Disambiguating ambiguity

Providing a framework for classifying types of ambiguity

Authors

  • Giulia Baker Researcher and teacher
  • Michelle Aldridge Cardiff University

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1558/lhs.19339

Keywords:

ambiguity, comprehension, definition, humour

Abstract

This paper addresses inconsistencies in findings for children’s humour development by examining the ways in which five different ambiguity types (lexical, phonological, morphological, syntactic and idiomatic) have been interpreted and applied in earlier studies on humour comprehension.  It identifies discrepancies in linguistic phenomena perceived to constitute each ambiguity type and highlights how differences have contributed to contrasting claims being made about ambiguity types comprehended by young children during the final humour stage.  Definitions are subsequently provided for each ambiguity type examined.  Definitions accommodate the fact that verbal humour is intrinsically embedded with the form in which it is delivered (i.e. the language in which it is communicated) and are based upon linguistic phenomena through which ambiguity types are manifested.  Application of these definitions should now allow the researcher to be sure of linguistic phenomena being tested at any given time and facilitate comparison and contextualisation of findings across future studies

Author Biographies

Giulia Baker, Researcher and teacher

Giulia Baker is researcher, teacher and former Literacy Co-ordinator, who has taught across all Year Groups in the UK primary school system, as well as at secondary and undergraduate level. Her interests lie in the ways in which different types of ambiguity-based humour can be used in the classroom to motivate pupils and to facilitate learning.

Michelle Aldridge, Cardiff University

Michelle Aldridge is a Reader at Cardiff University where she lectures in psycholinguistics, communication disorders and forensic linguistics. Her research interests focus on the communicative abilities and experiences of vulnerable people including children and adults with a communication disorder especially in the educational and legal contexts. She has published widely in peer-reviewed journals such as Applied Linguistics Review, International Journal of Speech, Language and the Law, Text & Talk, and Word.

References

Aarons, Debra. (2012). Jokes and the linguistic mind. New York: Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203814741 DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203814741

Attardo, Salvatore, Donalee Hughes Attardo, Paul Baltes and Marnie Jo Petray. (1994). The linear organization of jokes: Analysis of two thousand texts. Humor: International Journal of Humor Research 7(1): 27–54. https://doi.org/10.1515/humr.1994.7.1.27 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/humr.1994.7.1.27

Baker, Giulia. (2017) Do you get it? An investigation into the different types of ambiguity English speaking children (aged 6–11) are able to comprehend in verbal riddles. Unpublished Ph.D. thesis. Cardiff University, UK.

Bariaud, Francoise. (1989). Age differences in children’s humor. Journal of Children in Contemporary Society 21(112): 15–45. https://doi.org/10.1300/J274v20n01_03 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1300/J274v20n01_03

Ben-Amos, Dan. (1976). Solutions to riddles. Journal of American Folklore 89(352): 249–254. https://doi.org/10.2307/539691 DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/539691

Beretta, Alan, Robert Fiorentino and David Poeppel. (2005). The effects of homonymy and polysemy on lexical access: An MEG study. Cognitive Brain Research 24(1): 57–65. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cogbrainres.2004.12.006 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cogbrainres.2004.12.006

Binstead, Kim and Graeme Ritchie. (1997). Computational rules for generating punning riddles. Humor: International Journal of Humor Research 10(1): 25–76. https://doi.org/10.1515/humr.1997.10.1.25 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/humr.1997.10.1.25

Blake, Barry. (2007). Playing with words: Humour in the English language. London: Equinox Publishing Ltd.

Brodinsky, David. (1977). Children’s comprehension and appreciation of verbal jokes in relation to conceptual tempo. Child Development 48: 960–967. https://doi.org/10.2307/1128347 DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/1128347

Chiaro, Delia. (1992). The language of jokes: Analysing verbal play. London: Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203327562 DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203327562

Chomsky, Noam. (1965). Aspects of the theory of syntax. Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT Press. https://doi.org/10.21236/AD0616323 DOI: https://doi.org/10.21236/AD0616323

Crystal, David (ed.). (2008). A dictionary of linguistics and phonetics, 6th edn. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing Ltd. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781444302776 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/9781444302776

Dienhart, John. (1999). A linguistic look at riddles. Journal of Pragmatics 31: 95–125. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0378-2166(98)00056-3 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/S0378-2166(98)00056-3

Dubinsky, Stanley and Chris Holcomb. (2011). Understanding language through humour. New York: Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511977824 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511977824

Fowles, Barbara and Marcia Glanz. (1977). Competence and talent in verbal riddle comprehension. Journal of Child Language 4(3): 433–452. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0305000900001781 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0305000900001781

Green, Thomas and William Pepicello. (1979). The folk riddle: A redefinition of terms. Western Folklore 38 (1): 3–20. https://doi.org/10.2307/1498981 DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/1498981

Green, Thomas and William Pepicello. (1984). The riddle process. Journal of American Folklore, 97(384): 189–203. https://doi.org/10.2307/540184 DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/540184

Hirsh-Pasek, Kathy, Lila Glietman and Henry Gleitman. (1978). What did the brain say to the mind? A study of the detection and report of ambiguity by young children. In Anne Sinclair, Robert Jarvella and Willem Levelt (eds), The child’s conception of language, 97–132. Berlin: SpringerVerlag. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-67155-5_7 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-67155-5_7

Klepousniotou, Ekaterini. 2002. The processing of lexical ambiguity: homonymy and polysemy in the mental lexicon. Brain and Language 81: 205–223. https://doi.org/10.1006/brln.2001.2518 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1006/brln.2001.2518

