Holonymy (Noun)
Meaning
The semantic relation that holds between a whole and its parts.
Classification
Nouns denoting relations between people or things or ideas.
Examples
- The semantic relation of holonymy holds between a car and its engine, wheels, and chassis, which are its constituent parts.
- The holonymy relation between a book and its chapters illustrates how the whole can be decomposed into its individual components.
- The word "team" is in a holonymy relation with "players" and "coach", which are its parts that together form the whole.
- The semantic relation of holonymy exists between a bicycle and its chain, pedals, and wheels, which are all essential parts of the vehicle.
- In linguistics, holonymy is a crucial concept for understanding the meaning of words that refer to complex objects, such as a tree and its roots, trunk, and branches.