软盘内容English Lexicology

Week I Introduction一、The aim of the courseThe aim of the course is to give a systematic description of the English vocabulary. Vocabulary has its own system. This system contains△ Word-formation

Word meaningChanges in word meaning

△ Sense relationsMeaning and contextIdioms Dictionaries

Of them, word-formation and sense relations are regarded as the most important parts. Let’s take a look at the word-formation and sense relationsWord-formation roots, affixes e.g. epidermis lexicology how English words are formed and

made; develop one’s own personal vocabulary and

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increase word power.Sense relations relations among word meaning; Polysemy and homonymy Synonym and Antonym Association and Collocation Hyponym improve one’s abilibty to identify and

use English words appropriately.

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二、Teaching PlanTIME CONTENTS

Week 1 Introduction & Chapter 1 Word The Development of the English Vocabulary

Week 2 Chapter 1 Word Basic Concepts of Words and Vocabulary

Week 3 Chapter 1 WordWord Formation (I)

Week 4 Chapter 1 WordWord Formation (II)

Week 5 Holiday

Week 6 Chapter 1 Word Word Formation (II)

Week 7 Mid-Term Examination

Week 8 Chapter 2 Word Meaning Meaning

Week 9 Chapter 2 Word Meaning Sense Relations (I)

Week 10 Chapter 2 Word Meaning Sense Relations (I)

Week 11 Chapter 2 Word Meaning Sense Relations (II)

Week 12 Chapter 2 Word Meaning Sense Relations (II)

Week 13 Chapter 2 Word Meaning Changes in Word Meaning

Week 14 Chapter 2 Word Meaning Meaning and Context

Week 15 Chapter 3 English Dictionaries

Week 16 Final

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三、Exams

(1) Mid-term 50% (word-fromation and some basic knowlege)

期中考试题型

English Lexicology Mid-Term Exam (50%)

1. Please write down the meaning of each root and give one example of it.(10%)

Example Root Meaning in English Example

brev,bridg short brevity

2. Please write down the meaning of each affix and give one example of it.(10%)

Example Affix Meaning in English Exampleante before antedate

3. There are 10 incomplete sentences in this part. For each sentence there are four choices marked A, B, C and D. Choose the one that best completes the sentence. (10%)

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Example We can say that a word is a A free form of a language that has a given sound and meaning and syntactic function.

A. minimal B. narrow C. single D. identical

4. Guess the meanings of the following words according to the example given below. (10%)

Example matriarchy n. matri: mother; archy: ruler,

rule 母系制，母系政治 5. Write down the origins and meanings of the

following words. (10%)Example Word Origin Meaning in English

status Latin social position

(2) Final 50% (sense relations, meaning and context)

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期末考试题型English Lexicology

Final Examination (50%) 1. Many words have different meanings when they are

used in different contexts. Examine the words in bold type and define them in English. (5%)

Example(1) If you bring over your bicycle, I’ll fix it for

you. to repair (2) When the radio signal comes on again, I’ll take

a fix on our position. measurement and determination of one’s position

(3) Janet is in a terrible fix! predicame nt

2. Context provides a variety of clues for inference of word-meaning. Guess the meanings of the words in bold type and tell what contextual clues have helped you in arriving at the meanings. (10%)

Example Perhaps the most startling theory to come out of Kinesics, the study of body movement, was suggested by Professor Birdwhistell.

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Meaning in Chinese 人体动力学 Clue definition

3. Study the following words and their meanings: (i) is the

primary meaning of the word, and (ii) is the derived meaning of the word. Give the process that each word has undergone, using the terms of: extension, narrowing, elevation and degradation to describe the process. (5%) Example box: (extension)

(i) container made of boxwood(ii) any container

4.There is one lexical error in each of the following sentences.Underline the error and then put the correct form in the bracket. (10%)

Example I hope my arrangements will not disturb with your routine. (interfere)

5. Select the pair of words which are related in the

same way as the capitalized words are related to each other. (10%)

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Example Intimidate: Fear(A)maintain: satisfaction(B)astonish: wonder(C)soothe: concern(D)feed: hunger(E) awaken: tirednessThe correct answer is (B) ______

6. Writing (10%) Directions Write a compostiotion on the topic “ ”. You are required to write at least 150 words according to the outline given below.(1)(2)

(3)

四、References (课程参考书目)

1. H314.2/22 现代英语表达与理解 陆国强2. H313/20 现代英语词汇学 陆国强3. H314.1/2 现代英语构词 陆国强4. H313/109 英汉和汉英语义结构对比 陆国强5. H314.3/28 现代英语联想与搭配 陆国强

