building from primitives (was Re: Language Contest)

In a message dated 11/30/2007 11:32:55 AM Central Standard Time,
joerg_rhiemeier@WEB.DE writes:


> Sure, by most definitions TP indeed has only 118 words - but it has
> lexicalized idiomatic phrases such as _nena mama_ 'women's breasts'
> (lit. 'parent bump') or _toki pona_ (lit. 'speak good').  We are
> getting into the thorny ground how to define a "word" here.
>
While _nena mama_  *can* mean "woman's breasts" and _toki pona_ *can* mean
Toki Pona, they both still have their literal meanings, which are so broad that
the specific English meanings can be/have been attached to them.  Anything
that can be described as 'parent bump' or 'good speak' is appropriately called
_nena mama_ or _toki pona_, resp.  The literal meanings of the individual words
are being used.  There is no lexicalization of phrases.  The only
'lexicalization' is in how to translate them into English, and that's largely determined
by context.

stevo   </HTML>

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