 Synonym, a synonym is a word or phrase that means exactly or nearly the same as another like seemed word or phrase in the same language. Words that are synonyms are said to be synonymous, and the state of being a synonym is called synonymy. For example, the words begin, start, commence, and initiate are all synonyms of one another. Synonyms are typically synonymous in one particular sense. For example, long and extended in the context long time or extended time are synonymous, but long cannot be used in the phrase extended family. Synonyms with the exact same meaning share a similar denotational seeming, whereas those with inexactly similar meanings share a broader denotational or connotational seeming and thus overlap within a semantic field. The former are sometimes called cognitive synonyms and the latter, near synonyms. Please see O-Nyms or Po-Syllonyms.