Features of English-Language Terms in the Semantic Field “Information Security”
Abstract
In the context of rapid digital transformation and the growing geopolitical significance of cybersecurity, there is an increasing demand for a systematic linguistic description of specialized terminology, as well as for ensuring the quality of translation of English-language terms into the Russian professional domain. This study aims to identify and analyze structural patterns, word-formation mechanisms, and manifestations of polysemy in English information security terminology. The research is based on a comprehensive corpus of 987 terminological units collected via continuous sampling from authoritative sources, including the Texas State University’s Information Security Glossary, NIST Cybersecurity Framework, Greece's Cybersecurity Handbook, and Heimdalsecurity.com. Quantitative, descriptive, and analytical methods were employed to examine the lexical and semantic features of the selected terms. The findings reveal that 66.9 % of the terms are polylexemic, predominantly two- and three-component constructions following N + N and Adj. + Noun models, which reflects a tendency toward increased terminological precision through multi-component structures. Among monolexemic terms (33.1 %), abbreviations (28.7 %) and compounds (23.8 %) prevail, demonstrating high productivity of abbreviation and compounding processes. The analysis confirms the presence of polysemy in both radial (e.g., bug) and chain (e.g., key) forms. Furthermore, metaphorical transfer (sandbox, honeypot, kill chain) and metonymy (bot, zero-day) are widely used, challenging the traditional assumption of terminological monosemy. Information security terminology represents a dynamic, evolving system characterized by high productivity in word formation and semantic flexibility. The results of this study can be applied in teaching English for Specific Purposes (ESP), translation studies, and the development of terminographic databases, contributing to improved cross-linguistic communication in the field of cybersecurity.