What is phraseologism in simple words examples. Phraseologisms with the word "TOOTH"

The English language has a thousand-year history. During this time, it has accumulated a large number of expressions that people found successful, well-aimed and beautiful. And so a special layer of the language arose - phraseology, a set of stable expressions that have an independent meaning.

With the help of phraseological expressions, which are not translated literally, but are perceived as rethinking, the aesthetic aspect of the language is enhanced. With the help of idioms, as with the help of various shades of colors, the informational aspect of the language is complemented by a sensual-intuitive description of our world, our life.

For those who study English as a foreign language, this layer of the language is difficult to master, but after mastering phraseological units, you begin to speak like Englishmen, you understand them from a half-word, your speech readiness increases dramatically. You can express your thought briefly and very accurately, being sure of the correctness of its expression. In many cases, knowledge of English phraseology helps to avoid Russianisms, i.e. verbatim translations of sentences from Russian into English.

How quickly you got to us! Seems like you live far from here?
- Itook a taxi .

Correct combination of words.

- I am so glad to see you! What an unexpected meeting!
- I didn't expect it. Justtook the plane and flew to you.

Wrong combination of words.

Well, we Russians don't say that. Got on a plane, bought a plane ticket, but not took the plane. Of course, we will understand the meaning of the expression, but an unnatural combination will “cut the ear”.

In English, the same principle: some words are combined, others are not.

quick food - fast food

a quick shower

Hence our advice: learn not only individual words, but also popular set expressions in English.

Even when you learn a single word, immediately look for the context in which it can and should be used (you will find it in dictionaries). We will devote to how best to learn new words. And today we are talking about phrases.

List of set expressions in English with translation

Yes, we have prepared a small list of ≈ 140 expressions. The same set phrases are duplicated in our set of words -.

And yes, just in case: set expressions- these are combinations of 2 or more words that are often used together with each other and sound natural to a native speaker. It can be noun + adjective, noun + verb, verb + adverb, etc.

Translation of set expressions from English into Russian

1. Set expressions with the verb to do in English

To do someone a favor (Provide someone a favor)

To do the cooking (Cook)

To do the housework (Do housework)

To do the shopping (Make purchases)

To do the washing up (Wash the dishes)

To do your best (Try)

To do your hair (Comb your hair)

2. Set expressions with the verb to have in English

To have a good time (Have a good time, more often used as a wish)

To have a bath (Take a bath)

To have a drink (Drink)

To have a haircut (Cut your hair)

To have a holiday (Have a vacation / vacation)

To have a problem (Have a problem, face a problem)

To have a relationship / to be in relationship (To be in a relationship)

To have lunch (Dine, have lunch)

To have sympathy (Sympathize)

3. Set expressions with the verb to break

To break the law (Break the law)

Break a leg (Informal: Good luck! No fluff, no feather!)

To break a promise (Break a promise)

To break a record (To break a record)

To break someone's heart (Break someone's heart)

To break the ice (Idiom: break the ice, take the first step, soften the situation, make a start)

To break the news to someone (Tell someone important news)

To break the rules (Break the rules)

4. Set expressions with the verb to take

To take a break (Take a break)

To take a chance (Take a chance, use a chance)

To take a look (Look)

To take a rest (Relax)

To take a seat (Sit down)

To take a taxi (Take a taxi)

To take an exam (Take an exam)

To take notes (Take notes)

To take someone's place (Take someone's place)

5. Set expressions with the verb to make

To make a difference (Make a difference, make a difference, significantly change things)

To make a mess (Make a mess)

To make a mistake (Make a mistake)

To make a noise

To make an effort (Make an effort)

To make money (Earn)

To make progress

To make room (Give room for someone)

To make trouble (Deliver problems)

6. Phrases with the verb to catch

To catch the bus (Catch the bus)

To catch a ball (Catch the ball)

To catch a cold (Catch a cold)

To catch a thief (Catch a thief)

To catch fire (Light up)

To catch sight of (See, notice)

To catch someone's attention (Catch someone's attention)

To catch someone's eye (Get someone's attention)

To catch the flu

7. Set expressions with the verb to pay

To pay respect (Express respect)

