WordNet: An On-line Lexical Database

Nouns in WordNet: a lexical inheritance system

1. What is a lexical inheritance system?
   A hierarchy in which each word inherits the distinguishing features of all its superordinates: if Rex is a collie, Rex inherits the properties of collie, which inherits those of dog, canine, and so on. WordNet nouns are organized this way. E.g. canary → finch → passerine → bird → vertebrate → animal.
   • Miller et al., 1990, Five Papers on WordNet (Cognitive Science Laboratory, Princeton University (revised 1993; first published in International Journal of Lexicography 3(4), 1990)), Nouns in WordNet: a lexical inheritance system
2. What three kinds of distinguishing features does the nouns paper discuss? Which was implemented?
   Attributes (modification, e.g. a canary is small, yellow), parts (meronymy, e.g. has a beak, wings) and functions (predication, e.g. sings). Only meronymy was implemented in the noun files at the time.
   • Miller et al., 1990, Five Papers on WordNet (Cognitive Science Laboratory, Princeton University (revised 1993; first published in International Journal of Lexicography 3(4), 1990)), Nouns in WordNet: a lexical inheritance system
3. What are unique beginners?
   The topmost nodes of the noun hierarchies: instead of one hierarchy under an empty “entity”, nouns are partitioned into 25 semantic fields (act, animal, artifact, food, person, plant, …), each heading a separate hierarchy, which also helps lexicographers work in parallel.
   • Miller et al., 1990, Five Papers on WordNet (Cognitive Science Laboratory, Princeton University (revised 1993; first published in International Journal of Lexicography 3(4), 1990)), Nouns in WordNet: a lexical inheritance system
4. How deep are WordNet’s noun hierarchies?
   Seldom more than about a dozen levels; the deepest (technical) chains run about eleven levels, artifacts six or seven, persons three or four.
   • Miller et al., 1990, Five Papers on WordNet (Cognitive Science Laboratory, Princeton University (revised 1993; first published in International Journal of Lexicography 3(4), 1990)), Nouns in WordNet: a lexical inheritance system
5. What is the basic level of a noun hierarchy?
   A level somewhere in the middle where most distinguishing features are attached: people can list many features for basic-level categories, few for terms above it, and only a few extra ones below it.
   • Miller et al., 1990, Five Papers on WordNet (Cognitive Science Laboratory, Princeton University (revised 1993; first published in International Journal of Lexicography 3(4), 1990)), Nouns in WordNet: a lexical inheritance system
6. Which three types of meronymy does WordNet code?
   Component parts (branch/tree), members (tree/forest) and substances (what something is made of), out of six types distinguished by Winston et al. The component relation is by far the most frequent.
   • Miller et al., 1990, Five Papers on WordNet (Cognitive Science Laboratory, Princeton University (revised 1993; first published in International Journal of Lexicography 3(4), 1990)), Nouns in WordNet: a lexical inheritance system
7. Why must meronymic analysis stop somewhere?
   Parts must distinguish an object from others: atoms are part of every concrete object, so as meronyms they distinguish nothing. Some parts, like point, are shared by many different things (arrow, knife, needle, pencil…).
   • Miller et al., 1990, Five Papers on WordNet (Cognitive Science Laboratory, Princeton University (revised 1993; first published in International Journal of Lexicography 3(4), 1990)), Nouns in WordNet: a lexical inheritance system