betekenisval

Betekenisval is a Dutch term used in linguistics and semiotics to refer to the semantic value or meaning content associated with a sign within a language or semiotic system. It denotes the abstract content that a sign encodes and is typically distinguished from the sign’s form (the signifier) and its referent in the world (the referent). In many frameworks it corresponds to what Saussure called the signified—the concept or sense evoked by the sign—though definitions vary by theory and discipline.

In lexical semantics, the betekenisval of a word is its sense or the set of features that contribute to meaning; in multiword expressions it can be more complex. In formal semantics, the semantic value of a sentence is its truth-conditional content—the proposition it expresses that can be true or false across possible worlds. For example, the sentence “The cat sits on the mat” has a semantic value that becomes true in worlds where the cat is indeed on the mat.

In semiotics, the concept extends to the content associated with signs within codes, contexts, and usage, including pragmatic inferences. The betekenisval is often context-dependent and can shift with polysemy, metaphor, and discourse.

Usage and terminology vary: some authors use betekeniswaarde or semantische waarde to refer to the same general idea. Overall, betekennisval helps describe what a sign conveys beyond its physical form or concrete referent, spanning lexical, propositional, and symbolic meanings.