Language is a multifaceted and multifunctional concept. Determining its essence requires careful consideration of many issues. For example, the structure of language and the relationship of elements of its system, influence from external factors and functions in human society.
Defining figurative values
Already in elementary school, everyone knows that the same words can be used differently in speech. Direct (main, basic) meaning is one that is correlated with objective reality. It does not depend on the context or allegory. An example of this is the word “collapse”. In medicine it means a sharp and sudden drop in blood pressure, and in astronomy it means the rapid compression of stars under the influence of gravitational forces.
The figurative meaning of words is their second meaning. It arises when the name of a phenomenon is consciously transferred to another due to the similarity of their functions, characteristics, etc. For example, the same “collapse” was received. Examples relate to social life. Thus, in a figurative sense, “collapse” means destruction, the collapse of the unification of people as a result of the onset of a systemic crisis.
Scientific definition
In linguistics, the figurative meaning of words is their secondary derivative, associated with the main meaning by metaphorical, metonymic dependence or any associative features. At the same time, it arises on the basis of the logical, spatial, temporal and other correlation of concepts.
Application in speech
Words with a figurative meaning are used when naming those phenomena that are not the usual and permanent object of designation. They come close to other concepts through emerging associations that are obvious to speakers.
Words used figuratively can retain imagery. For example, dirty insinuations or dirty thoughts. Such figurative meanings are given in explanatory dictionaries. These words are different from the metaphors invented by writers.
However, in most cases, when a transfer of meaning occurs, the imagery is lost. An example of this is such expressions as the spout of a teapot and the elbow of a pipe, the passage of a clock and the tail of a carrot. In such cases, there is a fading of imagery in
Changing the essence of a concept
The figurative meaning of words can be assigned to any action, sign or object. As a result, it moves into the category of main or basic. For example, the spine of a book or a door handle.
Polysemy
The figurative meaning of words is often a phenomenon caused by their polysemy. In scientific language it is called “Polysemy”. Often one word has more than one stable meaning. In addition, people who use language often have a need to name a new phenomenon that does not yet have a lexical designation. In this case, they use words that are already familiar to them.
Questions of polysemy are, as a rule, questions of nomination. In other words, the movement of things with the existing identity of the word. However, not all scientists agree with this. Some of them do not allow more than one meaning for a word. There is another opinion. Many scientists support the idea that the figurative meaning of words is their lexical meaning, realized in various variants.
For example, we say “red tomato”. The adjective used here is the direct meaning. “Red” can also be said about a person. In this case, it means that he blushed or blushed. Thus, a figurative meaning can always be explained through a direct one. But linguistics cannot give an explanation. That's just the name of this color.
In polysemy, there is also the phenomenon of unequal meanings. For example, the word “flare up” can mean that an object suddenly caught fire, or that a person blushed with shame, or that a quarrel suddenly arose, etc. Some of these expressions are more common in the language. They immediately come to mind when this word is mentioned. Others are used only in special situations and special combinations.
There are semantic connections between some meanings of a word, which make understandable the phenomenon when different properties and objects are called the same.
Trails
The use of a word in a figurative meaning can be not only a stable fact of language. Such use is sometimes limited, fleeting and within the scope of only one utterance. In this case, the goal of exaggeration and special expressiveness of what is said is achieved.
Thus, there is an unstable figurative meaning of the word. There are examples of this use in poetry and literature. For these genres, this is an effective artistic technique. For example, in Blok one can recall “the deserted eyes of the carriages” or “the dust swallowed the rain in pills.” What is the figurative meaning of the word in this case? This is evidence of his unlimited ability to explain new concepts.
The emergence of figurative meanings of words of a literary-stylistic type are tropes. In other words,
Metaphor
In philology, a number of different types of name transfer are distinguished. One of the most important among them is metaphor. With its help, the name of one phenomenon is transferred to another. Moreover, this is only possible if certain characteristics are similar. Similarity can be external (in color, size, character, shape and movements), as well as internal (in assessment, sensations and impressions). So, with the help of metaphor they talk about dark thoughts and a sour face, a calming storm and a cold reception. In this case, the thing is replaced, but the attribute of the concept remains unchanged.
