A Diachronic Research of the Contronyms in Chinese by Using the Chinese Character (乖) <i>Guāi</i> and Its Words

Abstract

In many languages, a large portion of words are semantically ambiguous. The contronyms are some of these words. A contronym is defined as having two opposite meanings, that is the original meaning and the transferred meaning. There has been some research on contronyms in English, but they have not been studied in Chinese. The purpose of this research is to provide a way to explore these contronyms. Based on this, 乖 guāi with contronyms meanings was selected as the research object. The number of 乖 guāi was investigated through digital network and literature, the frequency was calculated by formula, and the frequency obtained by big data statistics was studied using a drawing method, in order to analyze the causes of the contronyms meanings and predict their application prospects. The results revealed that the percentage usage rate of 乖 guāi was lowest in the Qin Dynasty and highest in the Sui, Tang and Five dynasties. The percentage usage rate of words corresponding to 乖 guāi showed cyclical changes over the course of social and historical development. As far as the application of the transferred meaning is concerned, the Tang Dynasty is the earliest recorded period, the Song Dynasty is the initial use period, the Ming and Qing dynasties are the maturity use periods, and the republic of China has many use periods. The reasons for the emergence of its transferred meaning are associated with Fuxi culture and the region in which folk language evolved. The obtained graphs clearly showed the diachronic relationship between the change of words meaning and its application and the change with time. This method can elucidate the diachronic relationship between the application of words and social development and is also suitable for similar language and character studies.