- •Лексикология как наука. Предмет лексикологии и ее связь с другими разделами языкознания
- •Lexicology and other branches of science
- •Слово как основная единица языка. Отношения между словом и понятием
- •The lexical meaning vs. Notion
- •Проблема определения слова и его основные характеристики
- •Элементы семантической структуры слова. Полисемия в английском языке Semantic triangle
- •Meaning and the sound complex
- •Meaning and the concept
- •Meaning and the referent
- •Polysemy
- •Полисемия и омонимия. Проблема разграничения полисемии и омонимии
- •Антонимические отношения между словарными единицами. Некоторые общие и различительные черты синонимов и антонимов
- •Типы значения. Значение в синтагматике и парадигматике Types of meaning
- •Grammatical meaning
- •Lexical meaning
- •Lexico-grammatical meaning
- •Meaning in syntagmatics and paradigmatics
- •Значение в сложных словах
- •Семантические изменения как источник количественного и качественного роста словаря. Расширение и сужение значения
- •Виды синонимов. Синонимические ряды. Синонимическая доминанта. Эвфемизмы как специальный вид синонимов. Дифференциация синонимов
- •Euphemisms
- •Омонимы в английском языке. Классификация омонимов
- •Classification of Homonyms
- •Синонимия в английском языке. Критерии синонимичности. Происхождение омонимов Sources of synonymy
- •The origin of homonyms
- •Морфемы. Типы морфем. Алломорфы
- •Classification from the semantic point of view
- •Classification from the structural point of view
- •Процессы улучшения и ухудшения значения. Другие типы семантических изменений
- •Развитие словарного состава английского языка. Причины развития лексикона
- •Системные группы слов. Тематические группы
- •Омонимия в синхроническом аспекте. Разграничение омонимии и полисемии
- •Проблема мотивации слов
- •Причины и типы семантических изменений
- •Types of semantic change
- •Семантические поля
- •Значение в производных словах. Синонимия, полисемия и омонимия аффиксов Polisemy and homonymy
- •Synonymy
- •Морфемный и деривационный анализ. Анализ по нс
- •Словообразование. Синхронический и диахронический подходы к словообразованию. Различные типы словообразования в английском языке
- •Various ways of word formation
- •Суффиксация в английском языке. Происхождение и продуктивность английских суффиксов
- •The origin
- •Productivity
- •Префиксация в английском языке
- •Classification
- •Конверсия, подходы к изучению конверсии, диахронический и синхронический подходы к проблеме конверсии
- •Diachronic Approach
- •Synchronic approach
- •Типичные семантические отношения между членами конвертируемых пар (синхронический подход)
- •I. Verbs converted from nouns (denominal verbs)
- •II. Nouns converted from verbs (deverbal substantives)
- •Проблема субстантивации Nouns converted from adjectives
- •Словосложение в английском языке. Классификация сложных слов Word-composition
- •Classification compound nouns
- •Compound adjectives
- •Compound verbs
- •Derivational compounds
- •Reduplicative compounds
- •Pseudo-compounds
- •Критерии разграничения сложных слов от словосочетаний
- •Сокращение как один из продуктивных словообразования в современном английском языке. Различные типы сокращений
- •Второстепенные способы словообразования (обратная деривация, звукоподражание, редупликация, чередование звуков и др.) Sound interchange
- •Distinctive stress
- •Sound imitation
- •Back-formation
- •Графические сокращения, акронимы, слова, образованные в результате телескопии
- •Историческая изменчивость структуры слова
- •Сочетаемость и валентность слов Lexical valency
- •Grammatical valency
- •Фразеологические единицы. Их устойчивость, раздельнооформленность и семантическая целостность Phraseology /from lecture/
- •Phraseology /Ginzburg/
- •Free Word-Groups vs Set-Phrases, Phraseological Units, Idioms, Word-Equivalents
- •Criteria of Stability and Lack of Motivation
- •The criterion of idiomaticity
- •The criterion of stability
- •Grammatical inseparability
- •Классификации фразеологических единиц Ethymological classification /Smith/
- •Semantic classification /Виноградов/
- •Functional (part of speech) classification /Arnold/
- •Detailed functional, structural and semantic classification /Кунин/
- •Пути и способы образования фразеологических единиц
- •Этимологическая характеристика английского словаря. Исконные и заимствованные слова. Критерии заимствования
- •Words of native origin
- •Borrowed words
- •Some basic assumptions /Ginzburg/
- •Пути и способы заимствования. Критерии заимствования /lecture/
- •Criteria of Borrowings
- •/Ginzburg/
- •Роль латинских заимствований в английском языке
- •Различные типы заимствований. Ассимиляция заимствований
- •Assimilation of borrowings
- •Phonetic assimilation
- •Grammatical Assimilation
- •Lexical Assimilation
- •Проблема интернациональных слов The problem of international words /lecture/
- •International words /Arnold/
- •Гибридные слова
- •Этимологические дублеты /lecture/
- •/Arnold/
- •Неологизмы Способы образования неологизмов
- •Варианты и диалекты английского языка English variants and dialects Standard English
- •American English
- •Canadian, Australian and Indian variants
- •Основные принципы составления словарей. Виды словарей
Criteria of Stability and Lack of Motivation
Phraseological units are habitually defined as non-motivated word-groups that cannot be freely made up in speech but are reproduced as ready-made units. This definition proceeds from the assumption that the essential features of phraseological units are stability of the lexical components and lack of motivation.1 It is consequently assumed that unlike components of free word-groups which may vary according to the needs of communication, member-words of phraseological units are always reproduced as single unchangeable collocations.
