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Semantics of Affixes

Semantics of Affixes - раздел Образование, Лексикология   The Morpheme, And Therefore Affix, Which Is A Type Of ...

 

The morpheme, and therefore affix, which is a type of morpheme, is generally defined as the smallest indivisible component of the word possessing a meaning of its own. Meanings of affixes are specific and considerably differ from those of root morphemes. Affixes have widely generalized meanings and refer the concept conveyed by the whole word to a certain category, which is vast and all-embracing. So, the noun-forming suffix -er could be roughly defined as designating persons from the object of their occupation or labour (painter — the one who paints) or from their place of origin or abode {southerner — the one living in the South). The adjective-forming suffix -ful has the meaning of "full of", "characterized by" (beautiful, careful) whereas -ish Olay often imply insufficiency of quality (greenish — green, but not quite; youngish — not quite young but looking it).

Such examples might lead one to the somewhat hasty conclusion that the meaning of a derived word is always a sum of the meanings of its morphemes: un/eat/able =» "not fit to eat" where not stands for un- and fit for: -able.

There are numerous derived words whose meanings can really be easily deduced from the meanings of their constituent parts. Yet, such cases represent only the first and simplest stage of semantic readjustment with in derived words. The constituent morphemes within derivatives do not always preserve their current meanings and are open to subtle and complicated semantic shifts.

Let us take at random some of the adjectives formed with the same productive suffix -y, and try to deduce the meaning of the suffix from their dictionary definitions:

brainy (inform.) — intelligent, intellectual, i. e, characterized by brains

catty — quietly or slyly malicious, spiteful, i. e, characterized by features ascribed to a cat

chatty — given to chat, inclined to chat

dressy (inform.) — showy in dress, i. e. inclined to dress well or to be overdressed

fishy (e. g. in a fishy story, inform.) — improbable, hard to believe (like stories told by fishermen)

foxy — foxlike, cunning or crafty, i. e. characterized by features ascribed to a fox

stagy — theatrical, unnatural, i. e. inclined to affectation, to unnatural theatrical manners

touchy — apt to take offence on slight provocation, i. e. resenting a touch or contact (not at all inclined to be touched)1

The Random-House Dictionary defines the meaning of the -y suffix as "characterized by or inclined to the substance or action of the root to which the affix is attached". [46] Yet, even the few given examples show that, on the one hand, there are cases, like touchy or fishy that are not covered by the definition. On the other hand, even those cases that are roughly covered, show a wide variety of subtle shades of meaning. It is not only the suffix that adds its own meaning to the meaning of the root, but the suffix is, in its turn, affected by the root and undergoes certain semantic changes, so that the mutual influence of root and affix creates a wide range of subtle nuances.

But is the suffix -y probably exceptional in this respect? It is sufficient to examine further examples to see that other affixes also offer an interesting variety of semantic shades. Compare, for instance, the meanings of adjective-forming suffixes in each of these groups of adjectives.

1. eatable (fit or good to eat)2

lovable (worthy of loving)

questionable (open to doubt, to question)

imaginable (capable of being imagined)

2. lovely (charming, beautiful, i. e. inspiring love)

lonely (solitary, without company; lone; the meaning of the suffix does not seem to add anything to that of the root)

friendly (characteristic of or befitting a friend.)

heavenly (resembling or befitting heaven; beautiful, splendid)

3. childish (resembling or befitting a child)

tallish (rather tall, but not quite, i. e. approaching the quality of big size)

girlish (like a girl, but, often, in a bad imitation of one)

bookish(1) given or devoted to reading or study;

(2) more acquainted with books than with real life, i. e. possessing the quality of bookish learning)

The semantic distinctions of words produced from the same root by means of different affixes are also of considerable interest, both for language studies and research work. Compare: womanly — womanish, floweryflowered -— flowering, starry — starred, reddenedreddish, shortened — shortish.

The semantic difference between the members of these groups is very obvious: the meanings of the suffixes are so distinct that they colour the whole words.

Womanly is used in a complimentary manner about girls and women, whereas womanish is used to indicate an effeminate man and certainly implies criticism.

Flowery is applied to speech or a style (cf. with the R. цветистый), flowered means "decorated with a patters of flowers" (e. g. flowered silk or chintz, cf. with the R, цветастый) and flowering is the same as blossoming (e. g. flowering bushes or shrubs, cf. with the R. цветущий).

Starry means "resembling stars" (e. g. starry eyes) and starred — "covered or decorated with stars" (e. g. starred skies).

Reddened and shortened both imply the result of an action or process, as in the eyes reddened with weeping or a shortened version of a story (i. e. a story that has been abridged) whereas shortish and reddish point to insufficiency of quality: reddish is not exactly red, but tinged with red, and a shortish man is probably a little taller than a man described as short.

