In semantics, a meaning postulate is the notion that lexical items can be defined in terms of relations with other lexical items. The classic example (formulated by Rudolf Carnap) is: bachelor = unmarried male.
Meaning Postulate is a formula to express an aspect of the sense of a predicate. The formula is expressed with - so-called - connectives. The used connectives are:
paraphrase ≡ "if and only if" entailment → "if" binary antonomy ~ "not"Following examples will simplify this:
1. "If and only if X is a man, then X is a human being." In meaning postulate this would look like this:
x MAN ≡ x HUMAN BEING2. "If X is a girl, then X is female." In meaning postulate this would look like this:
x GIRL → x FEMALE3. "X is not awake, therefore X is asleep." In meaning postulate this would look like this:
x ASLEEP → ~x AWAKEReferences
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