Words, phrases, phrases and sentences - all this and much more is inherent in the concept of "language". How much is hidden in it, and how little we really know about the language! Every day and even every minute we spend next to him - whether we speak our thoughts aloud or conduct an internal dialogue, read or listen to the radio … Language, our speech is a real art, and it should be beautiful. And its beauty must be genuine. What helps in finding the true beauty of language and speech?
The direct and figurative meaning of words is what enriches our language, develops it and transforms it. How does this happen? Let's understand this endless process, when, as they say, words grow from words.
First of all, you should understand what the direct and figurative meaning of the word is, and what main types they are divided into. Each word can have one or more meanings. Words with the same meaning are called monosemantic words. In Russian, there are much fewer of them than words with many different meanings. Examples arewords like computer, ash, satin, sleeve. A word that can be used in several meanings, including figuratively, is a polysemantic word, examples: a house can be used in the meaning of a building, a place for people to live, a family way of life, etc.; the sky is the air space above the earth, as well as the location of the visible luminaries, or divine power, conducting.
With ambiguity, the direct and figurative meaning of the word is distinguished. The first meaning of the word, its basis - this is the direct meaning of the word. By the way, the word “direct” in this context is figurative, i.e. the main meaning of the word is “something even,
without bends” – is transferred to another object or phenomenon with the meaning “literal, unambiguously expressed”. So there is no need to go far - just need to be more careful and observant in what words we use, when and how.
From the above example, it already becomes clear that a figurative meaning is a secondary meaning of a word that arose when the literal meaning of a word was transferred to another object. Depending on what attribute of the object was the reason for the transfer of meaning, there are such types of figurative meaning as metonymy, metaphor, synecdoche.
Direct and figurative meaning of a word can overlap with each other on the basis of similarity - this is a metaphor. For example:
ice water - ice hands (by sign);
poisonous mushroom - poisonous character (by trait);
a star in the sky is a star inhand (by location);
chocolate candy - chocolate tan (based on color).
Metonymy is the selection in a phenomenon or object of some property, which by its nature can replace the rest. For example:
gold jewelry - she has gold in her ears;
porcelain crockery - porcelain was on the shelves;
headache - my head is gone.
And, finally, synecdoche is a kind of metonymy, when one word is replaced by another on the basis of a constant, really existing ratio of part to whole and vice versa. For example:
He is a real head (meaning very smart, the head is the part of the body that houses the brain).
The whole village sided with him - every resident, i.e. the "village" as a whole, which replaces its part.
What can be said in conclusion? Only one thing: if you know the direct and figurative meaning of a word, you will not only be able to use certain words correctly, but also enrich your speech, and learn how to convey your thoughts and feelings beautifully, and maybe one day you will come up with your own metaphor or metonymy … Who know?
