How often do you hear the phrases “hang your nose”, “take by the soul”, “take to clean water”? If you tried to understand them literally, then you would not have succeeded. And if you try to change the words in these combinations or dilute them? It turns out some kind of nonsense.
Idiom - what is it? You will find examples of expressions in this article. How are idioms associated with phraseological units? Let's try to figure out what phraseological unit and idiom are.
Phraseologism
Phraseologisms are fixed phrases that carry a single meaning.
Figuratively, phraseologism can be compared with a mechanism: it cannot “work” in a language if there is not at least one “detail” - a word. Phraseology can not be disassembled into parts, change them and add something of their own.
So idiom - what is it? And how does it compare with phraseologism? First you need to clarify what phraseological units are.
Phraseological combinations
There are idioms that can be called the freest. Some words in such expressions “live their own life”, others can only exist next to the first.
Try to break up the phrase "bosom friend". How many epithets can you find for the word "friend"? Endless variety: "beautiful", "wonderful", "kind", "real", etc. And the word "bosom"? Can you find the word to replace "friend"? You can’t, because this word has grown to him. Such expressions are called phraseological combinations .
Phraseological Unities
"Stricter" phraseological unity . Here all the words in the composition are not free. If you change them, then the meaning or shade of meaning changes. For example, phraseologisms “get caught” and “get on the net” differ in a couple of words and are similar in meaning. Only here the shade is different: “getting on the net” is worse than “getting into a bait”.
However, unity can be diluted in other words. For example, "I got into your networks", "he got into a network of scammers."
Unities also have at least some imagery. We can imagine ourselves as fish suddenly caught in the net, from which they cannot find a way out. Therefore, to catch the meaning of such an expression is easy.
Phraseological adhesions
And the most “strict” types are idioms (phraseological accretions). They can only be remembered.
Try to see for yourself. Can you imagine a man who is beating bucks? Or whet the hair? We know that breaking the buck is messing around, and sharpening the hair is chatting. And if you omit our knowledge and ponder the meaning of each word?
Can we create this image in the head? No, because these images could be created once upon a time, when beating buckles and turning the bald were commonplace. And now no one literally sharpenes the Lyas and does not hit the buck, so we can’t imagine it.
Professions are gone (you will learn more about the origin of idioms later), and expression has swept through the centuries and is rooted in the language. An idiom is a phraseological unit that cannot be shared and diluted in other words. Words are as if soldered together in one combination.
Comparison of idioms: white crow and black sheep
If you are learning English, translating idioms will often break the point. Each idiom has its own equivalent in another language.
To the question "Idiom - what is it?" You can accurately answer - one of the realities of any language. To speak naturally in a foreign language, you need to know and feel these realities.
Russian and English idioms, which have a similar meaning, may differ in words in the composition. For example, the Russian idiom "white crow" means a person who is strikingly different from the rest of the mass. The idiom is metaphorical: crows are black, white is a rarity. Albinism makes the bird more vulnerable to predators. It turns out that the white crow is a rare, unusual, unique bird, but at the same time miserable, vulnerable, alienated.
But in English there is an analogue of this idiom - black sheep (black sheep). The black sheep is called "not like everyone else," but at the same time wayward. These people are exceptional, but also they do not want to be in a team.
Nevertheless, the English idiom "black sheep" is considered the equivalent of the Russian "white crow".
Comparison of idioms "after rain on Thursday" and when pigs fly
A good example of differences in realities is idioms that mean "in the indefinite future." In Russian they say "when the cancer on the mountain whistles" or sometimes use the idiom "after the rain on Thursday." In English, it is customary to say when pigs fly.
If the English idiom is metaphorical, then it is impossible to understand Russian if you do not know its history. According to one version, a thief named Rak (surname Rakochinsky) came to Odessa. At that time, the road in the area of ​​Skoda Mountain was used during the rain, and rains in the city were rare. Rakochinsky lost the argument and had to whistle on the mountain in the rain. It is believed that the expression was fixed precisely after this incident.
"After the rain on Thursday" generally rooted in the history of Russia. Then paganism was widespread. On Thursdays, people asked for rain from Perun. Since the rains did not appear, the expression with this meaning was strengthened.
The origin of Russian idioms
The etymology of these combinations is directed to history, and to culture, and to social life. In the lessons of the Russian language they talk about this a little and as additional information. In fact, if you submit such information correctly and interestingly, it can increase the motivation to learn not only the native and foreign languages, but also other subjects.
The origin of idioms in different languages ​​usually causes interest not only among school students, but also among adults. Consider several Russian idioms and their origin:
- "Pull the gimp . " Gimp - a thin thread of metal. It was used for embroidery. To make this thread, you need a lot of time: the work is long, tedious and painstaking. And although now the idiom has the meaning of “doing something boring” and even “messing around,” then it was associated with hard work, which required strength and attention.
- "Beat the buck . " It is believed that baclos are wood billets that were prepared for the subsequent cutting of wooden products. Even a child coped with this work, so it was considered easy. Phraseologism means "doing light work, messing around."
- "Seven spans in the forehead ." So they say about a smart and capable person. The idiom went from the Slavs who used the span system. Seven spans were equated to 1 m 25 cm - a 12-year-old child reached such growth. At this age, children mastered the craft and became full members of society. This can be called adulthood.
- "Bullshit" or "lying like a gray gelding" - expressions came from the 18th century. The people called old people mares and geldings. The old people were incapable of work, they could not give birth to children, and so they spent their lives chattering. So phraseologism appeared, which meant "to say something meaningless," "to talk in vain."
- "Not a feather or a feather . " This idiom used to be a spell from evil spirits. Feather is a bird, down is animals. If you wish "fluff and feather", then the spirits get angry and ruin the hunt. And having heard that the hunt will be unsuccessful anyway, they will leave.
It is necessary to remember when studying idioms that this is important and interesting. By studying the idioms of the native and foreign languages, comparing them, you enrich your vocabulary and increase cultural competence.