 

Conversion

 

When in a book-review a book is referred to as a splendid read, is read to be regarded as a verb or a noun? What part of speech is room in the sentence: I was to room with another girl called Jessie. If a character in a novel is spoken about as one who hadto be satisfied with the role of a has-been, what is this odd-looking has-been, a verb or a noun? One must admit that it has quite a verbal appearance, but why, then, is it preceded by the article?

Why is the word if used in the plural form in the popular proverb: If ifs and ans were pots and pans? (an = if, dial., arch.)

This type of questions naturally arise when one deals with words produced by conversion, one of the most productive ways of modern English word-building.

Conversion is sometimes referred to as an affixless way of word-building or even affixless derivation. Saying that, however, is saying very little because there are other types of word-building in which new words are also formed without affixes (most compounds, contracted words, sound-imitation words, etc.).

Conversion consists in making a new word from some existing word by changing the category of a part of speech, the morphemic shape of the original word remaining unchanged. The new word has a meaning Which differs from that of the original one though it can more or less be easily associated with it. It has also a new paradigm peculiar to its new category as a part of speech.

The question of conversion has, for a long time, been a controversial one in several aspects. The very essence of this process has been treated by a number of scholars (e. g. H. Sweet), not as a word-building act, but as a mere functional change. From this point of view the word hand in Hand me that book is not a verb, but a noun used in a verbal syntactical function, that is, hand (me) and hands (in She has small hands) are not two different words but one. Hence, the case cannot be treated as one of word-formation for no new word appears.

 

According to this functional approach, conversion may be regarded as a specific feature of the English categories of parts of speech, which are supposed to be able to break through the rigid borderlines dividing one category from another thus enriching the process of communication not by the creation of new words but through the sheer flexibility of the syntactic structures.

Nowadays this theory finds increasingly fewer supporters, and conversion is universally accepted as one of the major ways of enriching English vocabulary with new words. One of the major arguments for this approach to conversion is the semantic change that regularly accompanies each instance of conversion. Normally, a word changes its syntactic function without any shift in lexical meaning. E. g. both in yellow leaves and in The leaves were turning yellow the adjective denotes colour. Yet, in The leaves yellowed the converted unit no longer denotes colour, but the process of changing colour, so that there is an essential change in meaning.

The change of meaning is even more obvious in such pairs as hand > to hand, face > to face, to go > a go, to make > a make, etc.

The other argument is the regularity and completeness with which converted units develop a paradigm of their new category of part of speech. As soon as it has crossed the category borderline, the new word automatically acquires all the properties of the new category, so that if it has entered the verb category, it is now regularly used in all the forms of tense and it also develops the forms of the participle and the gerund. Such regularity can hardly be regarded as indicating a mere functional change which might be expected to bear more occasional characteristics. The completeness of the paradigms in new conversion formations seems to be a decisive argument proving that here we are dealing with new words and not with mere functional variants. The data of the more reputable modern English dictionaries confirm this point of view: they all present converted pairs as homonyms, i. e. as two words, thus supporting the thesis that conversion is a word-building process.

Conversion is not only a highly productive but also a particularly English way of word-building. Its immense productivity is considerably encouraged by certain features of the English language in its modern Stage of development. The analytical structure of Modern English greatly facilitates processes of making words of one category of parts of speech from words of another. So does the simplicity of paradigms of En-lush parts of speech. A great number of one-syllable Words is another factor in favour of conversion, for such words are naturally more mobile and flexible than polysyllables.

Conversion is a convenient and "easy" way of enriching the vocabulary with new words. It is certainly an advantage to have two (or more) words where there Was one, all of them fixed on the same structural and semantic base.

The high productivity of conversion finds its reflection in speech where numerous occasional cases of conversion can be found, which are not registered by dictionaries and which occur momentarily, through the immediate need of the situation. "If anybody oranges me again tonight, I'll knock his face off, says the annoyed hero of a story by O'Henry when a shop-assistant offers him oranges (for the tenth time in one night) instead of peaches for which he is looking ("Lit. tie Speck in Garnered Fruit"). One is not likely to find the verb to orange in any dictionary, but in this situation it answers the need for brevity, expressiveness and humour.

The very first example, which opens the section on conversion in this chapter (the book is a splendid read), though taken from a book-review, is a nonce-word, which may be used by reviewers now and then or in informal verbal communication, but has not yet found its way into the universally acknowledged English vocabulary.

Such examples as these show that conversion is a vital and developing process that penetrates contemporary speech as well. Subconsciously every English speaker realizes the immense potentiality of making a word into another part of speech when the need arises.

* * *

 

One should guard against thinking that every case of noun and verb (verb and adjective, adjective and noun, etc.) with the same morphemic shape results from conversion. There are numerous pairs of words (e. g. love, n. — to love, v.; work, n. — to work, v.; drink, n. — to drink, v., etc.) which did, not occur due to conversion but coincided as a result of certain historical processes (dropping of endings, simplification of stems) when before that they had different forms (e. g. O. E. lufu, n. — lufian, v.). On the other hand, it is quite true that the first cases of conversion (which were registered in the 14th c.) imitated such pairs of words as love, n. — to love, v. for they were numerous to the vocabulary and were subconsciously accepted by native speakers as one of the typical language patterns.

