The communicative function of ambiguity in language
The communicative function of ambiguity in language
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DOI：
10.1016/j.cognition.2011.10.004
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发表时间：
2012-03-01
期刊：
影响因子：
3.4
通讯作者：
Gibson, Edward
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Piantadosi, Steven T.;Tily, Harry;Gibson, Edward
We present a general information-theoretic argument that all efficient communication systems will be ambiguous, assuming that context is informative about meaning. We also argue that ambiguity allows for greater ease of processing by permitting efficient linguistic units to be re-used. We test predictions of this theory in English, German, and Dutch. Our results and theoretical analysis suggest that ambiguity is a functional property of language that allows for greater communicative efficiency. This provides theoretical and empirical arguments against recent suggestions that core features of linguistic systems are not designed for communication. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
