Is a single unit of language that can be represented in writing or speech
Oxford Advanced Learners Dictionary (OALD)
– A sound/combination of sounds which expresses a meaning and forms an independent unit of grammar or vocabulary of a language
American Heritage Dictionary (1985):”a sound or a combination of sounds, or its representation in writing or printing, that symbolizes and communicates a meaning and may consist of a single morpheme or of a combination of morphemes”.
Collins English Dictionary (1986):
“One of the units of speech or string that native speakers of a language usually regard as the smallest isolated meaningful element of the language, although linguists would analyze these further into morphemes”.
Chambers English Dictionary (1988):
“A unit of spoken language: a written sign representing such an utterance”.
I.V. Arnold:
‘A word is the smallest significant unit (the fundamental unit) of a given lg. It is a dialectal unity of form and content. It is capable of functioning alone and characterized by
positional mobility within a sentence
morphological uninterruptability
semantic integrity.
These definitions create the basis of opposition btw.
The word and the phrase,
The word and the phoneme,
The word and the morpheme.
The common feature: they are all units of the lg.
The weak point of the definitions: no indication of the relationship btw. Lg. and thought.
The word is a fundamental unit of lg.
It is a dialectal unity of form and content. It is a sign which is not arbitrary but motivated by the whole process of its development.
Content (meaning) reflects human notions, concepts are fixed in the meaning of words, reflecting the reality by the content of words.
2.2 Semantic triangle
F. de Saussure
A word is a linguistic sign ‘signifiant’ (signifier).
It refers to ‘signifie’ (that which is signified) , a concept in the speaker’s mind
Signifie
Thing
Sign
Gotlieb Frege(1848-1925)
C.K. Ogden and I.A. Richards’ triangles:
semantic triangle,
triangle of signification,
Frege’s semiotic triangle,
O. and R.’s basic triangle
A sign is a two-facet unit comprising form (phonetic and orthographic), a linguistic symbol and reference which is more linguistic than a concept. A referent belongs to extra-linguistic reality, it is generalized in our minds as a concept and reflected in the meaning within the vocabulary.
Referential approach:
Reference
Concept-Notion
Reference
Linguistic Sign
Referent
Referent
(Name)
Two-facet
Symbol
Word meaning –
a certain reflection in our mind of objects, phenomena or relations that makes part of the linguistic sign.
The Word.
ESSENTIAL WORD CHARACTERISTICS:
Structural semantic
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Phonetic Structure
Morphological Structure
Grammatical Structure
Syntactic Structure
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Nominal Onomastic character Significant
Indivisible
Isolated |
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Types of Word
Eight kinds of words
The orthographic word
The phonological word
The morphological word
The lexical word
The grammatical word
The onomastic word
The lexicographical word
The statistical word
Motivation is the relationship btw. the phonetic or morphemic composition and structural pattern of the word on the one hand and its meaning on the other.
Three main types of motivation (inner word form):
Phonetical: a certain similarity btw. the sounds and the sense:
(bang, buzz, giggle, gurgle, hiss, purr),Cuckoo.
Sound imitative words (eco-words):
Babble, chatter, gabble, prattle; purr, moo, crow, bark, bleat.
Morphological motivation or word-building meaning:
ex ‘former’:
(ex-president, ex-wife);but expect, export(borrowed wds – no motivation)
re-‘again, back’(rebuild, reclaim, resell) but recover “get better”
Word-building meaning: V +-er =N:
Writer,receiver,bomber,rocker,knocker but number(OFr nombre) and smoker(a fuzzy set) .
Semantic motivation:
coexistence of direct and figurative meanings of the same words:
(mouth of a river, cave, furnace), (jacket of a book, electric fire.)
Morphological and semantic motivation in compound words (eyewash, headache, watchdog).
First-nighter, honeymooner, two- seater, three-decker (a sandwich) are different in their motivation: lick-spittle “a flattering or a servile person”.Teenager”a person in his or her teens” (historically traced).
