Semantics Relations

One of the axioms of language teaching is that words should not be taught in isolation; they should always be contextualized. It is context that gives a word its real meaning and value. Most words, especially in English, are polysemantic, (have more than one meaning). It is context that specifies which of the meanings of the word is conveyed, so it is context that makes a word monosemantic (only one specific meaning), an indispensable condition to achieve effective communication.

Click on the icon at the left to access an interactive activity using the word FRESH.

Polysemy, the coexistence of many possible meanings for a word or phrase, is the reason that hundreds of idioms formed in English. The verbs that combine many idioms are very polysemantic. Common verbs like get, put, and take have a multitude of meanings and uses. Here are some of the phrasal versions, also known as two-word verbs:

Get up	get down	get back	get over	get through
Put away	put down	put up with	put across	put out
Take down	take in	take out	take up	take over

Click on the projector to watch a video that elaborates on this idea.

 

 

An important point to make here is that English is one of the few languages that generates new verbs by tacking on different adverbial particles and/or prepositions (as seen above). Spanish and French, for example, along with most non-Germanic languages, have no such constructions. Therefore, native speakers of these languages sometimes have an especially difficult time learning the different uses and meanings of these phrasal verbs.

Presenting long lists of these phrasal verbs at one time can be counterproductive as it may be overwhelming for ELLs. Instead, by presenting these words a few at a time, and in meaningful contexts as they do with other vocabulary words, educators of English will help students comprehend them more naturally.