polysemy

noun

the ambiguity of an individual word or phrase that can be used (in different contexts) to express two or more different meanings

Roots

polyspoly- · Greek · many semasem- · Greek · sign, meaning ia-y · Greek · noun suffix

Synonyms & related words for polysemy

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Words related to polysemy

Explore words related to polysemy — words associated with it, words that go with it, and its nearest matches in meaning. Related words include polyseme, polysemous, meronymy, semasiological, semasiology, monosemy, hypernymy, equivocality. Click any word to make it the center of the map and keep exploring the web of connections.

Where does polysemy come from?

The word polysemy breaks down into 3 roots of Greek origin: poly-, from Greek polys (“many”); sem, from Greek sema (“sign, meaning”); and -y, from Greek ia (“noun suffix”). Explore each root to see other English words built from the same source.