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Resolving Semantic Ambiguities in Sentences: Cognitive Processes and Brain Mechanisms
Author(s) -
Vitello Sylvia,
Rodd Jennifer M.
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
language and linguistics compass
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.619
H-Index - 44
ISSN - 1749-818X
DOI - 10.1111/lnc3.12160
Subject(s) - ambiguity , cognition , sentence , cognitive psychology , comprehension , set (abstract data type) , psychology , ambiguity resolution , sentence processing , control (management) , semantic memory , cognitive science , linguistics , computer science , neuroscience , natural language processing , artificial intelligence , telecommunications , philosophy , gnss applications , global positioning system , programming language
Functional MRI studies of how the brain processes sentences containing semantically ambiguous words have consistently implicated (i) the left inferior frontal gyrus (LIFG) and (ii) posterior regions of the left temporal lobe in processing high‐ambiguity sentences. This article reviews recent findings on this topic and relates them to (i) psycholinguistic theories about the underlying cognitive processes and (ii) general neuro‐cognitive accounts of the relevant brain regions. We suggest that the LIFG plays a general role in the cognitive control processes that are necessary to select contextually relevant meanings and to reinterpret sentences that were initially misunderstood, but it is currently unclear whether these control processes should best be characterised in terms of specific processes such as conflict resolution and controlled retrieval that are required for high‐ambiguity sentences, or whether its function is better characterised in terms of a more general set of ‘unification’ processes. In contrast to the relatively rapid progress that has been made in understanding the function of the LIFG, we suggest that the contribution of the posterior temporal lobe is less well understood and future work is needed to clarify its role in sentence comprehension.