A polyseme is a word or phrase with different, but related,
senses. Since the test for polysemy is the vague concept of the relatedness, judgments of polysemy can be difficult to make. Because applying pre-existing words to new situations is a natural process of language change, looking at words'
etymology is helpful in determining polysemy but not the only solution; as words become lost in etymology, what once was a useful distinction of meaning may no longer be so. Some seemingly unrelated words share a common historical origin, however, so etymology is not an infallible test for polysemy, and dictionary writers also often defer to speakers' intuitions to judge polysemy in cases where it contradicts etymology. English has many polysemous words. For example, the verb "to
get" can mean "procure" (''I'll get the drinks
), "become" (she got scared
), "understand" (I get it'') etc. In linear or vertical polysemy, one sense of a word is a subset of the other. These are examples of
hyponymy and hypernymy, and are sometimes called autohyponyms. For example, 'dog' can be used for 'male dog'. Alan Cruse identifies four types of linear polysemy: • autohyponymy, where the basic sense leads to a specialised sense (from "drinking (anything)" to "drinking (alcohol)") • automeronymy, where the basic sense leads to a subpart sense (from "door (whole structure)" to "door (panel)") • autohyperonymy or autosuperordination, where the basic sense leads to a wider sense (from "(female) cow" to "cow (of either sex)") • autoholonymy, where the basic sense leads to a larger sense (from "leg (thigh and calf)" to "leg (thigh, calf, knee and foot)") In non-linear polysemy, the original sense of a word is used figuratively to provide a different way of looking at the new subject. Alan Cruse identifies three types of non-linear polysemy: Results for this contention, however, have been mixed. For
Dick Hebdige, polysemy means that, "each text is seen to generate a potentially infinite range of meanings," making, according to
Richard Middleton, "any homology, out of the most heterogeneous materials, possible. The idea of
signifying practice—texts not as communicating or expressing a pre-existing meaning but as 'positioning subjects' within a
process of
semiosis—changes the whole basis of creating social meaning".
Charles Fillmore and
Beryl Atkins' definition stipulates three elements: (i) the various senses of a polysemous word have a central origin, (ii) the links between these senses form a network, and (iii) understanding the 'inner' one contributes to understanding of the 'outer' one. One group of polysemes are those in which a word meaning an activity, perhaps derived from a verb, acquires the meanings of those engaged in the activity, or perhaps the results of the activity, or the time or place in which the activity occurs or has occurred. Sometimes only one of those meanings is intended, depending on
context, and sometimes multiple meanings are intended at the same time. Other types are derivations from one of the other meanings that leads to a verb or activity.
Examples in English ; ;Man :# The human species (i.e., man vs. other organisms) :# Males of the human species (i.e., man vs. woman) :# Adult males of the human species (i.e., man vs. boy) :#(As a verb) to operate or constitute a vehicle or machine (To man a ship) This example shows the specific polysemy where the same word is used at different levels of a
taxonomy. ;Bank :#
a financial institution :# the physical building where a financial institution offers services :# to deposit money or have an account in a bank (e.g. "I bank at the local credit union") :# a supply of something held in reserve: such as "banking"
brownie points :# a
synonym for 'rely upon' (e.g. ''"I'm your friend, you can
bank on me"
). It is different, but related,'' as it derives from the theme of security initiated by 1. :
However: 1 is borrowed from Italian
banco, a money lender's bench, while a river
bank is a native English word. Today they can be considered
homonyms with
completely different meanings. But originally they were polysemous, since Italian borrowed the word from a Germanic language. The Proto-Germanic cognate for "bank" is *bankiz. A river bank is typically visually bench-like in its flatness. According to the
Oxford English Dictionary, the three most polysemous words in
English are
run,
put, and
set, in that order. ==Related ideas==