Universal Words - Revision history

Ronaldotmartins: /* Categories of UW's */

2025-10-20T19:55:21Z

Categories of UW's

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	;Lexical Category (LEX)		;Lexical Category (LEX)
	*Adjectival UW's (J) designate attributes.		*Adjectival UW's (LEX=J) designate attributes.
	*Adverbial UW's (A) designate circumstances.		*Adverbial UW's (LEX=A) designate circumstances.
	*Nominal UW's (N) designate things.		*Nominal UW's (LEX=N) designate things.
	*Verbal UW's (V) designate occurrence or performance of an action, or the existence of a state or condition.		*Verbal UW's (LEX=V) designate occurrence or performance of an action, or the existence of a state or condition.

Ronaldotmartins: /* Categories of UW's */

2025-10-20T19:54:48Z

Categories of UW's

← Older revision		Revision as of 19:54, 20 October 2025
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	Permanent UW's are classified in four different categories, depending on their semantic values:		Permanent UW's are classified in four different categories, depending on their semantic values:

	~~{{#tree:id=tagset\|openlevels=0\|root=~~Lexical Category (LEX)\|		;Lexical Category (LEX)
	**Adjectival UW's (J) designate attributes.		*Adjectival UW's (J) designate attributes.
	**Adverbial UW's (A) designate circumstances.		*Adverbial UW's (A) designate circumstances.
	**Nominal UW's (N) designate things.		*Nominal UW's (N) designate things.
	**Verbal UW's (V) designate occurrence or performance of an action, or the existence of a state or condition.		*Verbal UW's (V) designate occurrence or performance of an action, or the existence of a state or condition.
	}}

	These categories are semantically-based. They are related to the UW's and are not oriented to any particular language. In that sense, adjectival UW's (such as "300217728" = "delighting the senses or exciting intellectual or emotional admiration") tend to be associated to English adjectives ("beautiful"), but they can also be realised as prepositional phrases ("with beauty"), verbal phrases ("possessing beauty"), etc.		These categories are semantically-based. They are related to the UW's and are not oriented to any particular language. In that sense, adjectival UW's (such as "300217728" = "delighting the senses or exciting intellectual or emotional admiration") tend to be associated to English adjectives ("beautiful"), but they can also be realised as prepositional phrases ("with beauty"), verbal phrases ("possessing beauty"), etc.

Ronaldotmartins: /* Categories of UW's */

2025-10-20T15:54:31Z

Categories of UW's

← Older revision		Revision as of 15:54, 20 October 2025
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	**Nominal UW's (N) designate things.		**Nominal UW's (N) designate things.
	**Verbal UW's (V) designate occurrence or performance of an action, or the existence of a state or condition.		**Verbal UW's (V) designate occurrence or performance of an action, or the existence of a state or condition.
	}}

	~~{{#tree:~~
	*Item
	**[[Sub-item link]]
	**Another sub-item
	}}		}}

Ronaldotmartins: /* Categories of UW's */

2025-10-20T15:28:39Z

Categories of UW's

← Older revision		Revision as of 15:28, 20 October 2025
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	**Nominal UW's (N) designate things.		**Nominal UW's (N) designate things.
	**Verbal UW's (V) designate occurrence or performance of an action, or the existence of a state or condition.		**Verbal UW's (V) designate occurrence or performance of an action, or the existence of a state or condition.
			}}

			{{#tree:
			*Item
			**[[Sub-item link]]
			**Another sub-item
	}}		}}

imported>Martins at 15:44, 18 February 2014

2014-02-18T15:44:48Z

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	;Non-Ambiguity and Non-Redundancy		;Non-Ambiguity and Non-Redundancy
	:A given sense may not be represented by more than one UW, and one UW may not have more than one sense. There is no homonymy, synonymy or polysemy in UNL.		:A given sense may not be represented by more than one UW, and one UW may not have more than one sense. There is no homonymy, synonymy or polysemy in UNL.
	;~~Arbitrariness~~		;Simplicity
	:Simple UW's are names (and not definitions) for senses. The simple UW does not bring much (or any) information about its sense. It is just a label. Any information concerning the sense is expected to be provided by the three different lexical databases available inside the UNL framework: the [[UNL Dictionary]], the [[UNL Knowledge Base]] and the [[UNL Memory]].		:Simple UW's are names (and not definitions) for senses. The simple UW does not bring much (or any) information about its sense. It is just a label. Any information concerning the sense is expected to be provided by the three different lexical databases available inside the UNL framework: the [[UNL Dictionary]], the [[UNL Knowledge Base]] and the [[UNL Memory]].

