Presupposition and Entailment
By Nina Sofiana, M.Pd.
• A presupposition is something the speaker assumes
to be the case prior to making an utterance. Speakers,
not sentences, have presupposition.
PRESUPPOSITION • An entailment is something that logically follows from
AND what is asserted in the utterance. Sentences, not
speakers, have entailments.
ENTAILMENT Speakers have presuppositions while sentences have
entailments.
Example : Aya’s sister bought three cars.
PRESUPPOSITIO Presupposition: Aya exists, Aya has a brother, Aya has
only one sister, Aya’s sister is rich. = speaker’s
N AND subjective presupposition, all can be wrong.
ENTAILMENT Entailment: Aya’s sister bought something, bought
three cars, two cars, one car etc. = the speaker’s beliefs
are right or wrong
The relationship between two propositions.
o Nabil’s cat is cute. (p)
o Nabil has a cat. (q)
o p >>q = p presupposes q
PRESUPPOSITION If the speaker denies the proposition p (NOT p), the
presupposition q doesn’t change.
o Nabil’s cat isn’t cute. (NOT p)
o Nabil has a cat. (q)
o Not p >>q = Not p presupposes q
Constancy The presupposition of a statement will remain true even
Under when that statement is negated.
Negation:
Presuppositions are associated with the use of a large
number of words, phrases and structures.
Types of These linguistic forms are considered as indicators of
presupposition potential presupposition, which can only become actual
presupposition in contexts with speakers.
Existential presupposition
Factive presupposition
Lexical presupposition
6 Types of
Structural presuppositions
presupposition Non-factive presupposition
Counter-factual presupposition
1. The existential presupposition, Speaker is committed
to the existence of the entities named. It is not only
assumed to be present in possessive constructions (for
example: ‘your bicycle’ >> ‘you have a bicycle’), but
more generally in any definite noun phrase
2. Factive presupposition, Certain verbs/construction
indicate that something is a fact. For examples:
6 Types of
a. He didn’t realize she was ill. (>> She was ill)
presupposition b.We regret telling him. (>> we told him)
c. I wasn’t aware that he was married. (>> he was
married)
d. It isn’t odd that she left early. (>> she left early)
e. I’m glad it’s over (>> it’s over)
3. Lexical presupposition, is the assumption that, in using
one word, the speaker can act as if another meaning
(word) will be understood. When you say that
someone ‘managed’ the asserted meaning is that the
person succeed in some way. Other examples:
a. He stopped smoking. (>> He used to smoke)
6 Types of b. They started complaining. (>> They weren’t
complaining before)
presupposition c. You’re late again. (>> you were late before)
The speaker’s use of particular expression is taken to
presuppose another (unstated) concept, whereas in
the case of a factive presupposition, the use of a
particular expression is taken to presuppose the truth
of the information that is stated after it.
4. Structural presupposition, is the assumption associated
with the use of certain words and phrases. For
example, the WH-question construction in English
below is conventionally interpreted with the
presupposition that the information after the WH-form
(i.e. ‘when’ and ‘where’) is already known to be the
case.
6 Types of
a. When did he leave? (>>He left)
presupposition b. Where did you buy the car? (>> You bought the car)
c. When did she travel to Bali? ( >> she travelled)
Those presupposition can lead listeners to believe that
the information presented is necessarily true, rather than
just the presupposition of the person asking the question.
5. Non-factive presupposition, is one that is assumed not to
be true. Verbs like ‘dream’, ‘imagine’, and ‘pretend’, are
used with the presupposition that what follow is not true.
a. I dreamed that I was rich. (>> I was not rich)
b. We imaged we were in Bali. (>>we were not in Bali)
c. He pretends to be ill. (>> He is not ill)
6 Types of 6. Counter-factual presupposition, meaning that what is
presupposed is not only not true, but is the opposite of
presupposition what is true, or ‘contrary to facts’. Presupposes that the
information in the if-clause is not true at time of utterance.
Look at the examples below:
a. If you were my friend, you would have helped me. (>>
you are not my friend)
b. If I were rich I would buy a Ferrari (>> I’m not rich)
Indicators of potential presupposition discussed so far
are summarized in table below:
Type Example Presupposition
Existential The X >> X exists
Factive I regret leafing >> left
Non-factive He pretended to >> he wasn’t
6 Types of Lexical
be happy
He managed to
happy.
>> he tried to
presupposition escape. escape
Structural When did she die? >> she died
Counterfactual If I weren’t ill, >> I am ill
Projection problem is the meaning of some
presuppositions (as ‘parts’) doesn’t survive to become
the meaning of some complex sentences (as ‘wholes’).
a. Nobody realized that Kelly was ill. (=p)
b. Kelly was ill. (=q)
c. p >> q
The Projection d. I imagined that Kelly was ill. (=r)
Problem e. Kelly was not ill. (=NOT q)
f. r >> NOT q
g. I imagined that Kelly was ill (= r & p)
and nobody realized that she was ill.
a. r & p >> NOT q
The presupposition of those examples don’t project
because they are “destroyed” by entailments.
Remember that an entailment is something that
necessarily follows from what is asserted.
The entailments are more powerful than the
The Projection presuppositions.
Problem ‘potential presupposition’ which only become actual
presupposition is not being presented to be recognized
as such within utterances.
Speaker can indeed that the potential presupposition is
not being presented as a strong assumption.
A relationship that applies between two sentences/
propositions, where the truth of one implies the truth of
the other because of the meaning of the words involved
A: Everyone passed the examination.
B : No-one failed the examination.
A entails B
ENTAILMENTS • whenever A is true, B is true
• the information that B contains is contained in the
information that A conveys
• a situation describable by A must also be a situation
describable by B
• A and NOT B are contradictory.
logical consequences following from what is asserted in
the utterance.
Entailments depend on sentence meaning, not the
context in which the sentence is used.
Entailment also happens when one set of objects is
CHARACTERISTIC included in another. It may be seen as a kind of
hyponymic relation.
OF ENTAILMENTS
Entailments can also involves the use of determiners.
This is simply the relation of inclusion.
e.g. Every student loves learning English.
=> Most students love learning English.
entailment is not a pragmatic concept (i.e. having to do
with the speaker meaning), but it is considered a purely
logical concept, symbolized by II-.
Bob ate three sandwiches.
a) Someone ate three sandwiches. (Who ate the
Ordered sandwiches)
Entailments b) Bob did something to three sandwiches. (What Bob
did)
c) Bob ate three of something. (What Bob ate)
d) Something happened. (What happened)
In one occasion, one sentence can has a number of
background entailments but one foreground
entailment.
Foreground entailments which is defined by stress, is
more important for interpreting intended meaning.
Background vs.
The speaker will necessarily produce a very large
Foreground number of background entailments but the speaker will
entailment indicate how these entailments are to be ordered. How?
It can be done by stress and by using special structures.
So that the hearer will understand which entailment is
assumed to be more important for interpreting
intended meaning.
Rover chased THREE squirrels.
(Rover chased a certain number of squirrels.)
ROVER chased three squirrel.
(something chased three squirrels.)
What is the A very similar function is exhibited by a structure called
foreground It-cleft construction/cleft sentences:
entailment? a) I’ve come to discuss my future with you. The reason
why I've come is to discuss my future with you.
b) It was TOM that did the work.
c) It wasn’t ME who took your money.
