现代英语词汇学概论chapter9
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The word “seat” has acquired the meaning of “the right to sit as a member” through metonymy.
11
– –
Example: Cradle
These meanings are derived through the following metonyms.
Diplomatic: Diplomacy
Diplomatic (original) skillful in dealing with international relations Analogy (present) skillful in dealing with any kind of relations Diplomacy (original) the art of dealing with international relations (present) ??? art of or skill in dealing with people
2
Causes of Change in word meaning
Linguistic causes
Extra-linguistic causes
– – –
ห้องสมุดไป่ตู้
Ellipsis Borrowing Analogy Figurative use of words Metaphor Metonymy
14
• Psychological cause
– The associated transfer of meaning and euphemistic use of words, etc. are often due to psychological factors.
• Euphemism（委婉词） • Grandiloquence（夸张） • Cynicism（挖苦语）
– People change word meaning owing to various psychological motives: • love, respect, courtesy, suspicion, pessimism, sarcasm, irony, hatred, contempt, avoidance of embarrassment, etc.
6
• Figurative use of words
–The figurative use refers to the expression of saying something is another thing thereby making the speech or article vivid and stimulating the readers’ imagination. The original thing is called tenor while thing compared to is called vehicle. –Metaphor & metonymy
gold: gold medal daily: daily newspaper
The meaning of the word “gold” has changed from material to refer to the whole phrase “gold medal”. This kind of change often occurs in habitual collocations.
15
Types/tendencies in semantic change
• Specialization / Restriction of meaning • Generalization / Extension of meaning • Degradation (pejoration) / Degeneration of meaning • Amelioration / Elevation of meaning
• Vocabulary is the most unstable element of a language as it is undergoing constant changes both in form and content. Comparatively speaking, the content is even more unstable than the form. • Changing in word meaning has never ceased since the language came into being and will continue in the future. • The change of word-meaning is fundamental in a living language.
Historical reason Social reason Psychological reason
3
Linguistic causes
• Ellipsis
– The meaning of a word may change when a phrase is shortened to one word which retains the meaning of the whole. This is called ellipsis.
This meaning is derived through the metaphor “The last line on this page is the foot of the page.”
10
•
–
Metonymy
Metonymy is a figure of speech by which an object or an idea is described by the name of something else closely related to it. That is to say, a transfer of names occurs between two things associated by actual contiguity, either by physical contact, or contact through various though associations. Seat Please take a seat. (a piece of furniture) He lost his seat in House of Commons.
4
• Borrowing
– The influx (流入) of borrowings has caused some words to change in meaning. • deer
(original) a wild animal of any sort from a lion to a mouse. In Middle Ages, the French word beste (=beast) became the general word. In 16th century, the Latin word animal was also adopted into the English vocabulary. Today deer can only refer to a particular kind of animal.
12
Extra-linguistic causes
• Historical cause
– A word has retained its original form, though its meaning has changed because the referent has changed, i.e., the historical cause of semantic change.
1. A small low bed for an infant, often furnished with rockers 2. The earliest period of life; infancy from the cradle to the grave 3. A place of origin; a birthplace the cradle of civilization.
5
• Analogy
– If an adjective develops a new meaning, the derived noun from the adjective will have a corresponding new meaning by analogy. The process can be applied to a word of any word class.
7
• Metaphor
– Metaphor is a figure of speech containing an implied comparison based on similarity. in which a word or a phrase ordinarily and primarily used for one thing is applied to another, a process which often results in semantic change or figurative extension of meaning.
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Chapter IX
CHANGES IN WORD MEANING
• Overview • Causes of changes in word meaning • Tendencies in semantic change
1
• An overview of semantic changes
pen
car
13
• Social cause
– Language records the speech and attitude of different social classes, so different social varieties of language have come into being. – The attitude of classes have penetrated into lexical meaning, particularly in the case of elevation and degradation.
• Churl, hussy, villain which were originally neutral have been downgraded as “ill-manned or bad people”. • Hot and cold have changed their meaning in the field of politics, as in “cold war”,” hot war” and “hot line”
9
Example: foot
1. Lowest part of the leg, below the ankle, on which a person or animal stands. 2. The lowest part; the bottom.
the foot of a mountain the foot of a page
16
Specialization: Restriction of Meaning
It is a process by which a word of wide meaning acquires a narrower or specialized sense. In other words, a word which used to have a more general sense becomes restricted in its application and conveys a special concept in present-day English.
• A beautiful woman may be described as a vision. • A cunning person is often referred to as a fox.
