Synonyms in modern
discourse:
marking communicative choices
Irina Khoutyz,
Kuban State University,
(Krasnodar)
Re-thinking Synonymy, Helsinki 2010
Presentation Outline

Approaches to the synonymy studies;

Pragmatic
synonym;
Approach
and
definition
of
a
The status of new (borrowed) lexis: are
these words synonyms, variants, codes?
 Characteristics
of synonyms borrowed
from English (Anglicisms);
 Anglicisms as markers of contemporary
discourses.

Re-thinking Synonymy, Helsinki 2010
Approaches to the Study of the
Synonymy (1)


General Linguistics: the semantic range of a word
can be defined with the assistance of another
word that means the same thing, a synonym
(Poole 1999:27);
Semantics: part of the semantic fields which
serve an important purpose of vocabulary
description. Synonymy is described as one of the
representations of paradigmatic relations in
discourse. The main characteristics of synonyms
are: belonging to the same part of speech and
the ability to substitute each other without
changing the content of the information
(Кронгауз 2001:170).
Re-thinking Synonymy, Helsinki 2010
Approaches to the Study of the
Synonymy (2)

Discourse analysis: Synonymy enhances
one of the most essential qualities of
discourse – lexical cohesion (Cutting
2002):

When we arrived in the New World, there was
no instruction manual teaching us how to deal
with the conditions. …Learning from our
mistakes not only allowed us to survive, but
also helped us to grow into a powerful and
hugely successful country. …Trying, failing,
learning from our mistakes, and coming back
stronger than ever is an essential part of the
American archetype (Rapaille 2006:134-135).
Re-thinking Synonymy, Helsinki 2010
Coherence in Discourse

A semantic field is built on our
associations. This allows those who
produce the discourse to represent their
ideas using language variety and at the
same time making it understandable to
other readers (addressees).
Re-thinking Synonymy, Helsinki 2010
Approaches to the Study of the
Synonymy (3)
Theory and Practice of Translation: when
producing a high quality translation, it is
important to remember that synonymy, as
a rule, ‘is not complete equivalence’
(Jacobson 2002:114).
 when translating it is not always easy to
find the right synonym, as we deal with
‘difficult synonymy’ and should pay a
special attention to semantic space in
order to successfully find a corresponding
equivalent (Eco 2005).

Re-thinking Synonymy, Helsinki 2010
Approaches to the Study of the
Synonymy (4)


Sociolinguistic Approach: the variants existing in
our heterogeneous languages typically correlate
with communities within a society, but most
speakers use multiple variants, albeit in different
proportions.
Nevertheless, there appears to be a natural
human tendency for a community to select one
alternative as the conventional signal for a
recurrent coordination problem: a natural human
tendency to increase the conventionality of one
variant in a community at the expense of another
(the First Law of Propagation) (Croft 2000:176).
Re-thinking Synonymy, Helsinki 2010
It is not that simple, is it?



the use of content words changes as society
changes (Poole 1999).
stylistic differences is one of the reasons which
may not allow successful substitution of one
synonym by another; there are even synonyms
which are not interchangeable at all (Кронгауз
2001).
synonymy is an example of the many
paradigmatic relations between words, however,
it is related to the mental organization of
vocabularies (Murphy 2003).
Re-thinking Synonymy, Helsinki 2010
It means that



…when we deal with cognitive aspects of
meaning, which can be interpreted correctly only
within the specific social frame, the activity
approach (Заботкина 1989) to examining the
vocabulary should be applied (in order to
perceive its communicative-pragmatic potential).
…the cognitive aspect of meaning takes us to
associations as well as connotations and
implications, and we start to operate with more
than just semantic categories.
…in such a case, we appeal to the social specifics
of language use in general and synonyms in
particular. It means that a synonym is not just a
substitute of another similar meaning, but a
marker of age, gender, social status, education,
profession, etc. Re-thinking Synonymy, Helsinki 2010
Pragmatic Approach



The
linguistic
phenomena
described
are
considered with reference to their use and their
status in a human mind within a human culture;
A pragmatic perspective on semantic relations
“entails an interdisciplinary approach, since this
perspective acknowledges that language must be
considered
with
reference
to
social,
communicative, and psychological constraints”
(Murphy 2003);
Synonymy is a relation between words in use.
Re-thinking Synonymy, Helsinki 2010
Defining synonyms
(Pragmatic Approach)
Similarity judgments, in case they are
taken into consideration, involve a
dynamic process, based on dynamic
information. As Murphy states, the criteria
for determining similarity is always
context bound (Murphy 2003:138);
 Types of synonyms can be categorized by
how much denotative semantic overlap
the two words have.

