# Semantic paraphasia?



## Halfjillhalfjack (Sep 23, 2009)

I have always noticed that my boyfriend often uses "wrong" words, that are not really fitting in a certain context (semantically related), but it is possible to understand him. 
I always thought he might just be stupid/dumb, but the thing is that I consider him to be really intelligent otherwise.
I have come across this term "semantic paraphasia", but I don't know if this really fits....because the "errors" he makes are not as extreme such as saying "table" when he wants to say "chair", but rather....
....something like saying "hat" instead of "cap", when I'm sure he knows the difference..... it is really worst with verbs...

does anyone of you have experience with something like this?


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## mutton (Jan 21, 2010)

Wow, I never knew this had a name, but, yes, I do it frequently. I didn't start until a couple of years ago; seeing that brain trauma seems to be the main cause, perhaps I took too hard of a knock to my head at some point. I tell others that it's like my mind and my mouth don't always work on the same frequency. It's not constant with me, but if you're around me enough you'll notice in time. I'll use completely wrong words, speak sentences backwards, and combine two partial sentences into one. 

A wonderful example that my friends still won't let me down on is when I said "My brother is a goat". It was long enough ago that I don't remember what I meant to say my brother was, but it definitely wasn't a goat.

I do sometimes worry that this can make others who notice it but don't know me well think that I'm dumb (as you mentioned thinking of your boyfriend.) It's part of why I keep my mouth shut at times.


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## Halfjillhalfjack (Sep 23, 2009)

mutton said:


> Wow, I never knew this had a name, but, yes, I do it frequently. I didn't start until a couple of years ago; seeing that brain trauma seems to be the main cause, perhaps I took too hard of a knock to my head at some point. I tell others that it's like my mind and my mouth don't always work on the same frequency. It's not constant with me, but if you're around me enough you'll notice in time. I'll use completely wrong words, speak sentences backwards, and combine two partial sentences into one.
> 
> A wonderful example that my friends still won't let me down on is when I said "My brother is a goat". It was long enough ago that I don't remember what I meant to say my brother was, but it definitely wasn't a goat.
> 
> I do sometimes worry that this can make others who notice it but don't know me well think that I'm dumb (as you mentioned thinking of your boyfriend.) It's part of why I keep my mouth shut at times.


It's sad to hear that a brain trauma seems to be the main cause :sad:.... I guess my bf has always been this way.....and I know he's not dumb, but sometimes I wonder whether people who don't know him well get this impression ... he himself doesn't worry too much about that. 
Mh, it's sad to hear that this effects your interaction with others :sad:.....


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## NotSoRighteousRob (Jan 1, 2010)

there is a difference between a hat and a cap? maybe he was raised in a way that he learned things by other names than you. It could just be you expect things to mean a certain thing and not everyone has the same viewpoint. if you could provide some better examples would help.

I know some people in the south call pop "soda', and here we call soda 'pop', or some people call it cola. We all have preferences in what we call things. Some people may say they are going to wear a baseball cap, while others say that are going to grab a hat. Means the same thing.


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## whyerr (Jan 10, 2010)

Maybe it has something to do with a poor vocabulary? Also it happens, when you forget the exact word you want to use in a certain sentence and look for a synonymous, but cannot find it either.. It happens to me (in any language I verbally use). I'd call it a lack of social skills/ interaction, but it's in my case. 
I also frequently google words, while online.


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## mutton (Jan 21, 2010)

whyerr said:


> Maybe it has something to do with a poor vocabulary?


 I don't know about her boyfriend, but that is definitely not the case with me. My vocabulary is more extensive than around 95-98% of the people I know. By the time I was 13 I was reading and comprehending college level books, so my vocabulary is far from lacking.


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## sprinkles (Feb 7, 2010)

The 'hat' instead of 'cap' reminds me of how I kind of assign personality to objects... cap in this case would be like a bottle cap though.

I don't often use it for speech unless I'm comfortable... but most of my belongings have a home where they live... like my stapler might live in the drawer, or pens/pencils live in the pen/pencil holder. I've literally told people that because it's how I feel. "Stapler lives in the drawer, right here! Please put it back in its home."

I really care about objects almost like people.... I tend to get flipped out if they have been messed with or hurt, almost like they are my children. 

A lot of people don't know it though because I'm averse to showing how weird I am...


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