Word-Formation, Metaphor and Metonymy-Processes, Re¬ sults and Their Description

Abstract

Metaphor and metonymy (M & M) are usually not included in the study of word-formation (WF). This paper, however, claims that —together with an analysis of WF and loans from other languages— an account of semantic transfer (ST) is required as part of a description of productive processes in the lexicon (dynamic lexicology). This claim is supported by a number of features which WF and M & M (or ST) have in common, such as productivity, varying degrees of acceptability and lexicalization. The principal difference is that WF produces new lexemes, while M & M yields lexical units (a distinction introduced by CRUSE 1986) as the result of processes of ST. The form of the linguistic sign remains the same. In addition to other levels of lexicological analysis, including semantic and pragmatic aspects, a cognitive level of description is needed to account for the fact that M & M are based on subjective, culture-specific perception and categorization rather than on objective similarity. Illustration is made with examples from English, German, French and Spanish.