Thus, for example, the constituent red in the free word-group red flower may, if necessary, be substituted for by any other adjective denoting colour (blue, white, etc.), without essentially changing the denotational meaning of the word-group under discussion (a flower of a certain colour). In the phraseological unitred tape (bureaucratic “methods) no such substitution is possible, as a change of the adjective would involve a complete change in the meaning of the whole group. A blue (black, white, etc.) tape would mean ‘a tape of a certain colour’. It follows that the phraseological unit red tape is semantically non-motivated, i.e. its meaning cannot be deduced from the meaning of its components and that it exists as a ready-made linguistic unit which does not allow of any variability of its lexical components. It is also argued that non-variability of the phraseological unit is not confined to its lexical components. Grammatical structure of phraseological units is to a certain extent also stable. Thus, though the structural formula of the word-groups red flower and red tape is identical (A + +N), the noun flower may be used in the plural (red flowers), whereas no such change is possible in the phraseological unit red tape; red tapes would then denote ‘tapes of red colour’ but not ‘bureaucratic methods’. This is also true of other types of phraseological units, e.g. what will Mrs. Grundy say?, where the verbal component is invariably reproduced in the same grammatical form.
The criterion of idiomaticity
The definition is felt to be inadequate as the concept ready-made units seems to be rather vague. In fact this term can be applied to a variety of heterogeneous linguistic phenomena ranging from word-groups to sentences (e.g. proverbs, sayings) and also quotations from poems, novels or scientific treatises all of which can be described as ready-made units.
Frequent discussions have also led to questioning this approach to phraseology from a purely semantic point of view as the criterion of idiomaticity is found to be an inadequate guide in singling out phraseological units from other word-groups. Borderline cases between idiomatic and non-idiomatic word-groups are so numerous and confusing that the final decision seems to depend largely on one’s “feeling of the language". This can be proved by the fact that the same word-groups are treated by some linguists as idiomatic phrases and by others as free word-groups. For example, such word-groups as take the chair — ‘preside at a meeting’, take one’s chance — ‘trust to luck or fortune’, take trouble (to do smth) — ‘to make efforts’ and others are marked in some of the English dictionaries as idioms or phrases, whereas in others they are found as free word-groups illustrating one of the meanings of the verb to take or the nouns combined with this verb.
The term idiomaticity is also regarded by some linguists as requiring clarification. As a matter of fact this term is habitually used to denote lack of motivation from the point of view of one’s mother tongue. A word-group which defies word by word translation is consequently described as idiomatic. It follows that if idiomaticity is viewed as the main distinguishing feature of phraseological units, the same word-groups in the English language may be classified as idiomatic phraseological units by Russian speakers and as non-idiomatic word-groups by those whose mother tongue contains analogous collocations. Thus, e.g., from the point of view of Russian speakers such word-groups as take tea, take care, etc. are often referred to phraseology as the Russian translation equivalents of these word-groups (пить чай, заботиться) do not contain the habitual translation equivalents of the verb take. French speakers, however, are not likely to find anything idiomatic about these word-groups as there are similar lexical units in the French language.