Whole-Part Lexical Relation

Another name for the whole-part lexical relation is meronymy. A meronymy is a non-hierarchical relationship between lexical units that deals with the significant parts of a whole.

Meronymy may be represented by the following frame:

• Y has X(s). An X is a part of Y. ​

 

"An arm has an elbow. An elbow is a part of an arm."

Whole	Parts
Arm House Head Trunk	Elbow, forearm, wrist Roof, wall Eyes, mouth, nose Chest, back

Underlying Structure:

The underlying structure of a whole-part lexical relation set is a tree.

Frames:

Here are some frames for testing and eliciting a whole-part lexical relation:

• A Y has an X and an X is a part of Y.
• A Y has Xs and an X is a part of Y.
• The parts of a Y include the X(s), the Z(s), etc.
• The X(s) and the Z(s) are parts of a Y.