imported>Martins at 13:17, 14 February 2014

2014-02-14T13:17:50Z

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	*The [[UNL Ontology]] is a part of the UNL Knowledge Base. It is a network where UW's are interconnected by the ontological relations of UNL, i.e., "is-a-kind-of" ("icl") and "is-an-instance-of" ("iof").		*The [[UNL Ontology]] is a part of the UNL Knowledge Base. It is a network where UW's are interconnected by the ontological relations of UNL, i.e., "is-a-kind-of" ("icl") and "is-an-instance-of" ("iof").
	*The [[UNL Memory]] is also a network where UW's are interconnected by the [[Universal Relations]] of UNL, but, differently from the UNL Knowledge Base, which brings the intension of a UW, the UNL Memory brings its extension, i.e., the set of instances of a UW. In the UNL Memory, it is informed, for instance, that the UW "dog" may be the agent of the UW "to bite", the object of the UW "to eat", the instrument of the UW "to chase", etc.		*The [[UNL Memory]] is also a network where UW's are interconnected by the [[Universal Relations]] of UNL, but, differently from the UNL Knowledge Base, which brings the intension of a UW, the UNL Memory brings its extension, i.e., the set of instances of a UW. In the UNL Memory, it is informed, for instance, that the UW "dog" may be the agent of the UW "to bite", the object of the UW "to eat", the instrument of the UW "to chase", etc.

			== How to create a UW ==
			See the instructions at [[How to create a UW]]

imported>Martins at 18:26, 18 September 2013

2013-09-18T18:26:34Z

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	== Definition ==		== Definition ==
	The basic assumption of the UNL approach is that the information conveyed by natural languages can be formally represented through a semantic network made of three different types of discrete semantic units: Universal Words, [[Universal Relations]] and [[Universal Attributes]]. The Universal Words (UW's) are the nodes in the graph, to be interlinked by relations and specified by attributes. They correspond to semantic discrete units conveyed by natural language open lexical categories (noun, verb, adjective and adverb). Any other semantic content (such as the ones conveyed by articles, prepositions, conjunctions etc.) is represented as attributes or relations. This criterion is not language-biased: if a given semantic value proves to be conveyed, in any language, by a closed class, it should not be represented as a UW, regardless of its realisation in other languages.		The basic assumption of the UNL approach is that the information conveyed by natural languages can be formally represented through a [[semantic network]] made of three different types of discrete semantic units: Universal Words, [[Universal Relations]] and [[Universal Attributes]]. The Universal Words (UW's) are the nodes in the graph, to be interlinked by relations and specified by attributes. They correspond to semantic discrete units conveyed by natural language open lexical categories (noun, verb, adjective and adverb). Any other semantic content (such as the ones conveyed by articles, prepositions, conjunctions etc.) is represented as attributes or relations. This criterion is not language-biased: if a given semantic value proves to be conveyed, in any language, by a closed class, it should not be represented as a UW, regardless of its realisation in other languages.

	== The universality of UW's ==		== The universality of UW's ==

imported>Martins at 18:26, 18 September 2013

2013-09-18T18:26:10Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 18:26, 18 September 2013
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	== Definition ==		== Definition ==
	The basic assumption of the UNL approach is that the information conveyed by natural languages can be formally represented through a semantic network made of three different types of discrete semantic units: Universal Words, [[Universal Relations]] and [[Universal Attributes]]. The Universal Words (UW's) are the nodes in the graph, to be interlinked by relations and specified by attributes. ~~This three-layered representation poses several problems to the [[UNLization]] as the distinction between what is supposed to be represented by each unit is not always clear.~~		The basic assumption of the UNL approach is that the information conveyed by natural languages can be formally represented through a semantic network made of three different types of discrete semantic units: Universal Words, [[Universal Relations]] and [[Universal Attributes]]. The Universal Words (UW's) are the nodes in the graph, to be interlinked by relations and specified by attributes. They correspond to semantic discrete units conveyed by natural language open lexical categories (noun, verb, adjective and adverb). Any other semantic content (such as the ones conveyed by articles, prepositions, conjunctions etc.) is represented as attributes or relations. This criterion is not language-biased: if a given semantic value proves to be conveyed, in any language, by a closed class, it should not be represented as a UW, regardless of its realisation in other languages.

	The main difficulty concerns what is to be represented as a UW (i.e., as a node in the UNL graph) and what is to be represented as a relation between UW's. How many UW's are there, for instance, in the sentence "Charles Dickens was the author of Oliver Twist"? Should "author" be represented as a UW or as a relation between "Charles Dickens" and "Oliver Twist"? Should the verb "to be" be represented as a UW or as a relation between "Charles Dickens" and "author"? Should the preposition "of" be represented as a UW or as a relation between "author" and "Oliver Twist"?

