Chapter-8-English-Idioms-英语词汇学-教学课件.ppt

1、Chapter 8 v English Idioms Introduction vIdioms consist of set phrases and short sentences and loaded with the native cultures and ideas.vIdioms are colorful,forcible and thought-provoking.vStrictly speaking,idioms are expressions that are not readily understandable from their literal meanings of in

2、dividual elements.Introduction vfor example:vfly off the handle,put up with vIn a broad sense,idioms may include colloquialisms,catchphrases,slang expressions,proverbs,etc vThis chapter will deal with idioms in terms of their characteristics,classification and uses.idiomaticity vIt should be pointed

3、 out that the idiomaticity of idioms is gradable,with the true idioms established at the upper end and regular combinations at the bottom.In between are the semi-idioms vBy true idioms we mean that the meaning of the idiom cannot be deduced from those of the individual constituents:stepped up,in the

4、 raw Idiomaticity vBy regular combinations we speak of the regular collocations such as make friends with,break silence and smooth tongue,the meanings of which are understood from the literal meanings of the constituents.vIn between we have idioms like turn over a new leaf,as cool as a cucumber and

5、draw the curtain,whose meanings are in a way related to the meanings of the constituents but are themselves explicit.Idiomaticity vThe fixity of idioms depends on the idiomaticity.The more idiomatic the idioms,the more fixed the structure.vMany of the idioms of the lower scale do allow some changes.

6、vFor example,break silence can be changed into keep silence to express the opposite meaning.Put on the coat can be replaced by put it on in the actual context.Classification of Idioms vClassification can be approached from different angles.We prefer the criterion of grammatical functions.By this cri

7、terion,idioms may be classified into five groups.vIdioms Nominal in NaturevIdioms Adjectival in Nature vIdioms Verbal in NaturevIdioms Adverbial in NaturevSentence Idioms Use of Idioms vThe study of idioms is not just to know which are idioms and which are not,but also to understand them correctly i

8、n actual context and use them properly in production.To achieve this,one needs to be aware of the rhetoric characteristics of idioms such as stylistic features,rhetoric features and their occasional variations.Stylistic Features vA large proportion of idioms were first created by working people:v in

9、 deep water,tide over,take the helm by seamen;vkill two birds with on stone,if you run after two hares,you will catch neither used by hunters;va bull in a china shop,have all ones eggs in one basket used by farmers;Stylistic Features vnew brooms sweep clean,wash ones dirty linen in public used by ho

10、usewives;v keep the pot boiling,boil down used by cooks;v jump at the bait,a fish out of water used by fishermen;vhit below the belt,play fair used by sportsmen,etcStylistic Features vidioms are generally felt to be informal and some are colloquialisms and slang,therefore inappropriate for formal st

11、yle.Occasionally,we find idioms which are extremely formal and used only in frozen style.vColloquialismsvSlangvLiterary expressionsStylistic Features vThe same idiom may show stylistic differences when it is as signed different meanings.v In addition,slang expressions are often peculiar to social or

12、 regional varieties.Some may be used only in British setting,others may be appropriate only in American context,and still others may be suitable for certain groups of people.All this needs care on the part of the user in the course of production.Rhetorical Features vApart from the stylistic features

13、,idioms manifest apparent rhetorical coloring in such respects as:vphonetic manipulationvlexical manipulation vfigures of speech Variations of IdiomsvCharacterized by semantic unity and structural stability,idioms do not allow changes as a rule.But structural stability is not absolute.vOccasionally,

14、we may find changes in constituents of idioms vReplacementvAddition or deletionvposition-shiftingvshorteningvdismembering.First vin a brown study is not to be changed into in a red studyvIn the same way,lip service is not to be changed into mouth service;kick the bucket into kick the pail or strike

15、the bucket;bury the hatchet into bury the ax.Second vFor example,by twos and threes and tit for tat are not to be turned into by threes and twos and tat for tit.Similarly,the lions share is not to be replaced by the share of the lion though it is a common practice in free phrases.Third v For instanc

