Ways of forming phraseological units

A.V. Koonin classified phraseological units according to the way they are

formed. He pointed out primary and secondary ways of forming phraseological

units.

Pramary ways of forming phraseological units are those when a unit is

formed on the basis of a free word-group:

a) the most productive in Modern English is the formation of phraseological

units by means of transferring the meaning of terminological wordgroups, e.g. in cosmic terminology we can point out the following phrases: launching pad – in its direct meaning стартовая площадка in

its transferred meaning – отправной пункт;

b) a large group of phraseological units was formed from free word groups

by transferring their meaning (simile, contrast, metaphor), e.g. granny

farm – пансионат для престарелых, as old as the hills – старый как

мир, Troyan horse – компьютерная программа предварительно

составленная для повреждения компьютера;

c) phradeological units can be formed by means of alliteration, e.g. a sad

sack – несчастный случай, culture vulture – человек,

интересующийся искусством;

d) by means of rhyming, e.g. by hook or by crook - by any possible means,

high and dry – left without help;

e) by using synonyms, e.g. to pick and choose – to be terribly choosy, really

and truly – quite honestly;

f) by means of expressiveness, e.g. My aunt! Hear, hear!

g) by means of distorting a word group, e.g. odds and ends was formed

from odd ends;

h) by using archaisms, e.g. in brown study means in gloomy meditation

where both components preserve their archaic meanings;

i) by using a sentence in a different sphere of life, e.g. that cock won‘t fight

can be used as a free word-group when it is used in sports (cock fighting)

but it becomes a phraseological unit when it is used in everyday life;

j) when we use some unreal image, e.g. to have butterflies in the stomach –

испытывать волнение;

k) by using expressions of writers or politicians in everyday life, e.g.

corridors of power (Snow);

Secondary ways of forming phraseological units are those when a

phraseological unit is formed on the basis of another phraseological unit:

a) conversion, e.g. to vote with one‘s feet was converted into vote with one‘s

feet; b) changing the grammar form, a sentence, e.g. Make hay while the sun

shines was transferred into Make hay while the sun shines;

c) analogy, e.g. Curiosity killed the cat was transferred into Care killed the

cat;

d) contrast, e.g. thin cat – a poor person was formed by contrasting it with

fat cat – a rich person;

e) shortening of proverbs or sayings, e.g. by means of clipping the middle

of the proverb You can‘t make a purse out of a sow‘s ear the

phraseological unit to make a sow‘s ear was formed with the meaning to

make a mistake;

f) borrowing phraseological units from other languages, either as translation

loans, e.g. living space (German), or as phonetic borrowings sotto voce

(Italian).

41. Phraseological Units and Free Phrases (Фразеологизмы и свободные Фразы).

42. Classifications of Phraseological Units (Классификация фразеологизмов).

Semantic classification of phraseological units

Phraseological units can be classified according to the degree of motivation

of their meaning. This classification was suggested by acad. V.V. Vinogradov for

Russian phraseological units. He pointed out three types of phraseological units:

a) fusions where the degree of motivation is very low, we cannot guess the

meaning of the whole from the meanings of its components, e.g. on

Shank‘s mare (on foot); in Russian: бить баклуши;

b) unities where the meaning of the whole can be guessed from the

meanings of its components, but it is transferred (metaphorically or

metonimically), e.g. to play the first fiddle (to be a leader in something),

old salt (experienced sailor);

c) collocations where words are combined in their original meaning but

their combinations are different in different languages, e.g. cash and

carry – self-service shop, in a big way (in great degree).

Structural classification of phraseological units

Prof. A.I. Smirnitsky worked out a detaiked structural classification of

phraseological units, comparing them with words. He points out one-top units

which he compares with affixed words because affixed words have only one root

morpheme. he points out two-top units which he compares with compound words

because in compound words we usually have two root morphemes.

Among one-top units he points out three structural types:

a) units of the type to give up (verb + postposition type);

b) units of the type to be tired;

c) prepositional-nominal phraseological units. These units are equivalents of

unchangeabl words: prepositions, conjunctions, adverbs, e.g. on the

doorstep – quite near, on the nose – exactly, in the course of – during.

Among two-top units A.I. Smirnitsky points out the following structural

types:

a) attributive-nominal, e.g. a month of Sundays, grey matter;

b) verbal-nominal, e.g. to read between the lines; to speak BBC;

c) phraseological repetitions, e.g. now or never, part and parcel

Syntactical classification of Structural classification of phraseological

units

Phraseological units can be classified as parts of speech. This classification

was suggested by I.V. Arnold. Here we have the following groups:

a) noun phraseological units denoting an object, a person, a living being,

e.g. bullet train, a latchkey child;

b) verb phraseological units denoting an action, a state, a feeling, e.g. to

break the log-jam, to get on somebody‘s coattails, to be on the beam;

c) adjective phraseological units denoting a quality, e.g. loose as a goose,

dull as lead;

d) adverb phraseological units, e.g. with a bump, in the soup; e) preposition phraseological units, e.g. in the course of, on the stroke of;

f) interjection phraseological units, e.g. Catch me! Well, I never!

