Questions and Tasks

1.  What makes Shakespeare particularly difficult to read, old form of spelling, old ways of pronunciation or change of word meaning?

2.  What are the causes of meaning change? Illustrate your point.

3.  What is the mechanism underlying the semantic change in lexemes?

4.  Study the following words and their meanings: (a) being the original and (b) the modern meaning. Give the process that each word has undergone in terms of extension, narrowing, elevation and degradation.

1)  box: (                 )

    a. container made of boxwood         b. any container

2)  layman: (                   )

    a. one who is not of clergy       b. non-member of any profession

3)  voyage: (                     )

    a. journey                  b. journey by water

4)  busybody: (                     )

    a. busy person            b. officious and meddlesome person

5)  sergeant: (                                     )

    a. servant                   b. non-commissioned officer

6)  starve: (                                     )

    a. die                         b. die or suffer from hunger

7)  citizen: (                                  )

    a. city dweller            b. inhabitant of a state or nation

8)  brim: (                                     )

    a. water's edge          b. the top edge of a cup, glass, etc. and the rim of any thing

9)  girl: (                                     )

    a. young person of both sex   b. female young person

10)  doctor: (                                     )

    a. skilled in any learned profession  b. specialist in medicine

11)  naughty: (                                     )

    a. wicked, bad, evil             b. not behaving properly

12)  notorious: (                                     )

     a. well-known                      b. unfavourably well-known

13)  mistress: (                                     )

     a. a woman who rules others    b. a married man' s lover

14)  gossip: (                                 )

    a. Godfather                b. one who repeats idle talk and spreads rumor about

 

5.  Explain the types of transference that the words in bold type have experienced.

a.   You should address your remarks to the chair.   (            )

b.  Michael is the pride of the family.  (            )

c.  The fairy tale The Sleeping Beauty is very interesting. (            )

d. Your son is a real terror. Can't you control him?  (            )

e.  The student assistant is an efficient help.                 (            )

f.  Nails are thin growths at the ends of the fingers.             (            )

g.  And what does he do? He drops off to sleep, the lamb. (            ) 

h. The speaker was surprised to find so many familiar faces at his lecture. (        )

i. A warm person is friendly, and shows a lot of affection or enthusiasm in theirbehaviour.                                                                                              (            )

j. She burst into passionate sobbing. (            )

 

6.  Say whether the words in bold type are used in subjective or objective sense.

a.  The old man, though poor, is a respectable gentleman.  (               )

b.   The person is doubtful about the doubtful promise made by the unexpected visitor.                                                                      (              )    (               )

c.   Never run towards a dangerous animal.     (               )

d.  There is a hot pursuit for the escaped prisoner. (               )

e.  She said with an embarrassed laugh. (               )

f.  He was very courageous in battle.  (               )

g.  Just after two years he is quite a grown boy now.  (               )

h. His is not a dubious character, but his loyalty remains dubious.(       ) (       )

 

7. Study the following euphemistic expressions and tell what exactly each refers to.

a.  cease to think                

b.  memorial park

c.  mental hospital

d.  senior citizens

e.   industrial action

f.  custodian of the law

g.  underachiever

h. the disadvantaged i. the lounge

j. weight watcher                                              

k. welfare mother