Nuts and Bolts: hyponymy and hypernymy.

 Hyponymy (yes, we're back to Greek again) is when a word describes one member of a larger group of things. For instance, a captain is one of a group of the people called soldiers; a teaspoon is one of a group of utensils called cutlery; a killer shark is one of a group of animals called fish.

The opposite of hyponymy is hypernymy. That's when a word describes a group with lots of different members. So, a pet describes many different kinds of animal; an evergreen describes many different...but you get the idea.

I can't see that knowing about hyponymy and hypernymy is any use at all.

But, hey. it can't do any harm, can it.

And it just might help get those hypo- and hyper- prefixes into our heads.

Words To Consider Today: hyponymy and hypernymy. Huper is the Greek for over, hupo is the Greek for under. Onoma is the Greek for name.

Actually, the easiest way to get the hypo- and hyper- things straight is to think of a hypodermic needle, which goes under the skin, and a hyperactive person, who is over-active.