Synonyms and Near Synonyms in Dictionaries of the English
Transcription
Synonyms and Near Synonyms in Dictionaries of the English
Synonyms and Near Synonyms in Dictionaries of the English Language Darija Omrčen Faculty of Kinesiology, University of Zagreb, Croatia SEMANTIC RELATIONSHIPS Synonymy, antonymy, polysemy, etc. are the key relationships in the mental lexicon of people. That is the reason why many dictionaries list synonyms, and sometimes also antonyms, of words. LEXICOGRAPHERS - are not always in agreement as regards the choice of synonyms for a certain word HOW TO TEST SYNONYMY - to analyse the degree of concurrence in the connotation of a certain word TECHNICAL LANGUAGE - - tries to avoid both synonymy and near synonymy still, there are cases when synonymy is possible 7 words/terms/lexemes in 11 general and 1 technical dictionary – all monolingual - - recreation, fitness, leisure, health, well-being, wellness and sport GNERAL AIM OF RESEARCH How accurately dictionaries - in the case of this analysis mostly general ones describe a certain concept by listing possible synonyms and near synonyms of their names. SPECIFIC AIM OF RESEARCH Whether there are any semantic links between the analysed terms, and how much attention do certain dictionaries pay to listing the synonyms of certain words. SPECIFIC AIM OF RESEARCH To compare the two segments: 1 dictionaries published before the year 1995 2 dictionaries published after the year 1995 - the dependent variables: 1 sum of synonyms of all seven words 2 sum of synonyms of each word for each of the 12 dictionaries in the sample METHODS - Frequency distributions per item per dictionary - Chi-square tests of differences RESULTS R 12 R 11 R 10 R 9 R 8 R 7 R 6 R 5 R 4 R 3 R 2 R 1 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 R EC R EAT IO N Number of synonyms for the word recreation per dictionary. RESULTS R 12 R 11 R 10 R 9 R 8 R 7 R 6 R 5 R 4 R 3 R 2 R 1 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 26 F IT N ESS Number of synonyms for the word fitness per dictionary. RESULTS R 12 R 11 R 10 R 9 R 8 R 7 R 6 R 5 R 4 R 3 R 2 R 1 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 L EISU R E Number of synonyms for the word leisure per dictionary. RESULTS R 12 R 11 R 10 R 9 R 8 R 7 R 6 R 5 R 4 R 3 R 2 R 1 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 H EAL TH Number of synonyms for the word health per dictionary. RESULTS R 12 R 11 R 10 R 9 R 8 R 7 R 6 R 5 R 4 R 3 R 2 R 1 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 W EL L - BEIN G Number of synonyms for the word well-being per dictionary. RESULTS R 12 R 11 R 10 R 9 R 8 R 7 R 6 R 5 R 4 R 3 R 2 R 1 0 ,0 0 ,2 0 ,4 0 ,6 0 ,8 1 ,0 1 ,2 1 ,4 1 ,6 1 ,8 2 ,0 2 ,2 W EL L N ESS Number of synonyms for the word wellness per dictionary. RESULTS R 12 R 11 R 10 R 9 R 8 R 7 R 6 R 5 R 4 R 3 R 2 R 1 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 SPO R T Number of synonyms for the word sport per dictionary. RESULTS - chi-square test - between the segments the set of dictionaries published before the year 1995 and the set of dictionaries published after the year 1995 – sum of synonyms of all seven words per dictionary - did not show any significant differences between them (χ2=12.00; df=11; p=0.36) RESULTS - chi-square test - between the segments the set of dictionaries published before the year 1995 and the set of dictionaries published after the year 1995 – sum of synonyms per each word per dictionary – yielded only one significant difference: the word wellness (χ2=6.00; df=2; p=0.05) DISCUSSION - SPORT “… a structured, goal-oriented, competitive, contest-based, ludic physical activity” (McPherson et al., 1989) - the synonyms that can be found in dictionaries for the word sport – such as amusement relaxation, game, etc. – are most frequently connected with the original meaning of the word sport – jest and fun DISCUSSION The R8 dictionary, as a dictionary that offers on the whole the largest number of synonyms and near synonyms for all analysed words/terms - lists the word sport as a synonym for recreation, thus probably connoting the fact that physical recreation implies sporting activity and physical exercise participation as one form of recreation in general. Oxford Dictionary of Sports Science and Medicine (M. Kent, 1998) - - The term recreation is interpreted as active leisure which is very similar to the concept of physical recreation in kinesiology, and which Kent terms physical recreation. In the term active leisure the attribute active implies physical activity. R8 DICTIONARY Lists the words general condition, physical condition, fitness, but also well-being as synonyms of the word health. FITNESS This means that the word fitness is also found among the synonyms for health and it is used, both in general language and in the context of sport, in the meaning condition or capacity/ability. THE CONCEPT OF FITNESS Fitness as a concept can be considered within the context of competitive sport (which is then regarded as performancerelated fitness), but also within the context of health (i.e. health-related fitness). R6 DICTIONARY Listed as many as 14 synonyms and near synonyms for the term well-being, and no synonyms for the word wellness. the publication year - 1995 – of the R6 dictionary - too early year for including the entry wellness into the English language lexicon as regards the formation of the concept of wellness in general (1970s) EXPLANATION The term well-being is better known to more people and they probably frequently connect it with the concepts of recreation and health, maybe also sport in that part of the meaning in which sport is regarded as a healthy activity. EXPLANATION It is possible that the concept of well-being is linked to the concept of wellness in the mental lexicon of people. WELLNESS & FITNESS Wellness, as well as fitness, implies good condition, both physical and mental. CONCLUSION The words/terms recreation, fitness, leisure, health, well-being, wellness and sport are interconnected. CONCLUSION Some of the analysed terms can be arranged as synonyms either by the superordinate field or by the subfield they belong to: - fitness, from technical kinesiological point of view, can belong to a superordinate field of health, but also to the subfield physical preparation of athletes - well-being/wellness also belongs to the superordinate field of health and the subfield recreation or leisure