	~~Given the difficulty to clearly define the concept of "concept", the UNL assumes that '''UW's must~~ correspond ~~to and only~~ to semantic discrete units conveyed by natural language open lexical categories (noun, verb, adjective and adverb)~~'''~~. Any other semantic content (such as the ones conveyed by articles, prepositions, conjunctions etc.) ~~should be~~ represented as attributes or relations. This criterion is not language-biased: if a given semantic value proves to be conveyed, in any language, by a closed class, it should not be represented as a UW, regardless of its realisation in other languages.

	== The universality of UW's ==		== The universality of UW's ==

imported>Martins at 18:06, 16 August 2013

2013-08-16T18:06:09Z

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	UW's are grouped in several different lexical databases:		UW's are grouped in several different lexical databases:
	*The [[UNL Dictionary]] is a flat list of UW's with the corresponding semantic features. It is divided into three different nested dictionaries: the UNL Core Dictionary, the UNL Abridged Dictionary and the UNL Unabridged Dictionary. The UNL Core Dictionary brings permanent UW's which are supposed to be lexicalized in all languages; the UNL Abridged Dictionary brings permanent UW's which are lexicalized in at least two language families (and includes therefore the UNL Core Dictionary); the UNL Unabridged Dictionary, which contains the UNL Abridged Dictionary, brings the whole sent of permanent UW's (i.e., the concepts that are lexicalized in at least one language).		*The [[UNL Dictionary]] is a flat list of UW's with the corresponding semantic features. It is divided into three different nested dictionaries: the UNL Core Dictionary, the UNL Abridged Dictionary and the UNL Unabridged Dictionary. The UNL Core Dictionary brings permanent UW's which are supposed to be lexicalized in all languages; the UNL Abridged Dictionary brings permanent UW's which are lexicalized in at least two language families (and includes therefore the UNL Core Dictionary); the UNL Unabridged Dictionary, which contains the UNL Abridged Dictionary, brings the whole sent of permanent UW's (i.e., the concepts that are lexicalized in at least one language).
	*The [[UNL Knowledge Base]] is a network where UW's are interconnected by the [[~~relations~~]] of UNL. Differently from the UNL Dictionary, which brings only general features (such as lexical category, semantic class, abstractness, cardinality, etc.), the UNL KB represents the intension (the meaning) of each UW. In the UNL KB, it is informed, for instance, that the UW "dog" is linked to the UW's "domesticated", "carnivorous", "mammal", etc.		*The [[UNL Knowledge Base]] is a network where UW's are interconnected by the [[Universal Relations]] of UNL. Differently from the UNL Dictionary, which brings only general features (such as lexical category, semantic class, abstractness, cardinality, etc.), the UNL KB represents the intension (the meaning) of each UW. In the UNL KB, it is informed, for instance, that the UW "dog" is linked to the UW's "domesticated", "carnivorous", "mammal", etc.
	*The [[UNL Ontology]] is a part of the UNL Knowledge Base. It is a network where UW's are interconnected by the ontological relations of UNL, i.e., "is-a-kind-of" ("icl") and "is-an-instance-of" ("iof").		*The [[UNL Ontology]] is a part of the UNL Knowledge Base. It is a network where UW's are interconnected by the ontological relations of UNL, i.e., "is-a-kind-of" ("icl") and "is-an-instance-of" ("iof").
	*The [[UNL Memory]] is also a network where UW's are interconnected by the [[~~relations~~]] of UNL, but, differently from the UNL Knowledge Base, which brings the intension of a UW, the UNL Memory brings its extension, i.e., the set of instances of a UW. In the UNL Memory, it is informed, for instance, that the UW "dog" may be the agent of the UW "to bite", the object of the UW "to eat", the instrument of the UW "to chase", etc.		*The [[UNL Memory]] is also a network where UW's are interconnected by the [[Universal Relations]] of UNL, but, differently from the UNL Knowledge Base, which brings the intension of a UW, the UNL Memory brings its extension, i.e., the set of instances of a UW. In the UNL Memory, it is informed, for instance, that the UW "dog" may be the agent of the UW "to bite", the object of the UW "to eat", the instrument of the UW "to chase", etc.

imported>Martins at 18:04, 16 August 2013

2013-08-16T18:04:29Z

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	'''Universal Words''', or simply '''UW's''', are the words of UNL, and correspond to nodes - to be interlinked by [[~~relations~~]] and specified by [[~~attributes~~]] - in a UNL graph.		'''Universal Words''', or simply '''UW's''', are the words of UNL, and correspond to nodes - to be interlinked by [[Universal Relations]] and specified by [[Universal Attributes]] - in a UNL graph.

	== Definition ==		== Definition ==