Halliday & Matthiessen (2014: 645-6):
Here the range of potentially cohesive items includes synonyms of the same or some higher level of generality: synonyms in the narrower sense, and superordinates. For example, in
Four-&-twenty blackbirds, baked in a pie.
When the pie was opened, the birds began to sing.
we have one instance of repetition (pie ... pie) and one of synonyms (blackbirds ... birds). birds, however, is at a higher level of generality than blackbirds; it is a superordinate term. …
Related to these are examples such as the following, where there is still identity of reference, although not to a participant, and the synonym may not be in the same word class (cheered ... applause; cried ... tears):
Everyone cheered. The leader acknowledged the applause.
I wish I hadn’t cried so much! I shall be punished for it, I suppose, by being drowned in my own tears!