Extension

Change In Semantic Implications in The Process of Idiom Formation

Muhamad Qadr Muhamad Amin

Changing is considered as a language need; in this area the idioms are also categorize in semantic change. Changing among idioms goes in four different directions, they are direction of semantic change from narrow to broad and in contrary from broad to narrow. Moreover semantic change from low to high or from high to low. This subject depends on the use of idiomatic expressions in speaking situations because each of those expressions have to different meanings, a meaning before the concept of change which shows itself in special cultural meaning, and another one after semantic change which goes in one of the directions and become stable. The whole idioms that’s used as materials in this research are 37 idioms, that are used and taken from speakers daily language and from the sources that used in this research. According to the research data semantic change of the idioms to the direction of meaning extension receives the highest percentage which reaches 46% , and this is related to ability of an idiom from a special meanings to a general meaning in some closed situations can be repeated for several times, on the contrary narrowing meaning reached to lowest level which is 8% , and its related to the fact that the narrowing meaning phenomenon not happened until the meaning extension has happened, similarly the percentage of meaning elevation reaches to 19%, but in contrary meaning pejoration rate 27%, which compare to meaning elevation is a higher rate.