5. Проблема визначення фразеологічних одиниць у сучасній англійській мові та їх класифікація.

A phraseological unit can be defined as a reproduced and idiomatic (non-motivated) or partially motivated unit built up according to the model of free word-groups (or sentences) and semantically and syntactically brought into correlation with words.

Reproducibility is regular use of phraseological unit in speech as single unchangeable collocations.

Idiomaticity is the quality of phraseological unit,when the meaning of the whole is not deducible from the sum of the meaning of the parts.

Stability of a phraseological unit implies that it exists as a ready-made linguistic unit which does not allow of any variability of its lexical components or grammatical structure.

Depending on what feature of a phraseological unit is taken as the basic criterion of differentiation the definition may vary.

Difference in terminology (set-phrases, idioms, word-equivalents) reflects certain differences in the main criteria used to distinguish types of phraseological units and free-word groups. The term ‘set phrase’ implies that the basic criterion of differentiation is stability of the lexical components and gram. structure of word-groups.

The term ‘idiom’ generally implies that the essential feature of the linguistic units is idiomaticity or lack of motivation.

The term ‘word-equivalent’ stress not only semantic but also functional inseparability of certain word groups, their aptness to function in speech as single words.

Depending on what feature of a phraseological unit is taken as the basic criterion of differentiation the definition may vary. But despite some variance all the approaches admit that the essential features of phraseological units are: a) lack of semantic motivation b) lexical and grammatical stability. + the characteristic features of phraseological units are: ready­made reproduction, structural divisibility, morphological stability, permanence of lexical composition, semantic unity, syntactic fixity.

According to the degree of idiomaticity phraseological units can be classified into three big groups: phraseological fusions (сращения), phraseological unities (единства) and phraseological collocations (сочетания). (Vinogradov’s classification of phraseological units!!)

Phraseological fusions arе completely non-motivated word-groups. e.g. as mad as a hatter — ‘utterly mad’: white elephant — ‘an expensive but useless thing*.

Phraseological unities are partially non-motivated as their meaning can usually be perceived through the metaphoric meaning of the whole phraseological unit. e.g. to bend the knee — ’to submit to a stronger force, to obey submissively*: to wash one's dirty linen in public — "to discuss or make public one’s quarrels’.

Phraseological collocations are not only motivated but contain one component used in its direct meaning, while the other is used metaphorically, e.g. to meet the requirements, to attain success. In this group of phraseological units some substitutions are possible which do not destroy the meaning of the metaphoric element, e.g. to meet the needs, to meet the demand, to meet the necessity: to have success, to lose success. These substitutions are not synonymical and the meaning of the whole changes, while the meaning of the verb meet and the noun success are kept intact.

The main sources of native phraseological units are:

1. Terminological and professional lexics. E.g. physics: center of gravity (центр тяжести), specific weight (удельный вес): navigation: cut the painter (обрубить канат), lower one's colours (спустить свой флаг) military sphere: fall into line (стать в строй).

2. British literature, e.g. the green-eyed monster — ‘jealousy’ (W.Shakespeare); fall on evil days — ‘live in poverty after having enjoyed better times' (J.Milton): how goes the enemy? (Ch. Dickens) — ‘what is the time?

3. British traditions and customs, e.g. baker's dozen — ‘a group of thirteen’. In the past British merchants of bread received from bakers thirteen loaves instead of twelve and the thirteenth loaf was merchants' profit.

4. Superstitions and legends, e.g. a black sheep — ‘a less successful or more immoral person in a family or a group'. 

5.Historical facts and events, personalities, e.g. as well be hanged (or hung) for a sheep as a lamb — ‘something that you say when you are going to be punished for something so you decide to do something worse because your punishment will not be any more severe’. 

6. Phenomena and facts of everyday life, e.g. carry coals to Newcastle — ‘to take something to a place where there is plenty of it available'.  The main sources of borrowed phraseological units are:

1. The Holy Script, e.g. the left hand does not know what the right hand is doing — ‘communication in an organization is bad so that one part does not know what is happening in another pan.

2. Ancient legends and myths belonging to different religious or cultural traditions, e.g. to cut the Gordian knot — ‘to deal with a difficult problem in a strong, simple and effective wav’ 

3. Facts and events of the world history, e.g. to cross the Rubicon to do something which will have very' important results which cannot be changed after.

4. Variants of the English language, e.g. a heavy hitter — ‘someone who is powerful and has achieved a lot’ (American).

5. Other languages (classical and modern), e.g. second to none — ‘equal with any other and better than most* (from Latin: nulli secundus).

Thus, the characteristic features of phraseological units are: ready­made reproduction, structural divisibility, morphological stability, permanence of lexical composition, semantic unity, syntactic fixity.