Systematic Polysemy in Cognitive Approach: Studying the Polysemy of “see” in Persain

The present descriptive-analytic research uses the semantic model (Antonano, 1999 and 2002) and the semantic network of perception verbs (Afrashi & Asgari, 1396) to describe and analyze the polysemy of the perception verb “see”. For this purpose, the meanings of the verb “see” in Persian were compiled using Dehkhoda dictionary, Moein dictionary, and Persian language databases. At this stage, 4500 sentences were used from the Persian language database, classified on the basis of extended meanings. Analyzes of this paper, which take more into account the capabilities of the human senses and the way we perceive the world around us, show that 'embodiment' is the source of the metaphorical conceptualization and semantic extension of 'see'. The polysemy of “see” is the result of the interaction of the semantic content of the verb with other elements of the sentence level. The findings of this study are in line with Antonano (1999) and Afrashi and Asgari (1396). There were also cases that Antonano (1999 and 2002) did not mention. On the other hand, the findings of this study are in line with the ideas of Antonano (2002), Evans & Wilkins (2000), and Koveceses, (2005) that have challenged Sweetser's (1990) idea of the “universality of the semantic extension of perception verbs”.