 

* * *

 

The two categories of parts of speech especially affected by conversion are nouns and verbs. Verbs made from nouns are the most numerous amongst the words produced by conversion: e. g. to hand, to back, to face, to eye, to mouth, to nose, to dog, to wolf, to monkey, to can, to coal, to stage, to screen, to room, to floor, to ^lack-mail, to blacklist, to honeymoon, and very many ethers.

Nouns are frequently made from verbs: do (e. g. This ifs the queerest do I've ever come across. Do — event, incident), go (e. g. He has still plenty of go at his age. Go — energy), make, run, find, catch, cut, walk, worry, show, move, etc.

Verbs can also be made from adjectives: to pale, to yellow, to cool, to grey, to rough (e. g. We decided sq rough it in the tents as the weather was warm), etc.

Other parts of speech are not entirely unsusceptible to conversion as the following examples show: to down, to out (as in a newspaper heading Diplomatist Outed from Budapest), the ups and downs, the ins and outs, like, n. (as in the like of me and the like of you).

 

* * *

 

It was mentioned at the beginning of this section that a word made by conversion has a different meaning from that of the word from which it was made though the two meanings can be associated. There are Certain regularities in these associations which can be roughly classified. For instance, in the group of verbs made from nouns some of the regular semantic associations are as indicated in the following list:

I. The noun is the name of a tool or implement, the verb denotes an action performed by the tool: to hammer, to nail, to pin, to brush, to comb, to pencil.

II. The noun is the name of an animal, the verb denotes an action or aspect of behaviour considered typical of this animal: to dog, to wolf, to monkey, to ape, to fox, to rat. Yet, to fish does not mean "to behave like a fish" but "to try to catch fish". The same meaning of hunting activities is conveyed by the verb to whale and one of the meanings of to rat; the other is "to turn informer, squeal" (sl.).

III. The name of a part of the human body — an action performed by it: to hand, to leg (sl.), to eye, to elbow, to shoulder, to nose, to mouth. However, to face does not imply doing something by or even with one's face but turning it in a certain direction. To back means either "to move backwards" or, in the figurative sense, "to support somebody or something".

IV. The name of a profession or occupation — an activity typical of it: to nurse, to cook, to maid, to groom.

V. The name of a place — the process of occupying" the place or of putting smth./smb. in it (to room, to house, to place, to table, to cage).

VI. The name of a container — the act of putting smth. within the container (to can, to bottle, to pocket).

VII. The name of a meal — the process of taking it (to lunch, to supper).

The suggested groups do not include all the great variety of verbs made from nouns by conversion. They just represent the most obvious cases and illustrate, convincingly enough, the great variety of semantic interrelations within so-called converted pairs and the complex nature of the logical associations which specify them.

In actual fact, these associations are not only complex but sometimes perplexing. It would seem that if you know that the verb formed from the name of an animal denotes behaviour typical of the animal, it would easy for you to guess the meaning of such a verb provided that you know the meaning of the noun. Yet, it is not always easy. Of course, the meaning of to fox is rather obvious being derived from the associated reputation of that animal for cunning: to fox means "to act cunningly or craftily". But what about to wolf? How is one to know which of the characteristics of the animal was picked by the speaker's subconscious when this verb was produced? Ferocity? Loud and unpleasant fowling? The inclination to live in packs? Yet, as the Hollowing example shows, to wolf means "to eat greedily, voraciously": Charlie went on wolfing the chocolate. (R. Dahl)

In the same way, from numerous characteristics of | be dog, only one was chosen for the verb to dog which is well illustrated by the following example:

And what of Charles? I pity any detective who would have to dog him through those twenty months.

(From The French Lieutenant's Woman by J. Fowles)

 

(To dog — to follow or track like a dog, especially with hostile intent.)

 

The two verbs to ape and to monkey, which might be expected to mean more or less the same, have shared between themselves certain typical features of the same animal:

to ape — to imitate, mimic(e. g. He had always aped the gentleman in his clothes and manners. — J. Fowles);

to monkey — to fool, to act or play idly and foolishly. To monkey can also be used in the meaning "to imitate", but much rarer than to ape.

 

The following anecdote shows that the intricacies ex semantic associations in words made by conversion may prove somewhat bewildering even for some native-speakers, especially for children.

 

"Mother", said Johnny, "is it correct to say you 'water a horse' when he's thirsty?"

"Yes, quite correct."

"Then", (picking up a saucer) "I'm going to milk the cat."

 

The joke is based on the child's mistaken association of two apparently similar patterns: water, п. — to water, v.; milk, n. — to milk, v. But it turns out that the meanings of the two verbs arose from different associations: to water a horse means "to give him water", but to milk implies getting milk from an animal (e. g, to milk a cow).

