Study-Unit Description

Study-Unit Description


TITLE Lexicologie: sémantique et morphologie/ Lexicology: Semantics and Morphology




DESCRIPTION This study-unit revises and builds up on linguistic concepts learned during the first two years of study. The first part will be theoretical and it will focus on a number of basic concepts in lexicology. Starting from the smallest units of linguistic meaning, lectures will proceed towards an analysis of the semantic relations that exist between these units and a larger description of the structure of lexis. The second part of the unit will be of a more practical nature and it will prepare students for their assessment by equipping them with the methods generally used for the analysis of meaning.

Study-Unit Aims:

- To assist students in understanding basic linguistic terms used in linguistic research;
- To explore the lexical component of language as an abstract system apart from the grammatical component;
- To apply lexicological concepts and semantic techniques to the analysis of meaning as conveyed by the lexical elements of a text.

Learning Outcomes:

1. Knowledge & Understanding:


- Understand the shades of meaning that differentiate linguistic terms from each other;
- Understand the basic structure of French lexis;
- Recognise the semantic relations that link lexemes twithin lexis;
- Identify the differences between publications such as a general dictionary, a specialised dictionary and a thesaurus.

2. Skills:


- Analyse the linguistic meaning of terms in French and other languages using basic semantic techniques;
- Create valid definitions of a term without circling back to the term in question;
- Distinguish between expressions that form part of French lexis and those that emerge from a writer's stylistic choices.

Main Text/s and any supplementary readings:

- POLGUÈRE, Alain, Lexicologie et sémantique lexicale : notions fondamentales, Montréal : Les Presses de l’Université de Montréal, « Paramètres », 2003.
- MANN, Alise et MARTIN-BERTHET, Françoise, Introduction à la lexicologie : Sémantique et morphologie, Paris : Armand Colin, 2005.
- LYONS, John, Eléments de sémantique, Paris : Larousse, 1978.
- MEL'ČUK, Igor A. Vers une linguistique Sens-Texte. Leçon inaugurale, Paris : Collège de France, 1997.
- DUBOIS, Jean et alii, Le Dictionnaire de linguistique et des sciences du langage, Paris : Larousse, 2012.

ADDITIONAL NOTES Pre-requisite Qualifications: Grade C or better in French Matriculation

Pre-requisite Study-unit: FRE2014


Assessment Component/s Assessment Due Resit Availability Weighting
Classwork SEM1 Yes 30%
Portfolio SEM1 Yes 70%


The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints.