Approximation and metaphor in Italian nominative strategy

Abstract

This article analyses nominative strategies in the Italian language and deals with miscellaneous cases which cannot be described in terms of direct nomination. In particular, I consider approximation and metaphor as two complementary means used by the speaker to characterize the concept. Approximation and metaphor are semantic categories with a specific system of rules. According to their specific semantic properties, approximatives “stretch” the semantic field of a concept so that it can be applied to different situations, leading to a fuzzy description of the situation; metaphors, on the contrary, clearly identify some aspects of a fuzzy situation so that it can become more comprehensible for the listener. Both approximative and metaphorical operators are used for redefining a concept and for changing its range of applicability. In this article is given a definition of approximatives and metaphors and then a description of their semantic properties, including the pragmatic information they convey. I also give an original classification of approximatives, dividing them in two different groups – graduating and boundary approximatives. Both approximative and metaphorical operators allow speakers to convey their subjective relationship to the described situation: this article analyses the different kind of the speaker’s assessment on the base of the selected operator, approximative rather than metaphor. Approximative and metaphorical cases differ very much depending on the linguistic local culture: in Ukraine, English, Russian and Italian we have different systems of approximatives or metaphors and they convey different meanings. The article also provides a detailed illustration of the assessment process of metaphors related to food in Italian linguistic culture.