SYNONYMS

Stylistic synonyms can also appear by means of abbreviation. In most cases the abbreviated form belongs to the colloquial style, and the full form to the neutral style,

e.g. examination, exam.

Among stylistic synonyms we can point out a special group of words which are called e uphemisms. These are words used to substitute some unpleasant or offensive words,

e.g the late (the late president) instead of dead, to perspire (покрываться потом ) instead of to sweat etc.

On the other hand, there are slang synonyms. They are expressive, mostly ironical words serving to create fresh names for some things that are frequently used. For the most part they sound vulgar, cynical and harsh, aimed at creating ridicule,

e.g. money may be called beans, brass, dibs, dough;

the slang synonyms for the word mad are: daft, potty, balmy, loony, bonkers, touched, nutty etc.

It has been stated that not once after a slang word has been used in speech for a certain period of time, people get accustomed to it and it ceases to produce a shocking effect. The most vital words are then accepted into the literary vocabulary,

e.g. bet пари, chap, guy, sham(притворство), hitch-hiker (путешественник) and many others.

Stylistic synonyms can be connected with different strata (пласт) of modern society, we can identify to what group a person belongs by the vocabulary which is used in his speech. U-people (upper class) and non-U people (non-upper class) use different words to denote identical notions, e.g. U-people say luncheon, non-U people say lunch or dinner, U-people say napkin, non-U people say serviette; U-people say cycle, non-U people say bike.

There are also phraseological synonyms, t hese words are identical in their meanings and styles but different in their combinability with other words in the sentence,

e.g. to be late for a lecture but to miss the train; to visit museums but to attend lectures; teachers question their pupils, judges interrogate witnesses etc.

There are also contextual or context-dependent synonyms which are similar in meaning only under some specific distributional conditions. It may happen that the difference between the meanings of two words is contextually neutralized.

E.g. buy and get are not synonyms out of context but they are synonyms in the following examples: I'll go to the shop and buy some bread and I'll go to the shop and get some bread. The verbs bear, stand and suffer are semantically different and cannot substitute each the negative form: I can't stand is equal to I can't bear.

In each group of synonyms there is a word with the most general meaning, which can substitute any word in the group. Such words are called synonymic dominants, Each synonymic group comprises a dominant element.

e.g. piece is the synonymic dominant in the group slice, lump, morsel. When speaking about the sources of synonyms besides borrowing, desynonymization and abbreviation, we can also mention the formation of phrasal verbs, e.g. to give up - to abandon, to cut down - to diminish. Very many compound nouns denoting abstract notions, persons and events are correlated with such phrasal verbs. We have such synonymous pairs as: arrangement - layout, reproduction -playback, treachery(измена) - sell-out etc. Conversion can also serve to form synonyms: laughter -laugh, commandment - command. Variants can also be pho-netical (vase [veiz] - [vcuz]) and graphical (to-morrow - tomorrow).

Synonymy has its characteristic patterns in each language. The peculiar feature of English is the contrast between simple native words which are stylistically neutral, literary words borrowed from French and learned words of Greko-Latin origin, e.g.:

Поиск по сайту: