Polysemys paradoxes

This article reviews some recent publications dealing with the phenomenon of polysemy, and addresses some of the questions which they raise. According to a generally accepted definition, polysemy is the association of two or more related senses with a single phonological form. In many respects, the definition is highly problematic. Important foundational questions concern the nature of word senses, how they can be identified, enumerated, and characterized, the manner in which they may be related, and the psychological reality of these constructs. A further question concerns the kinds of linguistic units that are candidates for a polysemy analysis. Also not to be overlooked is that fact that the phonological pole of a linguistic unit is likely to exhibit variation no less than the semantic pole. In spite of the many theoretical and descriptive problems associated with polysemy, it is remarkable that speakers of a language are rarely troubled by it. The paradox is traced back to way in which polysemy is conceptualized by linguists, against the backdrop of ‘idealized cognitive models’ of language. The article concludes with some observations on a usage-based approach to issues raised.