This paper first points out the deficiency of listing synonyms by some dictionaries,such as the Cobuild Dictionary and Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary of Synonyms,which,however,have actually failed in distinguishing bet...This paper first points out the deficiency of listing synonyms by some dictionaries,such as the Cobuild Dictionary and Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary of Synonyms,which,however,have actually failed in distinguishing between some synonyms.Then,the paper attempts to solve the problem by providing a brief review of relevant studies in the past few decades on near synonyms with a focus on differences in denotation,connotation and semantic prosody of words as well as various definitions of semantic prosody and related researches.By evaluating the relevant research and defintions of semantic prosody,the review concluded that the alleged dictionaries would be perfected with the provision of connotations or semantic prosodies for near synonyms before suggesting out the focus of future and further research into near synonyms.展开更多
文摘This paper first points out the deficiency of listing synonyms by some dictionaries,such as the Cobuild Dictionary and Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary of Synonyms,which,however,have actually failed in distinguishing between some synonyms.Then,the paper attempts to solve the problem by providing a brief review of relevant studies in the past few decades on near synonyms with a focus on differences in denotation,connotation and semantic prosody of words as well as various definitions of semantic prosody and related researches.By evaluating the relevant research and defintions of semantic prosody,the review concluded that the alleged dictionaries would be perfected with the provision of connotations or semantic prosodies for near synonyms before suggesting out the focus of future and further research into near synonyms.
