Lexical meaning – notion

The lexical meaning of a word is the realization of a notion by means of a definite language system. A word is a language unit, while a notion is a unit of thinking. A notion cannot exist without a word expressing it in the language, but there are words which do not express any notion but have a lexical meaning. Interjections express emotions but not notions, but they have lexical meanings, e.g. Alas! (dissapointment), Oh, my buttons! (surprise) etc. There are also words which express both notions and emotions e.g. girlie, a pig (when used metaphorically).

The term notion was introduced into lexicology from logics. A notion denotes the reflection in the mind of real objects and phenomena in their relations. Notions, as a rule, are international (especially with the nations of the same cultural level), while meanings can be nationally limited. The grouping of meanings in the semantic structure of a word is determined by the whole system of every language. E.g. the English verb go and its Ukrainian equivalents йти have some meanings which coincide: to move from place to place, to extend (The road goes to London), to work (Is your watch going? On the other hand, they have different meanings. In Ukrainian we say: Ось він іде! In English we use the verb come in this case: Here he comes! In English we use the verb go in the combinations to go by bus, to go by train etc. In Russian we use the verb ехать in these cases.

The number of meanings does not correspond to the number of words, neither does the number of notions. Their distribution in relation to words is peculiar in every language. In Ukrainian we have two words for the English man чоловік and людина. In English, however, man cannot be applied to a female person. We say in Ukrainian: Вона гарна людина. In English we use the word person in this case: She is a good person.

The development of lexical meanings in any language is influenced by the whole network of ties and relations between words and other aspects of the language.