To pay a fine (Pay a fine)

To pay attention (Pay attention)

To pay by credit card (Pay by credit card)

To pay cash (Pay cash)

To pay interest

To pay someone a visit (Visit someone)

To pay the bill (Pay the bill)

To pay the price (Pay the price)

8. Stable expression with the verb to keep

To keep the change (Leave the change to yourself as an appeal: change is not necessary)

To keep a promise (Keep a promise)

To keep an appointment (Come to the appointed place)

To keep calm (Keep calm)

To keep in touch (Stay in touch)

To keep quiet

To keep someone's place (Take, hold someone's place)

9. Phrases with the verb to save

Dictionary of set expressions of the English language

Phew, that's quite an impressive list, isn't it? to learn these expressions through interactive training.

But that's not all. Let's move on to the promised dictionaries. Oxford Collocation Dictionary- an amazing dictionary of set expressions in the English language. It works like this: you open the word that you are currently learning and look at lists of words (nouns, verbs, adjectives, collective words, etc.) that match with it.

There is another source where you can find the context of a word - these are English-English online dictionaries: Cambridge Dictionary, Oxford Dictionary, Oxford Learner's Dictionaries. You type a word into the search bar and you will find a bunch of usage examples next to its meaning. It is immediately clear which independent and service parts of speech are used together with it.

1. Learn not only individual words, but also set phrases that native speakers use. Learn and perceive them together as a whole.
2. To search for them, use a special dictionary with stable expressions or look at the context in which the word is used in English-English dictionaries. You need to do this with every new word that you learn!
3. When you read texts / watch movies / listen to songs in English, also write down the combinations of words that you hear there.
4. You can memorize set expressions in English in different ways: by topic (food, time, business, etc.) or by keyword (as in our article). If it is more convenient for your memory to memorize by topic, take our examples and break them into such thematic groups.
5. If you are writing a text or compiling a story in English on a topic, then look for English-language articles on this topic. Look at what expressions are used there (most often, they will be the same). If you find it, feel free to use it: this is exactly what native speakers say about this topic.

: we have a huge amount of authentic materials in English, from where you can pick up set expressions, and then drive them away in training. 🙂

Hello, dear readers of the blog site. The Russian language is not in vain considered “great and powerful”.

It contains not only words with which you can describe the reality of what is happening, but also, the meaning of which does not correspond to the words used in them.

Such phrases (these are phraseological units) cannot be understood “on the forehead” (literally), because the words used in them sometimes create a completely ridiculous picture. For example, “make an elephant out of a fly”, “sit in a puddle”, “lead by the nose”, “like water off a duck's back”, etc. They are used only in a figurative sense and this.

What is it (examples)

Phraseologisms are set expressions(everyday used in this form), one of the features of which is that it is almost impossible to translate them into other languages. And if you do it verbatim, you get a real abracadabra.

For example, how do you translate phrases to a foreigner:

With a gulkin' nose
Where do the eyes look?
Shot sparrow.

And at the same time, we, as native speakers of the Russian language, will immediately understand what is at stake.

"With a gulkin's nose" - a little, just a little bit.
"Where the eyes look" - directly, without a specific goal.
"Shot sparrow" - experienced in some matters.

This is one of the examples of phraseological units. And here is the definition given to this concept in textbooks:

“Phraseologism is an expression that is well-established in structure and composition, which used in a figurative sense and consists of two or more words.

Signs of phraseological units

Phraseologism is quite easy to recognize. These phrases have their own distinctive features:

1. They include two or more words;
2. Have stable compound;
3. Have portable meaning;
4. Have historical roots;
5. Are united member of the proposal.

And now let's take a closer look at each of these distinctive criteria of phraseological units.

These are several words that are one member of the sentence

There are no phraseological units in one word at all. Most often they consist of exactly two words, but there are many examples of longer phrases.

Here examples of such phrases with an explanation of their meaning:

"I ate the dog" - experienced, has been doing something more than once.
“You won’t spill it with water” - very friendly.
“Wait for the weather by the sea” - do nothing and hope that everything will be decided by itself.
"Seven Fridays in a week" - constantly change your plans or decisions.
“To fight like a fish on ice” - you do something, but it does not give a result.
“Well, you made a mess” - he did something that provoked a whole chain of events.

When parsing a sentence, phraseological units are not divided into parts. For example, the phrase “worked up a sweat” is a single predicate. Just like "counting the crows" or "wash your hands".

Phraseological units are stable phrases in a figurative sense

Such phrases cannot be distorted adding or removing individual words from them. And cannot be replaced one word to another. In this way, they resemble a "house of cards" that will fall apart if one card is pulled out of it.

By the way, "House of cards" is also an example of a phraseological unit, it is used when they want to say that "something broke very easily or is about to break".

For example:

“Between heaven and earth” means to be in limbo, not knowing what to do.

And in this phrase it is impossible to replace "sky", for example, with "clouds", or "earth" with "field". The result is a completely non-colorful expression that others people won't understand.

More examples of stable phraseological units with an explanation of their meaning:

“Turn up the waters” means to come up with something strange, it’s not good to influence others.
"Slippery" - to do something poorly.
"Roll up your sleeves" - work well and quickly.
"Count the crows" - be distracted, be inattentive.
"Stay with the nose" means to be deceived.
"Getting to grips" - change your behavior or attitude towards something.

These phrases always have a figurative meaning.

As you may have noticed, all phraseological units have a figurative meaning. That is why they simply cannot be translated into another language.

For example, try to translate into English the phrase "disservice". It will sound like “bear service”, and any foreigner will literally understand that “a particular bear provides some kind of service”, and will rather decide that it is a trained bear.

But we understand perfectly well this phraseological unit, which means "Help so that it gets worse".

The same can be said about other expressions:

“Grated kalach” is a wise person who cannot be deceived.
“On the topic of the day” is something relevant that currently attracts a lot of attention.
“Sat in a galosh” - did something awkward, made a mistake.
"Losing your head" - doing unreasonable things.
"Wash the bones" - to discuss someone behind his back.

The history of the origin of phraseological units

Some philologists argue that all phraseological units have some historical roots. It's just that not everything managed to survive before us. But there are phrases about which it is known exactly where they came from.

For example, the expression "beat the buckets", which means "To do nothing". In the old days, small wooden blocks were called buckets, from which spoons were most often made. Making blanks was very easy, it was trusted to the most inept apprentices. And everyone around thought that they did not really work.

Or phraseological unit "like water off a duck's back", meaning that "everything is forgiven a person." This phrase was born by nature itself. Not only the goose, but also any bird, the water really quickly escapes, since their feathers have a thin layer of fat.

And here is the expression "Trishkin caftan" not so widely known, although it means "an unsuccessful attempt to solve some problem, which only leads to new problems." The phrase appeared thanks to Krylov's fable:

Trishka's caftan was torn on his elbows.
What's the point of thinking here? He took up the needle:
Cut off the sleeves in quarters
And he paid elbows. The caftan is ready again;
Only a quarter of the bare hands became.
What about this sadness?

And here is the phraseology "Monomakh's hat", which means "too much responsibility", gave us Pushkin in his drama Boris Godunov.

Examples of phraseological units and their meaning

And this is not the only example when common expressions appear in the Russian language thanks to literature. For example, a lot came to us from ancient myths and epics, and even from the Bible.

Brief Summary

In conclusion, I will say that phraseological units are found in any language of the world. But such a number of winged phrases, as in Russian, nowhere else.

Good luck to you! See you soon on the blog pages site

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Each person, usually without knowing it, uses several phraseological units in his speech every day. Some of them exist in the Russian language for several centuries.

What are phraseological units, what are their distinguishing features and why are they needed? We will try to answer all these questions.

Phraseological units are called stable phrases that are used to make speech expressive, dynamic, better convey emotions, etc. Phraseologisms can be found in oral speech, in fiction, they are widely used in journalism and politics. Perhaps, to a lesser extent, they are found only in official documents and specialized literature.

Phraseological units are widespread in Russian. They are necessary so that the speaker can express his attitude to what he is saying, show his temperament and mental alertness. From the point of view of vocabulary, the main meaning of the phrase, which is a phraseological unit, can be conveyed in one word, but without emotional overtones.

Phraseologisms surprise with their stability: it is impossible to make changes in them without destroying their meaning. Even a simple word form destroys a phraseological unit. At the same time, the process of formation of new phraseological units is constantly taking place in the language, and obsolete ones are gradually being phased out.

The main task of these phrases is to influence the imagination of the interlocutor or reader in order to make what was said more prominent, to make him empathize, to feel certain emotions.

Phraseologisms become known to native speakers from early childhood. Often we perceive them under other names - sayings, catchphrases, idiomatic expressions,. For the first time they were described by M.V. Lomonosov when drawing up a plan for a dictionary of the Russian language. However, a serious study of Russian phraseological units began only in the middle of the twentieth century.

Most phraseological units used today have distinct historical roots. So, the expression "give the go-ahead" goes back to the signals of the Russian navy. In the pre-revolutionary alphabet, the letter D was called "good". The “good” signal, transmitted using the naval signal system, meant consent, permission. Hence the meaning of the expression "give good" - to allow, to agree.

A considerable part of phraseological units is based on the transfer of the properties of one object to another. The expression "pot cooks", denoting a smart person, is based on a comparison of the head with a bowler hat: cooks - it means he thinks.

Often the basis of a phraseological unit is a part of a well-known proverb or a stable professional term.


Philologists subdivide phraseological units into their own, which originated in the Russian language, and borrowed ones, which came through translations of foreign literature.

In Russian, phraseological units are found literally at every step. Examples of popular phraseological units:

- like two drops of water - about a striking resemblance;

- at hand - very close;

- one leg here, the other there - to quickly run away on some business;

- slipshod - do the job somehow;

- to reach the handle - to lose human appearance, to sink.

Each of us can remember many similar expressions and phrases in a few minutes - these are phraseological units.

Many phraseological units have been preserved in the Russian language since ancient times. It often happens that the reason for the formation of a phrase has long been forgotten, but it itself lives in folk speech.

Examples:

- Bosom friend - the expression was formed from the old phraseological unit "pour over the Adam's apple", i.e. drink alcohol, get drunk and denotes a person with whom you can "fill in the Adam's apple" without fear of trouble.

- To hack on the nose - in the old days, a wooden die was called a “nose”, on which a worker was given notches for each day worked. Hack on the nose - firmly remember.

- To beat the buckets - to mess around. Baklush called wooden chocks, which were prepared for cutting spoons, chipping off from a birch log. This occupation was considered an easy task, almost idleness.

- Chasing a long ruble - striving for easy money. In the ancient Russian state, the main monetary unit was the hryvnia - an ingot of silver, which was chopped into pieces - rubles. The largest of these pieces was called a long ruble, and to get it means to earn more without making any effort.

- Not two, not one and a half - about something indefinite, without a clear description.

- A double-edged sword is a business or event that can have good or bad consequences.

- Seven Fridays a week - about a capricious, eccentric, fickle person.


- The seventh water on jelly is a very distant relationship.

- Twenty-five again - about something boring, invariably repeating.

There are so many phrases and phrases in the Russian language that, with a literal translation, we won’t go far - the new generation of the Russian people is no worse than the same foreigners. We forget the powerful and rich Russian language, we borrow more and more Western words and terms...

Today we will analyze examples of the most famous set expressions; let's learn together to understand, "decipher" and understand the meaning and secret meaning of Russian phraseological units. So, what is "phraseologism"?

Phraseologism- this is a stable combination of words peculiar only to a given language, the meaning of which is not determined by the meaning of the words included in it, taken separately. Due to the fact that a phraseological unit (or idiom) cannot be translated literally (meaning is lost), translation and understanding difficulties often arise. On the other hand, such phraseological units give the language a bright emotional coloring ...

We often say well-established phrases without delving into their meaning. Why, for example, do they say “goal like a falcon”? From what is it “they carry water on the offended”? Let's understand the real meaning of these expressions!

"Goal like a falcon"

“Goal like a falcon,” we say about extreme poverty. But this proverb has nothing to do with birds. Although ornithologists say that falcons really lose their feathers during molting and become almost naked!

