sememe; semanteme; irreducible unit of meaning
Technical term in linguistics for the smallest unit of meaning, analogous to a phoneme in phonology.
意義素は、意味の最小単位として定義される。
A sememe is defined as the smallest unit of meaning.
Compound of 意義 (meaning) and 素 (element, unit). The exact historical derivation is uncertain, but the term is used in modern linguistics to translate 'sememe'.