 

Exercises

– Конец работы –

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English Lexicology
    Рекомендовано Министерством образования Российской Федерации в качестве учебного пособия для студентов высших учебных заведений, обучающихся по педагогическ

Антрушина Г. В., Афанасьева О. В., Морозова Н. Н.
А72 Лексикология английского языка: Учеб. пособие для студентов. — 3-е изд., стереотип. — М.: Дрофа, 2001. — 288 с. ISBN 5—7107—4955—9   Учебное пособие включает раз

Contents
INTRODUCTION. What Is a Word? What Is Lexicology?...................................... 5 CHAPTER 1. Which Word Should We Choose, Formal or Informal?..................... 9 CHAPTE

Preface
  In this book the reader will find the fundamentals of the word theory and of the main problems associated with English vocabulary, its characteristics and subdivisions. Each chapter

INTRODUCTION
What Is a Word? What Is Lexicology?   What's in a name? that which we call a rose By any other name would smell as sweet...  

The Main Lexicological Problems
  Two of these have already been underlined. The problemof word-building is associated with prevailing morphological word-structures and with processes of making new words. Semantics

Consider your answers to the following.
  1. In what way can one analyse a word a) socially, b) linguistically? 2. What are the structural aspects of the word? 3. What is the external structure of the word

CHAPTER 1
Which Word Should We Choose, Formal or Informal?   Just as there is formal and informal dress, so there is formal and informal speech. One is not supposed to

Informal Style
  Informal vocabulary is used in one's immediate circle: family, relatives or friends. One uses informal words when at home or when feeling at home. Informal style is relaxed

Colloquial Words
  Among other informal words, colloquialisms are the least exclusive: they are used by everybody, and their sphere of communication is comparatively wide, at least of litera

Dialect Words
  H. W. Fowler defines a dialect as "a variety of a language which prevails in a district, with local peculiarities of vocabulary, pronunciation and phrase".[19] England is

I. Consider your answers to the following.
  1. What determines the choice of stylistically marked words in each particular situation? 2. In what situations are informal words used? 3. What are the main kinds

III. a. Read the following extract.
  A young man, Freddie by name, had invited a pretty young girl April to a riverside picnic. April could not come and sent her little sister to keep Freddie company. It was n

IV. Read the following jokes. Write out the informal words and word-groups and say whether they are colloquial, slang or dialect.
  1. A Yankee passenger in an English train was beguiling his fellow passengers with tall stories1 and remarked: "We can start with a twenty-story apartment house this month, and

Learned Words
  These words are mainly associated with the printed page. It is in this vocabulary stratum that poetry and fiction find their main resources. The term "learned" is

Archaic and Obsolete Words
  These words stand close to the "learned" words, particularly to the modes of poetic diction. Learned words and archaisms are both associated with the printed page. Yet, as

Professional Terminology
  Hundreds of thousands of words belong to special scientific, professional or trade terminological systems and are not used or even understood by people outside the particular specia

Basic Vocabulary
  These words are stylistically neutral, and, in this respect, opposed to formal and informal words described above. Their stylistic neutrality makes it possible to use them in all ki

I. Consider your answers to the following.
  1. Where are formal words used? 2. Are learned words used only in books? Which type of learned words, do you think, is especially suitable for verbal communication? Which i

III.a. Make up a list of literary learned words selected from the following.
  1. Absent, he was still unescapably with her, like a guilty conscience. Her solitudes were endless meditations on the theme of him. Sometimes the longing for his tangible presence w

The Etymology of English Words.1
Are All English Words Really English?   As a matter of fact, they are — if we regard them in the light of present-day English. If, however, their origins are

I. Latin Affixes
  Nouns The suffix -ion communion, legion, opinion, session, union, etc. The suffix -tion

II. French Affixes
    Nouns The suffix -ance arrogance, endurance, hindrance, etc. The suffix -erace

The Etymological Structure of English Vocabulary
  The native element1 The borrowed element   I. Indo-European element II. Germanic element     III. Englis

I. Consider your answers to the following.
  1. How can you account for the fact that English vocabulary contains such an immense number of words of foreign origin? 2. What is the earliest group of English borrowings?

III. Read the following jokes. Explain the etymology of the italicized words. If necessary consult a dictionary.1
  1. He dropped around to the girl's house and as he ran up the steps he was confronted by her little brother. "Hi, Billy."

