Лекции по лексикологии английского языка. Гусева Г.В. - 9 стр.

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IV. Lexical and Grammatical Meaning

The word is a lexical-grammatical unity. Its content plane includes two types

of meaning: lexical and grammatical.

Lexical meaning is individual, unique. It does not belong to any other word

in the same language: bicycle – a vehicle with two wheels, handle-bars to guide it

with, a seat, and two pedals to make it go. Grammatical meaning is general,

standard. It belongs to a whole class of words and word-forms: bicycle – a noun in

the common case, singular.

At the same time lexical and grammatical meanings co-exist in the word and

are interdependent:

1. Lexical meaning affects grammatical meaning: abstract or mass nouns

have no plural form (joy, sugar), relative adjectives have no degrees of

comparison (watery), statal verbs are not used in progressive tenses (see,

understand).

2. Grammatical meaning affects lexical meaning. Different meanings of the

polysemantic word go have their own grammatical peculiarities: He has

gone to China – moved (go + adverb of place); They are going to get

married soon – are planning (be going + to-infinitive); The children went

wild with eycitement – became (go + adjective).

3. Combinability of the word depends both on its lexical and grammatical

(part-of-speech) meaning, e.g. the noun tea combines with strong but not

with strongly.

4. Grammatical form may be isolated from the paradigm and become

lexicalized: works – factory.

5. Lexical meaning may be grammaticalized, e.g. some notional verbs may

be used as link-verbs: give a smile, turn red.