polysemous
English edit
Etymology edit
From Medieval Latin polysēmus, from Ancient Greek πολύσημος (polúsēmos), from πολύς (polús, “many”) + σημαίνω (sēmaínō, “I signify, mean”).
Pronunciation edit
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /pəˈlɪs.ɪ.məs/, /ˌpɒl.ɪˈsiː.məs/
- (US) IPA(key): /ˌpɑːl.iˈsiː.məs/, /pəˈlɪs.ə.məs/
,Audio (US) (file) Audio (US) (file)
Adjective edit
polysemous (not comparable)
- (linguistics) Synonym of polysemic.
- 2000, Yael Ravin, Claudia Leacock, Polysemy: Theoretical and Computational Approaches, Oxford: OUP, →ISBN, page 52:
- But just how are the meanings associated with a polysemous word related? A look at the entries for polysemous words in different dictionaries shows that lexicographers cannot agree on how to divide up the semantic space […]
Related terms edit
Translations edit
having multiple meanings
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