8
Metaphor
This is also a horse, but a metaphorical horse.
11
– –
Example: Cradle
These meanings are derived through the following metonyms.
Diplomatic: Diplomacy
Diplomatic (original) skillful in dealing with international relations Analogy (present) skillful in dealing with any kind of relations Diplomacy (original) the art of dealing with international relations (present) ??? art of or skill in dealing with people
2
Causes of Change in word meaning
Linguistic causes
Extra-linguistic causes
– – –
ห้องสมุดไป่ตู้
Ellipsis Borrowing Analogy Figurative use of words Metaphor Metonymy
14
• Psychological cause
– The associated transfer of meaning and euphemistic use of words, etc. are often due to psychological factors.
• Euphemism（委婉词） • Grandiloquence（夸张） • Cynicism（挖苦语）
– People change word meaning owing to various psychological motives: • love, respect, courtesy, suspicion, pessimism, sarcasm, irony, hatred, contempt, avoidance of embarrassment, etc.
6
• Figurative use of words
–The figurative use refers to the expression of saying something is another thing thereby making the speech or article vivid and stimulating the readers’ imagination. The original thing is called tenor while thing compared to is called vehicle. –Metaphor & metonymy
gold: gold medal daily: daily newspaper
The meaning of the word “gold” has changed from material to refer to the whole phrase “gold medal”. This kind of change often occurs in habitual collocations.
15
Types/tendencies in semantic change
• Specialization / Restriction of meaning • Generalization / Extension of meaning • Degradation (pejoration) / Degeneration of meaning • Amelioration / Elevation of meaning
• Vocabulary is the most unstable element of a language as it is undergoing constant changes both in form and content. Comparatively speaking, the content is even more unstable than the form. • Changing in word meaning has never ceased since the language came into being and will continue in the future. • The change of word-meaning is fundamental in a living language.
Historical reason Social reason Psychological reason
3
Linguistic causes
• Ellipsis
– The meaning of a word may change when a phrase is shortened to one word which retains the meaning of the whole. This is called ellipsis.
This meaning is derived through the metaphor “The last line on this page is the foot of the page.”
10
•
–
Metonymy
Metonymy is a figure of speech by which an object or an idea is described by the name of something else closely related to it. That is to say, a transfer of names occurs between two things associated by actual contiguity, either by physical contact, or contact through various though associations. Seat Please take a seat. (a piece of furniture) He lost his seat in House of Commons.
4
• Borrowing
– The influx (流入) of borrowings has caused some words to change in meaning. • deer
(original) a wild animal of any sort from a lion to a mouse. In Middle Ages, the French word beste (=beast) became the general word. In 16th century, the Latin word animal was also adopted into the English vocabulary. Today deer can only refer to a particular kind of animal.
12
Extra-linguistic causes
• Historical cause
– A word has retained its original form, though its meaning has changed because the referent has changed, i.e., the historical cause of semantic change.
1. A small low bed for an infant, often furnished with rockers 2. The earliest period of life; infancy from the cradle to the grave 3. A place of origin; a birthplace the cradle of civilization.
5
• Analogy
– If an adjective develops a new meaning, the derived noun from the adjective will have a corresponding new meaning by analogy. The process can be applied to a word of any word class.
7
• Metaphor
– Metaphor is a figure of speech containing an implied comparison based on similarity. in which a word or a phrase ordinarily and primarily used for one thing is applied to another, a process which often results in semantic change or figurative extension of meaning.
批注本地保存成功开通会员云端永久保存去开通
Chapter IX
CHANGES IN WORD MEANING
• Overview • Causes of changes in word meaning • Tendencies in semantic change
1
• An overview of semantic changes
pen
car
13
• Social cause
– Language records the speech and attitude of different social classes, so different social varieties of language have come into being. – The attitude of classes have penetrated into lexical meaning, particularly in the case of elevation and degradation.
• Churl, hussy, villain which were originally neutral have been downgraded as “ill-manned or bad people”. • Hot and cold have changed their meaning in the field of politics, as in “cold war”,” hot war” and “hot line”
9
Example: foot
1. Lowest part of the leg, below the ankle, on which a person or animal stands. 2. The lowest part; the bottom.
the foot of a mountain the foot of a page
16
Specialization: Restriction of Meaning
It is a process by which a word of wide meaning acquires a narrower or specialized sense. In other words, a word which used to have a more general sense becomes restricted in its application and conveys a special concept in present-day English.
• A beautiful woman may be described as a vision. • A cunning person is often referred to as a fox.
8
Metaphor
This is also a horse, but a metaphorical horse.