Part 1. The Definition of Antonymy

CONTENT

INTRODUCTION………………………………………………………….3

Part 1. The Definition of Antonymy…………………………………………4

Part 2. Classifications of Antonyms……………………………….………….6

2.1. Morphological Classification of Antonyms……………………6

2.2. Semantic Classification of Antonyms…………………………8

CONCLUSION………………………………………………………………13

BIBLIOGRAPHY……………………………………………………………14

INTRODUCTION

The subject-matter of the individual work is to investigate antonyms as expressive means of the English vocabulary.

The topicality of the problem under investigation results from the necessity to update basic assumption provided by different linguists in order to be able to establish how can antonyms rich the English vocabulary and with help of which feautures, classification of antonyms we can find it.

The main aim of the this work is to summarize and systemize different approaches to the study of antonyms in modern English vocabulary.

The aim of the work presupposes the solutions of the following tasks:

· To expand and update the definition of the term “antonym”

· To reveal morphological classification of antonyms

· To establish semantic classification of antonyms

According the tasks of the work its structure is arranged in the following way: Introduction, the Main Part, Conclusion, Literature.

In the Introduction we provide the explanation of the theme choice, state the topicality of it, establish the main aim, and the practical tasks of the work.

In the main part we analyze the character features of modern the classification of antonyms depending on their morphological and semantic classifications, differences between absolute (or root) antonyms and derivational antonyms, main characteristics of antonyms proper, complementaries and converives.

In conclusion we generalize the results achieved.

Part 1. The Definition of Antonymy

Together with synonyms, antonyms represent the language's important expressive means.

Antonymy is a lexical opposition of meaning. The words are different in form and opposite in meaning. It is also a relative phenomenon (same lexical field identical in style) and it has contradictory meaning. Antonyms are a cou­ple of words that belong to the same part of speech, share the same lexical field, similar in many respects and share all the features but one that meaning. E.g. big and red are not antonyms because they don't share the same lexical field, but tall and short belong to the same lexical field, share most of the fea­tures and differ in one dimension. Antonymy is used in lexicology as a process that defines the meaning of the word by maintaining its opposite counterpart.

Markedness is a category that operates with pairs of words which are an­tonyms but not lexically specified. It is definite for roots of words where there is some oppositeness. It means two members, one marked and the other un­marked. E.g. play (unmarked) - played (marked); married - unmarried. An­tonymy means the positive and the negative members of a pair, e.g. old -young; beautiful — ugly; wide — narrow; How old are you?; How beautiful is she? How wide is the room? The positive members are conceptualised first and than find their antonyms. This is primary lexicalisation of the positive member of the pair. Markedness also operates in the field of derivational mor­phology, e.g. boy - boyhood.

Small elephants are big animals. Small and big is antonymy and ele­phants and animals hyponymy. The antonyms are always compared in terms of a given standard; in the given example there is no absoluteness. E.g. small is bigger than big in this case.

The juxtaposition of antonyms in a literary text emphasises some contrast and creates emotional tension as in the following lines from “Romeo and Juliet” (Act I, Scene V):

My only love sprang from my only hate. Too early seen unknown, and known too late!

One of the features enhancing the pathetic expressiveness of these lines is contrast based on such pairs as love - hate; early - late; unknown - known. The opposition is obvious: each component of these pairs means the opposite of the other. The pairs may be termed antonymic pairs.

Antonyms have traditionally been defined as words of opposite meaning. This definition, however, is not sufficiently accurate, as it only shifts the problem to the question of what words may be regarded as words of opposite meaning.

Antonymy in general shares many features typical of synonymy. Like synonyms, perfect or complete antonyms are fairly rare. It is usual to find the relations of antonymy restricted to certain contexts. Thus thickis only one of the antonyms of thin(a thin slice—a thick slice), another is fat (a thin man—a fat man).The definition of antonyms as words characterised by semantic polarity or opposite meaning is open to criticism on the points discussed already in connection with synonymy. It is also evident that the term opposite meaning is rather vague and allows of essentially different interpretation.

If we compare the meaning of the words kind — ‘gentle, friendly, showing love, sympathy or thought for others’ and cruel — ‘taking pleasure in giving pain to others, without mercy’, we see that they denote concepts that are felt as completely opposed to each other. Comparing the adjective kindand unkindwe do not find any polarity of meaning as here semantic opposition is confined to simple negation. Unkindmay be interpreted as not kindwhich does not necessarily mean cruel,just as not beautifuldoes not necessarily mean ugly.