V. In the following sentences find examples of Latin borrowings; identify the period of borrowings.
  1. The garden here consisted of a long smooth lawn with two rows of cherry trees planted in the grass. 2. They set to pork-pies, cold potatoes, hard-boiled eggs, cold bacon, ham, cr

VII. Study the map of Great Britain and find the names of places, rivers and hills of Celtic origin.
VIII. In the sentences given below find the examples of Scandinavian borrowings. How can the Scandinavian borrowings be identified?     1. He w

IX. Read the following jokes and identify the Scandinavian borrowings.
  1. "Very sorry, Mr. Brown, but the coffee is exhausted," the landlady announced. "Not at all surprised," came back Mr. Brown. "I've seen it growing

X. Copy out the examples of Norman and Parisian borrowings from the following passage. Describe the structural peculiarities of these words.
  1. It was while they were having coffee that a waitress brought a message to their table. 2.1 knew nothing about the film world and imagined it to be a continuous ferment of persona

The Roman Occupation
For some reason the Romans neglected to overrun the country with fire and sword, though they had both of these; in fact after the Conquest they did not mingle with the Britons at all but lived a se

CHAPTER 4
The Etymology of English Words (continued)   Why Are Words Borrowed?   This question partially concerns the histor

International Words
  It is often the case that a word is borrowed by several languages, and not just by one. Such words usually convey concepts which are significant in the field of communication.

Etymological Doublets
  The words shirt and skirt etymologically descend from the same root. Shirt is a native word, and skirt (as the initial sk suggests) is a Scandinav

Translation-Loans
  The term loan-word is equivalent to borrowing. By translation-loans we indicate borrowings of a special kind. They are not taken into the vocabulary of another languag

III. Explain the etymology of the italicized words; identify the stage of assimilation.
  1. Obviously, chere madame, the thief would take care to recover the money before he returned the dog. 2. Heyward went to the kitchen for a glass of milk. 3. It was a

V. In the following sentences find one of a pair of etymological doublets and name the missing member of the pair.
  1.1 led Mars (a dog) into the shadow of the building and looked around me. 2. "Unreliable", he said, "those fancy locks. Always getting jammed, aren't they?&qu

VII. Read the following text. Copy out the international words. State to what sphere of human activity they belong.
  British Dramatists   In the past 20 years there has been a considerable increase in the number of new playwrights in Britain and this has been encouraged by t

VIII. Read the following jokes. Identify examples of international words.
  1. Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration. 2. A psychologist is a man who watches everybody rise when a beautiful girl enters the room. 3. An expert

IX. State the origin of the following translation-loans. Give more examples.
  Five-year plan, wonder child, masterpiece, first dancer, collective farm, fellow-traveller. X. What is the difference between the words in the following pairs? Anal

XIII. Read the following extract. State the etymology of the italicized words. Comment upon their stylistic characteristics.
  The Oxford accent exists, but it defies definition. If is not, as the French think, the kind of English which is spoken within a twenty mile radius of the city.

How English Words Are Made. Word-Building1
  Before turning to the various processes of making words, it would be useful to analyse the related problem of the composition of words, i. e. of their constituent parts. If

Affixation
  The process of affixation consists in coining a new word by adding an affix or several affixes to some root morpheme. The role of the affix in this procedure is Very importan

Some Productive Affixes
  Noun-forming suffixes -er, -ing, -ness, -ism1 (materialism), -ist1 (impressionist), -ance Adj

Some Non-Productive Affixes
  Noun-forming suffixes -th,-hood Adjective-forming suffixes -ly, -some, -en, -ous

I. Consider your answers to the following.
  1. What are the main ways of enriching the English vocabulary? 2. What are the principal productive ways of word-building in English? 3. What do we mean by derivat

B. Those formed with the help of non-productive affixes. Explain the etymology of each borrowed affix.
1. Willie was invited to a party, where refreshments were bountifully served. "Won't you have something more, Willie?" the hostess said. "No, t

IV. Explain the etymology and productivity of the affixes given below. Say what parts of speech can be formed with their help.
  -ness, -ous, -ly, -y, -dom, -ish, -tion, -ed, -en, -ess, -or, -er, -hood, -less, -ate, -ing, -al, -ful, un-, re-, im (in)-, dis-, over-, ab- V. Write out fro

IX. Find eases of conversion in the following sentences.
  1. The clerk was eyeing him expectantly. 2. Under the cover of that protective din he was able to toy with a steaming dish which his waiter had brought. 3. An aggressive man battled

XI. Explain the semantic correlations within the following pairs of words.
  Shelter — to shelter, park — to park, groom — to groom, elbow — to elbow, breakfast — to breakfast, pin — to pin, trap — to trap, fish — to fish, head — to head, nurse — to nurse.

XIII. Read the following joke, explain the type of word-building in the italicized words and say everything you can about the way they were made.
A successful old lawyer tells the following story about the beginning of his professional life: "I had just installed myself in my office, had put i

Composition
  This type of word-building, in which new words are produced by combining two or more stems, is one of the three most productive types in Modern English, the other two are conversion

Semi-Affixes
  Consider the following examples. "... The Great Glass Elevator is shockproof, waterproof, bombproof, bulletproof, and Knidproof1..." (From Charlie and

Shortening (Contraction)
  This comparatively new way of word-building has achieved a high degree of productivity nowadays, especially in American English. Shortenings (or contracted/curtailed words)

Sound-Imitation (Onomatopoeia1)
  Words coined by this interesting type of word-building are made by imitating different kinds of sounds that may be produced by animals, birds, insects, human beings and inanimate ob

Reduplication
  In reduplication new words are made by doubling a stem, either without any phonetic changes as in bye-bye (coil, for good-bye} or with a variation of the root-v

Back-Formation (Reversion)
  The earliest examples of this type of word-building are the verb to beg that was made from the French borrowing beggar, to burgle from burglar, to cobble from

I. Consider your answers to the following.
  1. What is understood by composition? What do we call words made by this type of word-building? 2. Into what groups and subgroups can compounds be subdivided structurally?

