Abstract: Davidson believes that the traditional theory of meaning and the theory of truth take the concept of reference as the theoretical basis, and there are some theoretical defects which are difficult to be deeply analyzed. At the same time, the holistic approach, also has difficulties in constructing the meaning theory and the truth theory. In order to solve these difficulties and make the theory of meaning and the theory of truth be more clearly explained, Davidson weighed and compared these points of view. Finally, he regards absolute truth as the basis of the pre-analysis concept of reference, satisfaction and other concepts. He strictly limits the semantics of reference and satisfaction, and forms a feasible holism theory of truth and meaning. At this point, the reference concept and the concept of satisfaction are only a theoretical setting in the theory of absolute truth, and have only the function of semantics, and they do not have the explanatory function of the whole of absolute truth. At the same time, the relation between the theory of absolute truth and the theory of meaning is also explained in the clarification of the above problems. Davidson calls this theory of absolute truth itself a theory of meaning. The establishment of the concept of absolute truth plays an absolute role in the construction of linguistic meaning in Davidson’s meaning theory. In Davidson’s philosophy of language, the concept of absolute truth is the only core and the only pre analytic concept. This determined his firm stand of realism.

Key words: theory of meaning, absolute truth, reference