Step 1: Identify the concept being tested.
Semantic barriers are obstacles that arise in the encoding or decoding of a message into words or symbols, and the question asks for four such barriers to effective communication.
Step 2: Recall the source of these barriers.
These barriers usually arise because language, words and symbols can carry more than one meaning, or because the message itself is poorly framed, causing the receiver to understand something other than what the sender intended.
Step 3: State four semantic barriers.
Badly expressed message, when a manager uses confusing language, wrong words or poorly constructed sentences, the true intent fails to reach the subordinate. Symbols with different meanings, a single word can carry several meanings, and the receiver may pick a meaning different from what the sender meant. Faulty translations, a message translated from one language to another can lose its original sense if the translator is not careful. Unclarified assumptions, when a sender assumes the receiver already understands certain background information that is never actually shared, the message is misread.