An Investigation into Denotative Aspects of Word-Meaning

Abstract

Five tasks of restricted associations (synonyms, co-ordinates, superordinates, attributes, and antonyms) were applied to analyse some aspects of denotative meaning. Nine subjects gave two responses each to 120 German words and under all five conditions. The results of factor analyses indicated most clearly the prevalence of a superordinate - co-ordinate dimension and its high stability across form classes. Other factors are : attribute - synonyms, antonyms - synonyms, and co-ordinate -synonyms. Thus, synonyms seem to indicate least clearly the denotative meaning of words. Interpretations and rationales for the procedure are presented.