What does this word mean synonym

This article is about the general meaning of «synonym». For other uses, see Synonym (disambiguation).

A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means exactly or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words begin, start, commence, and initiate are all synonyms of one another: they are synonymous. The standard test for synonymy is substitution: one form can be replaced by another in a sentence without changing its meaning. Words are considered synonymous in only one particular sense: for example, long and extended in the context long time or extended time are synonymous, but long cannot be used in the phrase extended family. Synonyms with exactly the same meaning share a seme or denotational sememe, whereas those with inexactly similar meanings share a broader denotational or connotational sememe and thus overlap within a semantic field. The former are sometimes called cognitive synonyms and the latter, near-synonyms,[2] plesionyms[3] or poecilonyms.[4]

LexicographyEdit

Some lexicographers claim that no synonyms have exactly the same meaning (in all contexts or social levels of language) because etymology, orthography, phonic qualities, connotations, ambiguous meanings, usage, and so on make them unique. Different words that are similar in meaning usually differ for a reason: feline is more formal than cat; long and extended are only synonyms in one usage and not in others (for example, a long arm is not the same as an extended arm). Synonyms are also a source of euphemisms.

Metonymy can sometimes be a form of synonymy: the White House is used as a synonym of the administration in referring to the U.S. executive branch under a specific president.[5] Thus, a metonym is a type of synonym, and the word metonym is a hyponym of the word synonym.[citation needed]

The analysis of synonymy, polysemy, hyponymy, and hypernymy is inherent to taxonomy and ontology in the information science senses of those terms.[6] It has applications in pedagogy and machine learning, because they rely on word-sense disambiguation.[7]

EtymologyEdit

The word is borrowed from Latin synōnymum, in turn borrowed from Ancient Greek synōnymon (συνώνυμον), composed of sýn (σύν ‘together, similar, alike’) and ōnym (-ωνυμ-), a form of onoma (ὄνομα ‘name’).[8]

SourcesEdit

Synonyms are often some from the different strata making up a language. For example, in English, Norman French superstratum words and Old English substratum words continue to coexist.[9] Thus, today we have synonyms like the Norman-derived people, liberty and archer, and the Saxon-derived folk, freedom and bowman. For more examples, see the list of Germanic and Latinate equivalents in English.

Loanwords are another rich source of synonyms, often from the language of the dominant culture of a region. Thus, most European languages have borrowed from Latin and ancient Greek, especially for technical terms, but the native terms continue to be used in non-technical contexts. In East Asia, borrowings from Chinese in Japanese, Korean, and Vietnamese often double native terms. In Islamic cultures, Arabic and Persian are large sources of synonymous borrowings.

For example, in Turkish, kara and siyah both mean ‘black’, the former being a native Turkish word, and the latter being a borrowing from Persian. In Ottoman Turkish, there were often three synonyms: water can be su (Turkish), âb (Persian), or (Arabic): «such a triad of synonyms exists in Ottoman for every meaning, without exception». As always with synonyms, there are nuances and shades of meaning or usage.[10]

In English, similarly, we often have Latin (L) and Greek (Gk) terms synonymous with Germanic ones: thought, notion (L), idea (Gk); ring, circle (L), cycle (Gk). English often uses the Germanic term only as a noun, but has Latin and Greek adjectives: hand, manual (L), chiral (Gk); heat, thermal (L), caloric (Gk). Sometimes the Germanic term has become rare, or restricted to special meanings: tide, time/temporal, chronic.[11]

Many bound morphemes in English are borrowed from Latin and Greek and are synonyms for native words or morphemes: fish, pisci- (L), ichthy- (Gk).

Another source of synonyms is coinages, which may be motivated by linguistic purism. Thus, the English word foreword was coined to replace the Romance preface. In Turkish, okul was coined to replace the Arabic-derived mektep and mederese, but those words continue to be used in some contexts.[12]

UsesEdit

Synonyms often express a nuance of meaning or are used in different registers of speech or writing.

Different technical fields may appropriate synonyms for specific technical meanings.

Some writers avoid repeating the same word in close proximity, and prefer to use synonyms: this is called elegant variation. Many modern style guides criticize this.