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6. H313/148 英语同义表达法英汉比较语义学 王逢鑫7. H314.1/16 英语构词的玄妙 The wonder of English

word-making 王逢鑫8. H313.1/185 英 语 词 汇 分 类 联 想 学 习 法 How to study

English

vocabulary by association 王逢鑫9. H313.1/123 英语词汇的魅力 王逢鑫10. H316/106 英汉意念分类词典 A NOTIONAL ENGLISH-CHINESE

LEXICON 王逢鑫11. H313/148 英汉比较语义学 English-Chinese comparative

semantics 王逢鑫12. H313/111 大学英语词汇与语义教程 勒梅琳13. H313/107 英语词汇的意趣 梁晓鹏

五、ContactsZhang Hua Zhanghua@pku.edu.cn Monitor

Tue 7:10---9PM(上课时间); 9--10PM(答疑时间)

A General Survey of English Vocabulary一、Development of English Vocabulary1. The Indo-European Language Family---300 language families

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---a highly inflected language---the two kinds of tendencies: the isolation and moving---the eight principal groups

an Eastern set: Balto-Slavic, Indo-Iranian, Armenian and Albanian;

a Western set: Celtic, Italic, Hellenic, Germanic.

2. A Historical Overview of the English Vocabulary---Celts/Celtic---the Latin of the Roman Legions---the Germanic tribes(1) Old English Vocabulary(450-1150) Anglo-Saxon---Angles, Saxons, and Jutes ---Anglo-Saxon as Old English ---Sometimes they changed meanings of native words

and common practice was to create new words by combining two native words.

---60,000 words---a highly inflected language (2) Middle English Vocabulary(1150-1500) French

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---the Norman Conquest ----English were reduced to the status of an inferior

people. ----Middle English retained many inflections. ----If we say that Old English was a language of full

endings, Middle English was one of leveled endings.

(3) Modern English Vocabulary(1500-up to now) borrowing and word-formationModern English began with the establishment of printing in England. Considering the changes in vocabulary, it is necessary to subdivide it into Early (1500-1700) and Late (1700-up to the present) Modern English.

(i) Early Modern EnglishBecause of the Renaissance, Latin and Greek were recognized as two languages of great scholarship. Over 10,000 new words entered the English language and most of them were from Latin and Greek, which contributed to the vocabulary of Modern English.

(ii) Late Modern English

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In the mid-seventeenth century, England experienced the Industrial Revolution, so it became a great economic power. English began to absorb words from all major languages of the world. After World War II, although borrowing remained an important channel of vocabulary expansion, more words are created by means of word-formation.

3.Modes of Vocabulary Development(1) The Present-day English Vocabulary---three main sources of new words:

(i)the rapid development of modern science and technology;

(ii)social, economic and political changes; (iii)the influence of other cultures and languages.

(2) Three ChannelsModern English vocabulary develops through three channels: creation, semantic change, borrowing.(i) Creation refers to the formation of new words by

using the existing materials, namely roots, affixes and other elements. The major means of word-formation will be discussed in the following

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classes. In modern times, word-formation is the most important way of vocabulary expansion.

(ii) Semantic change means an old form, which takes on a new meaning to meet the new need. This does not increase the number of word forms but create many more new usages of the words, thus enriching the vocabulary.

(iii) Borrowing has played a vital role in the development of vocabulary, particularly in earlier times. Borrowed words constitute merely six to seven percent of all new words. In earlier stages of English, French, Latin, Greek and Scandinavian were the major contributors.

1.The Indo-European Language Family2.a highly inflected language3.Celts/Celtic

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4. Germanic tribes: Angles, Saxons, and Jutes5. Anglo-Saxon as Old English: a highly inflected language6.Middle English Vocabulary French7.If we say that Old English was a language of full

endings, Middle English was one of leveled endings.8.Modern English: Early (1500-1700) and Late (1700-

up to the present) Modern English borrowing and word-formation

9.three main sources of new words: (1)the rapid development of modern science and

technology; (2)social, economic and political changes; (3)the influence of other cultures and languages.

10.Modern English vocabulary develops through three channels: creation, semantic change, borrowing.

(3)Classifications(i) Full word and form word Nouns, adjectives, verbs, numerals, adverbs are full

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words or notional words, because they are meaningful in themselves, even if they appear in isolation. Full words function as independent members in sentences.