A. Simple neutral compounds. B. Neutral derived compounds. C. Neutral contracted compounds.
  An air-conditioned hall; a glass-walled room; to fight against H-bomb; a loud revolver-shot; a high-pitched voice; a heavy topcoat; a car's windshield; a snow-white handkerchief; bi

VIII. Find shortenings in the jokes and extracts given below and specify the method of their formation.
  1. Brown: But, Doc, I got bad eyes! Doctor: Don't worry. We'll put you up front.5 You won't miss a thing.   2. "How was your guard duty yester

CHAPTER 7
What Is "Meaning"?   Language is the amber in which a thousand precious and subtle thoughts have been safely embedded an

Polysemy. Semantic Structure of the Word
  The semantic structure of the word does not present an indissoluble unity (that is, actually, why it is referred to as "structure"), nor does it necessarily stand for one

Types of Semantic Components
  The leading semantic component in the semantic structure of a word is usually termed denotative component (also, the term referential component may be used). The denot

Meaning and Context
  In the beginning of the paragraph entitled "Polysemy" we discussed the advantages and disadvantages of this linguistic phenomenon. One of the most important "drawback

I. Consider your answers to the following.
  1. What is understood by "semantics"? Explain the term "polysemy". 2. Define polysemy as a linguistic phenomenon. Illustrate your answer with your own e

II. Define the meanings of the words in the following sentences. Say how the meanings of the same word are associated one with another.
  1.I walked into Hyde Park, fell flat upon the grass and almost immediately fell asleep. 2. a) 'Hello', I said, and thrust my hand through the bars, whereon the

V. Explain the basis for the following jokes. Use the dictionary when in doubt.
  1. Caller: I wonder if I can see your mother, little boy. Is she engaged9 Willie: Engaged! She's married.   2. Booking Clerk

VII. Read the following jokes. Analyse the collocability of the italicized words and state its relationship with the meaning.
  1. Ladу (at party): Where is that pretty maid who was passing our cocktails a while ago? Hostess: Oh, you are looking for a drink? Lady: No, I'm l

How Words Develop New Meanings
  It has been mentioned that the systems of meanings of polysemantic words evolve gradually. The older a word is, the better developed is its semantic structure. The normal pattern of

Causes of Development of New Meanings
  The first group of causes is traditionally termed historical or extra-linguistic. Different kinds of changes in a nation's social life, in its culture, knowledge, te

The Process of Development and Change of Meaning
  The second question we must answer in this chapter is how new meanings develop. To find the answer to this question we must investigate the inner mechanism of this process, o

Transference Based on Resemblance (Similarity)
  This type of transference is also referred to as linguistic metaphor. A new meaning appears as a result of associating two objects (phenomena, qualities, etc.) due to their o

Transference Based on Contiguity
  Another term for this type of transference is linguistic metonymy. The association is based upon subtle psychological links between different objects and phenomena, sometimes

Narrowing (or Specialization) of Meaning
  Sometimes, the process of transference may result in a considerable change in range of meaning. For instance, the verb to arrive (French borrowing) began its life in English

II. Read the following extracts and explain the semantic processes by which the italicized words acquired their meanings
  1. 'Bureau', a desk, was borrowed from French in the 17thc. In Modern French (and English) it means not only the desk but also the office itself and the authority exercised b

IV. Explain the logical associations in the following groups of meaning for the same words. Define the type of transference which has taken place.
  1. The wing of a bird — the wing of a building; the eye of a man — the eye of a needle; the hand of a child — the hand of a clock; the heart of a man — the heart of the matter; the

V. Analyse the process of development of new meanings in the italicized words in the examples given below.
  1.I put the letter well into the mouth of the box and let it go and it fell turning over and over like an autumn leaf. 2. Those v/ho had been the head of the line paus

VI. Explain the basis for the following jokes. Trace the logical associations between the different meanings of the same word.
  1. Father was explaining to his little son the fundamentals of astronomy. "That's a comet." "A what?" "A comet. You know what a c

VII. In the examples given below identify the eases of widening and narrowing of meaning.
  1. While the others waited the elderly executive filled his pipe and lit it. 2. Finn was watching the birds. 3. The two girls took hold of one another, one acting gentleman,

Words of the Same Form
Homonyms are words which are identical in sound and spelling, or, at least, in one of these aspects, but different in their meaning.   E. g. bank, n. — a sho

Sources of Homonyms
  One source of homonyms has already been mentioned: phonetic changes which words undergo in the course of their historical development. As a result of such changes, two or mor

