Seme_(semantics)

Seme (semantics)

Seme (semantics)

Smallest unit of meaning


Seme, the smallest unit of meaning recognized in semantics, refers to a single characteristic of a sememe. These characteristics are defined according to the differences between sememes. The term was introduced by Eric Buyssens in the 1930s and developed by Bernard Pottier in the 1960s. It is the result produced when determining the minimal elements of meaning, which enables one to describe words multilingually. Such elements provide a bridge to componential analysis and the initial work of ontologies.

See also

Further reading


Share this article:

This article uses material from the Wikipedia article Seme_(semantics), and is written by contributors. Text is available under a CC BY-SA 4.0 International License; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.