"Falcon" in the old days in Russia was called a ram, a tool made of iron or wood in the form of a cylinder. It was hung on chains and swung, thus breaking through the walls and gates of the enemy's fortresses. The surface of this weapon was even and smooth, simply speaking, bare.

The word "falcon" in those days called tools of a cylindrical shape: an iron scrap, a pestle for grinding grain in a mortar, etc. Sokolov was actively used in Russia until the advent of firearms at the end of the 15th century.

"Hot spot"

The expression "hot spot" is found in the Orthodox prayer for the dead ("... in a hot place, in a resting place ..."). So in the texts in the Church Slavonic language is called paradise.

The democratic intelligentsia of the time of Alexander Pushkin ironically rethought the meaning of this expression. The language game consisted in the fact that our climate does not allow growing grapes, therefore in Russia intoxicating drinks were produced mainly from cereals (beer, vodka). In other words, green means a drunken place.

“They carry water on the offended”

There are several versions of the origin of this saying, but the most plausible seems to be the one connected with the history of St. Petersburg water carriers.

The price of imported water in the 19th century was about 7 kopecks of silver per year, and of course there were always greedy merchants who inflated the price in order to cash in. For this illegal act, such unfortunate entrepreneurs were deprived of a horse and forced to carry barrels in a cart on themselves.

"Sitny friend"

It is believed that a friend is so called by analogy with sieve bread, usually wheat. For the preparation of such bread, flour is used much finer grinding than in rye. To remove impurities from it and make the culinary product more “airy”, not a sieve is used, but a device with a smaller cell - a sieve. Therefore, the bread was called sieve. It was quite expensive, was considered a symbol of prosperity and was put on the table to treat the dearest guests.

The word "sitny" in relation to a friend means the "highest standard" of friendship. Of course, this turnover is sometimes used in an ironic tone.

"7 Fridays in a week"

In the old days, Friday was a market day, on which it was customary to fulfill various trade obligations. On Friday, the goods were received, and the money for it was agreed to be given on the next market day (on Friday of the next week). Those who broke such promises were said to have seven Fridays a week.

But this is not the only explanation! Friday was considered to be a free day from work before, therefore, a loafer was characterized by a similar phrase, for whom every day is a day off.

“Where Makar did not drive calves”

One of the versions of the origin of this saying is as follows: Peter I was on a working trip to Ryazan land and communicated with the people in an “informal setting”. It so happened that all the men he met on the way called themselves Makars. The king was very surprised at first, and then he said: “From now on, all of you will be Makars!”

Allegedly since then, "Makar" has become a collective image of the Russian peasant and all peasants (not only Ryazan) began to be called Makars.

"Sharashkin office"

The office got its strange name from the dialect word “sharan” (“trash”, “bad”, “rogue”). In the old days, a dubious association of swindlers and deceivers was called that, but today it is simply a "undignified, unreliable" organization.

"Not by washing, so by skating"

In the old days, skilled laundresses knew that well-rolled linen would be fresh, even if the wash was not done brilliantly at all. Therefore, having sinned in washing, they achieved the desired impression “not by washing, but by rolling.”

"Drunk in the zyuzyu"

We find this expression in Alexander Pushkin, in the novel "Eugene Onegin", when it comes to Lensky's neighbor - Zaretsky:

Falling off a Kalmyk horse,
Like a drunk zyuzya, and the French
Got captured...

The fact is that in the Pskov region, where Pushkin was in exile for a long time, "zyuzey" is called a pig. In general, “drunk like a zyuzya” is an analogue of the colloquial expression “drunk like a pig.”

"To share the skin of an unkilled bear»

It is noteworthy that back in the 30s of the 20th century it was customary in Russia to say: “Sell the skin of an unkilled bear.” This version of the expression seems closer to the original source, and more logical, because there is no benefit from the “divided” skin, it is valued only when it remains intact. The original source is the fable "The Bear and Two Comrades" by the French poet and fabulist Jean La Fontaine (1621-1695).

"Retired Goat Drummer"

In the old days, among wandering troupes, the main actor was a learned, trained bear, followed by a "goat", and behind it - a mummer with a goat's skin on his head - a drummer.