Classification of Homonyms
  The subdivision of homonyms into homonyms proper, homophones and homographs is certainly not precise enough and does not reflect certain important features of these wo

I. Consider your answers to the following.
  1. Which words do we call homonyms? 2. Why can't homonyms be regarded as expressive means of the language? 3. What is the traditional classification of homonyms? I

II. Find the homonyms in the following extracts. Classify them into homonyms proper, homographs and homophones.
  1. "Mine is a long and a sad tale!" said the Mouse, turning to Alice, and sighing. "It is a long tail, certainly," said Alice, looking down with wonder at the Mo

IV. a. Find the homonyms proper for the following words; give their Russian equivalents.
  1. bared — a company of musicians. 2. seal — a warm-blooded, fish-eating sea-animal, found chiefly in cold regions. 3. ear — the grain-bearing spike of a cereal plant,

C. Find the homographs to the following words and transcribe both.
  1. To bow — to bend the head or body. 2. wind — air in motion. 3. to tear— to pull apart by force. 4. to desert -— to go away from a person or place. 5.

B. Explain the homonyms which form the basis for the following jokes. Classify the types as in part a.
  1. An observing man claims to have discovered the colour of the wind. He says he went out and found it blew. 2. Child: Mummy, what makes the Tower of Pisa lean? Fa

VII. Explain how the following italicized words became homonyms.
  1. a) Eliduc's overlord was the king of Brittany, who was very fond of the knight, b) "I haven't slept a wink all night, my eyes just wouldn't shut." 2. a) T

A) etymology, b) word-building, c) stylistic characteristics
  "But I love the Italians," continued Mrs. Blair. "They are so obliging — though even that has its embarrassing side. You ask

A) stylistic characteristics, b) semantics, e) word-building.
  Once in the driving seat, with reins handed to him, and blinking over his pale old cheeks in the full sunlight, he took a slow look round. Adolf was already up

CHAPTER 10
Synonyms: Are Their Meanings the Same or Different?   Synonymy is one of modern linguistics' most controversial problems. The very

Criteria of Synonymy
  Synonymy is associated with some theoretical problems which at present are still an object of controversy. Probably, the most controversial among these is the problem of criteria of

Types of Synonyms
  The only existing classification system for synonyms was established by Academician V. V. Vinogradov, the famous Russian scholar. In his classification system there are three types

Types of Connotations
  I. The connotation of degree or intensity can be traced in such groups of synonyms as to surprise — to astonish — to amaze — to astound;1 to satisfy — to please

I. Consider your answers to the following.
  1. Say why synonyms are one of the language's most important expressive means. Illustrate your answer with examples. 2. Synonyms are sometimes described as words with "

II. The sentences given below contain synonyms. Write them out in groups and explain the difference where the words are familiar.
1. a) While Kitty chatted gaily with her neighbours she watched Walter, b) Ashenden knew that R. had not sent for him to talk about weather and crops, c) As he spoke he rose from the bed. d) He is

VI. Single out the denotative and connotative components of meanings of the synonyms in the examples given below.
  l. a) At the little lady's command they all three smiled, b) George, on hearing the story grinned. 2. a) Forsyte — the best palate in London. The palate that in a sens

VIII. Say why the italicized synonyms in the examples given below are not interchangeable.
  1. a) The little boys stood glaring at each other ready to start a fight, b) The Greek myth runs that Narcissus gazed at his own reflection in the water until he fell

B. synonyms differentiated by connotation of manner.
  1. Besides, Jack is a notorious domesticity for John! 2. His eyes sparkled with amusement. 3. "Joey-Joey...!" I said staggering unevenly towards the p

XII. Within the following synonymic groups single out words with emotive connotations.
  1. Fear— terror— horror. 2. look— stare— glare — gaze — glance. 3. love — admire — adore — worship. 4. alone — single — solitary — lonely. 5. tremble — shiver — shudder — shake. 6.

The Dominant Synonym
  The attentive reader will have noticed that in the previous chapter much use was made of the numerous synonyms of the verb to look, and yet, the verb to look itself wa

Euphemisms
  There are words in every language which people instinctively avoid because they are considered indecent, indelicate, rude, too direct or impolite. As the "offensive" refer

Antonyms
  We use the term antonyms to indicate words of the same category of parts of speech which have contrasting meanings, such as hot — cold, light —- dark, happiness — sorrow,

I. Consider your answers to the following.
  1. Which word in a synonymic group is considered to be the dominant synonym? What are its characteristic features? 2. Can the dominant synonym be substituted for certain ot

II. Find the dominant synonym in the following groups of synonyms. Explain your choice.
  1. to glimmer — to glisten — to blaze — to shine — to sparkle— to flash— to gleam. 2. to glare— to gaze — to peep — to look — to stare — to glance. 3. to astound — to surprise — to

VI. Find the euphemisms in the following sentences and jokes. Name the words for which they serve as euphemistic substitutes.
  1. Policeman (to intoxicated man who is trying to fit his key to a lamp-post): I'm afraid there's nobody home there tonight. Man: Mus' be. Mus' be. Theresh a light upstairsh.

