Truth Conditional Semantics/Formal Semantics

Truth Conditional Semantics/ Formal Semantics


Artificial theory of semantics that is based on the notion of truth. By "truth conditions", we mean "the conditions under which a sentence, or a proposition is expressed by it, is true".

Eg: "I have red hair" is true under the condition that the speaker has, in fact, red hair.

Truth Conditional Semantics is an account of the truth conditions of sentences, often one in which the meaning of a sentence is equated with them, that is, it is the study of the propositional meaning of utterances (is from the perspective of meaning) and the logical conditions for establishing their truth or otherwise. 

Truth Conditional Semantics is concerned with how languages relates to reality, the other theories like componential theory, is concerned with exploring the conceptual structure which underlies language. This is conceptual structure which underlies language. This is so because the other theoretical approaches see human beings as using language to represent or construct reality, and truth conditional semantics focuses on the referential properties of language.

Polish logician Alfred Tarski develop semantic theory of truth - a theory of truth in formal or artificial (not natural) languages. He captured the insight in the formula: "p" is true if and only is p. The key in interpreting the formula is understanding the separation between object language (language under investigation) and metalanguage (the language employed to say things about the object language). Truth is invariably a metalinguistic predicate. The truth of "p" is claimed to be guaranteed by the truth of P.

Since the notion "true" is used to indicate something like "corresponding to the way the world is" truth - conditional theory of semantics assumes a correspondence theory of truth.

A truth conditional theory of semantics obeys the following dictum: "To know the meaning of a (declarative) sentence is to know what the world would have to be like for the sentence to be true". To give the meaning of a sentence is to specify its truth conditions, that is, to give necessary and sufficient conditions for the truth of that sentence. 

Prepared by:
Dr. Susan Mathew

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