The logical notion is the referent of lexical meaning quite often but not always, because there may be other referents such as the real objects

Expresses the content of the respective notion.

Denotes the objects covered by the scope of the notion expressed in the word.

The content is made up of all the features that distinguish it from other notions.

The scope is determined by all the objects it refers to.

Each notion is characterized by its scope and content.

Notion (concept) denotes the reflection in the mind of real objects and phenomena in their essential features and relations.

The Lexical Meaning versus Notion

Descent, family.

An origin or being,

The act or time to be born,

Birth-

The denotative meaning is

The denotative meaning is a linguistic expression for a concept or a name for an individual object (the conceptual content of a word).

Person (personal nouns).

Group (collective nouns),

Matter (material nouns),

The common denominator of all the meanings of words belonging to a lexico-grammatical class of words (LGC).

The lexico-grammatical meaning is

Generic terms are words - representatives of lexico-grammatical meaning, substituting any word of the class:

· significative, if the referent (denotatum) is a concept (grief, sorrow, happiness) or

· demonstrative if the referent is an individual object (a table, a chair).

The pragmatic component of denotation is connotational meaning based on the complex associations of verbal or situational contexts:

1. the speaker’s attitude – slay::kill,

2. approval or disapproval – clique::group, hireling;

3. the speaker’s emotions – mummy::mother,

4. degree of their intensity – adore::love).

Semantic components (semes) of the denotative meaning:

MAN + HUMAN + ADULT + MALE

WOMAN+ HUMAN +ADULT - MALE

BOY +HUMAN - ADULT + MALE

GIRL + HUMAN - ADULT - MALE

POLYCEMY reflects the possibility of using the same name in secondary nomination for objects possessing common features (proximity) which are sometimes only implied in the original meaning (implicational):

Implicational (epidigmatic) meaning is the possibility of a word to create new derived meanings or words:

Bomb ”great success” “great failure ”(Am. slang);

Drive “What can he be driving at?”(fig.)

The identifying (demonstrative) function of the word:

The significative function:

The expressive function: renders an emotion or an attitude.

The relations btw. logical notion and lexical meaning vary:

A good laugh is sunshine in the house. Do you remember what the young lady did with the telegram?

Proper names possess identifying function but not signifying one.

Pronouns possess the demonstrative function and no significative function (point out the object and its relation to the speaker).

II. Notions are always emotionally neutral as they are a category of thought.

The meaning conveys:

· some reflection of objective reality,

· the speaker’s state of mind,

· his attitude to what he is speaking about.

Brat::baby;

kid::child.

III. The lexical meaning of many words depends upon the sphere of their usage and the typical contexts whereas a notion belongs to abstract logic and has no ties with any stylistic sphere and does not contain any emotive components.

Fancy that! Fancy my making a mistake like that!

IV. The complexity of the notion is determined by the relationships of the extra-linguistic reality reflected in human consciousness. The complexity of each word meaning is due to the fact that it combines lexical meaning with lexico-grammatical meaning, and with emotional colouring, stylistic peculiarities and connotations. Bright, clear, good, quick, steady, thin are qualitative adjectives having degrees of comparison.

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