1. English Lexicology Lecture 6
Sense Relation between Words

2. Review
Last week…
Word meaning and motivations
Types of meaning

3. This week: Sense Relation between Words
objects
--better understand the relation between words
--appreciate words used in discourses
--enable learners to use words effectively

4. Contents 5.Hyponymy 上下义关系 1.Synonymy 同义关系 synonym 同义词
2.Antonymy 反义关系 antonym 反义词
3.Polysemy 多义关系 polyseme 多义词
4.Homonymy 同音(同形)异义关系
homonym 同音同形异义词
homograph同形异义词
homophone同音异义词
5.Hyponymy 上下义关系
superordinate 上义词
hyponym下义词

5. 1. Synonymy Contents 1.1.definition of synonymy
1.2. source of synonyms
1.3. kinds of synonyms
1.4. effects of synonyms
1.5 exercises

6. 1.1.definition of synonymy
Synonymy is a relationship of ‘sameness of meaning’ that may hold between two words.
Synonym: a word that means the same/ similar as another.

7. 1.2. source of synonyms
English has the most synonyms of any language in the world. Why are there so many synonyms in English?

8. Why are there so many synonyms in English?
1.The primary reason for this has to do with the heavy borrowing from other languages, especially from French and Latin.
English
French
Latin
ask
question
interrogate
time
age
epoch
belly
stomach
abdomen
fire
flame
conflagration

9. 2.The second reason: Dialects and regional English
lift
elevator
tube
subway
petrol
gasoline
call box
telephone booth
charm
glamour (ScotE)

10. 3.The third reason: Figurative and euphemistic of words
occupation
walk of life
dreamer
star-gazer
drunk
elevated
lie
distort the fact

11. 4.The forth reason: Coincidence with idiomatic expressions
pick up
choose
give up
abandon
go on with
continue
put off
postpone
win
gain the upper hand
hesitate
be in two minds

12. 1.3. kinds of synonyms
Linguists make a distinction between ‘strict’ or ‘absolute’ synonymy and ‘loose’ or ‘relative’ synonymy.

13. Strict synonymy
Strict synonyms refer to two words which are identical in meaning in all its aspects. They are interchangeable in all contexts.
Strict synonyms are very rare, and some linguists even argue that strict synonyms do not exist.
Strict synonymy is uneconomical; it creates unnecessary redundancy in a language.

14. Strict synonymy scarlet fever--- scarlatina
word formation--- word building
motherland--- fatherland
mother tongue--- native language

15. Loose synonymy
When we speak of synonymy, we mean ‘loose’ or ‘relative’ synonymy, where we find not only a significant overlap in meaning between two words, but also some contexts where they cannot be used interchangeably.
John found/discovered the basketball in the grass.
Maria Curie discovered radium in 1898.
*Maria Curie found radium in 1898.
discover: be the first one to come across something
find: experience something in some way

16. Distinguishing synonyms
We often take the following things into consideration when we try to find the differences between synonyms.
In English and American usage
Different stylistic meanings
Different connotative/emotive meanings
In shades of meaning
In the range of use
In collocation

17. Synonyms In English and American usage
Some synonym pairs differ in that they belong to different dialects of English. Here are some examples of synonyms from British and American English:
BrE
AmE
lift
elevator
farm
ranch
lawyer
attorney
biscuit
cookie
rubbish
garbage
pavement
sidewalk

18. Synonyms with different stylistic meanings
One of a pair of synonyms may be used in a more formal context than the other. Here are some examples of synonym pairs.
Informal
Formal
die
decease
daddy
father
blame
chide
guy
man
west
occidental
praise
eulogy

19. Example They made a decision to abandon the project.
They decided to walk out on the project.

20. Synonyms with different connotative meanings
Synonyms may have different emotive associations (connotative meanings).
famous
notorious
(disreputably)
misuse
abuse
(of privilege or power)
ambiguous
equivocal
(deliberately)
new
novel
(strikingly)
hate
loathe
(with disgust)
obtain
procure
(with effort)

21. Eg. Nigger (impolite) → Negro (neutral) → Black (commendatory)
Distinguish the following groups of synonym
thrifty, miserly, niggardly, frugal;
bravery, foolhardiness;
firm, pigheaded;

22. In shades of meaning
finish, complete, close, conclude, end, terminate, finalize
Finish vs complete
Close, conclude (final stages that complete an action)
End, terminate (more general, may happen before a task is completed)
finalize

23. Cool-----chilly-----cold-----frosty-----frigid-----icy
-----let, allow, permit
-----want, wish, desire
-----rich, wealthy
-----big, large, huge
Cool-----chilly-----cold-----frosty-----frigid-----icy

24. Synonyms different in range of use
Eg.
On VS. about: with regard to/ concerning
On (book, article, lecture, etc.)
About (more general)

