Pleonasme etimologice

Abstract

The present article consists of few aspects regarding the definition, the motivation and the interpretation of this linguistic phenomenon, quite frequent in today current language. Generally, the etymological pleonasm is a syntactic structure made of at least two components belonging to the same etymological family. Used together – irrespective of the reason they are used for – these components are semantically redundant. There are various explanations for that, but several of the most important ones are: a) deficient linguistic culture of the speaker, b) speaker’s indifference to the forms and almost exclusive focus on the content, c) precarious reading habitude, d) ‘hypercorrect’ intention of stressing the expressed idea. In the same time, the etymological pleonasm is an illustration of both the semantic change of the words and of the historic aspect of the language.