Semantic mirage

A semantic mirage in neurocognitive linguistics is any semantic relationship between lexical and conceptual units in a cognitive system that leads to projections onto the world of properties that are not actually there.

Types

 * The One-Lexeme-One-Thing Fallacy. The assumption that a lexeme stands for just one thing, ruling out the possibility that it might have different senses in different contexts.


 * Reification. The assumption that a nominal lexeme must represent a thing, leading to the unconscious ascription of substantial reality to abstractions.


 * The Unity Fallacy. The assumption that a concept represents an object that is an integral whole, even if closer examination would show it to be a relatively haphazard collection of diverse phenomena.