The figurative meaning of words with the help of metaphor occurs with varying degrees of similarity. An example of this is a duck (a device in medicine) and a tractor caterpillar. The transfer using similar forms is used here. The names given to a person can also carry a metaphorical meaning. For example, Hope, Love, Faith. Sometimes meanings are transferred based on similarity to sounds. So, the horn was called a siren.
Metonymy
This is also one of the most important types of title transfers. However, when using it, the similarities of internal and external characteristics are not applied. Here there is a contiguity of cause-and-effect relationships or, in other words, the contact of things in time or space.
The metonymic figurative meaning of words is a change not only of the subject, but also of the concept itself. When this phenomenon occurs, only the connections of neighboring links of the lexical chain can be explained.
The figurative meanings of words can be based on associations with the material from which the object is made. For example, earth (soil), table (food), etc.
Synecdoche
This concept means the transfer of any part to the whole. An example of this is the expression “a child follows his mother’s skirt”, “a hundred head of cattle”, etc.
Homonyms
This concept in philology means identical sounds of two or more different words. Homonymy is a sound coincidence of lexical units that are not semantically related to each other.
There are phonetic and grammatical homonyms. The first case concerns those words that are in the accusative or sound the same, but at the same time have a different composition of phonemes. For example, “twig” and “pond”. Grammatical homonyms arise in cases where both the phoneme and pronunciation of the words are the same, but the individual words are different. For example, the number “three” and the verb “three”. If the pronunciations of such words change, they will not be the same. For example, “rub”, “three”, etc.
Synonyms
This concept refers to words of the same part of speech, identical or similar in their lexical meaning. The origins of synonymy are foreign language and its own lexical meanings, general literary and dialect. Such figurative meanings of words also arise thanks to jargon (“to burst” - “to eat”).
Synonyms are divided into types. Among them:
- absolute, when the meanings of words completely coincide (“octopus” - “octopus”);
- conceptual, differing in shades of lexical meanings (“reflect” - “think”);
- stylistic, which have differences in stylistic coloring (“sleep” - “sleep”).
Antonyms
This concept refers to words that belong to the same part of speech, but have opposite concepts. This type of figurative meaning may have a difference in structure (“to take out” - “to bring in”) and different roots (“white” - “black”).
Antonymy is observed in those words that express the opposing orientation of characteristics, states, actions and properties. The purpose of their use is to convey contrasts. This technique is often used in poetic and
A word can have both direct and figurative lexical meaning. Polysemantic words have a figurative meaning.
Direct meaning of the word- this is its main lexical meaning. It is directly directed to the designated object, phenomenon, action, sign, immediately evokes an idea of them and is least dependent on the context. Words most often appear in their literal meaning.
figurative meaning of the word- this is its secondary meaning, which arose on the basis of the direct one.
Toy, -And, and. 1. A thing used for playing. Children's toys. 2. trans. One who blindly acts according to someone else's will is an obedient instrument of someone else's will (disapproved). To be a toy in someone's hands.
The essence of the transfer of meaning is that the meaning is transferred to another object, another phenomenon, and then one word is used as the name of several objects at the same time. In this way, the polysemy of the word is formed.
Depending on the basis on which sign the value is transferred, there are three main types of value transition:
- metaphor,
- metonymy,
- synecdoche.
Direct meaning of the word
The words of our speech name objects, their signs and actions. Unambiguous words directly correlate with the object of reality; they directly name an object, its attribute or process of action. This direct meaning words.
In the flow of speech, such words immediately evoke the idea of what they name. Their meaning does not depend on the context, for example:
The blue sky stretched over the forest, over the field, over the villages.
The sky beckons future cosmonauts.
White shaggy clouds float lazily across the sky.
Most words in the Russian language have a literal meaning, for example:
daughter, house, grass, polite, huge.
Direct meaning of the word- this is its main lexical meaning.
figurative meaning of the word
A word can have several lexical meanings, which arise based on the direct meaning. Such a new additional lexical meaning is called portable. It appears based on the similarity of objects in appearance, attribute or action (function), for example:
in a phrase "stone building" word "stone" names the material from which the building is made and denotes a direct attribute of the object "strong, solid, immovable".
