Branches of linguistics. Synchronic vs diachronic approaches to the language study. Lexicology – ‘the science of the word’ Lexicon

Convergent sound development is the process which leads to the phonetic coincidence of two (or more) words that were phonetically distinct at an earlier date, e.g.

-OE ic and eaʒe > ModE I and eye /ai /;

-the disappearance of the sound k before n, e.g. knight – night, knot –not;

-the convergence of the ME ā, ai, ei, e.g. fair – fare, pale – pail, wait – weight;

-race 1 and race 2 from Old Norse rās 'running' and MFr from It razza 'ethnic group';

- Fr. mèche ‘wick’ (фитиль), OE meche ‘partner’ > match 1 ‘сірник’, match 2 ‘a relationship, a partnership’, as in matchmaker.

Loss of inflections, e.g. OE lufu (n) and lufian (v) - ModE love; OE sunne and sunu – ModE sun and son.

Conversion which serves the creation of grammatical homonyms, e.g. iron, n. - iron, v.; work, n. - to work, v.

Shortening, e.g. fan, n. ‘an enthusiastic admirer of some kind of sport or of an actor, singer, etc.’ (a clipping from fanatic) – fan, n. ‘an implement for waving li8ghtly to produce a cool current of air’.

Sound-imitation, e.g. bang, n. ‘a loud, sudden, explosive noise’ – bang, n. ‘a fringe of hair combed over the forehead’; mew, n. ‘the sound a cat makes’ – mew, n. ‘a seagull’.