[Lexicog] Synonymy

[Mike_Cahill at SIL.ORG]

Wayne wrote:

      What kinds of experiences have you all had when trying to elicit
      synonyms
      from speakers of a language?

      Do you sometimes get a response something like, "Oh, there is a
      little
      difference between those words," confirming what many lexicographers
      and
      semanticians has claimed, that there are seldom true synonyms in a
      language?

      Wayne
      -----
      Wayne Leman
      Cheyenne website: http://www.geocities.com/cheyenne_language

I'd think more likely would be "no, they are just the same." That's what I
might answer for English "own" and "possess", for example. But then you
start investigating their actual usage, and you find that they are not
completely substitutable for each other. Then the fun begins to find out
why.

Mike Cahill



------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~-->
What would our lives be like without music, dance, and theater?
Donate or volunteer in the arts today at Network for Good!
http://us.click.yahoo.com/TzSHvD/SOnJAA/79vVAA/HKE4lB/TM
--------------------------------------------------------------------~->


Yahoo! Groups Links

<*> To visit your group on the web, go to:
    http://groups.yahoo.com/group/lexicographylist/

<*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
    lexicographylist-unsubscribe at yahoogroups.com

<*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to:
    http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/