A PSYCHOLINGUISTIC APPROACH TO GRADUONYMY PHENOMENA IN THE LEXICAL AND SEMANTIC LEVELS OF ENGLISH AND UZBEK

This article examines the psycholinguistic aspects of gradience phenomena in the lexical and semantic levels of English and Uzbek. It explores how both languages exhibit variability in the interpretation of words and meanings, highlighting the cognitive mechanisms that allow speakers to process and interpret linguistic gradation. The study delves into how lexical categories, such as adjectives and color terms, and semantic gradience, such as gradable adjectives and fuzzy concepts, are mentally processed. Through a comparison of English and Uzbek, the article emphasizes the universality of cognitive processes in handling gradience, despite the languages' structural differences. The research draws on psycholinguistic theories, including prototype theory, and suggests avenues for future cross-linguistic studies to better understand the processing of gradient meanings.