In the phrase "stone face" adjective "stone" stands for " harsh, insensitive" or "malevolent" face. In this example the word "stone" has a secondary figurative meaning, formed on the basis of the direct meaning.
The essence of the transfer of meaning is that it moves to another object, another phenomenon or process along common points of contact in meaning. Then one word is used as the name of several objects at the same time. This is how words have multiple meanings. Polysemantic words have a figurative meaning, for example:
- the blue sea is a sea of wheat - a sea of people;
- light burden - light hand - light industry.
A word can have one lexical meaning. Such words are called unambiguous, For example: dialogue, purple, saber, on alert, appendicitis, birch, felt-tip pen
There are several types unambiguous words
1. These include, first of all, proper names (Ivan, Petrov, Mytishchi, Vladivostok). Their extremely specific meaning excludes the possibility of varying the meaning, since they are the names of individual objects.
2. Words that have recently arisen and are not yet widely used are usually unambiguous. (briefing, grapefruit, pizza, pizzeria etc.). This is explained by the fact that in order to develop polysemy in a word, it must be used frequently in speech, and new words cannot immediately gain universal recognition and distribution.
3. Words with a narrow subject meaning are unambiguous (binoculars, trolleybus, suitcase). Many of them denote objects of special use and are therefore rarely used in speech. (beads, turquoise). This helps them maintain clarity.
4. One meaning usually distinguishes the terms: tonsillitis, gastritis, fibroids, syntax, noun.
Most Russian words have not one, but several meanings. These words are called polysemantic, they are opposed to unambiguous words. The ability of words to have multiple meanings is called polysemy. For example: word root- ambiguous. In the “Explanatory Dictionary of the Russian Language” by S. I. Ozhegov and N. Yu. Shvedova, four meanings of this word are indicated:
1. The underground part of the plant. The apple tree has taken root. 2. The inside of a tooth, hair, nail. Turn red to the roots of your hair. 3. trans. The beginning, source, basis of something. The root of evil. 4. In linguistics: the main, significant part of the word. Root- significant part of a word.
Direct meaning of the word- this is its main meaning. For example, adjective gold means "made of gold, composed of gold": gold coin, gold chain, gold earrings.
figurative meaning of the word- this is its secondary, non-basic meaning, which arose on the basis of the direct one. Golden autumn, golden curls- the adjective in these phrases has a different meaning - figurative (“similar to gold in color”). Golden time, golden hands- in these examples the adjective has a figurative meaning - “beautiful, happy.”
The Russian language is very rich in such transfers:
wolf skin- voracious appetite;
iron nail- iron character.
If we compare these phrases, we can see that adjectives with a figurative meaning not only tell us about some quality of a person, but evaluate it, figuratively and vividly describe it: golden character, deep mind, warm heart, cold look.
The use of words in a figurative meaning gives expressiveness and imagery to speech. Poets and writers are looking for fresh, unexpected, accurate means of conveying their thoughts, feelings, emotions, and moods. Based on the figurative meaning of words, special means of artistic representation are created: comparison, metaphor, personification, epithet etc.
Thus, based on the figurative meaning of the word, the following are formed:
comparison(one object is compared to another). The moon is like a lantern; fog like milk;
metaphor(hidden comparison). Rowan bonfire(rowan, like a fire); bird cherry sprinkles snow(cherry bird is like snow);
personification(human properties are transferred to animals and inanimate objects). The grove dissuaded me; the cranes do not regret; the forest is silent;
epithet(figurative use of adjectives). Golden grove; birch tongue; pearl frost; dark fate.
- to step on a rake, in a figurative sense - to get a negative experience.
- prick up your ears - become very attentive,
- reel in fishing rods - leave, and not necessarily from fishing,
- a heart of stone is an insensitive person,
- sour face - dissatisfied facial expression.
- work hard - work hard
- sharp tongue - the ability to formulate accurate, accurate and even caustic information.
Examples of words and expressions with figurative meaning:
As we see, words acquire a figurative meaning when they are used together with certain words (which do not have such a quality in the literal sense). For example, nerves cannot literally be made of iron, so this is a figurative meaning, but iron ore is precisely made of iron (the phrase has a direct meaning).
