Transcript Episode 9 Polysemy & Homonymy

Episode 9
Polysemy & Homonymy
Pre-questions:
* What is meant by polysemy?
* How many processes are there leading to
polysemy?
* Where do polysemic and homonymous words
come from?
* How is ploysemy related to homonymy?
* How to get an all-round picture of polysemy
and homonymy?
Polysemy & Homonymy
Ⅰ. Polysemy
1. Definition
2. Processes Leading to Polysemy
3. Sources of Polysemy
Ⅱ. Homonymy
1. Definition
2. Types of Homonyms
3. Sources of Homonymy
Ⅲ. The Relation between Polysemy and
Homonymy
Ⅳ. Problem of Polysemy and
Homonymy
Ⅴ. Stylistic Value of Polysemy and
Homonymy
Ⅰ.
Polysemy
1. Definition
The word polysemy is of Greek origin(polys,
much+sema, meaning), meaning the coexistence
of many possible meaning of a word or phrase.
According to Crystal(1980:274), a polysemic
word refers to a lexical item which has a variety
of meanings used in semantic analysis.
There are countless examples of polysemic
words in English. The entry with the largest
number of meanings in the OED is verb”set”,
with 126 meanings, and 26 combinations
with and an adverb of which “set up’ has 67
senses.
2. Processes to Polysemy
(a) Radiation:
Semantically, radiation is the process in which the
primary or central meaning stands at the center
while derivative /secondary meanings radiate
from it in every direction like rays. e.g. the
polysemic meanings of the word “power” can be
seen in the diagram:
11
10
10
12
13
9
1
88
7
2
3
6
5
4
(1)the state of being able to do something,
ability to act;
(2)control over one’s subordinates;
(3) delegated authority;
(4) physical strength;
(5) mechanical energy;
(6) a mathematical conception, e.g. the fourth
power of x =x4;
(7) moral or intellectual force;
(8) a person of influence;
(9) one of the great nations of the world;
(10) an effective quality of style in writing or oratory;
(11) a lot of, e.g. an army of soldiers;
(12) the degree of magnification of a lens,
microscope, telescope, etc.;
(13) god, spirit, ghost.
(b) Concatenation
Concatenation is from Latin catena “chain”,
meaning “linking together”. It means that the
meaning of a word moves gradually away from
its original sense as a result of successive
semantic changes till, in many cases, there is not
a trace of connection between the sense that is
finally developed and the primary sense. The
evolution of the word “candidate” can be seen in
the following diagram:
A→A+B→B+C
A: a person in white
A + B: a white-robed seeker for
office
B + C: an applicant for office or a
person taking an exam.
Take “treacle” for another example:
A: concerning wild beasts
A + B: remedy for a wild beast’s bite
B + C: antidote or remedy against
venom in general
C + D: remedy in the form of syrup
D + E: syrup in general
(3) Proliferation
• Proliferation in fact is a comprehensive process in
which a single primary meaning of a word
developed to polysemic by means of radiation and
concatenation or by extension, narrowing or
transference. Take the word “face” for example:
B
E
A
D
C
F ...
A: the front of the head from the top of the forehead
to the bottom of the
chin, and from ear to ear
B: appearance(extension)
C: surface, front(extension)
D: expression, look(narrowing)
E: reputation(transference)
F: the surface of anything(extension and
transference)
3. Sources of Polysemy
• (1) Changes in application
• (2) Specialization in a social milieu
• (3) Figurative language
Ⅱ. Homonymy
1. Definition
In English, there are many pairs or groups of
words, which, though different in meaning, are
pronounced alike, or spelt alike, or both. Such
words are called homonyms, and such words are
in homonymy.(f GK homonumos, having the same
name f homo, the same, +onoma, name)
• Lexical items which have the same sound or
spelling or both, but differ in meaning are
called homonyms.
• Most of the homonyms are monosyllabic.
2. Types of Homonyms
(1) Perfect Homonyms(完全的同形异义词)
(2) Homophones(同音异形异义词)
(3) Homographs/Heteronyms(同形异音异义词)
(1) Perfect Homonyms
• Words identical in sound and spelling, but
different in meaning are called perfect
homonyms.
• A Riddle: Why is a book as noble as a lord?
•
•
•
•
Key: It has a title and many pages, too.
TITLE:
(1) name of a book, picture, etc.
(2) word used to show a person’s rank, occupation,
status, etc.
• PAGE: one side of a leaf of a paper in a book,
periodical, etc.
• PAGE: boy servant, usu. in uniform, in a hotel,
club, etc.
More Riddles:
A. What month do soldiers hate?
B. Why is an empty purse always the same?
C. How do we know the ocean is friendly?
Key A: March(三月，行军)
Key B: There is no change(零钱，变化) in it.