Re-thinking Synonymy, Helsinki 2010
Synonymy is


a reflection of numerous cognitive aspects, both
individual and social, which help us to create
images of our modernity.
a connection between various phenomena which
modifies semantic fields and our associations.


The study of synonyms in modern advertising shows
that the way we build our associations depends on
culture, society and time. The defining feature of
synonyms is not their interchangeability, but the
pragmatic aim – why do we use these words? What do
we want to express?
Social changes affect the contexts in which synonyms
are relevant: soviet profiteer (спекулянт)=lawbreaker;
current meaning=stock
broker.
Re-thinking Synonymy,
Helsinki 2010
Borrowings vs. Local Variants

Are they synonyms???



Code-mixing and borrowing;
Borrowing and variant;
Borrowings (Anglicisms)



connotation of elitism, modernity, high-quality;
belonging to specialized areas in the past;
universal association with new opportunities
and prosperity.
Re-thinking Synonymy, Helsinki 2010
Are they synonyms???
When a borrowing is used symbolically, as
it often happens in modern ads, we deal
with code-mixing (Muysken 2000).
 English and Russian synonyms are not
just variants which share a meaning, but
differ
in
stylistic
and
expressive
characteristics
that
make
them
inappropriate to the same context,
whereas synonyms overlap in meaning in
usage that
means
that they are
interchangeable in some of the same
contexts (Warren 1987).

Re-thinking Synonymy, Helsinki 2010
Universal specifics of anglicisms

The use of English in modern languages
and cultures is described as:


as a trademark of modernity and elitism in the
commercial contexts in Uzbekistan is a new
phenomenon
which
has
emerged
as
Uzbekistan entered the global village…”
(Hasanova 2010:3);
the strongest unifying factor among the
world’s languages and “have become the
epitome
of
the
so-called
globalization”
(Gottlieb 2005:163);
Re-thinking Synonymy, Helsinki 2010


In Germany English has become an official
language
of
business
communication
in
multicultural environment and is “an important
language for internal communication in many
companies whose headquarters are based in
Germany (Erling, Walton 2007:32, 33).
A "modern" identity in contemporary South Korea
“is virtually guaranteed through acquisition and use
of English” which basically means “being modern”
that is “being international, progressive, futuristic,
and fun-loving” (Lee 2006:63).
Re-thinking Synonymy, Helsinki 2010
Stylistic adaptability (1)

newspapers aimed at a varied target audience
(Izvestia):


Плюс
имплантация
(implantation)
кардиостимулятора,
который
к
тому
же
синхронизирует сокращения всех отделов сердца, а
при необходимости сможет и «завести» его в случае
остановки (Батенёва 2010:3).
Women’s magazines (ELLE, SHAPE):


Больше всего я люблю отдыхать в июле, так как в
этом месяце у меня день рождения. Получается очень
много бонусов (bonus) (ELLE 2008:226);
Сегодня
в
портфеле
NIVEA
13
суббрендов
(subbrand),
в
beauty-активе
(beauty-…)
передовые формулы…, а в сердце – желание помочь
женщине быть самодостаточной, уверенной, любящей
и любимой! (Страчкова
2008:46).
Re-thinking Synonymy,
Helsinki 2010
Stylistic adaptability (2)

Men’s magazines (“GQ,” “Men’s Health”):



А потому и места вроде появившегося в середине
нулевых
бара
«30/7»
казались
диковинной
экспатской штукой и скоро исчезли (Куйда
2010:67);
У хардгейнера есть несколько верных признаков.
Зная их, можно с легкостью составить программу
тренировок… (Смирнов 2010:175).
specialized articles (“Эксперт”):

В этом проекте мы работаем вместе с Российской
академией
наук,
НИИ
жиров,
с
ведущими
отечественными и западными инжиниринговыми
компаниями (Бурдыкова 2010).
Re-thinking Synonymy, Helsinki 2010
English synonyms

Convey the connotation of




modernity,
prosperity,
being progressive and
part of global trends.
Re-thinking Synonymy, Helsinki 2010
Possible markers of meaning (1)

the modality marker, which underlines positive,
up-to-date and successful qualities of the
described phenomenon:


Заведите онлайн-дневник. Каждый день подводите
итоги, мелкие и крупные (Дюжева 2008:42).
the implicational marker, which stresses
indirectly special qualities of the phenomenon,
elitism and uniqueness:

...если сотрудник видит, что дело идет к
увольнению..., то смысла показывать трудовой
энтузиазм
и
креативность
нет
(Каневская
2005:10).
Re-thinking Synonymy, Helsinki 2010
Possible markers of meaning (2)

the choice marker, which reflects the fact
that the addresser intentionally preferred
a borrowed word:

«Я думаю, при такой погоде игру надо
прерывать: слишком уж большая нагрузка
на сердце, уровень игры падает, да и
болельщикам тяжело смотреть». Этот спич
Елены
Дементьевой,
которая
обычно
стоически переносит трудности и жалуется
крайне редко, значит многое… (Чегорский
2010:16).
Re-thinking Synonymy, Helsinki 2010
Synonyms in the same context

Anglicisms are often used together
Russian synonyms in the same context.


with
their
В ходе показательного эксперимента 66 волонтерам
(volunteer) было предложено сравнить эффект от обуви
на высоком каблуке и на плоской подошве. …В
экспериментах приняли участие 1312 добровольцев
(Дюжева 2008:117).
Плюс имплантация (implantation) кардиостимулятора,
который к тому же синхронизирует сокращения всех
отделов сердца, а при необходимости сможет и «завести»
его в случае остановки. …Но самое страшно позади.
Теперь мы точно знаем, что помочь им может не только
пересадка сердца (Батенёва 2010:3).
Re-thinking Synonymy, Helsinki 2010
Conclusions
English borrowings (Anglicisms) can be
defined as synonyms of local words;
 Some of their characteristics (association
with modernity, expressing qualities of
uniqueness and elitism, conveying the
connotation of new possibilities, etc.) are
similar in various modern languages;
 Anglicisms are markers of stylistically
varied discourses, in which they intensify
associative meanings and categories of
modality, implicating, and choice.

Re-thinking Synonymy, Helsinki 2010
References (1)







Croft, W. (2000). Explaining Language Change. An
Evolutionary Approach. Longman.
Cutting, J. (2002). Pragmatics and Discourse. London,New
York.
Eco, U. (2005). Papers № 9: Rasa and Taste: a difficult
synonymy.
Erling, E., Walton, A. (2007). English at Work in Berlin. In:
English Today. № 1, January, p. 32-39, 64.
Gottlieb, H. Anglicisms and Translation // In and Out if
English: For Better, For Worse? Clevedon, Buffalo, Toronto,
2005, p. 161-184.
Hasanova, D. (2010). English as a trademark of modernity
and elitism. In: English Today. № 1, March, p. 3-8.
Jacobson, R. (2002). On Linguistic Aspects of Translation.
In: The Translation Studies. London, New York, p. 113118.
Re-thinking Synonymy, Helsinki 2010
References (2)








Lee, J. (2006). Linguistic constructions of modernity:
English mixing in Korean television commercials. In:
Language in Society. № 35, p. 59-91.
Murphy, M. Lynne. (2003). Semantic Relations and the
Lexicon. Cambridge.
Muysken, P. (2000). Bilingual Speech. A Typology of
Code-Mixing. Cambridge.
Poole, S. (1999). An Introduction to Linguistics. New York.
Warren, B. (1987). The dress of thought: Aspects of the
study of language. In: Semantics: word meaning. Lund.
Rapaille, C. (2006). The Culture Code. New York.
Заботкина, В.И. (1989). Новая лексика современного
английского языка. Москва.
Кронгауз, М.А. (2001). Семантика. Москва.
Re-thinking Synonymy, Helsinki 2010
The examples are taken from:










Батенёва, Т. (2010). Сердце от «кутюр». Известия, № 168 от 10-12
сентября, c. 3.
Бурдыкова, Н. (2010). Упорные аграрии. Эксперт, № 34-36 от 13
сентября.
Электронная
версия:
http://www.expert.ru/printissues/south/2010/36/.
Дюжева, А. (2008). В здоровом теле – здоровый дух. SHAPE (Россия),
ноябрь, c. 116-117.
Дюжева, А. (2008). Организационный момент. SHAPE (Россия),
ноябрь, c. 42-43.
Каневская, П. (2005). Неадекватный или неугодный? Известия, №146
от 19 августа, c.10.
Куйда, Е. (2010). Время закусывать. GQ (Россия), сентябрь, c. 67.
Ремонтные работы (2008). ELLE (Россия), август, c. 226-227.
Смирнов, Д. (2010). Дохлый номер. Men’s Health (Россия), сентябрь,
c. 174-180.
Страчкова, Е. (2008). Красота. Создай свой образ. SHAPE (Россия),
ноябрь, c. 44-46.
Чегорский, Н. (2010). Азаренко проиграла жаре. Теннис. Известия от
3-5 сентября, c. 16.
Re-thinking Synonymy, Helsinki 2010
Thank you
for your attention!
Re-thinking Synonymy, Helsinki 2010