16、e,out of the question means impossible.If the article the is deleted,the idiomaticity will be lost and it will signify“no question”instead.In question on the other hand does not allow the addition of the as in the question,because the latter is no longer an idiom.Finally vFor example,diamond cut dia

17、mond is grammatically incorrect,for normally the verb cut should take the third person singular-s as the subject diamond is singular.Meanwhile there exists a structurally similar idiom like cures like,in which-s cannot be deleted.(as)sure as eggs is eggs may serve as another example.The verb is in t

18、he idiom should be are to agree with grammar.However,we use it as it is.It is grammatically wrong,but idiomatic and widely accepted.Idioms Nominal in Nature vIdioms of this class have a noun as the key word in each and function as a noun in sentences:vWhite elephant a+nvBrain trust n+nvFlesh and blo

19、od n+conj+nvAn apple of discord n+prep+n vJack of all trades n+prep+det+n vFly in the ointment n+prep+nIdioms Adjectival in Nature vAll the idioms listed below function as adjectives but the constituents are not necessarily adjectives:vCut and dried a+avAs poor as a church mouse as+a+as+nvWide of th

20、e mark a+prep+n vBeyond the pale prep+n vUp in the air adv+prep+nIdioms Verbal in Nature vThis is the largest group of all.The structures of such idioms are quite complex and thus can be subdivided into phrasal verbs and other verb phrases.vPhrasal verbs are idioms which are composed of verb plus a

21、prep and/or a particlevLook into vi+prep;Go on vi+adv vPut off vt+prep/adv;Turn on vt+adv vGet away with vi+adv+prep vPut down to vt+adv+prepIdioms Verbal in Nature vOther verb phrasevMake it;Follow ones nosevFall flat;Give sb the bagvSing a different tune;Call it dayvChop and change;Swim against th

22、e streamvCome back to earth;Make ends meetvKeep the pot boiling;Let the dog see the rabbitvBite the hand that feeds oneIdioms Adverbial in Nature vTooth and nail n+n vIn nothing flat prep+n+avThrough thick and thin prep+n+conj+nvThis class contains numerous prepositional phrase,which in nature are e

23、ither adjectival or adverbial and in many cases have both functions at the same time.vFor instance,in clover or in the clover can be used both as predicative and as adverbial Therefore,this idiom may be placed in the second group and in the fourth group as well.Sentence Idioms vAs the term suggests,

24、all idioms of this category are complete sentences.They are mainly proverbs and sayings,including colloquialisms and catchphrases.vA bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.vHow are you?Never do things by halvesvThats the time of day!Upon my word!vArt is long,life is short.vAll is not gold that gl

25、itters.vKill the goose that laid the golden egg.Colloquialisms vHang in(there):Hang in there,old buddy;the worst is yet to come.vBig wheel:Uncle Ferdinand is a big wheel in Washington,maybe he can help you with your problem.vMake waves:Joe is the wrong man for the job;he is always trying to make wav

26、es.vCan of worms:Lets not get into big city politics-thats a different can of worms.Slang vCancer stick:Throw away that cancer stick!Smoking is bad for you!vHit the sack:Im sleep;lets hit the sack.vDish the dirt:Stop dishing the dirt,Sally,its really unbecoming!vFeel no pain:After a few drinks,the m

27、an felt no pain and began to act foolishly.vIn the soup:When his wife overdrew their bank account without telling him,Mr.Cook suddenly found himself really in the soup.Literary expressions vCome to pass:Strange things come to pass in trouble times.vBe it that:vIn the wake of:Famine followed in the w

28、ake of war.vGive the lie to:The police gave the lie to the man who said that he had been at home during the robbery.vOf note:He is a novelist of note in India.vCross swords:That was where I crossed swords with him.Phonetic manipulation vAlliterationvChop and change;Might and main;Rough and ready;Par

