Lecture 5. Semasiology. Part 2
5.7. Types of Synonyms
5.8. Types of Antonyms
5.9. Hyponymy
5.10. Types of Homonyms
5.7. Types of Synonyms
Synonyms are usually defined as words belonging to one part of speech, close in
meaning and interchangeable at least in some contexts. Synonyms are
characterized by either the semantic relations of equivalence or by the semantic
relations of proximity. As the degree of semantic proximity may be different,
different types of synonyms can be singled out. Full synonyms, i.e. words
characterized by semantic equivalence, are extremely rare.
The degree of semantic proximity is estimated in terms of the aspects of meaning,
i.e. the denotational, the emotional, and the pragmatic aspect.
The highest degree of proximity is found in synonyms which have similar
denotational aspects but differ either in the connotational (Point1) or the pragmatic
(Point 2) aspect of meaning:
1. The difference in connotation may be illustrated by the words famous meaning
“known widely, having fame” and the word notorious which is defined as “widely
known because of smth. bad, for example for being criminal, violent, immoral”.
Thus, the word famous implies a positive emotive evaluation, and the word
notorious – negative.
2. The difference in the pragmatic value of words is observed in a far greater
number of words than the difference in the connotational aspect. It can be observed
in synonymic pairs consisting of a native and a borrowed word. In most cases the
native word is more informal, whereas the foreign word has a learned or abstract
air, cf: brotherly – fraternal, bodily – corporal. Taking into account the difference
of synonyms by the three aspects of their meaning they may be classified into
stylistic, ideographic and ideographic-stylistic synonyms.
Stylistic synonymy implies no interchangeability in context because the
underlying situations are different, e.g. children – infants, dad – father. Stylistic
synonyms are similar in the denotational aspect of meaning, but different in the
pragmatic (and connotational) aspect. A substitution of one stylistic synonym for
another results in an inadequate presentation of the situation of communication.
Ideographic synonymy presents a still lower degree of semantic proximity and is
observed when the connotational and the pragmatic aspects are similar, but there
are certain differences in the denotational aspect of meaning of two words, e.g.
forest – wood, apartment – flat, shape – form. Though ideographic synonyms
correspond to one and the same referential area, i. e. denote the same thing or a set
of closely related things, they are different in the denotational aspect of their
meanings and their interchange would result in a slight change of the phrase they
are used in.
Ideographic-stylistic synonymy is characterized by the lowest degree of semantic
proximity. This type of synonyms includes synonyms which differ both in the
denotational and the connotational and/or the pragmatic aspects of meaning, e.g.
ask – inquire, expect – anticipate. If the synonyms in question have the same
patterns of grammatical and lexical valency, they can still hardly be considered
interchangeable in context.
Each synonymic group comprises a dominant element. This synonymic dominant
is the most general term potentially containing the specific features rendered by all
the other members of the synonymic group. In the set make – produce – create –
fabricate – manufacture the verb make, can stand for each of the other four verbs
as it is both stylistically and emotionally neutral and general in meaning. The other
four can replace make only when some specific semantic component prevails over
the general notion. For example, when it is necessary to stress the idea of making
large quantities of goods using machinery manufacture is preferable because in this
word this particular feature dominates over the more general idea common to the
whole group.
Words denoting different things connected on extralinguistic grounds form lexical
sets: cow, ox, horse refer to the lexical set of “domestic animals”. Depending on
the type of the notional area lexical sets may acquire a more specialized character,
e.g. names of “musical instruments”: piano, organ, violin, drum; names of “parts
of the car mechanism”: radiator, motor, handbrake, wheels. Such classes of words
are called terminological sets.
5.8. Types of Antonyms
Antonyms are usually defined as a class of words grouped together on the basis of
the semantic relations of opposition. Antonyms are words belonging to one part of
speech sharing certain common semantic characteristics and in this respect they are
similar to such semantic classes as synonyms, lexical sets.
There exist different classifications of antonyms.
From the structural point of view, antonyms can be divided into antonyms of the
same root, e.g. to button – to unbutton, cheerful – cheerless; and antonyms of
different roots, e.g. day – night, empty – full.
From the semantic point of view, antonyms may be classified into contradictories,
contraries and incompatibles.
Contradictories represent the type of semantic relations that exist between pairs
like, for example, dead – alive, single – married. Contradictory antonyms are
mutually opposed, they deny one another. Contradictories form a binary
opposition; they are members of two-member sets. To use one of the words is to
contradict the other and to use “not” before one of them is to make it semantically
equivalent to the other: not dead = alive, not inside = outside.
Contraries are antonyms that can be arranged into a set according to the
increasing difference in one of their qualities. The most distant elements of this set
will be classified as contrary antonyms; they may have intermediate elements. This
is observed in the following set: cold – cool – warm – hot, where cold –hot are
contrary antonyms and cool – warm are intermediate members respectively. Thus,
we may regard as antonyms not only cold and hot but also cold and warm.
Incompatibles are antonyms which are characterized by the relations of exclusion.
Semantic relations of incompatibility exist among antonyms with a common
component of meaning. For example, to say morning is to say not afternoon, not
evening, not night. The use of one member of this set implies the exclusion of the
other members of the set. Incompatibles differ from contradictories as
incompatibles are members of the multiple-member sets while contradictories are
members of two-member sets.
5.9. Hyponymy
Hyponymy is characterized by the semantic relations of inclusion. It is a
relationship between specific and general lexical items where the meaning of the
specific item is included in the meaning of the more general item. Hyponymy is a
kind of asymmetrical synonymy; its basic organization is hierarchical. Let’s see the
example: the word vehicle includes car, bus, tram, etc.
The hyponymic relations may be represented hierarchically:
vehicle
car
bus
tram
The word vehicle is called hyperonym and is defined as a general term. The more
specific term (car, tram, bus) is called hyponym and is included in the general
term.
5.10. Types of Homonyms
Homonyms are words which are identical in sound and spelling, or, at least, in one
of these aspects, but different in meaning. The term is derived from Greek homos
meaning “similar” and onoma meaning “name”. English vocabulary is rich in such
pairs and even groups of words. Their identical forms are mostly accidental.
Joke:
· Why couldn’t the pony talk?
· Because it is a little horse (hoarse).
According to the most widely accepted classification, homonyms fall into
homonyms proper, homophones and homographs.
Homonyms proper are homonyms which have the same pronunciation and
spelling, but differ in meaning, e.g. can, can; sound, sound, sound; saw, saw, saw;
fair, fair.
Homophones are words of the same phonological form but of different spelling
and meaning, e.g. buy, bye, by; night, knight; scent, cent, sent; write, right, rite.
Homographs are words different in sound and in meaning but accidentally
identical in spelling, e.g. lead(v), lead(n); wind(n), wind(v); row (n), row (n).
Questions for Revision
1. What should be taken into consideration when the meaning is studied?
2. What types of meaning can be singled out? Give examples on each type.
3. What aspects of lexical meaning are distinguished? Characterize each.
4. What types of motivation are known to you? Illustrate each with your own
examples.
5. What linguistic causes of semantic change can be singled out?
6. What are the results of the change from the denotational aspect of the lexical
meaning?
7. What are the results of the change from the connotational aspect of the lexical
meaning?
8. What two kinds of the nature of semantic change can be distinguished?
9. Define monosemantic and polysemantic words.
10. Is it important to differentiate between “meaning” and “usage”?
11. With what types of semantic relations are synonyms, antonyms and hyponyms
correlated?
12. What types of synonyms are singled out?
13. What groups do antonyms fall into?
14. What relation underlies the hyponymic relation?
15. Differentiate among homonyms proper, homophones, homographs.