SEM-I rational MT. Enriching deep grammars with a semantic interface for scalable machine translation

Abstract

In the LOGON machine translation system where semantic transfer using Minimal Recursion Semantics is being developed in conjunction with two existing broad-coverage grammars of Norwegian and English, we motivate the use of a grammar-specific semantic interface (SEM-I) to facilitate the construction and maintenance of a scalable translation engine. The SEM-I is a theoretically grounded component of each grammar, capturing several classes of lexical regularities while also serving the crucial engineering function of supplying a reliable and complete specification of the elementary predications the grammar can realize. We make extensive use of underspecification and type hierarchies to maximize generality and precision.