Abstract

There are numerous polysemous words in both English and Chinese, and lexical polysemy also is the most common and important semantic phenomenon. Many linguistic schools were devoted to polysemy study in the past few centuries, but they tended to focus on the external cause of polysemy’s formation and the relation between polysemous words and homonyms, thus neglecting to explore the essence of this linguistic phenomenon. Based on the fundamental theory of cognitive linguistics, this paper firstly analyzes the theoretical framework of lexical polysemy, and then systematically discusses the essential characteristics in the formation of polysemous words by means of empirical study under the guidance of this theoretical framework. The thesis finally states the effect of cultural development on the formation of polysemous words in the light of culture. 

Keywords: polysemy; cognitive linguistic; theoretical framework;

Contents

Abstract

摘要

1.Introduction-1

2.Literature review-1

3.Cognitive Research on Polysemy-2

3.1 Prototype in Polysemy-2

3.2 Three schemas for Polysemy forming-3

3.3 Cultural Model-5

4. Cognitive Process of Polysemization-6

4.1-Polysemization-6

4.2-Advantages of Polysemization-6

4.3 Meaning Relations in Polysemy-6

5. Case Studies-7

5.1 Forming of “haigui”and “haidai”-8

5.2 Forming of“fensi”and“yumi”-10

6.Conclusion-12

Works Cited -13