现代英语词汇学（第五章）

现代英语词汇学（第五章）,ChangofMeaningFromthesociolinguisticpointofviewweknowthatvocabularynotonlychanges,butalsochangesquickly.Changesinpronunciationandgrammararemuchslower,butchangesinvocabularyaremuchfaster.Whenpeoplehavemetwithnewobjectsandnewideas,theyhaveneedofnewwordstoexpressthem.Inthecourseofthedevelopmentoflanguageoldwordsdieout,newwordsareadded,andexistingwordschangetheirmeanings.Itisobviousthatthegradualchangeofmeaninginwordsisauniversalfeatureofhumanlanguage.,Changeofmeaningcanbebroughtaboutbymanycauses.1.PolysemyPolysemyis“termusedinsemanticanalysistorefertoalexicalitemwhichhasarangeofdifferentmeanings.”Itisauniversalfeaturetoallnaturallanguages.ThisparticularlytrueofhighlydevelopedlanguageslikeEnglish.InmodernEnglish,anoverwhelmingmajorityofwordsarepolysemous.AcasualglanceofanypagesofanEnglishdictionarywilljustifythefact.Therearewordsthathavetwoor,threesenses,andthemostcommonlyusedonescanhaveasmanyasoverahundred.However,whenawordisfirstcoined,itisalwaysmonosemic.Butinthecourseofdevelopment,thesamesymbolmustbeusedtoexpressmoremeanings.Theresultispolysemy.Thenhowdoesawordacquirenewmeanings?Inwhatwayarethemeaningsrelatedtooneanother?SourcesofpolysemyPolysemycanriseinanumberofways.AccordingtoStephenUlmann,therearefivesources.Butherewewillconfineourselvestotheexaminationofthethreemostimportantones,sincetheothertwo(HomonymsreinterpretedandForeignInfluence)arerareornotquitenormalinEnglish.ShiftinapplicationWordshaveanumberofdifferentaspectsaccordingtothecontextinwhichtheyareused.Someoftheseaspectsarepurelyephemeral/transient;othersmaydevelopintopermanentshadesofmeaningand,asthegapbetweenthemwidens,wemayeventuallycometoregardthemasdifferentsensesofthesameterm.Shiftsinapplicationareparticularlynoticeableintheuseofadjectivessincetheseareapttochangetheirmeaningaccordingtothenountheyqualify.,B.Specialization/narrowinginasocialmilieu/mi:lj:/Polysemyoftenarisesthroughakindofverbalshorthand.Forexample,“action”willnaturallymean“legalaction”;forthesoldieritwillmeanamilitaryoperation,withoutanyneedforaqualifyingepithet.Inthiswaythesamewordmayacquireanumberofspecializedsenses,onlyoneofwhichwillbeapplicableinagivenmilieu.C.FigurativelanguageAwordcanbegivenoneormorefigurativesenseswithoutlosingitsoriginalmeaning:oldandnewwillliveonsidebysideaslongasthereisnopossibilityofconfusionbetweenthem.Polysemythatisbasedonmetaphorcanbeexemplifiedbythefollowingphrases:,thebedofariver,thecockofagun,asaddleinthemountain,asheetofpaper,etc.Besidesmetaphor,metonymymayworkinthesameway.Theword“board”canmean,amongotherthings,atableaswellasthepersonssittingaroundthetable.“Surgery”canrefertotheartofasurgeon,andalsotheroomwherepatientsareseenandmedicineisdispensed.Primarymeaningandderivative/derivedmeaningTheprimarymeaningreferstowhatawordoriginallymeantandthederivativemeaningreferstothemeaningspringingfromtheoriginalmeaning.Forexample,theword“place”originallycamefromtheGreekwordfor“broad”andsignifieda“widestreet”,or“square”inacity.Nowitreferstoanykindoflocalityasin“aplaceofworship”,“asoreplaceonmyback”or“passage,part”asin“IcantfindtheplacewhereIstoppedreading”.Themeanings“anykindoflocality”and“passage,part”arederivedfromtheoriginalmeaning“broad”.Therearecaseswhereoldermeaningsareoftenrestrictedtoanarrowrangeofsetofphrasesandnewermeaningscanoccurmorefreely.Theword“pain”,forexample,originallymeant“penalty,punishment”.Thissensenowsurvivesonlyinsetexpressionssuchaspainsandpenalties,on(under)painofdeath.Butthederivedmeaning“asensationofhurtingorgreatdiscomfort”occursmorefreelyandwidely.,CentralmeaningandsecondarymeaningAnimportantprocessbywhichwordsextendtheirmeaningiscalledradiation.Theprimaryorcentralmeaningappearsatthecenterintheformofahub(轴心）andsecondarymeaningsradiateoutfromitlikethespokes（轮辐