Sources of synonymy

The problem of such sources can be hardly be solved only diachronically or synchronically only as both approaches have to be combined.

1. The first and most important source as noted by the majority of linguists is the borrowing process from other languages. Otto Jespersen noted that modern English is particularly rich in synonyms because Britons, Romans, Saxons, Danes and Normans influenced each others’ speech in the course of history. If compared simple native words within one synonymic group are stylistically neutral. French borrowings are literary or bookish. The words of the Greek and Roman origin are learned.

Native French Latin

to ask to question to interrogate

belly stomach abdomen

empty devoid of vacuous

to end to finish to complete

The most active during the last one hundred years was the process of borrowing from American English.

British American

trunk call long distance call

lorry truck

trick gimmick

wireless radio

lift elevator

English Scottish

girl lassie

charm glamour

liquor whiskey

clover

………………..

Grass, pot, shit, cannabis, a monkey are synonyms of dope.

4. New words form synonyms to the existing ones by way of affixation or loss of affixes or conversion, compounding and shortening. Content and contents, amongst and among, although and though, effectivity and effectiveness, laugh and laughter.

5. Appearance of phrasal verbs which is a very strong process in modern English, and they are functioning alongside with the existing verbs: to choose and to pick out, to abandon and to give up, to return to come back, to return and give back, to postpone and to put off.

6. Development of phraseology.

7. Euphemisation of speech, e.g. to die and to be no more, to be gone, to pass away, to breath one’s last, to join the silent majority, to go the way of all flesh, to go west.

Antonyms

Antonyms are defined as two or rarely more words that belong to the same language, same part of speech, same semantic field, identical in style, often associated and used together in one and the same context, but reflecting denotative meanings which render contradictory or contrary notions.

There are absolute antonyms which have different roots like right and wrong, and derivational antonyms with negative affixes, like happy and unhappy, tasty and tasteless, etc.

As a rule a pair of derivational antonyms forms a binary opposition which permits no elements in between. On the other hand absolute antonyms form two polar members of a gradual opposition with some intermediary elements between them, e.g. beautiful, good-looking, plain, ugly.

Besides there are so-called complementary (дополняющие) antonyms which neither have intermediary elements, e.g. male and female, war and peace, wealth and poverty.

Almost every word of the language has one or several synonyms, but few have antonyms. Antonymy is especially evident with the qualitative adjectives like new and old, good and bad, pleasant and unpleasant, etc. Antonymy is also manifested in the words derived from the qualitative adjectives, e.g. gladly and sadly, gladness and sadness, etc.

Unlike synonyms antonyms mostly form pairs, but not groups, e.g. absent – present, above – below, etc. Still there are cases when the language may offer three or more words showing antonymical relations to each other, but still having a strong tendency of falling into the same binary oppositions. E.g. hot, warm – cool, cold.

Polysemantic words may find antonyms only in some of their meanings and no antonyms in the others. E.g. a short story – a long story, a short man – a tall man, to be short with sb – to be polite/civil with sb.

Though antonyms are traditionally know as the words of opposite meanings, their semantic structures show many common features. E.g. ashamed of and proud of and antonyms, but they both show feelings. Although from this point of view linguistics note a special subclass within the class of antonyms: conversives. Pairs of conversives denote one and the same situation or action which is looked upon from two different points of view and with a reverse order of participants and their roles. For example to give – to take / to receive, to purchase – to sell, father – child.

It should also be noted that conversives relations are quite possible within the same structure of one word. Mary married John and John married Mary.

The practical value of antonyms is in teaching the language and compiling learner’s dictionaries, especially thesauruses.