The word as the central unit of language. The problem of word definition.
Definition of a Word
Traditional Definition
Sequence of letters or sounds with a specific meaning.
E.g., "cat" refers to a domestic feline.
Linguistic Definitions
Varying perspectives on what constitutes a "word."
E.g., morphological, phonological, syntactic definitions.
Morphological Perspective
Morphemes
Smallest units of meaning.
E.g., "unhappiness" consists of "un-" (negation), "happy," and "-ness" (noun suffix).
Bound vs. Free Morphemes
Bound: Must attach to other morphemes (e.g., "un-").
Free: Can stand alone (e.g., "happy").
Word Formation Processes
Affixation, compounding, derivation, etc.
E.g., "unhappiness" formed by affixation.
Phonological Perspective
Phonemes
Smallest distinctive sound units.
E.g., /k/, /æ/, /t/ in "cat."
Phonological Changes
Phonological variations of words.
E.g., "pluralization" changes the /s/ sound in "cats."
Syntactic Perspective
Grammatical Function
How words fit into sentence structures.
E.g., "cat" as a subject or object in a sentence.
Word Order
Impact on meaning.
E.g., "The cat chased the dog"
vs. "The dog chased the cat."
Semantic Perspective
Word Meaning
Relationship between word and concept.
E.g., "dog" represents the concept of a canine.
Polysemy and Homonymy
Polysemy: Multiple related meanings (e.g., "bank" for a financial institution or river edge).
Homonymy: Unrelated meanings (e.g., "bat" for a flying mammal or a sports equipment).
Psycholinguistic Perspective
Mental Lexicon
How words are stored and processed in the mind.
E.g., retrieval of word meanings in context.
Lexical Ambiguity
How context resolves word ambiguity.
E.g., "I saw her duck" (bird or action?).
Historical Perspective
Diachronic Changes
How word meanings evolve over time.
Cross-Linguistic Perspective
Word Types
Different languages may have different types of words (e.g., ideophones in some African languages).
Word Boundaries
Languages may differ in how they mark word boundaries.
Challenges in Word Definition
Context Dependency
Words often derive their meaning from context.
E.g., "set" can mean various things depending on context.
Cultural and Conceptual Variation
Words may not have direct equivalents across languages or cultures.
E.g., "Schadenfreude" (German) or "Namaste" (Sanskrit).