25. Synonyms Different In Collocation
accuse…of… vs. charge …with…
Rancid vs. addled
Rancid bacon/ butter
Addled eggs or brains
pretty (girl, child, flower, garden, color, village, cottage)
handsome (boy, man , car, table, overcoat, airliner, house)
a flock of sheep, a herd of elephants, a shoal of fish, a
swarm of bees;
to sail a small boat, to navigate a liner;

26. 1.4. effects of synonyms
Do you know the significance of studying synonyms?
Eg. We are hungry for a life that turns us on;we yearn for a knowledge of living that will save us from our innocuous lives that resemble death. We look for signs in every strange event; we search for heroes in every unknown face (A Walker, The Civil Rights Movement)

27. General------specific( achieve precision ) claim, state, declare
Avoid repetition
General------specific( achieve precision )
Say/speak: murmur, scream, retort, argue, protest,
claim, state, declare
Monotony----vividness
Barbie doll’s fashion: fashions, costumes, outfits, apparel, dress…..

28. 1.5 Exercises: Discrimination of synonyms
abolish, cancel, extinguish, eliminate
The losing team was from further competition.
Firefighters a big fire.
The meeting has been because of the flu.
The government the tax on alcohol.
eliminated
extinguished
cancelled
abolished

29. Discrimination of synonyms
abstract, outline, summary
She made an of ideas she wanted to present in her talk.
I have read the of his book.
The chemistry book had a at the end of each chapter.
outline
abstract
summary

30. ambiguous, obscure, vague, unclear, dim
It is whether the economy will get better.
His changes of recovery from illness are
He has some ideas about what to do, but nothing specific.
His directions confused us; we did not know which of the two roads to take.
The poetry of Ezra Pound is sometimes difficult to understand because it contains so many ＿＿＿＿＿references.
dim
vague
ambiguous
obscure

31. normal, ordinary, simple, common.
Listen carefully and take some notes to distinguish this group of synonyms.

32. 用common 这个词来形容椅子的时候，其含义是常见的。这是一把很常见的椅子
  normal 和  ordinary 表示普普通通，普通的而不是特制的椅子。
如果要强调这把椅子的工艺简单不复杂，那就是simple. 简易的。
simple things aren’t always ordinary.
the opposite of normal is strange, and the opposite of ordinary is special.  

33. 2. Antonymy Contents 2.1.definition of antonymy 2.2. types of antonyms
2.3. use of antonyms

34. 2.1.definition of antonymy
Antonymy is a relationship of ‘meaning opposition’ that may hold between two words.
Antonyms can be defined as words which are opposite in meaning.

35. 2.2. types of antonyms Morphological classification
root antonyms
derivational antonyms
Semantic classification
Contraries/ Gradable 相对反义词
Complementaries 互补反义词
Conversives 换位反义词

36. Contraries Contraries include pairs like the following:
Antonyms of this type are best viewed in terms of a scale running between two poles or extremes. The two opposites are gradable.
hot, warm, cool, cold
beautiful, pretty, good-looking, plain, ugly
old-young, open-close, big-small, poor-rich

37. Contradictory (complementary) antonyms
Contradictory antonyms include pairs like the following:
asleep awake
dead alive
on off
remember forget
win lose
true false
These pairs are called contradictory antonyms because they represent an either/or relation.
If you permit some behavior, then it is not forbidden.
Since they are not gradable, they do not allow comparison

38. Converse antonyms (逆行)
The following are examples of converse antonyms：
lend borrow
husband wife
above below
before after
behind in front of
buy sell
give receive
parent child
speak listen
Lend is the converse of borrow and vice versa; i.e. the substitution of one member for the other does not change the meaning of a sentence if it is accompanied by the change of subject and object.
John lent Mary five dollars.
Mary borrowed five dollars from John.

39. Contradictory antonyms vs. Converse antonyms
The bridge is above the river.
The river is below the bridge.
This behavior is allowed.
This behavior is not prohibited.
Converse antonyms are relational antonyms.
Contradictory antonyms are either/or antonyms.

40. 2.3. use of antonyms Purpose of using antonyms
A word can have more than one antonyms
Fresh bread------stale bread
Fresh air-----stuffy air
Fresh flowers-----faded flowers
Fresh look----tired look
Purpose of using antonyms

41. Purpose of using antonyms
To achieve emphasis by putting contrasting ideas together
To express economically the opposite of a particular thought.
I despise its very vastness and power. It has the poorest millionaires, the littlest great men, the haughtiest beggars, the plainest beauties, the lowest skyscrapers, the dolefulness pleasures of any town I ever saw. (By O.Henry)

42. 3. Polysemy 3.1.definition of polysemy 3.2.processes of sense-shift
contents:
3.1.definition of polysemy
3.2.processes of sense-shift

43. 3.1.definition of polysemy
When a word is first coined, it is always the case (true) that it has only one meaning (monosemic). But in the course of development, the same symbol may be used to express new meanings. The result is polysemy.
Polysemy shows the economy and efficiency of human languages.
Polysemy: the same word may have a set of different meanings.