ExamplesEdit

Synonyms can be any part of speech, as long as both words belong to the same part of speech. Examples:

  • noun: drink and beverage
  • verb: buy and purchase
  • adjective: big and large
  • adverb: quickly and speedily
  • preposition: on and upon

Synonyms are defined with respect to certain senses of words: pupil as the aperture in the iris of the eye is not synonymous with student. Similarly, he expired means the same as he died, yet my passport has expired cannot be replaced by my passport has died.

A thesaurus or synonym dictionary lists similar or related words; these are often, but not always, synonyms.[13]

  • The word poecilonym is a rare synonym of the word synonym. It is not entered in most major dictionaries and is a curiosity or piece of trivia for being an autological word because of its meta quality as a synonym of synonym.
  • Antonyms are words with opposite or nearly opposite meanings. For example: hotcold, largesmall, thickthin, synonymantonym
  • Hypernyms and hyponyms are words that refer to, respectively, a general category and a specific instance of that category. For example, vehicle is a hypernym of car, and car is a hyponym of vehicle.
  • Homophones are words that have the same pronunciation but different meanings. For example, witch and which are homophones in most accents (because they are pronounced the same).
  • Homographs are words that have the same spelling but different meanings. For example, one can record a song or keep a record of documents.
  • Homonyms are words that have the same pronunciation and spelling but different meanings. For example, rose (a type of flower) and rose (past tense of rise) are homonyms.

See alsoEdit

  • -onym
  • Synonym (taxonomy)
  • Cognitive synonymy
  • Elegant variation, the gratuitous use of a synonym in prose
  • Synonym ring
  • Synonymy in Japanese
  • Thesauri and synonym dictionaries – Reference work for synonyms

ReferencesEdit

  1. ^ K.4375
  2. ^ Stanojević, Maja (2009), «Cognitive synonymy: a general overview» (PDF), Facta Universitatis, Linguistics and Literature Series, 7 (2): 193–200.
  3. ^ DiMarco, Chrysanne, and Graeme Hirst. «Usage notes as the basis for a representation of near-synonymy for lexical choice.» Proceedings of 9th annual conference of the University of Waterloo Centre for the New Oxford English Dictionary and Text Research. 1993.
  4. ^ Grambs, David. The Endangered English Dictionary: Bodacious Words Your Dictionary Forgot. WW Norton & Company, 1997.
  5. ^ «World Architecture Images- The White House». www.essential-architecture.com. Retrieved 2019-12-09.
  6. ^ Hirst, Graeme. «Ontology and the lexicon.» Handbook on ontologies. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg, 2009. 269-292.
  7. ^ Turney, Peter D. (2008). «A Uniform Approach to Analogies, Synonyms, Antonyms, and Associations». Proceedings of the 22nd International Conference on Computational Linguistics — Volume 1. COLING ’08. Stroudsburg, PA, USA: Association for Computational Linguistics: 905–912. arXiv:0809.0124. ISBN 978-1-905593-44-6.
  8. ^ Oxford English Dictionary, 1st edition, 1919, s.v.
  9. ^ Bradley, Henry (1922). The Making of English. Macmillan and Company, Limited.
  10. ^ Ziya Gökalp, The Principles of Turkism, 1968, p. 78
  11. ^ Carl Darling Buck, A Dictionary of Selected Synonyms in the Principal Indo-European Languages, 1949, reprinted as ISBN 0226079376
  12. ^ Geoffrey Lewis, The Turkish Language Reform: A Catastrophic Success, 1999, ISBN 0198238568, p. 44, 70, 117
  13. ^ «Synonym dictionary words and phrases». www.allacronyms.com. Retrieved 2018-04-27.

External linksEdit

Look up synonym in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Full Definition of synonym 1 : one of two or more words or expressions of the same language that have the same or nearly the same meaning in some or all senses. 2a : a word or phrase that by association is held to embody something (such as a concept or quality) a tyrant whose name has become a synonym for oppression.

