lavrova_n_a_a_coursebook_on_english_lexicology_angliiskaya_l

XI

There are quite a number of idioms containing the names of animals as their constituent elements. Consult a dictionary or try to work out from the illustrative examples what each of the following idioms means.

1.cat gets one’s tongue: The cat got my tongue at the meeting and I could not say anything. One cannot speak because of shyness.

2.not to have enough room to swing a cat: My apartment was so small that there was not enough room to swing a cat.

3.there is more than one way to skin a cat: If your strategy in fulfilling the task does not work, remember that there is more than one way to skin a cat.

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4.to have a cow: My father had a cow when I confessed that I hadn’t dome my homework.

5.until the cows come home: My parents will come back very late tonight, so we can talk until the cows come home.

6.every dog has his day: Remember that one day you will be rewarded: every dog has his day.

7.to be in the doghouse: I am in the doghouse with my teacher, because I didn’t prepare properly for the test.

8.to put on the dog: We put on the dog for our wedding anniversary party.

9.to see a man about a dog: She left the table in the restaurant and said that she had to see a man about a dog.

10.The tail is wagging the dog: It seems that his personal assistant controls everything in the office. It’s like the tail wagging the dog.

11.by shank’s mare: Despite the distance being great, I went the whole way by shank’s mare.

12.to get off one’s high horse: I wish my friend would get off his high horse and begin to be more mindful of others’ feelings.

13.to put the cart before the horse: planning a party before you even know who you are going to invite is putting the cart before the horse.

14.to make a monkey out of somebody: You made a monkey out of me when you started arguing with me in front of my colleagues. monkey see, monkey do: It is monkey see, monkey do for you: you copy everything that I do.

a monkey on one’s back: I was a monkey on my back when I failed to get a job three times running.

to be more fun than a barrel of monkeys: Everybody adores Jack because he is more fun than a barrel of monkeys.

XII

Comment on the following idiomatic statements about love. Which of them seem contentious to you? What perception of love is reflected in the statements?

–Course of true love never did run smooth (from Shakespeare’s play, A Midsummer Night's Dream.)

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–One cannot love and be wise.

–When poverty comes in at the door, love flies out of the window (Alternatively: When the wolf comes in at the door, love creeps out of the window).

–Love begets love.

–Love me, love my dog.

–Love will find a way.

–Whom the gods love die young.

XIII

Idiomatic expressions enjoy popularity with writers, playwrights and film directors. Study the following titles of books, films and musicals and explain the meaning of each phraseological unit. Why would writers, playwrights and film directors choose an idiomatic name for their creations?

–An American Dream (a novel and a film adaptation)

–Lord of the flies (a book title and a film)

–Ants in the pants (a film title)

–Cakes and ale (a book title and a film)

–Blackboard Jungle (a film title)

–Cat on a hot tin roof (a film title)

–On dangerous ground (a film title)

–Seventh heaven (a film title)

–The Seventh Seal (a film title)

–Time out of joint (a novel)

–Salad Days (a musical by Julian Slade)

–Mortal Coil (Star Trek: Voyager episode)

–The Asphalt Jungle, (a novel and a film adaptation)

XIV

Below are idiomatic expressions that contain words (underlined) not used outside the pertinent idiom. Consult a dictionary (either a general-purpose or a dictionary of idioms) and trace the etymology of these words. Specify the meaning of each idiomatic expression.

1.to smash/blow smth. to smithereens: (informal) to destroy something by breaking it into very small pieces, or with an explosion.

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2.spick and span new: new and fresh and therefore neat and clean.

3.to run amok (amuck): to indulge in physical violence while in a state of frenzy.

4.sac and soc: the conveyance of rights in private jurisdiction to the grantee.

5.of that ilk: of the same family, of the same kind.

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Consider the following definitions and explanations of English idioms taken from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. Try to work out what idiom is described in each case. Sometimes the words that constitute an idiom are echoed in the definition, which serves as a clue.

Compassion, sympathy. The affections were once supposed to be the outcome of certain secretions of organs. The head was regarded as the seat of understanding, the heart was the seat of affection and memory (hence ‘learning by heart’), the bowels were the seat of mercy, and the spleen was the seat of passion or anger.

To change from one’s usual habits. In former times an artist would break the mould of a high-quality cast so that it could not be replicated by others.

To be wastefully extravagant and luxurious; to gain advantages from two sides at once.

Pre-recorded laughter that is dubbed on to radio and television comedy programmes. It is the modern equivalent of the claques who were hired to clap and cheer at theatre performances and is a device of American origin. It was first heard in Britain in the American television comedy show I Love Lucy (1955).

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To be in the state of doubt or suspense with regard to the outcome of a situation, not knowing on which side the scales of fate may descend.

