Лексикология английского языка. Practice Makes Perfect. Учебное пособие

I ever had to pay for anything, just put my hand in my pocket, and the right amount of money would always be there.” “That’s brilliant!’ says the waitress. “Most people would wish for a million dollars or something, but you’ll always be as rich as you want for as long as you live!” “That’s right! Whether it’s a gallon of milk or a Rolls Royce, the exact money is always there,” says the man.

The waitress asks, ”One other thing, sir, what’s with the ostrich?” The man sighs, pauses and answers, “My second wish was for a tall chick with long legs who agrees with everything I say!”

English Homonyms

1.Find homonyms in the following extracts. Classify them into homonyms proper, homographs and homophones

A.The parrot was green with red and grey bands on its wings. The Beatles are probably the most famous band in the world.

B.UK’s low-wage economy fuels the brain drain. Wood, coal, oil are different kinds of fuel.

C.Greece is considered the birthplace of western philosophy. He put some grease on the wheel.

D.Your voice is hoarse. Do you have a cold? Cowboy Tom had a horse named Joe.

E.The soldier decided to desert in the desert.

F.There was a row among the oarsmen about how to row.

G.We polish the Polish furniture.

H.These flowers grow on the sloping river banks and near streams. I have to go to the bank at lunchtime.

I.Let me say from the start that I have the highest possible admiration of the performing skills of Elvis Presley. I need to start early because the journey takes six hours.

J.He quickly walked down the aisle and took his seat. She grew up on the isle of Elba.

K.I shed a tear when I saw the tear in my clothes.

L.The bandage was wound around the wound.

Tear (n.) – a drop of salty liquid that comes out of your eye when you are crying;

Minute (adj.) – extremely small; Row (n.) – a line of things or people; Wind (n.) – moving air;

Invalid (adj.) – not legally or officially acceptable;

Present (v.) – to give something to someone at a formal occasion.

5.Classify the following italicized homonyms. Use the classification system worked out by professor A. I. Smirnitsky

A.The story was on the front page of every newspaper. A page was a boy who worked as a servant for a knight.

B.Who can resist giving people of any age the benefit of our experience and wisdom? He works in a factory where they can fruit.

C.I used to lie about my age but now I don’t bother. The cat likes to lie in front of the fire.

D.This type of grass is found only in the swamp. She left a large sum of money in her will to found a wildlife sanctuary.

E.My date is taking me out to dinner. A date is the sweet fruit of various types of palm-tree.

F.Her hair was pulled back with a rubber band. Radio signals are transmitted in a different band.

G.The pain was almost more than she could bear. I’m a bear of very little brain and long words bother me.

H.There are sixty seconds in a minute. The jackets were sold seconds because they had some buttons missing.

I.You should keep your savings in a bank. You ought to bank the money as soon as possible.

6.Explain the usage of homonyms which form the basis for the following jokes.

A.The judge asked the woman witness: “In what suit did you appear as a witness before? “In my blue serge”.

B.A little daughter: A strange man was here to see you today, Daddy.

Father: Did he have a bill?

A little daughter: Oh, no, Daddy. Just a plain nose as everybody else.

C.The booking clerk at a small station warned a villager: “You’ll have to change twice before you get to York.” The man, unused to traveling by train, mused:” Goodness me! And I’ve only got the clothes I’m wearing.”

D.A crowd gathered on the shore to watch a ship in distress. A lady asked in horror: “Can’t something be done to the crew in danger?” “It’s all right, ma’am,’ said a sailor, “we sent a line to the crew to come ashore.” “Good gracious! Must they have a formal invitation?”

E.Teacher: Now, who can tell me the name of an animal that has horns and is very dangerous for us to get near?

Little Bobby: I know – it’s a truck.

F. А Hotel manager: Now, look here, my boy. If you don’t turn over a new leaf I shall have to get a new page!

7.Explain how the following italicized words became homonyms

A.Never resort to arms, except in the face of a direct threat to national independence. My arms ache from carrying this heavy bag.

B.Now is therefore the time to set a firm date for British withdrawal from Iraq. The name of a sweet brownish fruit date goes back to the Greek root which meant “finger”.

C.There are more than 1000 crew members on board the ship including a large number of Wrens. A wren is a small brown bird with short rounded wings and a short tail.

D.A bear is a large mammal with long shaggy hair. The room was completely bare of furniture.

E.After years of civil war most population longed for peace. The building was taken apart, transported across the Atlantic and reassembled piece by piece.

F.We witness the death of so-called ‘fast fashion’, which you can buy, wear and throw away because it cost you the same as a big coffee from Starbucks. He signed the treaty in the presence of the witness.

G.Each light contains a super bright LED that lasts up to 100 hours on a single set of batteries. Light up dark corners and cupboards.

