Polysemy is distinct from homonymy —or homophony —which is an accidental similarity between two or more words (such as bear the animal, and the verb bear) : while homonymy is a mere …

This polysemy has been attributed to semantic retention, whereby both old (lexical) and new (grammaticalized) meanings are recovered in certain contexts.

Apr 30, 2025 · Polysemy means a word has two or more different meanings, like the word 'bank.' More than 40% of English words, like 'pupil' have more than one meaning. Polysemous words …

Polysemy is characterized as the phenomenon whereby a single word form is associated with two or several related senses. It is distinguished from monosemy, where one word form is …

The meaning of POLYSEMY is multiplicity of meaning. How to use polysemy in a sentence.

Polysemy refers to a linguistic phenomenon where a single word or phrase has multiple related meanings. This concept is crucial for understanding how word meaning can shift and evolve …

Oct 31, 2025 · Fifty years ago the linguist and semanticist Stephen Ullmann wrote that polysemy, the fact that some words have a network of multiple but related meanings, is "the pivot of …

Oct 10, 2025 · Polysemy refers to the capacity of a word or phrase to have multiple related meanings. The term derives from the Greek words "poly" (many) and "sēma" (sign), literally …

Polysemy in English refers to words with multiple related meanings, and mastering it is essential for vocabulary growth. This guide presents a list of 59 of the most common polysemous words, …

When a symbol, word, or phrase means many different things, that's called polysemy. The verb "get" is a good example of polysemy — it can mean "procure," "become," or "understand."