A father and his young son walk by a store and see a big sign in the store window advertising a "Fire Sale" next Tuesday. Although the father knows this means that the store will be selling their goods at greatly reduced prices, his son wonders why anyone would sell "fire." This difference in their reactions is due to
A)heuristics.
B)semantics.
C)phonemes.
D)grammar.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The difference in their reactions is due to semantics, which refers to the meanings of words and phrases in a particular language. The father understands the idiomatic meaning of "Fire Sale," while the son interprets it literally.

A Father and His Young Son Walk by a Store