the following excerpt and reflect on it.

A Nugget of Thought

According to S.Pinker, the best way to appreciate what nouns mean is to begin with some examples that seem to mean nothing at all. Think about these sentences (from the examples collected by A. Wierzbicka):

Boys will boys. A deal is a deal. A horse is a horse, of course, of course.

These sentences look like empty tautologies, but of course they are not. They are a way to say that some entity has the essential qualities of its kind. “A deal is a deal” means that once a deal is made it cannot be cancelled or reversed and is to be very firm. Actually “is a deal” is the predicate of the subject “a deal”. The predicate conveys the information stated above. Thus, in the X is X formula the first X and the second X mean different things. The first X refers to something and serves as a pointer to an entity in the world that the hearer must identify. The second X describes the first one by definition or stereotype. That is, the second X is predicated of the first one. The distinction between referring and predicating is basic to any language.

The pattern in question is dubbed “identity model” in which the verb acts rather like an equals sign, connecting two names for the same person or thing (also see 1.1.3).

A problem is always a difficulty.

In the example given the identity between the subject (problem) and the predicate (difficulty) could be symbolized (though of course not fully represented) by the formula

A problem = a difficulty.

It does not mean, though, that we should confine ourselves to the verb be, although the model typically involves it. We can also make use of other verbs functioning like “equals signs”:

A problem always implies a difficulty.

“A problem” is used especially about a difficulty.

A problem usually indicates a difficulty. Etc.

These sentences given as examples slightly vary in detail but the main idea is the same.

Your task now is to give descriptions based on meanings that are not absolutely identical but do not change the truth conditions of a specific sentence.

e.g. “Problem” might be specified as “question or difficulty”.

1	“Problem”	is	“natural ability, skill”.
2	“Issue”	is used especially about	“effort”.
3	“Chance”	denotes	“process; way of doing something”.
4	“Necessity”	shows	“desire; ambition; hope”.
5	“Possibility”	signifies	“aim”.
6	“Probability”	is designated as	“matter; matter in question”.
7	“Procedure”	indicates	“capacity”.
8	“Ability”	implies	“ability”.
9	“Capability”	stands for	“cause”.
10	“Power”	involves	“question; difficulty”.
11	“Demand”	means	“likelihood”.
12	“Attempt”	can be named as	“wish, hope, yearning”.
13	“Reason”	might be specified as	“opportunity”.
14	“Desire”	amounts to	“need”.
15	“Intention”	represents	“requirement”.
16	“Aspiration”	typifies/is a typical example of	“chance”.