Semantics of probability and possibility in English and Russian

Аннотация

This article investigates the semantics of probability and possibility in both English and Russian languages, aiming to uncover the similarities and differences in how these concepts are expressed and interpreted across linguistic and cultural contexts. Drawing from the fields of semantics, pragmatics, and cross-linguistic analysis, the study examines the linguistic mechanisms employed to convey degrees of certainty and uncertainty in English and Russian. Through a comparative analysis of lexical items, grammatical constructions, and discourse strategies, the 152 Topical issues of language training in the globalized world article elucidates the semantic nuances and pragmatic implications associated with expressions of probability and possibility in each language. Furthermore, it explores the cultural and cognitive factors that shape speakers’ conceptualizations of uncertainty and their linguistic manifestations. By providing insights into the semantic structures and communicative functions of expressions of probability and possibility, this research contributes to our understanding of how language reflects and influences speakers’ perceptions of uncertainty, probability, and possibility in diverse linguistic and cultural contexts. Keywords: Semantics, probability, possibility, cultural contexts, cognitive factors. The studies of native and foreign philosophers, psychologists and linguists confirm that the basis on which the diversity of languages is built is formed by the categories of thought, which were singled out by I. Kant as categories of reason. Although in different languages different means of expression can be used to express the categories of thought, these categories are universal mental phenomena appearing in the sphere of cognition. Lee Wharf noted that many thought categories have their analogs in the sensual perception of the world, so the meaning of linguistic expressions correlate with human experience and orient these meanings to the experience demonstrated intersubjectively. This makes the content of the meaning of thought categories a unique starting point for the study of the problem of mapping cognitive processes in both substantive and formal-linguistic plans of various communication situations. One of such universal categories is probability. The problem of expressing probability by means of verbal communication raises a number of important questions, first of all, philosophical in nature. The term “probability” has several meanings and is applied in various situations. Probability has a direct relation: - to epistemological questions (e.g., are there statements about facts that can be considered absolutely probable?); - to teleological questions (e.g., if our knowledge is probable, is this probability provided by revelation from above, or is it in principle no different from probability of the kind, for example, such as the probability of information about the back side of the moon); - to ethical problems (does it make sense to regard certain actions as probably right and their results as probably useful; should we choose in our actions the most probable 153 Topical issues of language training in the globalized world alternative, the most useful or the alternative, the product of the probability of realization of which by its usefulness has the maximum value?); - to metaphysical and ontological arguments. Of all the interpretations of probability, already developed and being developed by modern scientists, the newest and most radical is its interpretation by S. Toulmin. He convincingly proved that one of the meanings of the expression “probably S” is the following: “Do not accuse me of lying if S turns out to be a lie”. As N.D. Arutyunova writes, “Man is not omniscient. He cannot always make true judgments”. Therefore, he makes assumptions and guesses [Arutyunova, 1999: 830]. For this purpose in natural languages there is a lot of expressions, words and word combinations expressing probability; among them in Russian and English languages the word вероятность and a number of words and expressions close to them stand out. In general, the word probability and its synonyms in English and Russian languages are rather vague in meaning. In Russian these are, first of all, the words plausibility and credibility; in English they correspond to the nouns прилагательные вероятный, правдопо¬добный, достоверный (probable, likely, plausible). Similarly, these nouns and adjectives can denote everything that is not fully certain and can serve to denote the most favorable alternative. Those and others in statements can denote the degree of confirmed truth and the degree of confidence of the speaker in the truth of the statement (the degree of truth, confirmed on the basis of available facts and the degree of truth, established on the basis of some evidence). Therefore, it is necessary to distinguish between probability judgments and probable judgments (evaluative interpretation of judgments). In the