44. Two processes leading to polysemy
There are two important processes in the development of meaning:
Radiation (发散)
Concatenation(串联)

45. Radiation
Radiation is a process in which the primary meaning stands in the center, and the derived meanings radiate from it in every direction like rays.
All the derived meanings can be traced back to the primary meaning. 7 6 2 1 5 3 4

46. Radiation Example: face
We can get the derived meanings by extension, narrowing, analogy, transfer, etc.
a person
(Derived Meaning)
self-respect
(Derived Meaning)
outward appearance
(Derived Meaning)
the front of the head
(Primary Meaning)
countenance
(Derived Meaning)
the surface of a thing
(Derived Meaning)

47. Concatenation
Concatenation is a process in which the meaning of a word moves gradually from its primary meaning by successive shifts, like the links of a chain, until there is no connection between the meaning that is finally developed and the primary meaning.
Unlike radiation where each of the derived meaning is directly related to the primary meaning, concatenation is a process where each of the later meaning is related only to the preceding one. 1 5 6 2 3 4

48. Concatenation Example: candidate
A a person dressed in white
A+B a white robed applicant for office (because the Romans wore white robes when standing for office)
B a person taking an examination
bridging context
There is no connection between A and B, because the middle link (A+B) has vanished.
The primary meaning A has also vanished. Now the derived meaning has become the central meaning.

49. 4.Homonymy contents 4.1 definition of homonyms
4.2 classification of homonyms
4.3 ways of forming homonyms
4.4 stylistic value of homonymy and polysemy

50. 4.1 definition of homonyms
Homonymy is the relation between two words that are spelled or pronounced in the same way but differ in meaning.
Such words are called homonyms.

51. 4.2 classification of homonyms
perfect homonyms -- lie vi. / lie vi.
Words identical in sound and spelling but different in meaning
Words identical in both sound-form and parts of speech but different in meaning
Partial homonyms
homographs—tear n./ tear vt
My tears can tear down the wall
homophones-- hoarse/horse
The man riding a horse has a hoarse voice

52. Perfect homonyms
Perfect homonyms: words identical in both sound and spelling, but different in meaning
bank: n./ bank: n.
bear: n./ bear: vt.

53. Homographs
Homographs: words identical only in spelling but different in sound and meaning.
bow: vi. to bend one’s head as a greeting
bow: n. the device used for shooting arrows
sow: n. female pig
sow: vi. to scatter seeds
perfect: v. /- ’-/
perfect: adj. /’- -/

54. Homophones
Homophones: words identical only in sound but different in spelling and meaning.
sun/son
deer/dear
right/write
pair/pear
stationary/stationery

55. Differentiation of perfect homonyms from polysemous words
the same lexeme which has several different meanings
having different sources
perfect homonyms
developed from the same source
polysemous words
different lexemes which have the same form

56. 4.3 ways of forming homonyms
a. converging sound development音变的汇合 (coming from different origin)
sea see
bean been
/ei/ /i:/
b. diverging sense development词义分化
flower/flour ( same word in old english)
C. foreign influence, eg. fair
(OE) attractive
(Lat.) gathering…

57. 4.4 stylistic value of homonymy and polysemy
Polysemous words and homonyms are often used as puns, to achieve certain literary effect, such as humor, irony, etc.
Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventure in Wonderland
“How is bread made?”
“I know that!” Alice cried eagerly. “You take some flour.”
“Where do you pick the flower?” the White Queen asked. “In a garden, or in the hedges?”
“Well, it isn’t picked at all,” Alice explained: “it’s ground.”
“How many acres of ground?” said the White Queen.

58. On Sunday they pray for you and on Monday they prey on you
Sue watched the eagle             as it flew.             But Sue got sick             and caught the flu,             So she built a fire             and set the             chimney flue.

59. 5. Hyponymy Contents 5.1.definition of hyponymy
5.2. superordinate上义词and hyponym下义词
5.3. use of superordinate and hyponym

60. 5.1.definition of hyponymy
Hyponymy is the sense relationship that relates words hierarchically. The underlying observation is that some words have a more general meaning, while others have a more specific meaning, while referring to the same entity.
We are not going to have any food today.
We are not going to have any vegetables today.
FOOD
MEAT
VEGETABLE

61. 5.2. superordinate and hyponym
superordinate or upper term:
---the more inclusive words
e.g. furniture :
bed,table,sofa.chair (co-hyponym共下义词)
hyponym, lower term or subordinate:
---the more specific words

62. superordinate
They are subordinate terms. They are hyponyms of the superordinate term FOOD.
FOOD
FRUIT
MEAT
VEGETABLE
They are subordinate terms. They are hyponyms of the superordinate term MEAT.
BEEF
PORK
MUTTON
CABBAGE
CELERY
SPINACH
APPLE
PEACH
ORANGE
Reading from the bottom of the hierarchy, ORANGE is a ‘kind of’ fruit, which is a kind of food.

63. 5.3. use of superordinate and hyponym
General terms often result in vagueness and triteness.
Specific words can add force , clarity,and evoke vivid pictures

64. Home work
Recite in the textbook
Check