Types of polysemy of English words.
The word «polysemy» means «plurality of meanings» it exists only in the language, not in speech. A word which has more than one meaning is called polysemantic.
Polysemy (P)– the ability of Wds to have more than 1 meaning (M). Most Eng. Wds are polysemantic. The process of P involves boththe appearance of mew meanings(new M’s are added to old ones) andthe loss of old ones.The general tendency in Eng. Voc. now is to increase the total number of its meanings.
Transference – the process of development of new meaning (or a change of meaning).The point → the Wd (not meaning!!!) is being transferred from one meaning to another → a new meaning appears.
Sources of Pare:
* Transference based on similarity (a linguistic metaphor)– a new meaning appears as a result of associating two objects (phenomena, quality, physical object) due to their outward similarity
# the neck of a bottle
Metaphorical change of meaning is generally observed in:
* idiomatic compounds (# branch – ‘a special field of science or art’)
* the informal strata of voc., especially in slang (# carrot – ‘a red-headed boy’)
* Transf. based on contiguity (linguistic metonymy)– the association is based upon subtle psychological links between diff. objects and phenomena. The two objects may be associated together because:
o they often appear in common situations
o they may be associated on the principle of cause and effect
# sad, adj. - OE ‘satisfied with food’ (Rusсытыйwhich is a Wd of the same Indo-European root) → ‘having eaten too much’ (implies the physical unease and discomfort) → ‘sorrowful’ (as these two states often go together).
* Broadening of M (generalization) & narrowing of M (specialization).– the range of M changes.
# girl – ME ‘a small child of either sex’ → ‘a small child of the female sex’ (specialization) → in modern colloq. Eng. Its practically syn. to ‘woman’ (# The old girl must be at least seventy.)
!!! In all Wds of this kind the second M developed through linguistic metonymy– the range of the second M is justnarrower/widerthan that of the original meaning.
* ‘Degradation’ and ‘Elevation’ of M– not the degradation or elevation ofmeaningitself is meant, but of the referent onto which a Wd is transferred. Semantically speaking, the 1stM is just asgoodas the 2nd– the difference lies only in the connotative structure.
- ‘degradation’ of M – the 2ndM develops a negative evaluative connotation which was absent in the 1stM
# gossip – ‘god parent’ → ‘the one who talks scandal’
- ‘elevation’ of M
# marshal – ‘manservant attending horses’ → the highest rank in the army
TYPES OF POLISEMY
There are two types of Polisemy:
1) radiation
2) concatenation.
1.
In cases of radiation the primary meaning stands in the centre and the secondary meanings proceed out of it like rays. Each secondary meaning can be traced to the primmary meaning. (in the word «face»^ the primary meaning denotes «the front part of the human head» => the front part of a watch, the front part of a building, the front part of a playing card were formed. => expression of the face, outward appearance are formed.
2.
In cases of concatination secondary meanings of a word develop like a chain. In such cases it is difficult to trace some meanings to the primary one. (in the word «crust» - «hard outer part of bread» => «hard part of anything /a pie, a cake/» => “harder layer over soft snow” => «a sullen gloomy person» => «impudence. Here the last meanings have nothing to do with the primary ones. In such cases homonyms appear in the language. It is called the split of polysemy.
In most cases in the semantic development of a word both ways of semantic development are combined.