Contents

  • 1 What is an example of a synonym?
  • 2 What is the meaning of synonym and antonym?
  • 3 What is another word for synonym?
  • 4 Why do we use synonyms?
  • 5 Can could synonym?
  • 6 Which means that synonyms?
  • 7 What is a synonym for why?
  • 8 Where can I find synonyms in word?
  • 9 Is the equivalent of synonym?
  • 10 Is a synonym the same or opposite?
  • 11 What is the difference between vocabulary and synonyms?
  • 12 How many synonyms are there in English?
  • 13 What is a good sentence for synonym?
  • 14 Which can be used synonym?
  • 15 Should you have synonym?
  • 16 What is another word for May?
  • 17 Which is how synonym?
  • 18 Which can lead to synonym?
  • 19 What is the synonym of essay?
  • 20 Do you believe synonym?

What is an example of a synonym?

A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means exactly or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words begin, start, commence, and initiate are all synonyms of one another: they are synonymous .

What is the meaning of synonym and antonym?

Key Takeaways. Synonyms are words that have the same, or almost the same, meaning as another word. Antonyms are words that have the opposite meaning of another word. Choosing the right synonym refines your writing.

What is another word for synonym?

In this page you can discover 16 synonyms, antonyms, idiomatic expressions, and related words for synonym, like: equivalent, metonym, synonymize, analogue, synonymic, antonym, synonymy, synonymous, equivalent word, word and phrase.

Why do we use synonyms?

It is important because synonyms can help you enhance the quality of your writing by providing your readers with a crisp and unique outlook of your text. Furthermore, it can also improve both your oral skills and your writing skills, as noted in the following section.

Can could synonym?

synonyms for could be

  • perchance.
  • perhaps.
  • as it may be.
  • can be.
  • conceivable.
  • conceivably.
  • credible.
  • feasible.

Which means that synonyms?

What is another word for which means?

meaning that the corollary being that
which expresses which implies
which indicates which insinuates
which intimates which portends
which purports which signifies

What is a synonym for why?

due to this action. as a result of doing this. why. thereon. axiomatically.

Where can I find synonyms in word?

You can easily find synonyms for a word (from the thesaurus, of course) by right-clicking on a word and then choosing Synonyms from the resulting Context menu. As you are using this feature, you may notice that it is not available at all times or, if it is available, it may not offer any real synonyms.

Is the equivalent of synonym?

Some common synonyms of equivalent are equal, identical, same, selfsame, and very. While all these words mean “not different or not differing from one another,” equivalent implies amounting to the same thing in worth or significance.

Is a synonym the same or opposite?

Synonyms are words that have the same, or almost the same, meaning as another word. Antonyms are words that have the opposite meaning of another word.

What is the difference between vocabulary and synonyms?

So, you can see that synonyms only present some similar alternatives but do not actually describe the word.However, the vocabulary of the word ‘vocabulary’ will tell you the exact meaning of the word, its usage in different contexts, and its difference from the synonym of this word.

How many synonyms are there in English?

Hence, we are providing the list of Synonyms and Antonyms containing more than 400 English synonym and antonym words.

Synonyms And Antonyms List
Words Synonyms – Same Meaning Antonyms – Opposites
Abject Despicable, servile Commendable, Praiseworthy

What is a good sentence for synonym?

The Parisians received the news of the event with joy, believing that freedom was now at last to be established on a firm basis by the man whose name was the synonym for victory in the field and disinterestedness in civil affairs. In fact his name has become a synonym for the word liar.

Which can be used synonym?

What is another word for can be used?

can be brought into play can be brought to bear
can be drawn on can be exploited
can be put to use can be utilized
may be used

Should you have synonym?

Should Synonyms – WordHippo Thesaurus.
What is another word for should?

must need to
need be obliged to
will ought
shall be required to
got to be compelled to

What is another word for May?

In this page you can discover 41 synonyms, antonyms, idiomatic expressions, and related words for may, like: can, be allowed, might, be possible, opening of the fishing season, will, be going to, allowed, should, whitethorn and must.

Which is how synonym?

What is another word for how?

approach manner
tactic direction
routine mechanism
agency path
road modus

Which can lead to synonym?

What is another word for lead to?

produce catalyseUK
spawn trigger
yield result in
bring about bring on
contribute to set in motion

Some common synonyms of essay are attempt, endeavor, strive, and try. While all these words mean “to make an effort to accomplish an end,” essay implies difficulty but also suggests tentative trying or experimenting.

Do you believe synonym?