Articles, prepositions, conjunctions, pronouns, pronominal adverbs and the like are form-words or functional words. They are meaningful only when used in conjunction with other words. So form-words have no independent meaning proper.

(ii)Popular word and Learned word

Popular words are words usually used in ordinary conversation. Popular words are concerned with common things of life. They are a part of everyday vocabulary. It is also called informal words. So it is obvious that popular words belong to the people as a whole. Learned words are words comparatively seldom used in ordinary conversation but are used in books, newspapers, documents, etc. It is also called formal

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words. The meanings of learned words are known to every educated person, but there is little opportunity to use them at home. That is to say, learned words come from books weread, not form people’s lips.

(iii) Abstract word and Concrete word Abstract words are those which refer to states, events, feelings, for examples difficulty work, talk, meeting, thought. Concrete words are those which are concerned with objects, things, for examples, milk, beer, oil, car

(iv) Transparent word and Opaque wordHow the majority of words were formed cannot be explained. These words are called opaque words such as: axe, book, table, work

Only a minority of words can be explained. They are words whose meaning is determined from the meaning of their components. These words are considered transparent words. Many eacho-words and

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compound words are transparent ones, such as: cuckoo, ping-pong, motherland, blackbird.

(v)Polysemic word and Monosemic wordA polysemic word has a range of different meanings while a monosemic word consists of a single meaning. In English polysemy is the rule, but monosemy is the exception.

(vi) Native word and Loan wordWords can be divided into native words and loan words according to their origin. Native words are Anglo-Saxon words still retained in Modern English, while loan words (borrowed words) are words taken from different foreign languages.

二、Terms

1. term, terminology 2. word--- a minimal free form of a language; a sound

unity; a unit of meaning; a form that can function alone in a sentence.

keyword: a word summing up the main idea of an

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article.receptive words: reading and listening wordsproductive words: written and oral words

3. vocabulary: all the words in a language make up its vocabulary. The term vocabulary is used in different senses. It also refers to the total number of the words in a language. English is one of the world’s highly developed languages. Naturally the vocabulary is one of the largest and richest.

glossary: a list of special words and explanations of their meanings, often at the end of a book. / wordlist

4.jargon refers to the specialized vocabularies by which members of particular arts, sciences, trades and professions communicated among themselves such as in business:

bottom line （ 不 可 避 免 的 结 果 ） , hold him back （ 阻 止 一 匹 马 赢 ） . People outside the field have difficulty in understanding such

words.（行话）slang: a substandard language. Head-nut, dome,

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upper, bear, blockargot: expressions used by a particular group of

people, e.g. can-opener.万能钥匙，黑话，亚文化人群说的话

archaism: an old word or phrase that is no longer

used, e.g. thou 古语词neologism: a new word or expression, or a word used

with a new meaning, e.g. internet, email 新词语

dialect: a form of a language, which is spoken only in one area, with words or grammar that are different from other forms of the same language.

5. lexis (lexes): all the words in a language,= vocabulary

lexicon: all the words and phrases used in a language or that a particular person knows.

专门词典，词典Lexicology: the science of the word, and the study

of words.Lexicography: the profession of writing dictionaries

or the writing and making of dictionaries.

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Lexicographer: an expert who writes and makes dictionaries.

6. diction: the choice of words or phrasesdictionary

7. morpheme: the smallest unit of meaning in a language. The words “so” and “boy”

consists of one morpheme.词素morphology: the study of the morphemes of a

language and of the way in which they are joined together to make words.

8. semantics: the study of word-meaning. It is the basis of lexicology.

9. grammar: case, number, gender

10.etymology: history of words, e.g. classical words, Greek-Latin, French, Anglo-Saxon 词源学

课堂讲解话A General Survey of English

VocabularyIn the study of English words, it is important to know about

the history of the vocabulary. The history of the language

is the history of the vocabulary of this language, that is to

say, as language develops, the vocabulary of the language

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also develops. The English language is not the language of

the early inhabitants of the British Isles. The early history

of English belongs to the Indo-European language Family.

1.The Indo-European Language Family

Today’s world has about 3000 languages, which can be

Grouped into roughly 300 language families on the basis

of similarities in their basic grammar. The Indo-European

language family is one of them. It is made up of most of

the languages of Europe, the Near East, and India. The

characteristic of the Indo-European language is thought to

be a highly inflected language, that is, after a word, there

is an ending attached. The Chinese language is not an

inflected language. We do not have word endings.

