IT-terminology

The article studies the semiotic character of an IT-term and sheds the light on its binary structure. The relationship between the signifier and the signified helps understand the correlation between the form and content of a term. The ideal term is supposed to possess one-to-one correspondence between the signifier and the signified. When this correspondence is violated and becomes asymmetric, polysemy and homonymy may occur.

The article investigates such semantic phenomena as ambisemy and eurisemy, and how they are implemented in definitions of English IT-terms and lexical meanings of those determinologised lexical units. The research data is based on both English professional dictionaries and general English online dictionaries.