Colexification Of {THINK}-a Typological Perspective

The present research endeavors to investigate the polysemous property of lexemes for the notion{THINK} under the framework of colexification model set up from the semantic maps model. To construct the cross-linguistic maps,14languages, which are genetically diversified and aerially distributed, are investigated. Pilot questionnaires are adopted to gather preliminary data and identify the lexemes for the notion{THINK} across languages. As the object of the research is sense, foreign language-Chinese dictionaries serve as the main source of the data. The data are analyzed through the colexification model, which is a development from the semantic maps. The lexical semantic maps of the lexemes for the notion{THINK} are drawn, indicating the relationships of various senses.The current research has the following findings and conclusions-(1) there exist widespread polysemic phenomena concerning mental activity{THINK};(2) there are five major paths of extensions hypothesized for the colexified lexemes for the notion {THINK}:a)<use mind>--<intend>--<plan>--<decide>;b)<use mind>--<care about>--<worry>; c)<imagine>--<antic ipate>--<predict>;d)<imagine>--<remember>--<miss>;e)<feel>--<love>--<miss>.