An Introduction to English Lexicology : Words, Meaning and Vocabulary

"What are words? Where do words come from? How are they used? Answering these questions and more, this book guides you through the key concepts in the lexicology of modern English. Providing an overview which encompasses all aspects of English vocabulary, this book explains the sources of modern English words and shows how the vocabulary has developed over time. Thoroughly updated throughout to keep pace with recent developments in the field, this third edition features: - Extensively enhanced chapters on vocabulary, dictionaries and investigative lexicology - New sections on contemporary topics such as internet language, social media and youth culture - Guides to new electronic resources and tools of analysis - New exercises throughout each chapter, with an updated answer key - A revised list of suggestions for further reading Assuming no prior knowledge of linguistics, and featuring exercises and a fully updated glossary of lexicological terms to support your learning, An Introduction to English Lexicology is the only book you need to understand the basics of English lexicology"-- Provided by publisher Cover page Halftitle page Series page Title page Copyright page Epigraph Contents Figures Exercises Preface to the Third Edition Preface to the First Edition 1 What is Lexicology? 1.1 Lexicology defined 1.2 Lexicology as a level of language analysis 1.3 The structure of English vocabulary 2 The Word 2.1 The notion of word 2.2 Word meaning 2.3 Polysemy 2.4 Homonymy 2.5 Multiword lexemes 3 Word Formation 3.1 Why study word-formation processes? 3.2 Inflection and derivation 3.3 Inflectional affixes 3.4 Derivational affixes 3.5 Compounds 3.6 Other word-formation processes 4 Where Do English Words Come From? 4.1 The origin of English 4.2 Historical development of English vocabulary 4.3 Native English vocabulary 4.4 The process of borrowing 4.5 Characteristics of modern English vocabulary 5 Meaning Relations 5.1 What are ‘meaning relations’? 5.2 Synonymy 5.3 Antonymy 5.4 Hyponymy and meronymy 5.5 Semantic fields 5.6 Collocation 6 Words in Use 6.1 Vocabularies 6.2 National and regional vocabularies 6.3 Jargon 6.4 Subcultures 6.5 Style 6.6 Restricted languages 7 Investigating Vocabulary 7.1 What might we want to find out? 7.2 How do we find out? 7.3 Electronic resources 7.4 Tools of analysis 7.5 MRDs, LDBs and LKBs 7.6 World Wide Web 8 Words in Dictionaries 8.1 Repositories of words 8.2 Information about words 8.3 How do dictionaries decide? 8.4 Meaning 8.5 Dictionaries and vocabulary 8.6 Lexicology and lexicography Key to Exercises References Glossary Index