H.I hate going in lifts. I always think they are going to get stuck. I’ll give you a lift to the station if you like.

I.If you have mousy, dirty blonde hair, colouring one or two shades darker will work really well. She lowered her bucket into the well.

8.Do the following italicized words represent homonyms or different meanings of polysemantic words? Give reasons for your answers

A.I think I’ve had a bit too much sun today. We’ve got two sons and three daughters.

B.But Rich’s game went further downhill. At the 9-th hole he broke his 5-th iron club when he hit the ground instead of a ball. Venison and pheasants are types of game. Our football club needs new members. A lot of small businesses went broke in a recession. There’s still a whole month before my birthday.

C.According to Dr. Patrick Bowler, a cream that is too rich cannot be absorbed properly into the skin. Peal banana skin.

D.A man’s suit consists of a matching jacket and trousers. The four suits in a pack of cards are hearts, spades, clubs and diamonds.

E.It’s important to get ingredients right. He had a scar on the right side of his face.

F.I took a bite of the cheese. Be careful of the dog, he bites.

G.I’m a crazy football fan and this has been a dream of time. Why Birmingham? It was destiny – the right time and the right situation. There was no air conditioning, just a ceiling fan turning slowly.

H.The company will produce an initial run of 23 million of the bars (The Wispa) to test the market. Don’t cry, or your makeup will run.

I.The fact that they (Prince William and Kate Middleton) are holidaying together suggests that he is keen to put the row behind them and make a go of their relationship. We stood in a row to receive our certificates from the Chancellor. What time does the last train to Bath go?

9.Read the following sentences and choose the correct word to fill the gap

A. break / brake

The man managed to stop the car safely using the hand _____. B. male / mail

My secretary opens my ____ as soon as it arrives. C. pain / pane

If you have a ____in the chest, you should see a doctor. D. paste / paced

She ___ backwards and forwards in front of the door. E. sale / sail

The ___ of the house produced $ 500,000. F. steaks / stakes

The men hammered ____ into the ground to put up a wire fence. G. stationary / stationery

The letter was typed on his office ___. H. suede / swayed

The girl was wearing black ___ shoes. I. tail / tale

Granny told the children a ___ of princesses and wicked fairies. J. tic / tick

Put a ___ against the names of the people who have accepted the invitation.

K. vain / vein

Some drugs have to be injected directly into a patient’s ___. L. whale / wail

She started to ___ when she read the news. M. waist / waste

She measures 32 inches around the ___. N. ware / wear

The company must do more to promote their ___ overseas.

10.Read the following sentences aloud. Find the homographs and transcribe them

A.They were too close to the door to close it.

B.A farm can produce produce.

C.He could lead if he would get the lead out.

D.The dump was so full, it had to refuse refuse.

E.I didn’t object to the object.

F.The wind was too strong to wind the sail.

G.He had to subject the subject to a series of test.

H.How can I intimate this to my most intimate friend?

11.To revise what you have learnt from the preceding chapters, say everything you can about the italicized words (etymology, word-building, semantics, style)

Let’s face it – English is a crazy language. There’s no egg in the eggplant, nor ham in hamburger; neither apple nor pine in the pineapple. English muffins were not invented in England or French fries in France. Sweetmeats are candies while sweetbreads, which aren’t sweet, are meat.

Sometimes I think that all the English speakers should be committed to an asylum for the verbally insane. In what language do people recite at a play and play a recital? Ship by truck and send cargo by ship? Have noses that run and feet that smell? How can a slim chance and a fat chance be the same, while a wise man and a wise guy are opposites?

Paradigmatic Relations

of Words

1.The sentences given below contain synonyms. Write them out and explain the difference

A.A) The US seems set to elect the least experienced president (Barack Obama) in modern history. B) Contemporary classical music can be overwhelming and off-putting because it’s too formal.

B.A) The climax of the election campaign coincided with a financial crisis that was shaking the US capitalism to its core. B) On the glacially cold morning of 10 February 2007 I stood shivering in the crowd outside the Old State House in Springfield (Illinois), as Barack Obama formally declared himself a candidate to be the 44 President of the United States.

C.A) I (Mick Jones) used not to like jazz but as you get older you appreciate it more. B) At Newman we value the contribution international students bring to the academic and cultural development on campus.

D.If you want glitz and glamour you can find it in Antigua.

E.A) Mr. Nkunda had promised to set up a ‘humanitarian corridor’ to allow aid through – but the message clearly hasn’t got through to his troops. B) As the security situation continues to deteriorate MSF urgently needs your help to provide people with the medical care, shelter and clean water.

F.A) People are tired, scared and in desperate need of shelter and food. B) For eleven years in the seventies the city of Florence was terrorized by a serial killer.