Klepousniotou, Ekaterini and Shari Baum. (2007). Disambiguating the ambiguity advantage effect in word recognition: An advantage for polysemous but not homonymous words. Journal of Neurolinguistics 20: 1–24. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jneuroling.2006.02.001 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jneuroling.2006.02.001

Klepousniotou, Ekaterini, Bruce Pike, Karsten Steinhauer and Vincent Gracco. (2012). Not all ambiguous words are created equal: An EEG investigation of homonymy and polysemy. Brain and Language 123: 11–21. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bandl.2012.06.007 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bandl.2012.06.007

Lew, Robert. (1996a). An ambiguity-based theory of the linguistic verbal joke in English. Unpublished Ph.D. thesis. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/49250266_An_ambiguity-based_theory_of_the_linguistic_verbal_joke_in_English (last accessed 26 March 2019)

Lew, Robert. (1996b). Ambiguity-generating devices in linguistic verbal jokes. http//works.bepress.com/robert_lew/27 (last accessed 26 March 2019)

Lew, Robert. (1997). Towards a taxonomy of linguistic jokes. Studia Anglica Posnaniensia: International Review of English Studies. http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Towards+a+taxonomy+of+linguistic+jokes.+(1).-a092683475 (last accessed 26 March 2019)

McGhee, Paul. (1977). A model of the origins and early development of incongruity-based humour. In Antony Chapman and Hugh Foot (eds.), It’s a funny thing humour, 27–36. Oxford: Pergamon Press. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-08-021376-7.50010-3 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-08-021376-7.50010-3

McGhee, Paul. (1979). Humor. Its origin and development. San Francisco: W. H. Freeman & Company.

McGhee, Paul. (2002). Understanding and promoting the development of children’s humour. Iowa: Kendall/Hunt Publishing Company.

Oaks, Dallin. (1994). Creating structural ambiguities in humor: Getting English grammar to cooperate. Humor: International Journal of Humor Research 7(4): 377–401. https://doi.org/10.1515/humr.1994.7.4.377 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/humr.1994.7.4.377

Partington, Alan. (2006). The linguistics of laughter. New York: Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203966570 DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203966570

Pepicello, William. (1980). Linguistic strategies in riddling. Western Folklore 39(1): 1–16. https://doi.org/10.2307/1499760 DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/1499760

Pepicello, William. (1989). Ambiguity in verbal and visual riddles. Humor: International Journal of Humor Research 2(3): 207–215. https://doi.org/10.1515/humr.1989.2.3.207 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/humr.1989.2.3.207

Pepicello, William and Thomas Green. (1984). The language of riddles. Ohio: Ohio State University Press.

Shultz, Thomas. (1974). Development of the appreciation of riddles. Child Development 45: 100–105.

https://doi.org/10.2307/1127755 DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/1127755

Shultz, Thomas and Frances Horibe. (1974). Development of the appreciation of verbal jokes. Developmental Psychology 10(1): 13–20. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0035549 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1037/h0035549

Shultz, Thomas and Robert Pilon. (1973). Development of the ability to detect linguistic ambiguity. In Child Development 44: 728–733. https://doi.org/10.2307/1127716 DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/1127716

Wolftstein, Martha. (1954). Children’s humor: A psychological analysis. Bloomington: Indiana University Press.

Yuill, Nicola. (1998). Reading and riddling: The role of riddle appreciation in understanding and improving poor text comprehension in children. Current Psychology of Cognition 17(2): 313–342.

Yuill, Nicola and Jane Oakhill. (1991). Children’s problems in text comprehension: An experimental investigation. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Zipke, Marcy. (2007). The role of metalinguistic awareness in the reading comprehension of sixth and seventh graders. Reading Psychology 28(4): 375–396. https://doi.org/10.1080/02702710701260615 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/02702710701260615

Zipke, Marcy. (2008). Teaching metalinguistic awareness and reading comprehension with riddles. The Reading Teacher 62(2): 128–137. https://doi.org/10.1598/RT.62.2.4 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1598/RT.62.2.4

Zipke, Marcy. (2009). Using semantic ambiguity instruction to improve third graders’ metalinguistic awareness and reading comprehension: An experimental study. Reading Research Quarterly 44(3): 300–321. https://doi.org/10.1598/RRQ.44.3.4 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1598/RRQ.44.3.4

Ziv, Avner. (1976). Facilitating effects of humor on creativity. Journal of Educational Psychology 68(3): 318–322. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-0663.68.3.318 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-0663.68.3.318

Ziv, Avner. (1983). The influence of humorous atmosphere on divergent thinking. Contemporary Educational Psychology 8: 68–75. https://doi.org/10.1016/0361-476X(83)90035-8 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/0361-476X(83)90035-8

Ziv, Avner. (1988). Using humor to develop creative thinking. Journal of Children in Contemporary Society 20(1–2): 99–116. https://doi.org/10.1300/J274v20n01_07 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1300/J274v20n01_07

Downloads

Published

2021-03-26

How to Cite

Baker, G., & Aldridge, M. (2021). Disambiguating ambiguity: Providing a framework for classifying types of ambiguity. Linguistics and the Human Sciences, 14(3), 237–260. https://doi.org/10.1558/lhs.19339

Issue

Vol. 14 No. 3

Section

Articles

License

© Equinox Publishing Ltd.

For information regarding our Open Access policy, click here.

Crossref
Scopus
Google Scholar
Europe PMC