Meaning: horn

Illustrative Context

Some animals have horns. People do not.

Target Sense

• The most generic noun for a horn as a part of the body of various animals, specifically a growth from the top of the head.
• The lexeme entered must be the default lexeme in the basic vocabulary that would be used in the prototypical case of a curly, pointed, keratin horn of an animal like a bull, goat or (horned) sheep.
• Follow common usage and basic vocabulary. Strict technical and biological classification criteria are not necessarily relevant — on this, see also the definitions for the separate IE-CoR meanings wing, snake and ant. So although lexeme entered must be the basic lexeme in the prototypical case as defined above, the exact range of application of the basic lexeme does not necessarily matter. Some languages, for example, extend the same basic term also to somewhat analogous bone structures such as antlers. This is not in itself a concern, so long as this is also the default lexeme for the prototypical horn. Do not, however, enter any additional lexeme that is specific to any such narrower use and not to true horns, e.g. English antler.
• The lexeme selected must be able to refer to a single horn, or pair of horns, on a living animal. Do not enter any additional lexeme used to refer exclusively or predominantly to a horn already removed from an animal’s head. That is:
  • Avoid any separate (non-count) lexemes for horn as a general material, e.g. to make objects from, such as combs.
  • Avoid any lexemes specific to possible uses of horns, e.g. as a musical instrument (e.g. French cor rather than target corne Spanish corno rather than target cuerno), drinking cup, etc..
• The target sense is the literal body part of an animal. Do not enter any additional lexemes that predominantly refer to figurative and cultural senses, e.g. horns as symbolic of a cuckold, the devil, a dilemma, etc..