Cluster Analysis of Polysemous Word Semantic Structure in the Light of Invariant Theory

Abstract

The aim of the article is to disclose specific features of the cluster method of material organization to the semantic structure analysis of polysemous words. The object of study includes the most frequent polysemous words of Russian and English languages. The words for study should have a developed semantic structure thanks to which intra-word connections and a picture of the semantic component selection in the process of decoding figurative meaning can be visually presented. The main method of analysis is component analysis and consideration of non-trivial semantic components. In the process of word analysis, we intend to discover what underlies the retention of meanings within a single structure. Initially, the idea bases on the existence of some invariant content, which is stored in the folded form in the mind of a native speaker. In the present study, the application of cluster theory to the organization of the polysemous word semantic structure not only confirms the invariant theory, but also brings it to a new level of understanding what the meaning of the word is and how we understand the figurative meaning. Representation of the semantic structure in the form of interconnected semantic components, united in clusters on the basis of a criterion, represents a new approach to understanding the phenomenon of polysemy and explaining the diffusivity of figurative meanings. The configuration of invariant and differential components in the decoding process provides an understanding of figurative meanings. We find confirmation of this theory in the works on neurolinguistics and cognitive psychology.