ON THE PROBLEM OF STRUCTURING THE LEXICAL-SEMANTIC SYSTEM OF A LANGUAGE

Abstract

The article deals with the problem of structuring the lexical-semantic system of a language, more precisely, with the problem of differentiating some types of content-based units (lexical-semantic field, thematic group, synonymic set).

The analysis of the scientific situation related to the recognized way of solution of the mentioned problem provoked some definite questions: 

1. Do different types of lexical – semantic groups really occur in the language?
2. If that’s the case, what is the source of their difference?
3. Should the terms – “lexical-semantic field”, “thematic group”, “synonymic set” - be applied to the different types?

The analysis of the semantic domains of “beauty”, “human being” and “murder” in English revealed the existence of some definite regularity:

1. The causal relation between the nature of the content of the group word-identifier or and the type of the group structure is evident;

2.         Specificity of the group structure is the immediate result of the nature of the word-identifier’s content, namely, its subjectivity in one case and objectivity in another.