Key C: It waves.(起波浪，挥手致意)
More Examples:
POP: popular music
POP: short, sharp, explosive sound
POP: abbreviation for poppa=papa
SOUND: healthy, in good condition
SOUND: that which is or can be heard
SOUND: make sth. produce sound
SOUND: test the depth of (the sea, etc)
by letting down a weighted line
SOUND: narrow passage of water joining two
areas of water, strait
larger
(2) Homophones
Words identical in sound but different in
spelling and meaning are called
homophones.
dear
deer
meet
mete
meat
right
write
wright
rite
(3) Homographs/Heteronyms
Words identical in spelling but different in
sound and meaning are called homographs.
TEAR: n. drop of salty water coming
from the eye
TEAR: v. pull sharply apart or to pieces
MINUTE: the sixtieth part of an hour
MINUTE: very small
FREQUENT: v.
FREQUENT: adj.
COMPOUND: v.
More Examples:
COMPOUND: adj. or n
PRODUCE: n.
PRODUCE: v.
3. Sources of Homonymy
(1) Diverging Meaning Development
It refers to the split of polysemy. Different
meanings of the same word move so far away
from each other that they come to be
regarded as two separate words, e.g. “flower”
and “flour” originally were one word(flour＜
OF flor, flour ＜L. flos), meaning “flower”
and “the finest part of wheat”.
(2) Convergent Sound Development
It refers to the process by which two or more words
which were once different in origin and phonetically
have come to coincide in sound by chance, e.g. I ＜
OE ic—eye ＜OE eage).
(3) Abbreviation
Abbreviation has created many homonyms
accidentally, e.g. pop( a clipped form of popular
music)—pop( an explosive sound); rock(shortened
form for rock’n’roll) —rock(a large piece of stone
forming a peak or cliff)
Ⅲ. The Relation between Polysemy and
Homonymy
Homonyms
The Spilt of Polysemy
Etymological
Doublets
Etymological doublets/Cognates are words
derived from the same source, but different in
three “Ss”, i.e. spelling, sound, and sense.
• urbanus (Latin) →urban(城市的), urbane(有礼貌
的)
• cortesie (Old French) →curtsey(屈膝礼),
courtesy(礼貌)
• trepalium (Latin) →travel, travail(艰苦的努力)
• sceadu(Old English昏暗，影子) →shade(阴影，
昏暗), shadow(影子)
• gentilis (Latin) →gentle, genteel(有教养的),
gentile(异教徒)
• mantellun (Latin) →metal, mettle(气质),
mantel(壁炉架), mantle(斗蓬)
• discus (Latin) →dish, desk, dais(室内低台), disc,
discus(铁饼)
Ⅳ. Problem of Polysemy and Homonymy
• Since both polysemy and homonymy are
confusing , they can bring about lexical
ambiguity in isolated sentences.
• A lexical ambiguity arises because some word
has more than one interpretation, e.g.
He is a bachelor.
• In this sentence, bachelor is a polysemic, meaning
(1) a man who is not and has never been married;
(2) a person who holds a first degree from a
university or other academic institution. The two
senses are relatively close, traditionally denoting
“a young person”.
Ⅴ. Stylistic Value of Polysemy and Homonymy
• It is the possibility of ambiguity caused by polysemy and
homonymy that leads to playing on words, which can
achieve stylistic purposes such as pun, irony and humor, or
can heighten dramatic effect.
• See to the following two English riddles whose humorous
keys contain phonetic pun, the use of homophones:
Riddle1: Why is the bell the most obedient thing in the
world?
Key 1: Because it never speaks till it is told/tolled.
Riddle 2: What trees come in two’s?
Key 2: Pear/Pair trees.
• In the following sentences, polysemy and
homonymy are employed to create semantic pun:
(1) The young sow wild oats(野生燕麦，纵情欢
乐), the old grow sage(鼠尾草，圣人).
(2)We must all hang(紧紧团结在一起) together, or
we shall hang(被绞死) separately. (Benjamin
Franklin)
(3) A man sits down at a table in a restaurant and
asks, “Do you serve(供应，出售) crabs here?”
The waiter says, “Sure, we serve(为……服务)
anybody.”
Summarize the main features of the following:
Source Spelling Sound Sense
Perfect
Homonyms
Homophones
Homographs
Etymological
Doublets
Polysemics
Source Spelling
Sound
Sense
Perfect
Homonyms
Homophones
D
S
S
D
D
D
S
D
Homographs
D
S
D
D
Etymological
Doublets
Polysemics
S
D
D
D
/
/
/
/
Note: D for different; S for similar.