(Idiomatic) To wholeheartedly trust.In this page you can discover 74 synonyms, antonyms, idiomatic expressions, and related words for believe, like: have faith, be confident, think, be convinced, accept, conclude, affirm, be certain, feel sure, postulate and deem.

You might hear a lot of terms regarding semantics that sound similar: homonym, metonym, synonym, and so on. Today, our word of the day is synonym. In this article, you will learn what a synonym is, how to use a synonym, and why synonyms are useful. 

What Does Synonym Mean?

According to Dictionary, the definition of synonym is a word with the same meaning or similar meaning as another word. synonym is three syllables — syn-o-nym — and the pronunciation of synonyms is ˈsɪnənɪm. A dictionary of synonyms is called a thesaurus.

You might run into near-synonyms, which are related words to synonyms but might have a slightly different definition or be a different part of speech.

Why Should You Use Synonyms?

You might wonder why it would be useful to know multiple words that all mean the same thing. Why not just know one of them and leave the rest? Many times, synonyms of words come with different connotations. 

Connotation is the feeling that a word evokes, separate from its dictionary definition. Sometimes, two words might mean the same thing, but one has a positive connotation while the other has a negative connotation. 

Learning synonyms is also an efficient way to learn new words. If you know the definition of one word and then learn all of the synonyms of that word, you have just expanded your vocabulary exponentially!

Knowing synonyms can also be helpful when it comes to taxonomic names or scientific names. The average person might not know the technical term for a species of plant or animal, so knowing the common words for these things can prove very useful.

What Is the Etymology of Synonym?

The word synonym has been in the English language for a very long time – since the early 1400s! This word comes from the Ancient Greek syn, Greek sunōnumon and synōnymon, the Latin onoma, and the Latin synōnymum.

What Are Examples of Synonyms?

Below, you will find several example sentences of synonyms. Each of these examples of synonyms uses two words with the same denotation but a different connotation. See if you can identify which word has a positive connotation and which word has a negative connotation.

Example #1: Youthful vs. Sophomoric

Sentence 1: The new intern at the company brought youthful energy to every meeting.

Sentence 2: The new intern at the company brought sophomoric energy to every meeting.

Question: Which of the above synonyms has a positive connotation in this context? Which one has a negative connotation?

Answer: Youthful has a positive connotation, and sophomoric has a negative connotation.

Example #2: Secluded vs. Isolated

Sentence 1: The parents took their children to a secluded cabin in the woods to escape city life.

Sentence 2: The parents took their children to an isolated cabin in the woods to escape city life.

Question: Which of the above synonyms has a positive connotation in this context? Which one has a negative connotation?

Answer: Secluded has a positive connotation, and isolated has a negative connotation.

Example #3: Ancient vs. Vintage

Sentence 1: The teenager’s father gave him an ancient pickup truck from the 1960s to drive.

Sentence 2: The teenager’s father gave him a vintage pickup truck from the 1960s to drive.

Question: Which of the above synonyms has a positive connotation in this context? Which one has a negative connotation?

Answer: Vintage has a positive connotation, and ancient has a negative connotation.

Example #4: Humorous vs. Goofy

Sentence 1: The CEO gave a humorous speech at the company’s annual conference.

Sentence 2: The CEO gave a goofy speech at the company’s annual conference

Question: Which of the above synonyms has a positive connotation in this context? Which one has a negative connotation?

Answer: Humorous has a positive connotation, and goofy has a negative connotation.

Example #5: Assertive vs. Domineering

Sentence 1: The employees chatted about their boss’ assertive behavior during the meeting.

Sentence 2: The employees chatted about their boss’ domineering behavior during the meeting.

Question: Which of the above synonyms has a positive connotation in this context? Which one has a negative connotation?

Answer: Assertive has a positive connotation, and domineering has a negative connotation.

What Are Translations of Synonym?

Different languages besides the English language contain their fair share of synonyms. If you are studying a different language, you can reference this list of translations of synonym from Nice Translator.

