ANTONYMY IN GRADUONYMIC SERIES: A SEMANTIC STUDY OF GRADUAL OPPOSITION IN THE UZBEK LANGUAGE

Abstract

This paper explores how antonymic relationships operate within scalar lexical sets, focusing on the phenomenon of graduonymy in the Uzbek language. While antonymy is typically understood as the opposition between two poles, many lexical fields in Uzbek reflect gradational meaning, forming ordered series such as kichik–o‘rtacha–katta (small–medium–large) or sovuq–salqin–issiq–jazirama (cold–cool–hot–scorching). These gradual oppositions complicate the traditional binary view of antonymy by introducing intermediate stages of meaning. Through semantic analysis of Uzbek adjectives and intensifiers, this study examines how scalar antonymic sets function in discourse, what their cognitive structures reveal about meaning organization, and how fuzzy boundaries affect their communicative use. The paper also considers implications for antonym typology and lexicographic treatment of non-binary oppositions in Uzbek.