A lateral temporal network for transmodal combinatorial semantics: Convergent evidence from a multi-study investigation

Abstract

This study integrates three literatures typically examined in isolation: single-concept semantics, combinatorial semantics, and theory of mind (ToM). We argue that these domains share overlapping computational principles and neuroanatomical networks. Here, we report three major investigations with converging methodological approaches: a meta-analysis of 410 neuroimaging studies, a large omnibus fMRI cross-study comparison (drawing on data from over 150 participants), and two targeted fMRI studies that integrate large language models with traditional psycholinguistic measures, allowing us to quantify combinatorial processing demands and predict brain activation. Across methods, convergent evidence identified a stable, bilateral ATL-STS-TPJ network supporting transmodal combinatorial semantic processing. In addition, the anterior temporal lobe (ATL) showed graded functional specialisation: ventral ATL responded equivalently to single-concept and combinatorial semantics, consistent with a domain-general semantic role, whereas lateral superior ATL was selectively recruited by combinatorial demands. Although ATL-STS-TPJ overlapped with ToM-related activation, targeted control analyses demonstrated that this overlap was eliminated when lexico-syntactic and semantic coherence demands were controlled. Together, these findings support a multimodal combinatorial semantic network centred on bilateral ATL-STS-TPJ with implications for theories of semantic and social cognition. On the basis of these results, we propose a unified theoretical framework of semantic processing.