）ofawheel.Eachofthesecondarymeaningsisindependentofalltherest,andmaybetracedbacktothecentralsignification/meaning.Taketheword“power”forexample.Itscentralmeaningis“abilitytoact”.Itmayrefersto(1)controlonessubordinates;(2)delegatedauthority;(3)physicalstrength;(4)mechanicalenergy;(5)adevicebymeansofwhichenergycanbeappliedtomechanicalpurposes;(6)moralorintellectualforce;(7)aperson,ofinfluence;(8)oneofthegreatnationsoftheworld;(9)amathematicconception;(10)anarmyortroopofsoldiers;(11)aneffectivequalityofstyleinwritingororatory;(12)thedegreeofmagnificationoflens,microscope,telescope,etc.(toillustratepowerwithadiagraph)Itshouldbenotedthattheradiatingsensesof“power”donotallcomefromthecentralideabythesameprocess.Thusthefirstmeaning“controloveronessubordinates”ismerespecialization.Thesenseof“effectiveness”isbothspecializedandfigurative.Thewritersdictionis,asitwere,personified,andhasattributedtoittheabilitytomovethethoughtsorfeelingsofhisreaders.Itisactuallythewriterwhohaspower,buttheideaiseasilyascribed/attributedtotheimplementbymeansofwhichheexertsit.Again,when,amaniscalled“apowerinthecommunity”,wehavetheverycommonuseoftheabstractfortheconcrete.Anotherprocess,asopposedtoradiation,iscalledconcatenation.Itisatermusedtorefertoanotherprocessofsense-shiftinwhichtheoriginalmeaningofawordmaybelostonothermeaning,thatistosay,awordmovesgraduallyawayfromitsoriginalsenseasaresultofsuccessivesemanticchangesuntil,inmanycases,thereisnotatraceofconnectionbetweenthesensethatisfinallydevelopedandtheprimarysense.Thedevelopmentofthemeaningofboardservesasagoodexample.BoardhasthefollowingmeaningsinCOD:(1)longthinusu.fairlynarrowpieceofsawntimber;slabmadeofoneorsuchpiecesofwood,etc:,bareorcoveredwithcloth,leather,etc,usedforvariouspurposes,asingames,forpostingnotices,etc.;(2)table;tablespreadformeals;foodserved,dailymealsprovidedatcontractpriceorinreturnforservices(esp.boardandlodging);council-table,councilors,committee;directorsofacompany;(3)shipssideFromtheabovelist,weseethatthewordboard,initsspecializedapplicationtoatable,hasacquiredtwoverydivergent/deviate(发散)senses,eachofwhichhasgivenrisetoanothersensefromwhichtheoriginalnotionhasdisappeared.Theprocesscanbeillustratedbythefollowingdiagram:,boardapieceoftimbertablediningtable;counciltable;foodservedattablecouncilors;(esp.mealssuppliedcommittee;bytheweekormonthdirectorsofae.g.ataboardinghouse);company(boardandlodging),Thelasttwosensesarefarremovedfromtheoriginalsensein(1),while,however,remainsinusealonewiththederivedsenses.Onlyagivencontextcandeterminewhichoneofthesemeaningsisapplicable.Sofarwehavediscussedsemanticchangesleadingtothegrowthofpolysemy.Whenachangeofmeaningtakesplace,thewordinquestionoftenretainsitsoriginalmeaningwhilethenewoneisbeingadded.2.TypesofsemanticchangeChangesoflexicalmeaningcanbebroughtaboutbymanycauses,suchashistoricalcauses,socialcauses,psychologicalcauses,linguisticcauses,etc.Here,inthiscourse,wemainlyfocusonlinguisticcauses.,1211103945678abarchartofradiation,A.Generalization（词义的扩展）Generalizationreferstotheextensionoftherangeoflexicalmeaning.ExtensionofmeaningisoneofthemostcommonfeaturesofthehistoryofEnglishwords.Inthecourseofsensedevelopmentagreatnumberofwordshavebeenenlargedinmeaning.Semanticchangesofthiskindmayoccurinthreeways:1)Fromspecifictogeneral:Itisthroughwideningofmeaningthatamonosemicwordismadepolysemic.Forinstance,thewordpicturehadbeenusedonlytorefertoapainting,thenadrawing.Butitisnowappliedtoarepresentationof,Somebodyorsomethingmadebypaintingordrawing,orphotograph,afilm,aTVpicture,anX-raypicture,andnowevenaradio-telescopepicture.Wherethereferentwasonceafixedstableobject,picturenownamesaclassofthingsthatcanbreakupandreassemblethemselves,dissolve,andinthecaseoflaserholography(全息摄影术),evenbethreedimensional.2)Frompropernounstocommonnouns:Manypropernounsincludingperson-names,place-names,etc,havebecomecommonnounsusedineverydaylife.Thefollowingexampleswillillustratethis.Forexample,Sandwichcomesfromagamblersnametodenoteakindoffastfood,andnowcanbeusedasaverbmeaning“placeorsqueezebetween”asin“Sandwichedbetweenthedoorandthewindowisa,giantrefrigerator.Moreexamplesareasfollows:champagne-whitewine(fromChampagne,aformerprovinceoftheeastFrance)cashmere-finesoftwoolofKashmirgoat;imitationofit(fromKashmir,aplace-nameinSouthernAsia)ampere-fundamentalunitofelectricalcurrent(fromAndrMarieAmpre,aFrenchphysicist,1836)watt-ameasureofelectricalpower(fromJamesWatt,aScottishengineer,1819)ohm-ameasureofelectricalresistance(fromGeorgeSimonOhm)volt-aunitofelectromotiveforce,(fromAlessandroVolt,anItalianphysicist,1827),3)Fromconcretetoabstract:TheEnglishlanguagehasitsspecialstockofwordsthatstandforeverything.Suchwordsare:account,affair,business,circumstance,concern,condition,fact,matter,means,position,situation,thing,way.Eachofthesemaybeusedinanabstractsenseinsteadofconcretemeaningaswasusedinthepast.Thewordmatter,forinstance,originallymeant“timber”.Nowithasalotofabstractmeanings.(1)Theworldismadeofmatter.(substancesofwhichthephysicalthingismade)(2)Thematterinyouressayisgood.(materialforthoughtorexpression),(3)ThisisamatterIknowlittleabout.(somethinginwhichattentionisgiven)(4)Whatsthematter?Whyareyoucrying?(atroubleorcauseofpain,illness,etc)(5)Itmadenomattertohimthathisbrotherlostallhismoney.(ofimportance)4)Fromtechnicaltermstogeneralwords:Thewordcatalystisoriginallyatechnicalterm,usedinchemistrymeaning“asubstancewhich,withoutitselfchanging,causeschemicalactivitytoquicken”,butnowitisalsoacommonword,whenusedfiguratively,e.g.“Theworkersdemandforhigherwageswasacatalystinadifficultstateofaffairs,andledtoimportantsocialchanges.”,B.Specialization:（词义的缩小）Specialization,alsocallednarrowingorrestrictionofmeaning,istheoppositeofgeneralization.ItisaprocessbywhichawordofwidemeaningbecomesrestrictedtoaNarrowerorspecializedsense.AnexampleofnarrowingMeaningistheverbtostarve.Thewordoriginallymeant“todie”.InMiddleEnglishitwasspecializedtomean“todieofcold”,butinthesixteenthcenturyitmeant“todieofhunger”.ThismeaninghassurvivedinModernEnglish.Therearethreekindsofspecialization.1)Fromgeneraltospecific:Inearlytimes,ahumanoranimalbody,livingordead,wascalledcorpse.Nowthisgeneraltermhasspecializedtomean“adeadbody,especiallyofhumanbeing”.Hospital,asanotherexample,originallymeant“aplaceforshelterorentertainmentoftravelers,butnowitisrestrictedto“placewherepeoplearetreatedforillnessorinjuries.2)FromabstracttoconcreteAnotherprocessofsemanticshiftisatransformationfromanabstractmeaningtoaconcretemeaning,asopposedto“fromconcretetoabstract”.Thewordgearoncemeant“habits”or“manner”inMiddleEnglish.Thenitcametomean“equipment”or“apparatus”.InModernEnglishitreferstoaconcretething,thatis,asetoftoothedwheelsworkingtogetherinamachine,especiallysuchasettoconnectamotorcarenginewiththeroadwheels.Anotherexampleisthewordcatch.Theprimarymeaningofthiswordis“actofcatching,especiallyaball”.Nowithascometomeanaconcretething,namely,“ahookorotherapparatusforfasteningsomethingorholdingitshut”(钩子;用于拴紧东西或控制运动状态的装置).