The Indo-European Language Family showed the two

kinds of tendencies in its development. One is the

isolation, and the other is moving. In the ancient times,

groups of people isolated themselves from each other.

They spoke some dialects, and dialects of a single

language changed so much that they became separate

languages. Speakers of one language were not understood

by speakers of another. With regard to moving, people not

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only isolated from each other, but also moved from one

place to other places. Languages changed with the

people’s moving. Finally we can find the eight principal

groups of the surviving languages. These eight languages

can be subdivided into the two sets:

an Eastern set: Balto-Slavic, Indo-Iranian, Armenian

and Albanian

a Western set: Celtic, Italic, Hellenic, Germanic

All these languages have some influence on English in

some sense

because each has lent words into the English vocabulary.

Some

of them have played a considerable role in the course of

the

development of the English vocabulary.

2.A Historical Overview of the English Vocabulary

The Indo-European Language Family has many branches.

The first peoples known to inhabit the land were Celts, and

their language is called Celtic, that’s the earliest language.

The second major language known in England was the

Latin of the Roman Legions, that is to say, the Romans

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invaded the British Isles and occupied the land. When the

Roman Empire was defeated, The Germanic tribes came in

and settled in Britain, the Celtic languages gradually

retreated. Celtic made a small contribution to the English

vocabulary.

(1) Old English Vocabulary (450-1150) Anglo-Saxon

After the Romans, the Germanic tribes called Angles,

Saxons, and Jutes controlled the land, which was to be

called England (the land of Angles). Their language was

historically known as, Anglo-Saxon. Now people generally

refer to Anglo-Saxon as Old English.

Users of Old English did not borrow words from Latin

or other languages. Sometimes they changed meanings of

native words and common practice was to create new

words by combining two native words.

Old English has a vocabulary of 60,000 words. It was a

highly inflected language just like modern German.

Therefore, nouns, pronouns, verbs and adverbs had

complex endings or vowel changes.

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(2) Middle English Vocabulary (1150-1500) French

When the Normans invaded England from France in

1066, Old English vocabulary began to undergo a great

change. A great number of French words were introduced

into English. English was reduced to the status of an

inferior people. The British people were servants, drivers,

and belonged to the working class. Norman French

became the polite speech.

Middle English vocabulary retained many inflections,

but inflection is never the main characteristic of the

Middle English vocabulary. Many words lost their endings.

So if we say that Old English was a language of full

endings, Middle English was one of leveled endings.

(3) Modern English (1500-up to now)

Modern English began with the establishment of printing

in England. Considering the changes in vocabulary, it is

necessary to subdivide it into Early (1500-1700) and Late

(1700-up to the present) Modern English

(i) Early Modern English

Early Modern English was in the period of the Renaissance.

As we know, the Renaissance is the revival of the ancient

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culture of Greek and Latin. Scholars translated literature

from Latin and Greek into English, so over 10,000 Latin

and Greek words entered the English language, which

contributed to the vocabulary of Modern English.

(ii) Late Modern English

In the mid-17th century, England experienced the Industrial

Revolution, so it became a great economic power. English

began to absorb words fro all major languages of the

world. After World War II, science and technology develop

rapidly. Thousands and thousands of new words have been

created to express new ideas, inventions, and scientific

achievements. In modern English, word endings were

mostly lost with a few exceptions. Although borrowing

remained an important channel of vocabulary expansion,

more words are created by means of word-formation.

3.Modes of Vocabulary Development

(1) The Present-day English Vocabulary

Today, new words are being invented or introduced every

day to express new things and new changes in society.

They attracted public’s attention and interest. Generally,

there are three main sources of new words:

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(i) the rapid development of modern science and

technology;

(ii) social, economic and political changes;

(iii) the influence of other cultures and languages.

(2) Three Channels

Modern English vocabulary develops through three

channels: creation, semantic change, borrowing.

(i)Creation refers to the formation of new words by using

the

existing materials, namely roots, affixes and other

elements. The major means of word-formation will be

discussed in the following classes. In modern times, word-

formation is the most important way of vocabulary

expansion.

(ii)Semantic change means an old form, which takes on a

new

meaning to meet the new need. This does not increase the

number of word forms but create many more new usages

of the words, thus enriching the vocabulary.

(iii)Borrowing has played a vital role in the development of

vocabulary, particularly in earlier times. Borrowed words

constitute merely six to seven percent of all new words. In

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earlier stages of English, French, Latin, Greek and

Scandinavian were the major contributors.

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