Any word in Russian initially has one or several direct meanings. That is, the word Key can mean something like what we use to close the lock on the front door and can mean water gushing out from under the ground. In both cases, this is the direct meaning of a polysemantic word. But almost every word in the Russian language can also be given a figurative meaning. For example in the expression key to all doors, not a word key, not a word doors are not used in their direct meaning. The key here is the possibility of solving the problem, and the doors are this very problem. The figurative meaning of words is often used by poets, for example in Pushkin’s famous poem, every word has a figurative meaning:
Or here is the famous young man from Bryusov, who had a burning gaze, of course, burning in a figurative sense.
The direct meaning of the word strictly correlates with a certain thing, attribute, action, quality, etc. A word can have a figurative meaning based on points of contact, similarity with another object in form, function, color, purpose, etc.
Examples of the meaning of words:
table (furniture) - address table, table 9 (diet);
black color - back door (auxiliary), black thoughts (dreary);
bright room - bright mind, bright head;
dirty rag - dirty thoughts;
cold wind - cold heart;
golden cross - golden hands, golden heart;
heavy burden - heavy look;
heart valve - cardiac reception;
gray mouse - gray man.
A large number of words and figures of speech in the Russian language can be used both in a literal and figurative (figurative) sense.
The direct meaning usually completely coincides with the original meaning; the narrator means exactly what he says.
We use words in a figurative sense in order to give our speech figurativeness, to especially emphasize some quality or action.
The examples below will help you feel the difference:
The language is in constant development, those words that a few decades ago were used only in a literal meaning can begin to be used in a figurative sense - birdhouse - starling house, birdhouse - traffic police post, zebra - animal, zebra - pedestrian crossing.
Direct is the primary meaning of a word, figurative is secondary. Let me give you examples:
Gold earrings - direct meaning.
My husband's gold hands - figurative meaning.
Rain worm- direct.
Book worm- portable.
Silver ring - straight.
Silver century - figurative.
The sky is burning star- direct.
Star screen - portable.
Icy sculpture - straight.
Icy smile - figurative.
Sugar buns - straight.
Mouth sugar- portable.
Woolen blanket- direct.
Winter covered everything around with snow blanket- portable.
Mink fur coat- direct.
Herring under fur coat- portable.
Marble plate - straight.
Marble cupcake - portable.
Black suit - straight.
Leave on black day - portable.
Sweet tea - sweet kitty, sweet music.
Crying in pain - the prison is crying (for someone).
Soft plasticine - soft light, soft heart.
Sunny day - sunny soul, sunny smile.
Plastic bag - social package (vacation, sick leave).
Wolverine skin is a sellable skin.
Garden flowers are flowers of life (about children).
Green fruits - green generation.
Woodpecker (bird) - woodpecker (informer).
To poison with pills is to poison with moral violence.
The direct meaning of a word is when the word is used in its original sense. For example: sweet porridge.
The figurative meaning of a word is when the word is used in a non-literal sense, such as sweet deception.
In Russian, words can have both direct and figurative meanings. Under direct meaning understand words naming an object of reality or its property. Moreover, the meaning of such words does not depend on the context; we immediately imagine what they mean. For example:
Based on the direct meaning of a word, additional lexical meanings may arise, which are called portable. The figurative meaning is based on the similarity of objects or phenomena in appearance, properties or actions performed.
Compare: stone house and stone face. In the phrase stone house, the adjective stone is used in a literal meaning (solid, motionless, strong), and in the phrase stone face, the same adjective is used in a figurative meaning (insensitive, unfriendly, stern).
Here are some examples of the literal and figurative meaning of words:
Many stylistic figures or literary tropes are built on the basis of figurative meaning (metonymy, personification, metaphor, synecdoche, allegory, epithet, hyperbole).
There are a lot of words with direct and figurative meanings in the Russian language. And as a rule, all these meanings are reflected in dictionaries. It is very useful to look there from time to time.
Examples of words and phrases with figurative meaning:
Now, I remember.
But in fact, a very interesting fact is that words can have not only a direct meaning, but also a figurative one.
If we talk about the direct meaning, then in the text we mean exactly the lexical meaning of a specific word. But figurative meaning means transferring the meaning of the lexical original as a consequence of comparison
And here are some examples:
Direct meaning of the word - this is its main lexical meaning. It is directly directed to the designated object, phenomenon, action, sign, immediately evokes an idea of them and is least dependent on the context. Words most often appear in their literal meaning.
figurative meaning of the word - this is its secondary meaning, which arose on the basis of the direct one.
Toy, -i, f. 1. A thing used for playing. Children's toys. 2. transfer One who blindly acts according to someone else's will is an obedient instrument of someone else's will (disapproved). To be a toy in someone's hands.
The essence of the transfer of meaning is that the meaning is transferred to another object, another phenomenon, and then one word is used as the name of several objects at the same time. In this way, the polysemy of the word is formed. Depending on the basis on which sign the transfer of meaning occurs, there are three main types of transfer of meaning: metaphor, metonymy, synecdoche.
Metaphor (from the Greek metaphora - transfer) is the transfer of a name by similarity:
ripe apple - eyeball (in shape); the nose of a person - the bow of a ship (by location); chocolate bar - chocolate tan (by color); bird wing - airplane wing (by function); the dog howled - the wind howled (according to the nature of the sound); etc.
Metonymy (from the Greek metonymia - renaming) is the transfer of a name from one object to another based on their contiguity:
water boils - the kettle boils; a porcelain dish is a delicious dish; native gold - Scythian gold, etc.
Synecdoche (from the Greek synekdoche - co-implication) is the transfer of the name of the whole to its part and vice versa:
thick currant - ripe currant; a beautiful mouth - an extra mouth (about an extra person in the family); big head - smart head, etc.
20. Stylistic use of homonyms.
Homonyms are words that sound the same but have different meanings. As is known, within homonymy, lexical and morphological homonyms are distinguished. Lexical homonyms belong to the same part of speech and coincide in all their forms. For example: a key (from a lock) and a (icy) key.
Morphological homonymy is the homonymy of individual grammatical forms of the same word: three is the numeral and the imperative form of the verb to rub.
These are homophones, or phonetic homonyms, - words and forms of different meanings that sound the same, although they are spelled differently. flu - mushroom,
Homonyms also include homographs - words that have the same spelling but differ in stress: castle - castle
21. Stylistic use of synonyms.
Synonyms are words that denote the same concept, therefore, identical or similar in meaning.
Synonyms that have the same meaning, but differ in stylistic coloring. Among them, two groups are distinguished: a) synonyms belonging to different functional styles: live (neutral interstyle) - live (official business style); b) synonyms belonging to the same functional style, but having different emotional and expressive shades. smart (with a positive coloring) - brainy, big-headed (roughly familiar coloring).
semantic-stylistic. They differ both in meaning and stylistic coloring. For example: wander, wander, hang around, stagger.
Synonyms perform various functions in speech.
Synonyms are used in speech to clarify thoughts: He seemed a little lost, as if he was afraid (I. S. Turgenev).
Synonyms are used to contrast concepts, which sharply highlights their differences, especially strongly emphasizing the second synonym: He actually did not walk, but dragged along without lifting his feet from the ground
One of the most important functions of synonyms is the substitution function, which allows you to avoid repeating words.
Synonyms are used to construct a special stylistic figure
Stringing synonyms can, if handled ineptly, indicate the author’s stylistic helplessness.
Inappropriate use of synonyms gives rise to a stylistic error - pleonasm (“memorable souvenir”).
Two types of pleonasms: syntactic and semantic.
Syntactic appears when the grammar of the language makes it possible to make some function words redundant. “I know he will come” and “I know he will come.” The second example is syntactically redundant. This is not a mistake.
Positively, pleonasm can be used to prevent information loss (to be heard and remembered).
Pleonasm can also serve as a means of stylistic design of a statement and as a technique of poetic speech.
Pleonasm should be distinguished from tautology - repetition of unambiguous or the same words (which can be a special stylistic device).
Synonymy creates wide possibilities for selecting lexical means, but searching for the exact word costs the author a lot of work. Sometimes it is not easy to determine exactly how synonyms differ, what semantic or emotional-expressive shades they express. And it is not at all easy to choose from a multitude of words the only correct, necessary one.
