Sound Symbolism in Words Relating to Proximity and Distance
- 1 July 1971
- journal article
- research article
- Published by SAGE Publications in Language and Speech
- Vol. 14 (3) , 266-276
- https://doi.org/10.1177/002383097101400307
Abstract
The existence of a universal sound symbolism is still controversial. Evidence is presented for a universal sound symbolism in a constellation of words in natural languages relating to proximity and distance. The discussion ranges from words relating to physical distance to terms of temporal and personal distance. Several explanations for the appearance of sound symbolism in this domain are suggested, including one based on their attributes as " shifters " or " indexical symbols ".Keywords
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