(mousetrap:捕鼠器)Itisinterestingtofindthesamecaseinourmothertongue,Chinese.WehavethefollowingsentenceintheYijing(TheBookofChanges):“Itsstenchisassweetasanorchid(其臭如兰)”.Theword“臭”inancientChinesemeantodoringeneral,referringtoanunpleasantodoraswellasadelightfulone.ButinModernChinese,“臭”isusedtodenoteanoffensiveodoronly,justlikestenchinEnglish.3)Fromcommonnounstopropernouns:Onestrikinguseofcommonnounsforpropernounsistheapplicationofnounsexpressingplacesornamesofplaces.InEnglish,somepropernounssuggestallusionsoranecdoteswhichtickleoutourfancytoremember.Theymaycomefromhistoryorfromliteraturedifferently.Forexample,Judas,thedisciplewhobetrayedJesus,isoftenusedjocosely(说玩笑地,诙谐地)tomean“atraitor”,orinparticular,“afalsefriend”;,Shylock,acharacterinShakespearesMerchantofVenice,“amercilessusurer/ju:r/(personwholendsmoneyathighinterest)”,oringeneral,“amoneygrabber(强夺者;贪心汉)”.Specializationhassomethingtodowithpolysemy.Intheprocessofsense-developmentthemeaningofawordmaybecomenarrowerthanitsprimarysense.Theworddisease,forinstance,wasformerlyusedforanykindofdiscomfort,butnowithascometomean“anillness”.Somespecialsensesaredependentonourbusiness,profession,orchiefinterestinlife.Thewordmachineforinstance,toaworkermysuggest“alathe”;toaseamstressislikely“asewingmachine;toatypistisprobably“atypewriter”;toascientist,“acomputer”.,Somespecialsensesaredependentonourbusiness,profession,orchiefinterestinlife.Thewordmachine,forinstance,isatermofgeneralapplicationtoallkindsofmechanicalcontrivances.Toaworkeritislikelytosuggestsalathe;toaseamstress/sem-/(女裁缝)itsuggestsasewingmachine;toatypistitmeansatypewriter;toascientistitmayrefertoacomputer;andsoon.Sometimesthetwoprocessesofwideningandnarrowingmaytakeplaceinthesameword,suchISthewordslay,whichfirstmeanttostrike,togiveablow.Thenitcametomeantokillbyablow.Thisisaresultofnarrowingofmeaning,andthenbywideningitmeanttokillbyanymethod.,Specializationandgeneralizationarecloselyrelated.Thelatterisnowlesscommonthantheformer,becauselanguageineverydaylifeisdirectedtowardstheconcreteandspecificratherthantowardstheabstractandgeneral.C.Elevationofmeaning(词义的升格)Wordsoftenrisefromahumblebeginningtopositionofgreaterimportancebecauseofsocialchanges.Thisiscalledelevationofmeaning,oramelioration.Elevationofmeaningisalsoaspecialkindofnarrowingofmeaning.Aspecialkindofnarrowingofmeaningistheacquisitionbyawordofgoodimplication.,Thewordsuccesshaschangeditsmeaningfromresulttogoodresult.Thewordpoliticianhadsinister/evilmeaning:trickeryinShakespearesday,butnowithascometomeanapersonwhosebusinessispolitics,especiallyonewhoisamemberofaparliament.Moreexamples:wordoldmeaningelevatedmeaningfamereportergoodreputationfondfoolishhavingalonglikingministerservantheadofaministryangelmessengermessengerofGodniceignorantdelightful;pleasantmarshalkeeperofhorsehigh-rankingofficial,D.Degeneration/Degradation（词义的降格）Degenerationordegradationofmeaningistheoppositeofsemanticelevation.Whenthemeaningofawordnarrowstowardanunfavorablemeaningitiscalleddegeneration.Itisaprocesswherebywordsofgoodoriginfallintoillreputationornon-affectivewordscometobeusedinderogatorysense.Observationshowsthatitismuchmorecommonforwordmeaningtochangeindenotationfrompejorativethanitisforthemtogotheotherway.ManywordswhichareoncenamesforthecommonpeopleintheMiddleAgeshavetakenonbadmeanings.Aboorwasmerelyapeasantandhasnowdegeneratedtoarude,ill-manneredperson.Churlusedtobeapeasantorfreemanhascometodenoteuncultivatedormeanperson.Awenchwasacountrygirlandnowmeansawantonwomanorprostitute.Hussyformerlymerelyahousewifehavebeendowngradedintoawomanoflowmoral.Thewordbelowhaveundergonethesameprocess:WordOldMeaningDegradedMeaningsillyhappyfoolishcriticizeappraisefindfaultwithlustpleasuresexualdesirelewd/lu:d/ignorantlecherous(好色的;纵欲的)knaveboydishonestperson,E.Transferenceofmeaning（词义的转移）Almosteveryconceptionhastwoaspects:(1)thatofthepersonorthingthatpossessesorexercisesit;(2)thatofthepersonorthingthatisaffectedbyit.Thisdifferencebetweentheactiveagentandtheeffectproduced,betweenthecauseandthatwhichitcauses,betweenthesubjectiveandobjective,isverygreat.Theprocessbywhichthedifferencehasoccurredinthedevelopmentofalanguageiscalledtransferenceofmeaning.Herewewillconfineourselvestothedistinctionbetweensubjectiveandobjective.Afewexampleswillmakeclearerthisimportantpoint.In“Shamekepthimsilent”,thesubj