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polysemy

Syllabification: (po·ly·se·my)
Pronunciation: /ˈpäliˌsemē/

Definition of polysemy

noun

Linguistics
  • the coexistence of many possible meanings for a word or phrase.

Derivatives

polysemic

Pronunciation: /ˌpäliˈsēmik/

adjective

polysemous

Pronunciation: /ˌpäliˈsēməs/

adjective

Origin:

early 20th century: from poly- 'many' + Greek sēma 'sign'

polysemy in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of polysemy in the British & World English dictionary

Nearby words

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