11. Phraseology

1. Free word-groups and phraseological units.

2. Classification of phraseological units.

3. Origin of phraseological units.

11.1. Words in speech are brought together to form word-groups, or phrases.

All word-groups are divided into free word-groups and phraseological units. Free word-groups are formed in speech after some structural and semantic patterns; they are traditionally studied by syntax. They are only relatively free, because there are certain collocational restrictions.

e.g. "A black-eyed girl" is all right, but we rule out "A black-eyed table" because it doesn't make sense.

Thus, on the one hand, free word-groups are governed by requirements of logic and common sense. On the other hand, the relations between their components are governed by the rules of grammar and lexical combinability. The latter restrictions often can't be explained,

e.g. a tall man/building/tree, but a high mountain, though tall and high are synonymous.

There is no difference between flock and herd except that the former is used with birds, sheep and goats and the latter with cows, goats and elephants.

Thus, free word-groups are called so not because of absolute freedom of relations between their components, but because they are each time built anew in speech.

Phraseological units are word-groups of special kind, studied by phraseology. "A phraseological unit is a stable word-group characterised by a completely or partially transferred meaning." (A.V.Kunin)

In modern linguistics there is considerable confusion about terminology. Ph. units are called "set phrases, fixed phrases, word-equivalents, idioms, cliches, etc." These terms reflect the main debatable issues of phraseology and different points of view on ph. units.

The term "word-equivalent" stresses that in speech, ph. units can function as single words or that some ph. units can be substituted by a single word,

e.g. to kick the bucket = to die.

The term "a fixed/set phrase" implies the stability (fixedness) of ph. units which are used in speech as ready-made units,

e.g. strictly speaking, all of a sudden; similes such as dead as a doornail, quick as a flash.

Stability means that you can't change the order or replace the components with other words having similar meanings,

e.g. peace and quiet, but not quiet and peace,

free of charge, but not free of payment.

The term idiom stresses idiomaticity or lack of motivation. The term is used by British and American linguists as a synonym to the term "ph. unit", but in this country it is usually applied to ph. units with completely transferred meaning, whose sense is not predictable from the meanings and arrangement of their elements, such as "to kick the bucket" meaning"to die", which has nothing obviously to do with kicking or buckets.

There are two main criteria for distinguishing between free word-groups and ph. units:

1. The semantic criterion.

(a) Ph. units are characterised by semantic unity, i.e. they are semantically unanalisable, because the meanings of the constituents merge to produce a new meaning,

e.g."a dark horse" is a person about whom nothing is known.

In this ph. units are like words. But words also possess structural unity, which ph. units don't, being groups of words.

(b) Ph. units are characterised by transferred meaning (idiomaticity). Idiomaticity is a matter of degree. The semantic change may affect either the whole word-group, then a ph. unit has a completely transferred meaning,

e.g. "a wolf in a sheep's clothing" means an enemy who poses as a friend,

"to spill the beans" - make a secret known,

or it may affect the meaning of one component, the other preserving its usual meaning, then the ph. unit has a partially transferred meaning,

e.g. "small talk" - light social conversation,

"bosom friend" - a close friend.