29、t and parcel;Toss and turn;Bag and baggage;sum and substance;Neither fish,flesh,nor fowlvRhymevKith and kin;Wear and tear;Toil and moil;By hook and by crook;Fair and square;A little pot is soon hot;A friend is in need is a friend indeed;Theres many a slip between the cup and the lipLexical manipulat

30、ion vReiteration(duplication of synonyms)vScream and shout,cut and carve,pick and choose,rough and tough,odds and ends,bits and pieces,push and shove vRepetition vBy and by,out and out,such and such,day by day,all in all,face to face,hand in hand,word for word,from time to time,year in year out.vJux

31、taposition(of antonyms)Here and there,up and down,hit or miss,rain or shine,weal and woe,Figures of speech vIdioms are terse and vivid because of the copious images created by them.Large numbers of idioms are used in their metaphorical meaning.vSimilevMetaphorvMetonymyvSynecdochevPersonification vEu

32、phemismSimile v(As)mute as a fish,as dead as a doornailv as graceful as a swan,like a rat in a holev eat like a horse,sleep like a logvTime flies like an arrowvspend money like water.Metaphor vIn some idioms,animals are used to refer to people:black sheep,a dark horse,grey mare,snake in the grassvin

33、animate things to refer to people:new broom,flat tire,the salt of the earthvthings to refer to something else:bed of dust,crocodile tears,a wet blanket,black bottlevactions,state to refer to abstract ideas or other actions,state,etc:sit on the fence,cut the ground from under sb,fall from grace Meton

34、ymy vThis refers to idioms in which the name of one thing is used for that of another associated with itvin the cradlevlive by ones pen vfrom cradle to grave vmake(up)a purseSynecdoche vBoth metonymy and synecdoche involve substitution of names,yet they differ in that the former is a case of using t

35、he name of one thing for another closely associated with it and the latter is that of substituting part for the whole and vice versavearn ones bread vfall into good hands vtwo heads are better than onePersonification vFailure is the mother of success.vActions speak louder than words.vThe pot calls t

36、he cattle blackvFire and water are good servants,but bad masters.Euphemism vThe call of nature,sleep around,powder ones nose vSome idioms are always used in a humorous way:kick the bucket,give leg-bail vsome are ironic and sardonic in tones:big deal,perfumed talk vsome are derogatory:a big cheesevTh

37、ere are instances of hyperbole:a world of trouble and a flood of tearsReplacement vIn some idioms,a constituent may be replaced by a word of the same part of speechvVerb:catch get,seize,take hold of,keep break ones wordvNoun:down in the bushes mouth,a drop in the ocean bucketvAdjectives:on a large b

38、ig,vast scale,by all no meansvAdverb or preposition:drop in over,by,turn on off vArticle,pronoun,numeral:flea in ones the ear,lay a ones course,talk thirteen nineteen to the dozenAddition or deletion vIn some instances,some constituents can be added or deleted,which does not affect the meaning of th

39、e idioms:vbehind the bars,for all night,for good and all,as broad as it is long,thank ones lucky stars,from the bottom of ones heart,etc.Position-shifting vThe positions of certain constituents in some idioms can be shifted without any change in meaningvday and night=night and day,vyoung and old=old

40、 and youngvdo sb a favour=do a favour for sbvplay sb a trick=play a trick on sbvfortunes wheel=wheel of fortuneShortening vThis occasionally occurs in proverbs and sayings,where only a part of them is used instead of the wholevthe last straw=It is the last straw that breaks the camels back,vJack of

41、all trades=Jack of all trades and master of none.v“Im a bit of a rolling stone down the avenues of medicine,”he explained.DismemberingvIt is what I mean by breaking up the idioms into pieces,an unusual case of use of idioms particularly in literature or popular press to achieve special effect:vThe leopard!But he did change them,Dinny.”v“He did not,Auntie:he had no spots to change.”vThis is the end of Chapter 8