  • Dutch: synoniem
  • Catalan: sinònim
  • Polish: synonim
  • Swahili: Synonym
  • Italian: sinonimo
  • Marathi: प्रतिशब्द
  • Lithuanian: sinonimas
  • Chinese (PRC): 代名词
  • Turkish: eşanlamlı sözcük
  • Estonian: sünonüüm
  • Danish: synonym
  • Greek: συνώνυμο
  • Hindi: पर्याय
  • Hebrew: שֵׁם נִרדָף
  • Hungarian: szinonima
  • Latvian: sinonīms
  • Chinese (Taiwan): 代名詞
  • Arabic: مرادف
  • German: Synonym
  • Icelandic: samheiti
  • Portuguese (Brazil): sinônimo
  • Malay: sinonim
  • Serbian: синоним
  • Ukrainian: синонім
  • Romanian: sinonim
  • Russian: синоним
  • Basque: sinonimo
  • Amharic: ተመሳሳይ ስም
  • Swedish: synonym
  • Bulgarian: синоним
  • Bengali: প্রতিশব্দ
  • Norwegian: synonym
  • Slovak: synonymum
  • Malayalam: പരായം
  • Kannada: ಸಮಾನಾರ್ಥಕ
  • Vietnamese: Từ đồng nghĩa
  • Czech: synonymum
  • Urdu: مترادف
  • Welsh: chyfystyron
  • Telugu: పర్యాయపదం
  • Thai: คำพ้องความหมาย
  • Indonesian: persamaan Kata
  • French: synonyme
  • Korean: 동의어
  • Croatian: sinonim
  • Spanish: sinónimo
  • Portuguese (Portugal): sinônimo
  • Filipino: kasingkahulugan
  • Tamil: ஒத்த பெயர்
  • Finnish: synonyymi
  • Japanese: シノニム
  • Slovenian: sinonim
  • Gujarati: પર્યાય

What Are Synonyms of Synonym?

Power Thesaurus provides several synonyms for the word synonym!

  • acceptation
  • alternate
  • alternative
  • alternative expression
  • alternative word
  • analog
  • convertible terms
  • copy
  • duplicate
  • equivalence
  • equivalent
  • equivalent word
  • euphemism
  • expression
  • identical same
  • metonym
  • other word
  • paraphrase
  • same
  • substitute
  • very same

What Are Antonyms of Synonym?

Antonyms are words with the opposite meaning of a given word. Take a look at these synonyms of the word antonym, which are also antonyms of synonym, from Power Thesaurus.

  • another adverse
  • antilogy
  • antipode
  • antipodes
  • antithesis
  • antonym
  • contradictory
  • contrary
  • contrast
  • converse
  • counter
  • foil
  • inverse
  • negation
  • negative
  • negatory
  • obverse
  • opposite
  • opposite word
  • opposites
  • other extreme
  • reverse
  • term

Conclusion

A synonym is a word with the same or a similar meaning to another word or phrase.

Sources:

Synonym | Nice Translator 

Antonym synonyms – 100 Words and Phrases for Antonym | Power Thesaurus 

87 Words and Phrases for Synonym | Power Thesaurus 

Synonym Definition & Meaning | Dictionary.com 

What is synonym and its examples?

A synonym is a word that has the same meaning as another word. … For example, the word “walk” has synonyms like “stroll,” “amble,” “saunter,” or “go.” – These words have an identical meaning to the word “walk.” Words that are similar but not identical are called near synonyms.

What are 5 examples of synonyms?

Synonym Examples

Amazing: astounding, surprising, stunning Fertile, fruitful, abundant, productive
Brave: courageous, valiant, heroic Injured: damaged, wounded, harmed
Cohesive: united, connected, close-knit Intelligent: brilliant, clever, smart
Cunning: keen, sharp, slick Kindle: ignite, inflame, burn

What is the full meaning of synonyms?

A synonym is a word having the same or nearly the same meaning as another word in certain contexts. The adjective form is synonymous. Synonymy is the relationship that exists between words with closely related meanings. The word comes from the Greek meaning “same name.” Contrast with an antonym.

Is a synonym the opposite or the same?

Antonyms are words with opposite meanings. Synonyms are words with the same or similar meaning. Homonyms are words that are spelled and pronounced the same, but have different meanings.

What are 10 examples of synonyms?

II. Examples of Synonyms

  • Bad: awful, terrible, horrible.
  • Good: fine, excellent, great.
  • Hot: burning, fiery, boiling.
  • Cold: chilly, freezing, frosty.
  • Easy: Simple, effortless, straightforward.
  • Hard: difficult, challenging, tough.
  • Big: large, huge, giant.
  • Small: tiny, little, mini.

What is the use of synonyms?

Replacing a word with an equivalent one, perhaps even a more specific one, can improve how you are communicating your ideas. The use of synonyms also helps to make your writing more vivid and to create a more intriguing image in the mind of the reader.

What is an example of a synonym?

A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means exactly or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words begin, start, commence, and initiate are all synonyms of one another: they are synonymous .

How do you explain synonyms to a child?

There is another possibility, though: poecilonym. This is probably the closest synonym of synonym, although it’s antiquated and rarely used. David Grambs, a lexicographer for American Heritage and Random House, included it in his 1997 book The Endangered English Dictionary: Bodacious Words Your Dictionary Forgot.

Can could synonym?

What is another word for could?

would can
could perhaps could potentially
might possibly might potentially
potentially will may potentially
could possibly may actually

How do I find synonyms for a word?

Click the word in your document that you want to look up. On the Review tab, click Thesaurus. To use one of the words in the list of results or to search for more words, do one of the following: To replace your selected word with one of the words from the list, point to it, click the down arrow, then click Insert.

What is a synonym for you?

In this page you can discover 22 synonyms, antonyms, idiomatic expressions, and related words for you, like: thee, yourself, thou, y-all, all of you, you yourself, you too, you alone, you-all, anybody and everyone.

Which can be used synonym?

What is another word for can be used?

can be brought into play can be brought to bear
can be drawn on can be exploited
can be put to use can be utilized
may be used

What is a synonym for can t?

Find another word for unable. In this page you can discover 34 synonyms, antonyms, idiomatic expressions, and related words for unable, like: inefficacious, incapable, inefficient, unable-to, cannot, impuissant, able, powerless, ineffective, weak and inadequate.

What is a synonym for should?

must, need, ought (to), shall.

What are synonyms in English?

which

  • that.
  • whatever.
  • and that.
  • whichever.

What is the synonym of essay?

Some common synonyms of essay are attempt, endeavor, strive, and try. While all these words mean “to make an effort to accomplish an end,” essay implies difficulty but also suggests tentative trying or experimenting.

Which is a synonym?

Full Definition of synonym

1 : one of two or more words or expressions of the same language that have the same or nearly the same meaning in some or all senses. 2a : a word or phrase that by association is held to embody something (such as a concept or quality) a tyrant whose name has become a synonym for oppression.

What are synonyms for where?

In this page you can discover 28 synonyms, antonyms, idiomatic expressions, and related words for where, like: in which, in what place?, at which point, in what direction?, at which place?, anywhere, wherever, in whatever place, whither, at which and toward what?.

Which can lead to synonym?

What is another word for lead to?

produce catalyseUK
yield result in
bring about bring on
contribute to set in motion
translate into give rise to

What is the synonym of social?

communal, community, community-based, collective, group, general, popular, civil, civic, public, societal. endemic, pandemic. individual.

Why do synonyms exist?

Because every word has a unique connotation, no word has exactly the same meaning as another. For example, the Random House Unabridged Dictionary uses as examples of synonyms the words joyful, elated, glad. … Each of those three words would be used in different situations or contexts.

How many synonyms are there in English?

Hence, we are providing the list of Synonyms and Antonyms containing more than 400 English synonym and antonym words.

Synonyms And Antonyms List
Words Synonyms – Same Meaning Antonyms – Opposites
Calculating Canny, Devious Artless, honest

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  • British

This shows grade level based on the word’s complexity.

[ sinuh-nim ]

/ ˈsɪn ə nɪm /

See the most commonly confused word associated with

synonym

This shows grade level based on the word’s complexity.


noun

a word having the same or nearly the same meaning as another word in the same language, as happy, joyful, elated. A dictionary of synonyms and antonyms (or opposites), such as Thesaurus.com, is called a thesaurus.

a word or expression accepted as another name for something, as Arcadia for pastoral simplicity or Wall Street for U.S. financial markets;metonym.

