Mwihaki, A. N.2014-09-102014-09-102004Swahili-Forum 11 (2004): 127-1391614-2373http://www.qucosa.de/fileadmin/data/qucosa/documents/9102/11_10_Mwihaki.pdfhttp://ir-library.ku.ac.ke/handle/123456789/11214This article addresses the notion of linguistic meaning with reference to Kiswahili. It focuses particular attention on meaning typology, with the assumption that a discussion of meaning types can enhance the understanding and appreciation of linguistic meaning. The discussion takes its general conceptual orientation from the approach that considers meaning as use, whereby the unit of analysis is the speech act. This is a functional view of linguistic meaning, the tenets of which are contained in functional grammar. From a broader perspective, this article distinguishes conceptual and associative meaning then proceeds to deal with the individual types. Ultimately, five types of linguistic meaning are dis-cussed: conceptual, connotative, social, affective and collocative. From the discussion, conclusions about the value of the typology for defining the concept and the scope of semantics are drawn.enArticle