commutation (n.)

A term used by some PHONOLOGISTS to refer to a process of sound SUBSTITUTION to show CONTRASTIVITY. It is especially encountered in the phrase commutation test, which is a systematic use of the substitutability technique of MINIMAL PAIRS for establishing PHONEMES. Some LINGUISTIC theories have used the term in a more restricted sense: in GLOSSEMATICS, for example, it is contrasted with ‘substitution’, and refers only to one type of relationship between the members of a PARADIGM.