Phraseology lecture 13 phraseology and phraseological units

Semantic stability is based on lexical stability of phraseological units. In spite of occasional changes the meaning of a phraseological unit is preserved. It may only be specified, made more precise, weakened or strengthened.

• Semantic stability is based on lexical stability of phraseological units. In spite of occasional changes the meaning of a phraseological unit is preserved. It may only be specified, made more precise, weakened or strengthened.
• Syntactic stability.

The characteristic features of phraseological units are:

• ready-made reproduction,
• structural divisibility,
• morphological stability,
• permanence of lexical composition,
• semantic unity,
• syntactic fixity.

Prof. A.V. Koonin’ definition: ‘a phraseplogical unit is a stable word-group with wholly or partially transferred meaning.’

• Phraseological units are subdivided into 4 classes according to the function in communication determined by structural-semantic characteristics.