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Introduction

Greetings and welcome to my blog! Are you ready to learn? Lets go.

As stated in last lesson, this content is designed to help steemians who in one way or the other have challenges in grammar, effective use of English and communication skills, spellings and vocabularies. Reading this with undivided attention will be of great benefit to us all.
It will help us improve our writing and communication skills as bloggers.

Meaning of Synonyms

Synonyms are words that express sameness in meaning.
Examples

• frightful - shock - horrify,
• swallow - drink - gulp,
• entire - whole - total esteem - value - honour,
• candid - frank - sincere,
• abandon - desert - leave hide - conceal,
• barren - sterile, etc.

It is particularly impossible to have two words that would mean the same. This is so because each word has a context that will be different from another that is similar in meaning.
Let us examine the following sentences:

• The food is rich (wealthy)
• The woman is barren (sterile)
• How are the mighty fallen (size)

In each of these three instances, the words in the bracket can not conveniently replace the bold in this context.

Meaning of Antonyms

Antonyms are words that are nearly opposite in meaning. They express oppositeness. We should understand that the use of one item excludes the other, especially when we talk of complementation in English. Oppositeness needs to be stated in the context of explicit norms and not determined in the absolute.

Some examples of antonyms include:

• tall - short,
• big - small,
• friend - enemy,
• good - bad,
• clever - dull.
• smart - sluggish,
• empty - full,
• wrong - right,
• coward - braves,
• quest - host,
• punctual - late,
• deep - shallow,
• innocence - guilt,
• proud - humble.

Other classes of antonyms are formed through affixation.
Examples:

• Useful = Useless
• Fruitful = Fruitless
• Obey = Disobey
• Unfit = Fit
• Amoral = Moral
• Human = Inhuman

Other still are formed by changing their prefix.
Examples:

• Import = Export
• Monologue = Dialogue
• Internal = External
• Microcosm = Macrobosm

Meaning of Homophones

This refers to words that have the same sound but have different meanings and different spellings. Examples:

• Sea - see,
• fare - fair,
• be - bee,
• wheel - will,
• fool - full,
• gone - gun,
• farther - father.
• might - mite,
• So - sew
• Fur - four
• knight - night,
• read - red,
• meet - meat, etc.

Meaning of Homonyms

In this case, words are spelt and pronounced alike but have different meanings in certain contexts.

Examples

• Pen = a place where animals are kept
• Pen = a pointed object used for writing
• Bear = a kind of animal with a thick rough fur
• Bear = to carry from one place to another
• Boil = painful infection
• Boil = to heat
• Fast = quick, rapid
• Fast = firmly fixed
• Saw = past tense of see
• Saw = an instrument used in cutting wood
• Bank = where money is kept
• Bank = shores of river

POLYSEMY

This is a meaningful relation whereby a single lexical item has several but related meanings. The important thing about a polysemous word is that one of its several senses is central, while the other senses or meanings are mere figurative or metaphorical extensions of the core sense.

For example
Mouth:-

• as part of the body
• as opening for source of river
• as opposite in a cave

Ear:-

• part of the body
• part of plant (e.g., maize)

Flight:-

• as passing through air
• as air journey power of flying

Head:-

• leader of a group
• part of the body
• part of a cow

Eye:-

• as part of body
• as hole in a needle

Foot:-

• as part of the body
• part of the mountain

CLINICS

These are words that have been used so often that they have become uninteresting, ineffective, and even irrelevant.

Examples:
◆ Over and above - above
◆ Conclusively - in conclusion
◆ As a rule - normally
◆ This day and age - today, nowadays
◆ Let's face facts - honesty, sincerely

COLLOQUIALISMS/SLANGS

Both expressions refer to some sorts of localisms. They should be avoided in formal discourse. They are simply informal words and expressions used among social groups. Colloquialisms and slang are marks of intimacy and directions.

Examples:

• You catch? = members of the same clique
• Popsy/mumsy = father/mother
• Kola = bribe
• Sugar daddy = elderly lover
• Dub = copy through cheating during exams
• Booz = drinking exams.
• Baz = smoke

This list is endless. You can add more to these ones provided you understand what they mean. Its usage is usually limited to a group or region.

★ Compound Sentence: When a sentence is joined/linked together by a co-coordinator or coordinators, we refer to it as a compound sentence.

Take these examples:

• The girl ran after the boy//and//we watch her with amusement.
• Man proposes //but//God disposes. * Men shout//and//women sob.

★ Complex Sentence: Complex sentences consist of one main clause and one or more subordinate clauses.

Examples:

• The girl who stole yesterday is here.
• If the Rector's address is interesting, we shall applaud him.
• He slapped the man because he was angry.
• Gina called me when I was asleep.

◆ Compound Complex Sentence: This is a sentence that contains two main clauses and one or more subordinate clauses.

• The Rector came/opened his file/shut them again/and went away/because he was angry/since the students were disturbing.
• I saw the girl/and made advances at her/because I was interested in her.
• Jehovah made man/and the woman/as that they could stay together/but the woman sometimes is troubles the man.
• Peter's wife had an heartache/and she was rushed to hospital/where she was asked to pay some money/which she couldn't afford.

Conclusion

That is the end of the lesson presented in this article. I believe you have learned something in this lesson as usual. Please drop your questions and suggestions at the commentsection. I will be glad to hear from you and don't forget to read lesson 1, 2, 3, 4 , 5 and 6 below.

• Effective Communication and Language Skills: Lesson 1 (Word Class)

• Effective Communication and Language Skills: Lesson 2 (Verbs)

• Effective Communication and Language Skills: Lesson 3 (Adjectives)

• Effective Communication and Language Skills: (Adverbs)

• Effective Communication and Language Skills:(prepositions, Pronouns, Conjunctions,
  articles and determiners)

• Effective Communication and Language Skills (Vocabularies development part one)