Biology. one of two or more scientific names applied to a single taxon.

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VIDEO FOR SYNONYM

How Do You Use Synonyms To Replace Common Words?

Synonyms can make our conversation and sentences sound better and more eloquent. But how do you actually use synonyms in place of common words?

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Which sentence is correct?

Origin of synonym

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English sinoneme, from Old French sinonime and Latin synōnymum, from Greek synṓnymon, noun use of neuter of synṓnymos synonymous

grammar notes for synonym

English, with its long history of absorbing terminology from a wealth of other tongues, is a language particularly rich in synonyms —words so close in meaning that in many contexts they are interchangeable, like the nouns tongue and language in the first part of this sentence. Just about every popular dictionary defines synonym as a term having “the same or nearly the same” meaning as another, but there is an important difference between “the same” and “nearly the same.”
Noun synonyms sometimes mean exactly the same thing. A Dalmatian is a coach dog —same dog. A bureau is a chest of drawers. And if you ask for a soda on the east coast of the United States, you’ll get the same drink that asking for a pop will get you farther west. The object referred to remains constant. But forest and wood, though often interchangeable, have different shades of meaning: a forest tends to be larger and denser than a wood. And when we move from nouns to other parts of speech, we almost always find subtle but important differences among synonyms: although the meanings overlap, they differ in emphasis and connotation. A sunset might be described equally well as beautiful or resplendent, but a beautiful baby would not usually be described as resplendent, which implies an especially dazzling appearance. The verbs make and construct mean roughly the same thing, but one is more likely to make a cake but construct a building, which is a more complex undertaking.
Lists of synonyms are useful when we are struggling to write and looking for just the right word, but each word must be considered in light of its specific definition. Notes at the bottom of a dictionary entry—especially usage notes and synonym studies—are often where we’ll find the detailed information that allows us to improve (or refine or polish ) our writing.

OTHER WORDS FROM synonym

syn·o·nym·ic [sin-uhnim-ik], /ˌsɪn əˈnɪm ɪk/, syn·o·nym·i·cal, adjectivesyn·o·nym·i·ty [sin-uhnim-i-tee], /ˌsɪn əˈnɪm ɪ ti/, noun

Words nearby synonym

synodic month, Synod of Whitby, synoecious, synoekete, synoicous, synonym, synonym dictionary, synonymist, synonymize, synonymous, synonyms

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Words related to synonym

How to use synonym in a sentence

  • Several companies sell the drug in the US, for prices that range from $10 to $50 apiece, but Plan B has the largest market share and is a de-facto synonym for the morning-after pill.

  • Hashish oil is basically a synonym for cannabis oil, which comes from marijuana.

  • As a synonym for a break-up note sent by a woman to a man in uniform, the Dear John letter made its debut in a major national newspaper in October 1943.

  • I think that the word “country” is a synonym for so many other words.

  • As a synonym for “nonsense,” bunk proved to be just the sort of satisfying, blunt word users crave.

  • Most importantly, foreign policy should not be reduced to a synonym for military action and covert operations.

  • Less canonically, “natural marriage” is also at times used as a rough synonym for “common-law marriage.”

  • It’s a telling tic that we often use «urban» as a synonym for «black.»

  • My students seem to really want to use “however” as a conjunction—more or less a synonym for “but.”

  • A synonym given for submissive is “compliant,” and among those given for submit is “yield” and “defer.”

  • One of the most beautiful symbols of the Catacombs is the dove, the perpetual synonym of peace.

  • It came to mean an entertainment of music and dancing, and was used as a synonym for masquerades.

  • Another synonym of tonos which becomes very common in the later writers on music is the word tropos.

  • Change the structure of the sentence, substitute one synonym for another, and the whole effect is destroyed.

  • The profits were beyond all reason, and the word publican became a synonym for sinner.

British Dictionary definitions for synonym


noun

a word that means the same or nearly the same as another word, such as bucket and pail

a word or phrase used as another name for something, such as Hellene for a Greek

biology a taxonomic name that has been superseded or rejected

Derived forms of synonym

synonymic or synonymical, adjectivesynonymity, noun

Word Origin for synonym

C16: via Late Latin from Greek sunōnumon, from syn- + onoma name

Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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