Comprehensive Review of Translation Studies and Lexicology

A set of practice flashcards covering vocabulary from translation studies theories and lexicological word-formation processes based on the provided lecture notes.

Intralingual translation

Rewording within the same language, interpreting verbal signs using other signs from the same language.

Interlingual translation

Translation proper between two different languages.

Intersemiotic translation

Transmutation between verbal and non-verbal sign systems, such as adapting a novel into a film.

Translation Studies

The academic discipline formally named by James S. Holmes in 1972.

Pure Translation Studies

A branch of the discipline that encompasses theoretical and descriptive research.

Applied Translation Studies

A branch of the discipline covering translator training, translation aids, and translation criticism.

Expressive function

A language function focusing on the speaker’s mind, emotions, or attitude, common in poetry and literature.

Informative / referential function

A language function representing facts objectively, common in scientific papers and news.

Vocative / appelative function

A language function appealing to the receiver to act or react, common in advertisements and instructions.

Aesthetic function

Also called the poetic function, it is language designed to please the senses through sound, metaphors, rhythm, and balance.

Phatic function

Language used primarily for establishing, maintaining, or ending friendly social contact or small talk.

Metalingual function

The ability of language to explain, name, and criticize its own features or linguistic concepts.

Skopostheorie

A functionalist theory by Christiane Nord and Hans Vermeer stating the purpose (skopos) of the translation determines the strategies.

Documentary translation

An overt translation acting as a metatext explicitly informing the target reader about a source-culture text.

Instrumental translation

A covert translation acting as an independent, fully functional object-text in the target culture.

Metaphrase

John Dryden's term for word-by-word and line-by-line literal translation.

Paraphrase

John Dryden's term for translation with latitude, following the sense rather than strictly the words.

Imitation

John Dryden's term for free adaptation, forsaking both words and sense.

Semantic translation

A method prioritizing the exact contextual meaning and aesthetic qualities of the source language; author-focused.

Communicative translation

A method prioritizing the target readership by producing an effect as close as possible to the original; reader-focused.

Formal equivalence

Eugene Nida's term for focusing strictly on the form and content of the source message.

Dynamic equivalence

Eugene Nida's term for aiming for the closest natural equivalent to achieve an equivalent effect on the target reader.

Denotative equivalence

Werner Koller's framework related to equivalence in extralinguistic content or content invariance.

Connotative equivalence

Werner Koller's framework related to lexical choices and stylistic effect.

Adequacy

The appropriateness of a translator's choices in relation to the target text's specific purpose or skopos.

Borrowing

Taking a word directly from the source language into the target language without translation (e.g., online).

Calque

A literal translation of the elements or structure of an expression (e.g., Iron Curtain).

Transposition

The oblique translation procedure of changing parts of speech (e.g., noun to verb).

Modulation

The oblique translation procedure of changing the point of view or semantics (e.g., negative to positive).

Level shifts

J. C. Catford's term for shifts where a grammatical feature is translated through lexical means, or vice versa.

Category shifts

J. C. Catford's classification including structure shifts, class shifts, unit shifts, and intra-system shifts.

Unit of translation

The segment of text that a translator processes as a single whole during the act of translating.

Initial norms

Gideon Toury's term for the basic choice between source-oriented adequacy and target-oriented acceptability.

Word

The basic, central unit of a language resulting from the association of a particular meaning with a particular group of sounds.

Morpheme

The minimal meaningful form of a language that cannot be segmented without losing its essence.

Root-morpheme

The central part of the word that carries the main lexical meaning.

Derivational morpheme

An affix used to create new words or change the part of speech.

Inflectional morpheme

An affix that expresses grammatical meanings, such as pluralization or tense, without creating a new word.

Free morpheme

A morpheme that can function independently as a separate word.

Bound morpheme

A morpheme that cannot stand alone and must be attached to another morpheme.

Immediate Constituent (IC) Analysis

A method of dividing words into their meaningful parts step by step, pioneered by Bloomfield and Nida.

Substantivation

The process in which adjectives or participles acquire the paradigm and functions of nouns, denoted as $A > N$.

Endocentric compound

A compound consisting of a semantic head and a modifier, such as doghouse.

Exocentric compound

A compound with no semantic head transparently defining the referent, such as pickpocket.

Bahuvrihi

A type of exocentric compound characterizing an entity by a feature they possess, such as redhead.

Aphaeresis

Fore-clipping, or shortening a word by removing the beginning (e.g., phone from telephone).

Syncope

Middle-clipping, or removing the middle part of a word (e.g., specs from spectacles).

Apocope

Back-clipping, or removing the end of a word (e.g., lab from laboratory).

Acronym

A shortening formed from initial letters that is pronounced as an ordinary word, such as NATO or laser.

Blending

Also called telescoping or portmanteau, it is a word formed by combining parts of two words, such as brunch.

Referential approach

A study of meaning based on the Triangle of Reference (symbol, concept, referent).

Polysemy

The ability of words to possess more than one meaning within their semantic structure.

Componential Analysis

The method of breaking down word meaning into universal semantic components called sememes or semes.

Linguistic Metaphor

A meaning transposition based on perceived similarity or resemblance.

Linguistic Metonymy

A transference of meaning based on contiguity or association, such as the White House for the US government.

Gradable antonyms

Opposite words existing on a scale that allow for intermediate degrees, such as hot and cold.

Complementary antonyms

Word pairs representing mutually exclusive, either-or relationships, such as health and illness.

Homographs

Words spelled the same but pronounced differently and having different meanings.

Homophones

Words pronounced the same but spelled differently and having different meanings, such as flower and flour.

Hyponym

A word whose meaning is included within a more general hypernym (e.g., rose is a hyponym of flower).

Meronym

A word naming a part of a larger whole (e.g., wheel is a meronym of car).

Argot / Jargonisms

Secret or specialized language used by specific social or professional groups to restrict understanding to insiders.

Professionalisms

Specialized vocabulary used in specific trades or science to facilitate quick communication without aiming for secrecy.

Vulgarisms

Words that convey coarseness, obscenity, or rudeness in speech.