Synonymy and Polysemy

Definition: The semantic qualities or sense relations that exist between

words (lexemes) with closely related meanings (i.e., synonyms).

Contrast with antonymy.

Synonymy may also refer to the study of synonyms or to a list of synonyms.

In the words of Dagmar Divjak, near-synonymy (the relationship between

different lexemes that express similar meanings) is "a fundamental
phenomenon that influences the structure of our lexical knowledge"
(Structuring the Lexicon, 2010).

Examples and Observations

 "The phenomenon of synonymy is a central interest for both
the semanticist and the language learner. For the former, synonymy is
an important member of the theoretical set of logical relations existing
in language. For the latter, there is a good deal of evidence to suggest
that vocabulary is often best acquired by analogy, in other words,
remembered as being similar in meaning to previously acquired forms...
In addition, what we might term 'definition through synonym' is a
central feature of most dictionary organisation (Ilson 1991: 294-6). For
motives of stylistic variation, non-native learners and translators have a
pressing need to find lexical alternatives to express a particular concept,
especially in writing. Harvey & Yuill (1994) found that searches for
synonyms accounted for over 10 percent of dictionary consultations
when learners were engaged in a writing task. However, given the rarity
of absolute synonymy, learners also need to know which of the particular
synonyms given by dictionaries and thesauruses is the most suitable for
any given context."
(Alan Partington, Patterns and Meanings: Using Corpora for English
Language Research and Teaching. John Benjamins, 1998)
 The Productivity of Synonymy - "The productivity of synonymy is
clearly observable. If we invent a new word that represents (to some
extent) the same thing that an existing word in the language represents,
then the new word is automatically a synonym of the older word. For
example, every time a new slang term meaning 'automobile' is invented,
a synonym relation is predicted for the new slang term (say, ride) and
the standard and slang terms that already exist (car, auto, wheels,
etc.). Ride does not need to be inducted as a member of the synonym set
—no one has to say 'ride means the same thing as car' in order for the
synonym relation to be understood. All that must happen is
that ride must be used and understood to mean the same thing as car—
as in My new ride is a Honda."

1
 (M. Lynne Murphy, Semantic Relations and the Lexicon. Cambridge
University Press, 2003)
 Synonymy, Near-Synonymy, and Degrees of Formality - "It
should be noted that the idea of 'sameness of meaning' used in
discussing synonymy is not necessarily 'total sameness.' There are
many occasions when one word is appropriate in a sentence, but its
synonym would be odd. For example, whereas the word answer fits in
this sentence: Cathy had only one answer correct on the test, its near-
synonym, reply, would sound odd. Synonymous forms may also differ in
terms of formality. The sentence My father purchased a large
automobile seems much more serious than the following casual version,
with four synonymous replacements: My dad bought a big car."
(George Yule, The Study of Language, 2nd ed. Cambridge University
Press, 1996)
 Synonymy and Polysemy - "What defines synonymy is precisely the
possibility of substituting words in given contexts without altering the
objective and affective meaning. Inversely, the irreducible character of
the phenomenon of synonymy is confirmed by the possibility of
providing synonyms for the various acceptations of a single word (this is
the commutative test of polysemy itself): the word review is the
synonym sometimes of 'parade,' sometimes of 'magazine.' In every case a
community of meaning is at the bottom of synonymy. Because it is an
irreducible phenomenon, synonymy can play two roles at once: offering
a stylistic resource for fine distinctions (peak instead
of summit, minuscule for minute, etc.), and indeed for emphasis, for
reinforcement, for piling-on, as in the mannerist style of [French poet
Charles] Péguy; and providing a test of commutativity for polysemy.
Identity and difference can be accentuated in turn in the notion of
partial semantic identity.
 "So polysemy is defined initially as the inverse of synonymy, as [French
philologist Michel] Bréal was the first to observe: now not several names
for one sense (synonymy), but several senses for one name (polysemy)."
(Paul Ricoeur, The Rule of Metaphor: Multi-Disciplinary Studies in the
Creation of Meaning in Language, 1975; translated by Robert Czerny.
University of Toronto Press, 1977)