On the borders of semantic invariance: connotation and the dictionary
Abstract
Throughout its history lexicography has been practised on the assumption of semantic invariance of lexical phenomena within linguistic areas and historic periods. It has seen its chief task and raison d'être in providing invariable denotations. Both, premise and alm, are questioned in this paper. It will be argued that connotation possibly plays a much larger role than denotation in all types of language use, with significant consequences. Lexicography will be shown to have been more committed to theories about language than to actual language activity.
