SEMANTICS

noun plural but singular or plural in construction Date: 1893 the study of meanings:, the historical and psychological study and the classification of changes in the signification of words or forms viewed as factors in linguistic development, b. semiotic, a branch of semiotic dealing with the relations between signs and what they refer to and including theories of denotation, extension, naming, and truth, general ~ , 3. the meaning or relationship of meanings of a sign or set of signs, 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