<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">

<p>This paper uses corpus data and methods of distributional semantics in order to study English clippings such as dorm (&lt; <italic>dormitory</italic>), <italic>memo</italic> (&lt; <italic>memorandum</italic>), or quake (&lt; <italic>earthquake</italic>). We investigate whether systematic meaning differences between clippings and their source words can be detected. The analysis is based on a sample of 50 English clippings. Each of the clippings is represented by a concordance of 100 examples in context that were gathered from the Corpus of Contemporary American English. We compare clippings and their source words both at the aggregate level and in terms of comparisons between individual clippings and their source words. The data show that clippings tend to be used in contexts that represent involved text production, which aligns with the idea that clipped words signal familiarity with their referents. It is further observed that individual clippings and their source words partly diverge in their distributional profiles, reflecting both overlap and differences with regard to their meanings. We interpret these findings against the theoretical background of Construction Grammar and specifically the Principle of No Synonymy.</p>
</abstract>

This paper uses corpus data and methods of distributional semantics in order to study English clippings such as dorm (< dormitory), memo (< memorandum), or quake (< earthquake). We investigate whether systematic meaning differences between clippings and their source words can be detected. The analysis is based on a sample of 50 English clippings. Each of the clippings is represented by a concordance of 100 examples in context that were gathered from the Corpus of Contemporary American English. We compare clippings and their source words both at the aggregate level and in terms of comparisons between individual clippings and their source words. The data show that clippings tend to be used in contexts that represent involved text production, which aligns with the idea that clipped words signal familiarity with their referents. It is further observed that individual clippings and their source words partly diverge in their distributional profiles, reflecting both overlap and differences with regard to their meanings. We interpret these findings against the theoretical background of Construction Grammar and specifically the Principle of No Synonymy.

Meaning differences between English clippings and their source words: A corpus-based study

ICAME Journal

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

This paper uses corpus data and methods of distributional semantics in order to study English clippings such as dorm (< dormitory), memo (< memorandum), or...

Meaning differences between English clippings and their source words: A corpus-based study

Publié en ligne: 01 mai 2023

Pages: 19 - 37

Reçu: 28 sept. 2022

Accepté: 02 janv. 2023

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/icame-2023-0002

Mots clés
clipping, COCA, distributional profile, Construction Grammar, Principle of No Synonymy

© 2023 Martin Hilpert et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Meaning differences between English clippings and their source words: A corpus-based study

Publié en ligne: 01 mai 2023

Pages: 19 - 37

Reçu: 28 sept. 2022

Accepté: 02 janv. 2023

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/icame-2023-0002

Mots clésclipping, COCA, distributional profile, Construction Grammar, Principle of No Synonymy

© 2023 Martin Hilpert et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Mots clés
clipping, COCA, distributional profile, Construction Grammar, Principle of No Synonymy