8. Synonyms. Classification and sources of synonymy.

Synonyms can be defined as two or more words of the same language, belonging to the same part of speech and possessing one or more identical or nearly identical denotational meanings, interchangeable, at least in some contexts, without any considerable alternation in denotational meaning, but different in morphemic composition, phonemic shape, shades of meaning, connotations, affective value, style, emotional coloring and valency.

This definition describes the notion "synonymy", gives some criteria of synonymy (identity of meaning, interchangeability), shows some difference in connotation, emotive coloring, style, etc. But this descriptive definition as well as many others has the main drawbacks - there are no objective criteria of "identity" or "similarity" or sameness of meaning. They all are based on the linguistic intuitions of the scholars.

Let’s take the following group of words: hope, expectation, anticipation. They are synonyms because they all three mean “having something in mind which is likely to happen”. But they have different shades of meaning. The stylistic difference is also quite marked. Moreover, they differ in idiomatic usage.

Each synonymic group comprises a dominant element. The synonymic dominant is the most general term containing the specific features rendered by all other members of the group. In a great number of cases the semantic difference between two or more synonyms is supported by the difference in valency.

Classification of Synonyms

The outstanding Russian philologist A.I. Smirnitsky suggested the classification of synonyms into 3 types:

1. Ideographic synonyms - words conveying the same notion but differing in shades of meaning: to understand - to realize

2. Stylistic - words differing only in stylistic characteristics: enemy - opponent - foe - adversary

3. Absolute - words coinciding in all their shades of meaning and in all their stylistic characteristics: pilot - airman — flyer – flyingman; screenwriter - scriptwriter – scripter, semasiology – semantics.

Sources of synonymy

Borrowing. Synonymy has its characteristic patterns in each language. Its peculiar feature in English is the contrast between simple native words stylistically neutral, literary words borrowed from French and learned words of Greco-Latin origin (to ask - to question - to interrogate)

The second source that has made increasing contributions to the stock of English synonyms is dialects (radio (Am) – wireless (Br), gimmick (Am) – trick (Br), dues (Am) – subscription (Br).

Synonyms are also created by means of all word-forming processes productive in the language at a given by time of its history. New words may be formed by affixation or loss of affixes, conversation, compounding, shortening and so on. For example, effectivity – effectiveness (affixation), amongst – among, await – wait (loss of affixes), commandment – command (conversation), stewardess – airman (compounding), memorandum – memo, microphone – mike, popular (song) – pop (song) (shortening).

Another source of synonymy is euphemism, in which a word of more or less pleasant connotation substitutes one that is harsh or indelicate, e.g. drunkenness – intoxication, sweat – perspiration, poor – underprivileged, naked – in one’s birthday suit, pregnant – in the family way.