1. The object of Lexicology

Lexicology (from Greek lexis “word” and logos “learning”) is the part of linguistics dealing with the vocabulary of the language and the properties of words as the main units of language.

Lexicology as a branch (ответвление) of linguistics has its own aims and methods of scientific research; its basic task being a study and systematic description of vocabulary in respect to its origin, development and current (ходовое) use.

Lexicology is concerned (касается) with words, variable (изменчивых) word-groups, phraseological units, and with morphemes which make up words.

Distinction (различие) is naturally made btwn General Lexicology (concerned with the general study of words and vocabulary irrespective (безотносительно) of the specific features of any particular language) and Special Lexicology (concerned the study and description of vocabulary and vocabulary units of a given language).

2. Lexicology and other Branches of Linguistics

The treatment (трактовка) of words in lexicology cannot be divorced (отделена) from the study of all the other elements in the language system to which words belong.

The word is closely connected with general linguistics, the history of the language, phonetics, stylistics, grammar and such new branches of the science as sociolinguistics ["sqVsIq'lPdZIk...], paralinguistics, pragmalinguistics and some others.

The importance of the connection btwn Lexicology and Phonetics is that a word is an association of a given group of sounds with a given meaning. Phonemes have no meaning of their own but their function is building up morphemes which are introduced into language.

Stylistics - problems of meaning, connotations, synonymy, functional differentiation (разграничения) of vocabulary according to the sphere of communication and some other issues.

Grammar - even isolated words bear a definite relation to the grammatical system of the language; it means that they belong to some part of speech and conform (согласовываются) to some lexico-grammatical characteristics.

Historical lexicology - language is the reality of thought, and thought is the development of society, therefore language and its vocabulary must be studied in the light of social history.

Sociolinguistics - causal (причинные) relations btwn the way the language works and develops on the one hand, and the facts of social life on the other.

Paralinguistics - non-verbal means of communication (gestures ['dZestSq] (жесты), facial expressions, eye-contact).

Pragmalinguistics - the relation of speech and its users and the influence of speech upon listeners.

3. The definition of the word

The word - a sound or a combination of sounds, or its representation in writing or printing, that symbolizes (символизирует) and communicates a meaning and may consist of a single morpheme or of a combination of morphemes.

The word is the basic unit resulting from the association of a particular meaning with a particular group of sounds capable of a particular grammatic employment. The smallest unit that can stand as a complete utterance (произношение).