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INTRODUCTION
The study of lexis is the study of the vocabulary of languages in all its aspects: words and their meanings, how words relate to one another, how they may combine with one another, and the relationships between vocabulary and other areas of the description of languages (phonology, morphology, and syntax).
Morphology, as has been carefully defined in several units, relates to the study of different methods of forming words. If the word is an identifiable unit of a language, then it must be possible to isolate a core, stable meaning that enables its consistent use by a vast number of users in many contexts over long periods of time. Linguists have attempted to see the meaning of a word in terms of the features that compose it (componential features) and the process of analysis of those features (lexical composition). Most important in this respect is the work of Katz and Fodor (1963).
As with morphemes, specific characteristics of the referents of words serve to differentiate between different word senses. For instance, to define a word orthographically would entail a clarification of the role of the morphemes in, consequent and –tial which make up the word ‘inconsequential’. Two out of the three morphemes above (‘in-’ and ‘- tial’) make meaning but cannot be described as words. Apart from these, there are sequences in the lexicon which make meaning but cannot be described as words. These include items like un-, -ing, pre-, etc., which go into the construction of words and which actually have their own meanings (Oloruntoba-Oju 1994:74).
Thus, to describe the ‘word’ as a meaning-bearing sequence is to include a very wide, incompatible range of sequences which are framed from various components of morphemic alignments. The synthesis of morphemes and lexemes therefore leads us into the heart of the organization of the lexicon – the discussion which forms the core of this segment.
Why Study Lexis in English?
Lexical studies in English, which is an examination of the behavioral patterns of lexical items within the English language, is a subject relevant not only for second language learners of the language but for native speakers as well. To a large extent, language use involves the choice of lexical items, bringing them together in discourse to pass meaningful message. An understanding of it and how it behaves not only exposes the learner/user to the fundamentals (i.e., linguistic root) of the language but equally makes him explore the language better knowing what lexis to make occur together to get a desired communicative result. Ignorance of the concept, therefore, can only result in our inability to manipulate the language and of course our difficulty in managing both man and our environment. Language use itself is more about using words to make a change, a resolution, create effects or even manipulate fellow humans. The study of lexis in English also helps in the analysis of the language. A careful study of the lexis, for instance, has revealed that the language is basically isolating/analytic and partly agglutinating and synthesis 84.
The fact remains that we could not, as linguists have been able to do a comprehensive analysis of the language without first studying the lexis of the language. Similarly, the lexicographer’s compilation of the dictionary was made possible by the findings from the synchronic as well as the diachronic studies of the language. The dictionary, therefore, as common and as simple as it appears is the physical realization of the in-depth underlying findings and conclusions of the linguist – that is, her/his in-depth study of the lexis. Synonyms, homonyms, and antonyms abound in the language.
The study of lexis shows that synonyms, though distinct lexical items, are actually semantically similar since they reflect almost the same meaning. It would be wrong, for instance, to use two or more synonyms in the same sentence realizing them as different lexical items just for reasons of their different alphabetical shapes. A similar explanation applies to homonyms – words with the same spellings but different reference – whose meaning can only be deduced from an understanding of the other lexical items with which they co-occur in the sentence. Consider the use of the item, bank, in the sentences below:
(a) My friend saves with Oceanic Bank.
(b) I bank on his rich knowledge and experience.
(c) On getting to the bank of the river, Kunle decided to have a rethink on the project.
(d) There is a blood bank for accident victims.
Our study and understanding of lexis also provide insight into the differences of meaning brought about by the different combination of items and the environment in which such combinations are made in the language. The distinction between the phrasal verb and the prepositional verb can be discerned by our understanding of the functions of the prepositions in the sentences. With the prepositional verbs, the addition of prepositions to verbs that require them does not affect the underlying meaning of the sentence since such prepositions perform grammatical rather than semantic functions.
Consider the following phrases:
kick out, kick against, kick in, kick around, kick up, kickback, kick off.
Furthermore, knowledge of lexis will help our understanding of the morphological rules which guide the formation of words and their morphological arrangements.
SELF ASSESSMENT EXERCISE 1 State the reason for studying the English lexis.
The Nature of Lexicon (in Word Meaning)
According to Ogbulogo (2005:63), the lexicon provides a complete list of words in a language. The lexicon provides a complete list of words in a language. It is an unordered mental list of words in which a user of a language operates. It is mental because it is not written down. When the lexicon is ordered and externalized, it becomes the dictionary as can be found on bookshelves. The lexicon (including the dictionary) provides phonological, syntactic, and semantic information about words.
Phonological information specifies the pronunciation of the word. Syntactic information shows the categorical features and distributional possibilities of a word in the sentence, while semantic information is related to the meaning associated with the word. Phonological information is clearly outside the domain of semantics.
Features of Words
Lexical items are grouped into specific categories – nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, pronouns, conjunctions, prepositions, etc. Words can also be grouped into content and form words. Content words have their independent meaning and can occur in isolation. Content words have an open class system because they can accept new words with the expansion of the vocabulary of the language. Form words do not have specific meanings when they occur in isolation. Instead, they occur with other words to signal syntactic or grammatical relationships within larger structures.
Form words belong to a closed system because they cannot be expanded. Form words are few in number. They include pronouns, auxiliaries, conjunctions, prepositions, determiners, and particles. Since the meanings of form words derive from their relationship in larger structures, such words are also referred to as grammatical, function, or structural words. Words can also be transparent or opaque. Transparent words are those words the meaning of which can be determined from the meaning of their parts.