In I.V. Arnold classification there are also sentence equivalents: proverbs,

sayings and quotations, e.g. The sky is the limit, What makes him tick, I am easy.

Proverbs are usually metaphorical, e.g. Too many cooks spoil the broth, while

sayings are, as a rule, non-metaphorical, e.g. Where there is a will there is a way –

Кто хочет, тот добьется.

43. Proverbs and Sayings (Пословицы и поговорки).

A proverb (from Latin: proverbium) is a simple and concrete saying popularly known and repeated, which expresses a truth, based on common sense or the practical experience of humanity. They are often metaphorical. A proverb that describes a basic rule of conduct may also be known as a maxim. If a proverb is distinguished by particularly good phrasing, it may be known as an aphorism.

Proverbs are often borrowed from similar languages and cultures, and sometimes come down to the present through more than one language. Both the Bible (Book of Proverbs) and medieval Latin have played a considerable role in distributing proverbs across Europe, although almost every culture has examples of its own.

Examples:

Haste makes waste.

A stitch in time saves nine.

Mustn't cry over spilt milk.

You can catch more flies with honey than you can with vinegar.

You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make him drink.

Don't poke the bear.

A saying is a short, clever expression that usually contains advice or expresses some obvious truth. Many traditional sayings are still in general use today. Most of the sayings in this section are well known in English, though some of them come from other languages. The meaning or interpretation shown for each saying is believed to be the generally accepted interpretation of the saying, though for some sayings the interpretation may be more subjective than for others.

Most sayings are effective thanks to their shortness and directness. They use simple, vivid language, often based on everyday domestic situations, making them easy to understand and remember.

Sayings may be classified under a number of different terms, of which proverb is probably the best known. Other types of saying are adage, maxim, motto, epigram and aphorism, though frankly the distinction between them is often vague:

proverb: a piece of common-sense wisdom expressed in practical, homely terms ("A stitch in time saves nine")

adage: is a time-honored and widely known saying ("Where there's smoke, there's fire")

maxim: a general rule of behaviour drawn from practical experience ("Neither a borrower nor a lender be")

motto: a maxim adopted as a principal of conduct ("Honesty is the best policy")

epigram: is a brief, witty, or satirical statement that often gains effect through paradox ("The only way to get rid of temptation is to yield to it")

aphorism: similar to an epigram but more profound rather than witty ("He is a fool that cannot conceal is wisdom").

Examples:

Dead men tell no tales.

Death is a remedy for all ills.

Say well or be still.

There is truth in wine.

44. Synonyms. Sources of Synonymy (Синонимы. Источники Синонимов).

Synonyms can therefore be defined in terms of linguistics as two or more words of the same language, belonging to the same part of speech and possessing one or more identical or nearly identical denotational meanings, interchangeable, at least in some contexts without any considerable alteration in denotational meaning, but differing in morphemic composition, phonemic shape, shades of meaning, connotations, style, valency and idiomatic use. Additional characteristics of style, emotional colouring and valency peculiar to one of the elements in a synonymic group may be absent in one or all of the others.

The definition is of necessity very bulky and needs some commenting upon.

Synonyms are words different in their outer aspects, but identical or similar

in their inner aspects. In English there are many synonyms, because there are a lot

of borrowings: hearty (native) – cordial (borrowing). After a word is borrowed it

undergoes desynonymization, because absolute synonyms are unnecessary for a language. However, there are some absolute synonyms in the language, which

have exactly the same meaning and belong to the same style: to moan, to groan;

homeland, motherland. In cases of desynonymization one of the absolute

synonyms can specialize in its meaning and we get semantic synonyms: city

(borrowed) – town (native). The French borrowing city is specialized in its

meaning.

Sometimes one of the absolute synonyms is specialized in its usage and we

get stylistic synonyms: to begin (native) – to commence (borrowing). Here the

French word is specialized.

Stylistic synonyms can also appear by means of abbreviation: exam

(colloquial), examination (neutral).

Among stylistic synonyms we can point out euphemisms: the late (dead), to

perspire (to sweat).

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.: mad – daft, potty, balmy, loony, bonkers, touched, nutty.

There are also phraseological synonyms, these words are identical in their

meanings and styles but different in their combinability with other words in the

sentence: to visit museums but to attend lectures; teachers question their pupils,

judges interrogate witnesses.

There are also contextual synonyms which are similar in meaning only under

some specific distributional conditions: 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.

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: piece is the synonymic dominant in the group slice, lump. morsel.

Very many compound nouns denoting abstract notions, persons and events

are correlated with phrasal verbs. We have such synonymous pairs as:

arrangement – layout, reproduction – playback. Conversion can also serve to form synonyms. laughter – laugh.

There are also cases of different affixation: effectivity – effectiveness. It can

be treated as a lexical variant but not a synonym. Variants can also be phonetical

(vase [veiz] - [va:z]) and graphical (to-morrow - tomorrow).

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.:

to ask to question to interrogate

belly stomach abdomen

to end to finish to complete

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