Lexical System
Synonymy
Synonymy is the sameness, or the similarity of meaning between two or more
words. Synonyms are a phenomenon common to all languages, especially those
which have a rich cultural background, such as English and Arabic.
Usually synonyms are divided into two major types:
1. Absolute synonyms: words which are perfectly identical in meaning.
2. Near synonyms: words which are similar to one another in meaning.
It is a well- established universal fact that absolute synonyms do not exist in
languages or are quite rare. The reason is that there is no need for more than one
word to describe the same thing or idea in a language. However, when two or more
words are used to describe the same thing, there must be a difference of some kind
between them.
Parallel to that is the fact that near synonyms are commonplace in any language;
they are indispensable to cover all shades of difference within one and the same
range of meaning. The main problem for the students is that in most cases they
understand all synonymous words as absolute synonyms only. That is, all the
English words similar in meaning have the same identical meaning in Arabic.
There are several points about synonyms that students need to be made aware of.
Although synonyms share the same basic meaning, they may still differ from each
other in a number of ways:
(1) They may be regional variations:
Autumn (British)
Fall (American)
(2) They may be appropriate to different styles or registers:
Die (neutral)
Pass away (euphemistic)
Pop off (informal)
(3) They may differ in emotive meaning:
Economical (approving)
Mean (disapproving)
Stingy (very disapproving)
(4) They may have different collocational restrictions:
Rancid butter
Addled eggs
We can demonstrate this with a substitution test. Sphere, globe, and orb are broad
synonyms. Any one of the three could be used in the sentence:
The earth is a great …..
However, if we were to talk about:
a…..of influence
a map of the …..
a scepter and …..
Then we see that the three words are no longer interchangeable.
So, perfect synonyms are extremely rare; indeed they probably do not exist at all
in our everyday speech. Most synonyms are equivalent in some contexts only.
Synonyms is thus seen to be a matter of degree depending on the number of
contexts in which the terms share the same meaning.
In addition to the problem of specifying synonymy and differences of meaning in
English, we also have to be aware of the difficulty of comparison and contrast
between English and Arabic.
An Arab student who uses the adjective ‫ طويل‬to describe a person, a road, and a
tree, and ‫ عال‬to describe a building, and learns the English equivalents long, tall,
and high is at a loss to know which word to use in which context.
Four major problems of translating synonyms:
(1) Translation of synonyms of emotive charge: (p.89-91)
He is angry, discomforted, annoyed, agitated, furious, nervous, bothered, raged.
All these words have the same meaning of ‘anger’, and the precise equivalent in
Arabic; .‫ متنغص‬،‫ متوتر‬،‫ مغتاظ‬،‫ مهتاج‬،‫ متضايق‬،‫ ممتعض‬،‫غاضب‬
When the student finds the precise equivalent word in Arabic, then s/he gives the
most suitable version. However, if s/he does not, the general translation for it or
any of the words that come under it can be used (‫(غاضب جدا‬. The next step is to
distinguish the level of this emotion, anger. If the student is unable to make such a
distinction, s/he should resort to the general name of the whole set; anger )‫(غضب‬.
(2) synonyms which can be described as absolute in a certain context only, because
it is extremely difficult to differentiate among them as much in English as in
Arabic translation:
Start, begin, commence
In English, there is no difference in the meaning of these three words as verbs.
However, they differ in other respects:
1. Their combination with other words (collocations and idioms). For example,
only ‘start’ can be used in the following:
To start from scratch
2. The use of ‘start’ only as a phrasal verb to form new meanings (e.g. start off,
start on, start out), whereas ‘begin’ and ‘commence’ are usually not used as
phrasal verbs.
3. Only start is used both as a noun and a verb, while ‘begin’ and ‘commence’ have
beginning and commencement as nouns.
4. ‘Commence’ is of Latin origin and, therefore, formal, whereas ‘start’ and
‘begin’ are Old English and German and, thus, less formal, or informal.
Rendering these words into Arabic will have one translation only (‫)بدأ‬. However,
other synonyms like ‫ افتتح‬،‫ شرع‬،‫ دشن‬are confusing because they are further
dimensions for the original meaning (‫)بدأ‬.
Another example is the translation of the English words of obligation: must, ought
to, should, have to. All have one meaning in Arabic (‫)يجب أن‬. Other variations are
also equally acceptable: ‫ عليك أن‬،‫ البد أن‬،‫ينبغي أن‬. The Arabic translation is not
affected by the formality or informality of the English words.
Synonymy can be translated easily when the distinction between the levels of
meaning is unimportant. Only a term of general nature is needed instead.
(3) The possible multiplicity of synonymous versions in the TL which can be
acceptable, but only in general terms. We frequently explain difficult words by
means of using synonymous common words. This is recurrent with all words
except for technical, scientific terms which cannot accept but one recognized
translation to avoid ambiguity. For example,
The soldiers stood to their guns in the battle can be translated into:
‫صمد الجنود في المعركة‬
‫استبسل الجنود في ساحة المعركة‬
‫استمات الجنود في قتالهم في المعركة‬
‫ذاد الجنود عن حياضهم في المعركة‬
‫استرخص الجنود أرواحهم في المعركة‬
All these versions render the SL message in broad terms and within the same range
of meaning of steadfastedness (‫ (الصمود والثبات‬. However, there are considerable
stylistic differences of lexical choice and grammatical structure among them. In
other words, when specification and high degree of accuracy are required, they
have to be reconsidered in translation.
(4) Translating familiar alternative terms creates a problem for students in two
respects: the difficulty to find them in general reference books like dictionaries;
and when found, the difficulty to understand their local connotations and
cultural implications. For example:
The sharp distinguisher
‫الفاروق‬
The secure city
‫البلد األمين‬
The red devils
‫الشياطين الحمر‬
Collocations
Each lexical item has a tendency to keep regular company with certain other items
in different texts in language. Collocations seem to be a language specific
phenomenon; each language appears to have its own collocation patterns although
some of those might be similar in two or more languages. There are several types
of collocations; they come in different grammatical structures.
Problems in translation: two main general problems:
(1). Genaral problems of collocability:
a. The difficulty of generalization:
Some English words collocate with one and the same word, but they are not
necessarily so in Arabic. For example, commit a mistake has an identical
collocation in Arabic (‫)يرتكب خطأ‬. Also, commit a crime is rendered into
(‫) يرتكب جريمة‬, but we use ‫ يقترف جريمة‬. Yet, we do not say in Arabic (‫) يرتكب انتحار‬
for commit suicide.
b. Variability of collocation: different collocations for the same meaning can exist
in English, but they have one collocation and one single meaning in Arabic:
Commit a mistake / make a mistake
‫ يقترف خطأ‬/ ‫يرتكب‬
Empty talk / idle talk
‫ هراء‬/ ‫كالم فارغ‬
Students need not have different versions for equivalent English collocations.
(2). Flexibility of collocations:
Some types of collocations are flexible and can be interrupted in the middle by a
word, whereas the greater number are inflexible; they are considered as fixed
phrases. For example:
Black market
Exert an effort
black illegal market
exert a great effort
‫سوق سوداء غير مشروعة‬
‫يبذل جهدا عميق‬
Solutions to the translation problems of collocations:
1. Tracing the identical collocation in Arabic, if and when available. A greater
number have equivalents in Arabic.
2. If an identical equivalent is not found, a close collocation can be suggested. For
example: straying sheep ‫ غنم قاصية‬but when students fail to get it, they can suggest
.‫ شاردة‬،‫ ضالة‬،‫ ضائعة‬،‫غنم تائهة‬
3. When ‘1’ and ‘2’ are not possible, a suitable collocation in Arabic can be
suggested: two words for two words, three for three. For example: shock enormity
is ‫هول الصدمة‬. When students do not know that, they may suggest a two-word
collocation of their own such as ‫ صدمة قوية‬/ ‫ تأثير الصدمة‬.
4. If none of the above solutions is at the students’ disposal, a translation of the
correct meaning of the collocation is an acceptable resort. It does not matter if it
is translated into one or two, or more words. For example, alive and kicking ‫حي‬
‫يرزق‬
Can be translated into ‫ ما يزال حيا يرزق‬، ‫على قيد الحياة‬. The grammatical structure of
the English collocation is completely ignored.
5. A direct meaning should be translated into a direct meaning, and an indirect
into an indirect. For example, it is not advisable to translate as swift as an arrow
into a direct meaning as ‫سريع جدا‬, but into an indirect meaning as ‫ أسرع‬/ ‫أسرع من البرق‬
‫من لمح البصر‬.
6. If the English collocation is colloquial, it can be rendered into a colloquial
Arabic collocation, if possible. Yet using formal Arabic is quite acceptable. For
example,
Smashing victory can be translated into ‫انتصار هائل‬. However, the formal ‫انتصار ساحق‬
is feasible and better.
7. By the same token, if the English collocation is formal, the Arabic equivalent
should also be formal.
8. Fixed collocations like as….. as simile, which cannot be interrupted in the
middle, should be translated into equivalent Arabic with extra care. We cannot
say, for example, he is as very stubborn as a mule in English, nor can we say ‫هو أعند‬
‫ ; جدا من البغل‬we simply say ‫ أعند من البغل‬.
9.When unable to work out a better solution and as a last resort, students may escape
with a blind, literal translation of words. However, it is the poorest translation. It
can also be quite risky because it may result in a wrong, funny Arabic version. For
example, hard currency is ‫عملة صعبة‬, but if translated into ‫عملة قاسية‬, it will sound
strange and funny. Likewise, brain drain cannot be translated into ‫تصفية أدمغة‬
because it is unclear and may bring to mind irrelevant meanings and implications in
Arabic.
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Homonymy
Homonyms are words which are pronounced or spelt the same, but which have
different meanings, e.g.
Piece and peace are homophones; they sound the same but have different spellings
and different meanings. Compare:
Row (line) and row (argument) are homographs; they are spelt the same but are
pronounced differently, and have different meanings.
Polysemy
When a word has more than one meaning, it is said to be polysemous. Here are
examples of polysemous words, showing the kind of range of meanings that such
words may have:
Bank:{land along the side of a river(‫(ضفة النهر‬, or a place in which money is kept
and paid out (‫})مصرف‬.
Spring:{a place where water comes naturally from the ground (‫)ينبوع ماء‬, or the
season between winter and summer (‫})فصل الربيع‬.
Table: {a piece of furniture with a flat top and four legs (‫)طاولة‬, or a collection of
figures arranged in columns and rows ( ‫})جدول‬.
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