An American expression meaning ‘to begin one’s professional career’. ‘Shingle’, a kind of wooden tile, refers to the small signboard

To submit to punishment or misfortune meekly and without murmuring

XVI

Below are well-known English proverbs and sayings. However, only the second part is retained. Supply the first part. The number of words contained in the beginning is indicated.

1._______________(6 words missing) the one-eyed man is king

2._______________(3 words missing) is another man’s poison

3._______________(3 words missing) always goes barefoot

4._______________(4 words missing) that dance lightly

5._______________(3 words missing) hinder good counsel

6._______________(6 words missing) a morsel may slip

7._______________(3 words missing) we learn to do ill

8._______________(1 word missing) is man’s true touchstone

9._______________(2 words missing) thinks her own gosling a swan

10._______________(2 words missing) and then desire

11._______________(1 word is missing) always rushes to the fore

12._______________(1 word is missing) are thieves of time

13._______________(5 words are missing) and then the puppy’s eyes are open.

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8. Some Regional Varieties of English

Points to ponder

–Is there any difference between a regional variety and a dialect?

–Amass all the possible evidence to disclaim that American English is a separate language.

–What are some of the potential causes for misunderstanding between a Briton and an American?

–What groups of Americanisms can there be distinguished?

–Does a Welshman or a Scot have any difficulty in understanding each other? If yes, what are the possible causes for misunderstanding? Are they mostly of phonetic, grammatical, lexical or idiomatic character?

Exercises

I

Suggest American variants for the British English words below:

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Nail varnish

Nil, nought

trolley

Trainers

Noughts and crosses

Tights

Whisky

Solicitor

Saltcellar

Number plate

Pavement

II

Figure out who is likely to speak – an American or a Briton? Which words helped you to do it?

1.When the shopping cart was filled to overflowing, I found out that there were not enough banknotes in my billfold.

2.Harry bought a local newspaper at the newsagent’s and headed for the railway. He intended to travel on foot, but as he passed a dozen terraced houses and realized he was nowhere near the station, he decided to go by the tube. He reached the station on time and promptly found his carriage.

3.When little Mary was asked what her favourite food was, she answered: popsicles, jell-o, French fries and cotton candy.

4.Some parents do not immediately buy a crib for their newborn baby and let it sleep in a baby carriage.

5.When I saw the road sigh “detour” in front of me, I got frustrated, for it meant that I would have to forgo the expressway and travel by some bumpy country lanes.

6.Since the advent of the cellular phone telephone kiosks have decreased in number and lost their popularity.

7.I once confused the cold and the hot faucets and got scolding hot water running onto my hands. Luckily, the druggist’s is not far

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away from my apartment building, so I went there and bought some anointment.

8.What do you usually wear? – Well, usually something casual and nothing fancy: a pair of sneakers, corduroy pants or sweatpants, a sweatshirt or a cardigan. If the occasion is formal, then a threepiece suit or a tuxedo.

III

The Scots lexicon derives from Gaelic, Norwegian and French8. Particularly noteworthy “Scottishisms” are represented by the following lexemes: dominie (teacher), high-heid yin (boss), kirk (church), pinkie (little finger), swither (hesitate).

Find British English equivalents for the legal Scottishisms below:

IV

There are not so many distinctively Welsh words in English, some example are “Duw” (stands for “god” in exclamations), “del” (“dear”, a term of endearment), “nain” (grandma”), “taid” (grandpa). The number of Irishisms, however, is higher: “to blather”

(to talk nonsense), “to cog” (to cheat), “freet” (superstition), “garda” (police), “insleeper” (overnight visitor), “kink” (a fit of coughing), “mannerly” (well-mannered). One of the peculiarities of Irish English is the

8 For more detailed information on regional varieties of English see “The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language”, second edition, D. Crystal, 2003.

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usage of the diminutive suffix “-een” (y/ei in British English): “children”, “girleen”. There are also a number of Irish idioms.

a) Match the idioms below with their British explanatory counterpart:

b) Find the correct ending for the Irish comparative idioms below. Can you trace any rationale behind the idiomatic comparison?:

V

Immigration to the African continent from Britain began at the start of the nineteenth century, when several thousand settlers arrived from south-east England. This area had already been colonized by the Dutch in the seventeenth century. Today around 10 percent of the population of South Africa speak English as their first language. South African English is a distinct regional variety, with a vocabulary drawn from Afrikaans, from native African languages and from developments and adaptations of English words9.

Below are four groups of words of South African English. Find out what they mean and say in what way their usage is restricted. Which of the words and in what contexts could you ever use?

9 Examples for the following four exercises have been taken from Jackson H., Zé Amvela “Words, Meaning and Vocabulary. An Introduction to Modern English Lexicology”, 2010.

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