VIII. Find antonyms in the following jokes and extracts and describe the resultant stylistic effect.
  1.Policeman (holding up his hand}: Stop! Visitor: What's the matter? P.: Why are you driving on the right side of the road? V.: Do you want me to r

CHAPTER 12
Phraseology: Word-Groups with Transferred Meanings Phraseological units, or idioms, as they are called by most western scholars, represent what can probab

How to Distinguish Phraseological Units from Free Word-Groups
  This is probably the most discussed — and the most controversial — problem in the field of phraseology. The task of distinguishing between free word-groups and phraseological units

Proverbs
  Consider the following examples of proverbs: We never know the value of water till the well is dry. You can take the horse to the water, but you cannot m

I. Consider your answers to the following.
  1. What do v/e mean when we say that an idiom has a "double" meaning? 2. Why is it very important to use idioms with care? Should foreign-language students use th

V. Substitute phraseological units incorporating the names of colours for the italicized words.
  1. I'm feeling rather miserable today. 2. He spends all his time on bureaucratic routine. 3. A thing like that happens very rarely. 4. You can talk ti

IX. Say what structural variations are possible in the following phraseological units. If in doubt, consult the dictionaries.
  To catch at a straw; a big bug; the last drop; to build a castle in the air; to weather the storm; to get the upper hand; to run for one's life; to do wonders; to run a risk; just t

Principles of Classification
  It would be interesting now to look at phraseological units from a different angle, namely: how are all these treasures of the language approached by the linguistic science? The ver

I. Consider your answers to the following.
  1. What is the basis of the traditional and oldest principle for classifying phraseological units? 2. What other criteria can be used for the classification of phraseologic

B. Give at least fifteen examples of your own to illustrate the phraseological units in your list.
III. a. Read the following text. Compile a list of the phraseological units used in it.1 Classify them according to Academician Vinogradov's classification system for phraseological units.

V. Complete the following sentences, using the phraseological units given in the list below. Translate them into Russian.
  1. If I pay my rent, I won't have any money to buy , food. I'm between ——. 2. It's no use grumbling about your problems — we're all ——. 3. He's sold his house and his business to go

VII. Complete the following sentences, using the words from the list below. Translate the phraseological units into Russian.
  1. She was so embarrassed that she went as red as a ——. 2.1 can carry the suitcase easily, it's as light as a ——. 3. The room is as warm as ——. 4. My sister does so many things that

VIII. In the examples given below identify the phraseological units and classify them on the semantic principle.
  1. The operation started badly and everyone was in a temper throughout. 2.1 know a man who would love meeting you. The perfect nut for you to crack your teeth on. 3.1 wish I had you

More Precise
  Two aviation meteorologists were engaged in shop talk. "No, I don't watch the TV weather commentary. I reckon you get better weather on the radio," said on

Do Americans Speak English
or American?   In one of his stories Oscar Wilde said that the English "have really everything in common with America nowadays, except, of course, langu

Vocabulary of American English
  It is quite true that the vocabulary used by American speakers, has distinctive features of its own. More than that: there are whole groups of words which belong to American vocabul

The Grammar System of American English
  Here we are likely to find even fewer divergencies than in the vocabulary system. The first distinctive feature is the use of the auxiliary verb will in the first pe

I. Consider your answers to the following.
  1. In what different ways might the language spoken in the USA be viewed linguistically? 2. What are the peculiarities of the vocabulary of English spoken in the USA?

XIII. Bead the following extract. Explain the difference in the meanings of the italicized words in American and British English.
  In America just as in English, you see the same shops with the same boards and windows in every town and village. Shopping, however, is an art of its own and you have to le

XVIII. Read the following passage. Give some more examples illustrating the differences in grammar between the two varieties of English.
  Q: I thought Americans always said gotten when they used the verb get as a full verb. But you did say I've got your point, didn't you? M: Yes, I did. Y

Supplementary Material
To Chapters 3, 4   From "GROWTH AND STRUCTURE OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE" by Otto Jespersen   Ch. IV.

Sources
  1. Амосова Н. Н. Английская контекстология. Л., 1968. 2. Амосова Н. Н. Основы английской фразеологии. Л., 1963. 3. Аракин В. Д. Очерки по исто

DICTIONARIES
  43. Апресян Ю. Д., Ботякова В. В., Латышева Т. Э. и др. Англо-русский синонимический словарь. М., 1998. 44. Аракин В. Д. и др. Англо-русский словарь. М., 1997

LIST OF AUTHORS QUOTED
Aldington R. Death of a Hero. M., 1958. Aldridge J. One Last Glimpse. Penguin Books, 1977. Anderson Wood P. A Five-Colour Buick. Bantam Books, 1975.

ЛЕКСИКОЛОГИЯ АНГЛИЙСКОГО ЯЗЫКА
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