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<DIV dir=ltr align=left><SPAN class=749470223-12042005><FONT face=Arial
color=#0000ff size=2>Synomyns are used to justify making a distinction between
'words' and 'concepts'.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><SPAN class=749470223-12042005><FONT face=Arial
color=#0000ff size=2>Supposedly a given concept could be expressed by different
synonyms.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><SPAN class=749470223-12042005><FONT face=Arial
color=#0000ff size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><SPAN class=749470223-12042005><FONT face=Arial
color=#0000ff size=2>I work with ontologies so often I am obliged to fall in
line in what I write.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><SPAN class=749470223-12042005><FONT face=Arial
color=#0000ff size=2>What I really feel is that there are only words which
sometimes overlap in meaning to a greater or lesser extent.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><SPAN class=749470223-12042005><FONT face=Arial
color=#0000ff size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><SPAN class=749470223-12042005><FONT face=Arial
color=#0000ff size=2>But real/complete synonyms whether within or across
languages never exists.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><SPAN class=749470223-12042005><FONT face=Arial
color=#0000ff size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><SPAN class=749470223-12042005><FONT face=Arial
color=#0000ff size=2>For some reason this position is incomprehensible to most
people I work with.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><SPAN class=749470223-12042005><FONT face=Arial
color=#0000ff size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><SPAN class=749470223-12042005><FONT face=Arial
color=#0000ff size=2>Christopher Brewster</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV><!-- Converted from text/plain format -->
<P><FONT size=2>*****************************************************<BR>Natural
Language Processing Group,<BR>Department of Computer Science, University of
Sheffield<BR>Tel: +44(0)114-22.21967 Fax: +44 (0)114-22.21810<BR>Regent
Court, 211 Portobello Street <BR>Sheffield S1 4DP
UNITED KINGDOM<BR>Web: <A
href="http://www.dcs.shef.ac.uk/~kiffer/">http://www.dcs.shef.ac.uk/~kiffer/</A><BR>*****************************************************<BR>A
definition is the enclosing a wilderness of an<BR>idea within a wall of
words.--- Samuel Butler<BR><BR><BR><BR><BR> </FONT> </P>
<DIV> </DIV><BR>
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style="PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #0000ff 2px solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px">
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<FONT face=Tahoma size=2><B>From:</B> Fritz Goerling
[mailto:Fritz_Goerling@sil.org] <BR><B>Sent:</B> 12 April 2005
23:46<BR><B>To:</B> lexicographylist@yahoogroups.com<BR><B>Subject:</B> RE:
[Lexicog] Synonymy<BR></FONT><BR></DIV>
<DIV></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff><SPAN class=875183622-12042005>It is my
pet peeve as a Bible translation consultant when teams answer to my
question</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff><SPAN class=875183622-12042005>about the
meaning of two ""synonymous"" words "they mean the same." I speak
one</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff><SPAN class=875183622-12042005>African
language fluently and have no problem to convince speakers of this
language</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff><SPAN class=875183622-12042005>that
certain words do not mean the same, by generating examples in which
one</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff><SPAN class=875183622-12042005>word has to
be used over another. But this becomes a challenge in other
languages</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff><SPAN class=875183622-12042005>which I do
not know when the translators say "no, they are just the same."
What</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff><SPAN class=875183622-12042005>usually
helps is to use an example from a common language (national or
trade</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff><SPAN class=875183622-12042005>language)
which shows how so-called "synonyms" differ connotatively.</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff><SPAN
class=875183622-12042005></SPAN></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff><SPAN
class=875183622-12042005>FWIW,</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff><SPAN class=875183622-12042005>Fritz
Goerling</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE>
<DIV class=OutlookMessageHeader dir=ltr align=left><FONT face=Tahoma
size=2></FONT> </DIV><TT><BR>Wayne
wrote:<BR><BR> What kinds of experiences have
you all had when trying to elicit<BR>
synonyms<BR> from speakers of a
language?<BR><BR> Do you sometimes get a
response something like, "Oh, there is a<BR>
little<BR> difference between those words,"
confirming what many lexicographers<BR>
and<BR> semanticians has claimed, that there
are seldom true synonyms in a<BR>
language?<BR><BR>
Wayne<BR>
-----<BR> Wayne
Leman<BR> Cheyenne website: <A
href="http://www.geocities.com/cheyenne_language">http://www.geocities.com/cheyenne_language</A><BR><BR>I'd
think more likely would be "no, they are just the same." That's what
I<BR>might answer for English "own" and "possess", for example. But then
you<BR>start investigating their actual usage, and you find that they are
not<BR>completely substitutable for each other. Then the fun begins to find
out<BR>why.<BR><BR>Mike Cahill<BR><BR></TT></BLOCKQUOTE></BLOCKQUOTE>
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