tähendushoov
Tähendushoov, literally “stream of meaning” in Estonian, is a theoretical concept used in semiotics and cognitive linguistics to describe how meaning flows from a linguistic form into mental representations across varying contexts. The term combines tähendus (meaning) and hoov (stream, flow) to emphasize the dynamic, directional nature of meaning as it travels through discourse and cognition.
Mechanism: When a word is encountered, its primary sense is activated; depending on surrounding text, utterance,
Examples: In the sentence “bank by the river,” the word bank channels a contrasting set of associations
Applications and limitations: The concept informs lexicography, discourse analysis, and natural language processing by highlighting how
See also: semantics, polysemy, pragmatics, metaphor, semiotics, discourse analysis.