His task was to beat a homemade drum, calling the audience. Surviving by odd jobs or handouts is rather unpleasant, and here also the “goat” is not real, retired.

"The promised three years are waiting"

According to one version - a reference to the text from the Bible, to the book of the prophet Daniel. It says: “Blessed is he who waits and reaches a thousand and thirty-five days,” that is, three years and 240 days. The biblical call to patient waiting was jokingly rethought by the people, because the whole proverb sounds like this: “The promised three years are expected, and the fourth is denied.”

"Good riddance"

In one of Ivan Aksakov's poems, one can read about the road, which is "straight, like an arrow, with a wide smooth surface that the tablecloth lay down." So in Russia they saw off on a long journey, and they did not put any bad meaning into them.

This initial meaning of the phraseological unit is present in the Explanatory Dictionary of Ozhegov. But it is also said there that in the modern language the expression has the opposite meaning: "An expression of indifference to someone's departure, departure, as well as a wish to get out, anywhere." An excellent example of how ironic etiquette forms are rethought in the language!

"Scream all over Ivanovskaya"

In the old days, the square in the Kremlin, where the bell tower of Ivan the Great stands, was called Ivanovskaya. On this square, clerks announced decrees, orders and other documents relating to the inhabitants of Moscow and all the peoples of Russia. So that everyone could hear well, the clerk read very loudly, shouted all over Ivanovskaya.

"Pull the rope"

What is a gimp and why should it be pulled? This is a copper, silver or gold thread used in gold embroidery for embroidering patterns on clothes and carpets. Such a thin thread was made by drawing - repeatedly rolling and drawing through ever smaller holes.

Pulling the gimp was a very painstaking task, requiring a lot of time and patience. In our language, the expression to pull the gimp is fixed in its figurative meaning - to do something long, tedious, the result of which is not immediately visible.

In our time, it is understood as a boring conversation, a boring conversation.

"Japanese policeman!"

"Japanese policeman!" - stable curse in Russian.

Appeared after the Otsu Incident, when policeman Tsuda Sanzo attacked Tsarevich Nikolai Alexandrovich.

In his youth, Tsarevich Nicholas, the future Tsar Nicholas II, traveled to the countries of the East. The Tsarevich and his friends had as much fun as they could. Their violent fun, which violated Eastern traditions, was not very liked by the locals, and finally, in the Japanese town of Otsu, a local policeman, outraged by the tactlessness of the Europeans, rushed at the Tsarevich and hit him on the head with a saber. The saber was sheathed, so Nikolai escaped with a slight fright.

This event had a significant resonance in Russia. The Japanese policeman, instead of ensuring the safety of people, rushes at a man with a saber just because he laughs too loudly!

Of course, this minor incident would have long been forgotten if the expression "Japanese policeman" did not also turn out to be a successful euphemism. When a person draws out the first sound, it seems that he is now cursing obscenely. However, the speaker only remembers an old political scandal, which, most likely, he has never heard of.

Disservice

"The incessant praise from your lips is a real disservice."

Its meaning is unsolicited help, a service that does more harm than good.

And the Primary Source was the fable of I. A. Krylov “The Hermit and the Bear”. It tells how the Bear, wanting to help his friend the Hermit to swat a fly that sat on his forehead, killed the Hermit himself along with it. But this expression is not in the fable: it took shape and entered folklore later.

Shelving

“Now you will put it on the back burner, and then you will completely forget.”

The meaning of this phraseological unit is simple - to give the matter a long delay, to delay its decision for a long time.

This expression has a funny story.

Once Tsar Alexei, the father of Peter I, ordered in the village of Kolomenskoye in front of his palace to install a long box where anyone could drop their complaint. Complaints fell, but it was very difficult to wait for a decision: months and years passed. The people renamed this "long" box to "long".

It is possible that the expression, if not born, was fixed in speech later, in “presences” - institutions of the 19th century. The then officials, accepting various petitions, complaints and petitions, undoubtedly sorted them, putting them in different boxes. "Long" could be called the one where the most unhurried things were put off. It is clear that the applicants were afraid of such a box.

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