For instance, by breaking the following words into their morphological structures, we can derive their meanings. Indeed, most content words are transparent. in- correct - ness negative prefix word stem noun forming suffix This means that the word incorrectness refers to the negative form of the noun form of the adjective correct. anti- dis- establish ment- arian- -ism negative negative word stem noun agent- (noun) idea agent idea forming forming idea forming prefix suffix suffix (Adapted from Ogbulogo 2005:65)
SELF ASSESSMENT EXERCISE
Give 10 verb-forming affixes that you know.
The Lexis and Other Units of Grammar
Though it may be argued that lexis cannot be studied in isolation without reference to its basis – the morpheme, or without relating it to the body from which it takes its relative meaning i.e. the syntax, lexis on its own could depict a sense or meaning beyond the morpheme and below the clause. The use of the lexical item, hospital, in response to the question, where is he coming from? suggests that hospital cannot be explained in the light of a word such as coming which is made up of two morphemes (come + ing) in that capacity. Though an item at the surface level, hospital is equivalent to the sentence, He is coming from the hospital. From this analysis, we see that lexis lies between the morpheme and the clause and thus must be studied as a separate and distinct level of analysis, and not in relation to some other classes or levels of language as has been the case. Lexicology, therefore, must be given as much attention as is accorded phonology, morphology, or grammar in language.
The Lexis and the Word Lexis or lexicon consists of all the words and phrases used in a language. To the layman, the terms lexis and word are synonymous and may be used interchangeably. However, the two concepts differ scientifically with respect to their linguistic properties and usage. While lexis refers to the individual items that the dictionary attempts to list in some alphabetical order, the meaning of a word cannot be given without reference to some semantic relations that exist in discourse. The meaning given to an item depends, not only on its structure or class, but on the resultant derived meaning it gets from the other words with which it is occurring in the sentence, and of course to the interpretation given it by the user. Thus, a word does not have any specified meaning except it is examined in discourse. For example, the lexical item, go (to move away from a speaker or place), could mean several other things. In other words, go could function as different words in different linguistic environments.
Consider the following sentences:
Bola goes to school daily.
The time goes fast.
Mary goes well with Henry.
This road goes to Badagry.
The song goes thus …
Nigeria has been recently classified the most corrupt nation in the world.
It then goes that we must all collectively strive hard to redeem the lost glory.
Though the lexical item, go, is common to all the sentences, it does not have the same meaning in the contexts. This is probably what Crystal (1977) means when he refers to words as sitting uneasily at the boundary between morphology and syntax. Ajulo (1994:28) attempted a distinction between morphology and lexis by arguing that forms derived from an item such as happiness, unhappy, and happily (from happy) do not have the same primitive stock as base, but are realizations of separate lexemes HAPPY, HAPPINESS, and HAPPILY which are entered under separate headings by the lexicographer into the dictionary. Ajulo’s argument is that no grammatical item is completely devoid of lexical content and vice-versa. Thus, a wrong use of a lexical item in discourse almost usually results in some semantic-unreasonableness at the other level on the scale.
SELF ASSESSMENT EXERCISE 3 Distinguish between the lexis and the word.
Lexis as a Level of Linguistic Description
There have been arguments on where to place lexis on the level of linguistic analysis. In Derbyshire’s view, “Lexis is that branch of linguistics which deals with the major units of language that carry the burden of referential meaning” (1967:139).
Derbyshire’s conceptualization of lexis as a major unit of language probably means to have revealed that all other categories on the scale of the linguistic analysis of language including their components and structure form a combination of lexis. The sentence, the highest level on the hierarchy, for instance, gets its meaning and, consequently, our understanding of it from the individual unit of the lexical items and the internal relationship which exists between such. The sentence, phrase, or group can only be completely analyzed from our understanding of the lexis. It may appear difficult to have lexis occupy a specific position on the rank scale.
An examination of methodological rank scale reveals the fact that items sometimes co-extend with other items on the other ranks. On the rank of the morpheme, for instance, the addition of the bound morpheme (-er) to a verb e.g. play, a free morpheme, generates a new lexical item, now the noun class i.e. play + er = player. The bound morpheme (-er) in this derivative position, functions more like a lexis rather than a morpheme. Its function, in this position, for instance, cannot be likened to (un-) or (dis-) in unlikely and disallow respectively. In a similar vein, other levels on the scale could be equated with lexis.
This further goes to show that lexis could co-extend with other items on the other ranks. For example, phrases as well as clauses could function as lexical items. Examples are seen in an for an eye, in good faith, ups and downs, turn over a new leaf, throw in the towel, etc., each being possibly replaced by a lexical item. From our analysis, we can then agree with Lyons (1977) that “there is no generally accepted solution to the problem of lexical entries”.
SELF ASSESSMENT EXERCISE
4 Discuss your understanding of the lexis as a level of linguistic analysis.
CONCLUSION
I have synthesized the features and essence of the word and lexis, their nature in morphological arrangement and their formation with respect to how they sound and mean.
SUMMARY
In this unit, you have learned the following: • why we study lexis; • words, their meanings and their relationship with one another; • how they may combine with one another, and the relationships between vocabulary and other areas of the description of languages (phonology, morphology, and syntax). • the meaning and features of lexemes as well as their relationships with other units of grammar.