Non-motivated words:
No connection btw. meaning and its form at the present stage of lg. development:
earn > (ge) earnian “to harvest”;
not > nought > OE nowiht <no-wiht “nothing”.
Faded motivation:lost in the history and not felt at present.
Folk etymology or mistaken motivation (a nightmare, may-day”SOS”).
Sound symbolism:
fl – quick movement:
flap, flip, flop, flitter, flimmer, flicker, flutter, flash, flush, flare;
( but flat, floor, flower)
gl(light, fire) – glare, glitter, glow, glimmer;
sl(mud)-sleet,slime,slush but sleep, slender.
TEST
1. Name as many approaches to the word definition as possible.
2. Enumerate types of a word.
3. Give examples of different motivations of words.
Lecture 3
Lexical Meaning and Semantic structure of English Words
Outline
Semantics and Semasiology
The lexical meaning versus notion
Denotative and connotative meaning
The semantic structure of polysemantic words
Contextual analysis
Componential analysis
SEMANTICS
The meaning of words and phrases
Study of Linguistic meaning
Study of relationship between the sign and the referent
WEBSTER’S UNABRIDGED DICTIONARY
The study of linguistic development
By classifying and examining
Changes in meaning and form
SEMASIOLOGY
Branch of Linguistics – studies Linguistic meaning
Branch of Linguistics – studies Lexical meaning of words and phrases and semantic change
Gr.: Semasia – “signification”, смысл
Logos “learning”
Gr.: sema = sign
Semantikos = significant
СЕМАСИОЛОГИЯ
В русской и европейской традиции: русское языкознание; лексическая семантика, т.е. значение слов и словосочетаний, которое используется для номинаций.
СЕМАНТИКА
Все содержание языка
Один из разделов семиотики
Word meaning – a certain reflection in our mind of objects, phenomena or relations that makes part of the linguistic sign.
Synchronically: study of semantic structures typical of the lg. studied, of its general semantic system.
The main object of semaciological study:
Semantic development of words;
Causes of development -diachronical approach;
Classification of semantic development;
Relevant distinctive features;
Types of lexical meaning;
Polysemy and semantic structure of words;
Semantic grouping and connections in the vocabulary system (synonymy, antonymy, terminological systems) – descriptive or synchronic approach.
F. de Saussure:
Meaning is the relation btw. the object or notion named and the name itself.
Bloomfield: Descriptive linguistics
(Bloomfieldean trend):
Meaning is the situation in which the word is uttered.
R. Jakobson:
Linguistics without meaning is meaningless.
Lexical meaning is the realization of concept or emotion by means of a definite lg system (concepts are bound by signs).
Diachronically: studies the change in meaning the words undergo.
Synchronically: study of semantic structures typical of the lg. studied, of its general semantic system.
The Semantic Structure of English Word:
Structural approach
Functional approach (contextual analysis, semantic syntax, etc.)
Referential (mentalistic) approach to word-meaning study.
Pragmatic functions of the lg.:
communicative,
emotive,
evaluative,
phatic,
aesthetic
are accounted in semaciology:
They show:
the attitude of the speaker to the thing spoken of,
to the interlocutor
to the situation in which the act of communication takes place.
The complexity of the word meaning:
Combines lexical and grammatical meanings: mother,n; to live,v;
Combines denotative and connotative meaning: father::daddy;
Denotational meaning consists of semantic components or semes: father ’male parent’, ‘an ancestor’, ‘a founder or leader’, ‘a priest’.
The grammatical meaning:
an expression in speech of relationships btw. words based on contrastive features of arrangements in which they occur:
It is more abstract and more generalized,
It unites words into big groups such as parts of speech and lexico-grammatical classes.
Ex.: girls, tables, emotions (plurality).
The lexico-grammatical meaning is
the common denominator of all the meanings of words belonging to a lexico-grammatical class of words (LGC).
Generic terms are words - representatives of lexico-grammatical meaning, substituting any word of the class:
matter (material nouns),
group (collective nouns),
person (personal nouns).
