polysemy
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pol·y·se·mous
(pŏl′ē-sē′məs)adj.
Having or characterized by many meanings, as the words play and table.
[From Late Latin polysēmus, from Greek polusēmos : polu-, poly- + sēma, sign.]
pol′y·se′my (pŏl′ē-sē′mē, pə-lĭs′ə-) n.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
polysemy
(ˌpɒlɪˈsiːmɪ; pəˈlɪsəmɪ)n
(Linguistics) the existence of several meanings in a single word. Compare monosemy
[C20: from New Latin polysēmia, from Greek polusēmos having many meanings, from poly- + sēma a sign]
ˌpolyˈsemous, polysemic, polyseme adj
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
pol•y•se•my
(ˈpɒl iˌsi mi, pəˈlɪs ə mi)n.
diversity of meanings.
[< French polysémie (1897) < Late Latin polysēm(us) with many meanings (< Greek polýsēmos)]
pol`y•se′mous, adj.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
polysemy
a diversity of meanings for a given word.
See also: Language-Ologies & -Isms. Copyright 2008 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Noun | 1. | polysemy - the ambiguity of an individual word or phrase that can be used (in different contexts) to express two or more different meanings equivocalness, ambiguity - unclearness by virtue of having more than one meaning monosemy - having a single meaning (absence of ambiguity) usually of individual words or phrases |
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