Seminar 1

LEXICOLOGY AS A BRANCH OF LINGUISTICS

Theoretical questions for self-control and discussion in class

1. Be ready to give definitions of the key linguistic terms: lexicology,

lexicography, etymology, semasiology, a word, a lexical unit, a referent, a
concept, denotative meaning, connotative meaning, motivation.
2. What is the object of lexicology?
3. What is the theoretical and practical value of English lexicology?
4. What is the relation of lexicology with other linguistic sciences?

5. What is lexicography? What is dictionary definition? What is dictionary entry?

6. How would you define the word? What are the two main types of
meaning? How would you define lexical and grammatical meaning of the
word?
7. How would you define the denotative and connotative meaning of the word?
What types of connotative meaning do you know? Give examples.

8. Who suggested the semantic triangle? What does it illustrate? What is a

referent? What is a concept?
9. What is motivation of the word? What types of motivation exist in the
language? Give examples.

Practical Tasks

1. Find several definitions of language given by different linguists. Compare

them, find out what unites and differentiates them.
The American linguists Bernard Bloch and George L. Trager formulated the
following definition: “A language is a system of arbitrary vocal symbols by
means of which a social group cooperates.”
According to Chomsky, language is a natural object, a component of the
human mind, physically represented in the brain and part of the biological
endowment of the species.
Edward Sapir then defined language as “a purely human and noninstinctive
method of communicating ideas, emotions, and desires by means of a system
of voluntarily produced symbols”.
 According to Derbyshire: “Language is undoubtedly a kind of means of
communication among human beings. It consists primarily of vocal sounds. It
is articulatory, systematic, symbolic and arbitrary.”
According to Lyons, languages are the principal systems of communication
used by particular groups of human beings within the particular society of
which they are members.
According to Saussure, Language is a link between thought and sound, and is a
means for thought to be expressed as sound.

2. Update the information in Point 2 of the lecture: the number of countries

where English is used as an official or semi-official language; the number of
people – native speakers of the English language and those who use it as a
second or foreign language; in what spheres of life is it predominant?

English is a West Germanic language. It has the largest number of speakers

worldwide and is the third most spoken native language, behind Mandarin
and Spanish. English is recognized as an official language in a total of 67 different
countries and 27 non-sovereign entities where English. The English language
has approximately 400 million native speakers worldwide, trailing only Mandarin and
Spanish. The British Council estimates that more than 1 billion people are learning
English as a second language at any given time. English, being the first world
language, is said to be the first global lingua franca and it is the most widely used
language in the world in international trade, diplomacy, mass entertainment,
international telecommunications and scientific publications as well as publishing
newspapers and other books. English is the dominant business language and it has
become almost a necessity for people to speak English if they are to enter a global
workforce.

3. Look at the list of dictionaries below. You can find all of them in the resource-
room of our faculty (opposite the Dean’s office).
Distribute them in your group (one dictionary for 1-2 students) and make a
short review of the dictionary: what information does it contain and for
whom and in what situation can be useful? What does the entry in this
dictionary look like? (Demonstrate it in any way – a copy / a photo of the
page.) Do you find it convenient to work with this dictionary?
1). Longman Essential Activator
2). Longman Dictionary of English Language and Culture
3). Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary
4). Oxford Collocations Dictionary for Students of English
 5). Concise Dictionary of English Etymology
6). Longman Dictionary of American English
7). Chambers Dictionary of Phrasal Verbs
8). Longman Dictionary of English Idioms
9). The Wordsworth Dictionary of Homonyms

4. a). Using a dictionary, look up the words below, decide if they have positive or
negative connotation, and give an explanation.
Cozy, gloomy, damp, spacious, cramped, draughty, luxurious
E.g.: spacious – means ‘lots of space’ – positive

b). Complete the following sentences with one of the above adjectives.
1. The place where I stayed was so cramped that I didn’t have any room to
store anything.
2. My new flat isn’t very big but I like it because it’s so cozy.
3. The problem with basement flats is that they can be very gloomy .
4. It’s one of the most luxurious houses I’ve ever seen; a bathroom for
every bedroom, color TV in every room, and a swimming pool on the roof.
5. My flat is so draughty that it still feels cold when tha central heating is
on.
6. I think the flat is spacious because I keep getting colds and there is a
funny smell everywhere.
Cramped- means a cramped room, building, etc is unpleasant because it is
not big enough.
Cozy – means
Gloomy – means unhappy and without hope
Luxurious – means very comfortable and expensive
Draughty- means having currents of cold air blowing through
Spacious – means large and with a lot of space
5. Find out what emotion/emotions the following interjections can express.

Ah! – panic Alas! – pity Gee!- surprise or admiration Gee whiz!-

introduce a remark or response. Ha!- you feel pleased, often because you
have discovered or achieved something Ha-ha!
representing the sound of laughter. People sometimes say this to show that
they think something is not funny. Heigh-ho! - an exclamation of surprise,
exultation, melancholy, boredom, or weariness. Ho! - used for showing that
you think something is surprising or slightly funny Ho hum! - something that
someone says to show they are slightly bored or cannot think of anything else to say
Hoorah/Hooray!- you shout to show that you are excited and happy about something
Oops/Whoops! - when a small mistake or slight accident has happened Phooey! -
showing that you are annoyed or disappointed, or that you do not believe something
Tush!- used as an exclamation of impatience, disdain, contempt Ugh!-
people make when they think something is extremely unpleasant. Uh-huh/Uh-uh!-
people make when they agree with something, or when they say ‘yes’ to a question
Wow! - an exclamation of surprise, wonder, pleasure. Whoopee! - you are
very happy and excited . Yech! - used to express rejection or disgust. Yoo-hoo! - to
grab someone's attention. Yum-yum!- you like the taste or smell of something

6. Analyse the cases of semantic motivation in the popular names of flowers.

Bachelor’s button, bellflower, bleeding heart, deadly nightshade
(belladonna), dwarf iris, lady’s sleeper / moccasin flower, oxlip, shooting
star, stork’s bill (geranium), sunflower, wallflower.
Bachelor’s button – or cornflower. Blue. A European composite
(Centaurea cyanus) having flower heads with usually
blue, pink, or white rays that is often cultivated in North
America.
Bellflower - a bell. Bleeding heart – to bleed, heart, and it has a form of a
heart. Deadly nightshade (b elladonna) – dead connected that this flower
is a poisonous. Dwarf iris - an imaginary creature like a little man, in
children's stories ( карликовый). Lady’s sleeper / moccasin flower-
moccasin is a a soft leather shoe. Oxlip or Primula elatior - The specific
epithet elatior means "taller".[4] The common name "oxlip", from "ox" and "slip", may refer to
the fact that oxlips (and cowslips) are often found in boggy pasture used by cattle.
Shooting star- , stork’s bill (geranium)- stork it’s a a large, white bird with
very long legs that walks around in water to find its food. ), Sunflower-
under the sun. Wallflower-