The denotative meaning is a linguistic expression for a concept or a name for an individual object (the conceptual content of a word).
The denotative meaning is
significative, if the referent (denotatum) is a concept (grief, sorrow, happiness) or
demonstrative if the referent is an individual object (a table, a chair).
The pragmatic component of denotation is connotational meaning based on the complex associations of verbal or situational contexts:
the speaker’s attitude – slay::kill,
approval or disapproval – clique::group, hireling;
the speaker’s emotions – mummy::mother,
degree of their intensity – adore::love).
Semantic components (semes) of the denotative meaning:
MAN + HUMAN + ADULT + MALE
WOMAN+ HUMAN +ADULT - MALE
BOY +HUMAN - ADULT + MALE
GIRL + HUMAN - ADULT - MALE
POLYCEMY reflects the possibility of using the same name in secondary nomination for objects possessing common features (proximity) which are sometimes only implied in the original meaning (implicational):
Birth-
1) The act or time to be born,
2) An origin or being,
3) Descent, family.
Implicational (epidigmatic) meaning is the possibility of a word to create new derived meanings or words:
Bomb ”great success” “great failure”(Am. slang);
Drive “What can he be driving at?”(fig.)
The semantic structure of a polysemantic word is influenced by its grammatical meaning
The Lexical Meaning versus Notion
Notion (concept) denotes the reflection in the mind of real objects and phenomena in their essential features and relations.
Each notion is characterized by its scope and content.
The scope is determined by all the objects it refers to.
The content is made up of all the features that distinguish it from other notions.
The identifying (demonstrative) function of the word:
It denotes the objects covered by the scope of the notion expressed in the word.
The significative function:
It expresses the content of the respective notion.
The expressive function renders an emotion or an attitude.
The relations btw. logical notion and lexical meaning vary:
The logical notion is the referent of lexical meaning quite often but not always, because there may be other referents such as the real objects.
A good laugh is sunshine in the house. Do you remember what the young lady did with the telegram?
Proper names possess identifying function but not signifying one. Thames, Italy, Byron, Napoleon.
Pronouns possess the demonstrative function and no significative function (point out the object and its relation to the speaker).
Notions are always emotionally neutral as they are a category of thought.
The meaning conveys:
some reflection of objective reality,
the speaker’s state of mind,
his attitude to what he is speaking about.
(emotional ::neutral) Brat::baby; kid::child.
The lexical meaning of many words depends upon the sphere of their usage and the typical contexts whereas a notion belongs to abstract logic and has no ties with any stylistic sphere and does not contain any emotive components.
Fancy that! Fancy my making a mistake like that!
Lousy (derogatory) :: smashing (laudatory).
The complexity of the notion is determined by the relationships of the extra-linguistic reality reflected in human consciousness.
The complexity of each word meaning is due to the fact that it combines lexical meaning with lexico-grammatical meaning, and with emotional colouring, stylistic peculiarities and connotations.
Bright, clear, good, quick, steady, thin are qualitative (gradable) adjectives having degrees of comparison.
The grouping of meanings is different from a group of notions.
Burn v.t. ‘destroy by fire’, v.i. ‘be in flames’;
Polysemantic verbs: fire, fly, run, shake, turn, walk, etc;
Show n. ‘the act of showing’, ‘an exhibition’ (derivational motivation).
Notions are mostly international whereas meaning is nationally determined and limited.
Boat-судно, шлюпка, пароход;desk; floor, gun, cry, etc.
Coat- пальто, пиджак, китель;
нога-foot, leg;
рука- hand, arm, etc.
ЧАСЫ – watch, clock
Высокий – high, tall
The lexical meaning of the word is the realization or naming of the notion, emotion or object by means of a definite lg. system subject to the influence of grammar and vocabulary peculiarities of that lg.Ex.: go:: come but идти(Go by train but ехать на поезде)
Go fishing, skating, boating skiing, riding (No Russian equivalents)
The denotative meaning is essentially cognitive: