“朋”与“友”的词义发展

Evolution of "peng"(朋) and "you"(友) in meaning

“朋”的本义是集合数量单位,“友”的本义是互相帮助,它们不断地引申出新的词义,并因“朋”的“同群同类者”义和“友”的“志趣相投的人”义而成为同义词。其后“友”还因同义关系的比照而生出“两只兽在一起”的意义。“朋”与“友”的词义发展是由语言外部因素和语言内部因素共同作用的结果,它一方面体现了词汇系统的复杂性,另一方面也能反映古人的交友观。

The original meaning of 'peng' is a unit of collective quantity while that of 'you' is to help each other . They gradually extend new meaning and then become synonyms because of 'peng' referring to the same kind of people in the same group and 'you' meaning people with same ambition and interests . Afterward , compared with 'peng' and following it , 'you' has developed a new meaning indicating two beasts stay together . The evolution of 'peng' and 'you' in meaning results from the interaction of inward and outward factors of language and reflects not only the complication of vocabulary system but also the primitive notion about friends-making .