Лексикология английского языка. Practice Makes Perfect 9785704224846

Данное учебное пособие предназначено для студентов факультетов иностранных языков педагогических вузов. Основная цель по

336 110 876KB

Russian Pages 102 [104] Year 2013

Report DMCA / Copyright

DOWNLOAD PDF FILE

Recommend Papers

Лексикология английского языка. Practice Makes Perfect
 9785704224846

  • Commentary
  • eBook
  • 0 0 0
  • Like this paper and download? You can publish your own PDF file online for free in a few minutes! Sign Up
File loading please wait...
Citation preview

Н. Н. Морозова

ЛЕКСИКОЛОГИЯ английского языка PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

Учебное пособие для семинарских занятий по курсу «Английская лексикология»

Направление 035700. 62 Лингвистика Направление 050100. 62 Педагогическое образование

Москва 2013

УДК 42 ББК 81.432.1-923.2

601 Рецензенты: Е. А. Никулина, зав. кафедрой лексики английского языка, доктор филологических наук, профессор Е. Л. Фрейдина, профессор кафедры фонетики английского языка, доктор филологических наук

601 Морозова Н. Н. Лексикология английского языка. Practice Makes Perfect: Учебное пособие. — М.: Прометей, 2013. – 102 с. . -

, .

«

». ,

,

,

,

,

,

. ,

,

. ,

. ,

,

,

. . ,

-

. ,

.

ISBN 978-5-7042-2484-6 © Н. Н. Морозова, 2013 © «

», 2013

CONTENTS INTRODUCTION........................................................................... 5 WORDS IN DISCOURSE: INFORMAL REGISTER............................... 7 WORDS IN DISCOURSE: FORMAL REGISTER..................................15 WORDS AND THEIR ORIGIN........................................................ 24 WORD –BUILDING IN ENGLISH................................................... 36 Affixation......................................................................... 36 Conversion........................................................................ 40 Composition...................................................................... 43 WORDS AND THEIR MEANINGS.................................................. 49 THE DEVELOPMENT AND CHANGE OF MEANING......................... 54 ENGLISH HOMONYMS..................................................................62 PARADIGMATIC RELATIONS OF WORDS.......................................70 ENGLISH PHRASEOLOGY.............................................................77 AMERICAN ENGLISH.................................................................. 83 REVISION.................................................................................. 90 ONLINE REFERENCE TOOLS....................................................... 92 ANSWER KEY............................................................................ 94 Words in Discourse: Informal Register................................... 94 Words and their Origin........................................................ 95 Word-building................................................................... 96 Words and Their Meanings................................................... 98 The Development and Change of Meaning................................ 98 Homonyms........................................................................ 99 Paradygmatic Relations of Words.......................................... 99 English Phraseology........................................................... 99 American English.............................................................. 100

A man who doesn’t think for himself does not think at all. Oscar Wilde

Introduction Nowadays scientists carry out research in such fields of Linguistics as discourse analysis, pragmatics, cognitive semantics. They analyze various types of texts and speech utterances, taking different approaches. However, we truly believe that to be successful in any of these studies you should be well aware of the properties of word, its main characteristics and functions. It is not by chance that word is considered to be the main unit of language. The book contains some practical materials for seminars in English Lexicology. The main aim of the textbook is to teach students to observe, analyze and interpret different language phenomena. Numerous exercises collected in the book serve the purpose. The exercises which are included in the book vary in length and difficulty. They are meant both for class work and home studies. Some exercises are based on comparison between the English and Russian languages which is, in our opinion, important for a deeper understanding of any language phenomena. The choice of the exercises is left to the teacher. We hope the book will be useful for the students of English. Firstly, it helps students to upgrade and improve their language skills. Secondly, it is good for the students working on their diploma projects. Finally, it is handy for the students who have their teaching practice because contemporary English textbooks for foreign lan-

6

Лексикология английского языка

guage learners include numerous exercises based on the main issues of lexicology. So, as the saying goes: “Practice makes perfect.” It means that the more you try the better you will get at doing things.

Words in Discourse: Informal Register 1. Analyze the pairs of words. Speak about the difference in their stylistic characteristics Father  – dad; commence  – begin; canteen  – eatery; milk  – cat beer; poet – minstrel; wife – spouse; girl – lass – maiden; good-bye – farewell– bye; policeman – bobby – cop; good-morning – hello – hi. Find a synonym to the underlined word. What is the difference between them? A. Their discourse was interrupted. B. Meet my better half! C. Jack took his departure. D. Somebody’s nailed my bag. E. Where’s Daddy? F. The old man kicked the bucket. G. All the money she earns she boozes. H. Pray, proceed! I. Here we are now! And don’t look so miz. J. –“How long did they cook you? – “Since eight this morning. Over twelve hours!” – “You didn’t unbutton then?”

8

Лексикология английского языка

– “Me? They got a lot of dancing to do before they get anything out of me.” K. I must decline to pursue this painful discussion. It is not pleasant to my feelings. It is repugnant to my feelings! K. I am not in favour of this modern mania for turning bad people into good people at a moment’s notice. M. They’ll never apprehend him. N. Where did you purchase the book? O. I think it’ll commence quite soon. 2. Match the words from column A with the words from column B A

handy loo guy quid terrific junkie info ta-ta mate ta to kip

B

addict toilet pound great man convenient to sleep thanks information friend goodbye

3. Rewrite the sentences using informal English When are you going to collect your bicycle? Most of the children are very clever. Would you like to go out for a meal? What’s the matter? The man in the market wanted ten pounds for a ring. 4. Explain the meaning of the underlined words. If necessary use the dictionary A. It’s rush hour and the roads are chock-a-block.

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

B. You’re mad, crazy, completely bananas! C. My boss pays me peanuts. D. The cops nicked him for driving at seventy in a fifty speed limit area. E. She didn’t work hard and flunked her exam. F. The president stepped out of the stretch limo. G. Sue has arranged for me to go on a blind date this Saturday with a bloke that she knows through work. H. We turfed out our old office furniture. I. The articles he writes are too turgid which makes them difficult to read. 10. That car was a rip-off. 5. Read the dialogue. Prove that it belongs to the informal speech – What do you think of the exams, Mike? I reckon, they were dead easy. – Maybe they were easy enough for you but they were much too hard for me. – Oh, come on. You’ve probably done better than you think. – No, I’m dead certain I’ve failed in Latin and most likely in French. Thanks goodness it’s all over though. We can forget about it now at least until the results come out. – Yes. Now I can get on with reading all the books I’ve been wanting to read for months. – What! Well, it’s up to you, I suppose, I’ve had enough of reading. I’m not going to open another book for months. Don’t you think we all deserve a break? – Yes. I’ll take a day or two off perhaps. But if I’m going to university in October, I’ll have to get down to some serious work again pretty soon. – I’ve got to get through A level exams first. I’ll worry about university if and when I ever get there.

9

10

Лексикология английского языка

– That’s the trouble with you. You always try to do everything at the last minute. – And you’re too serious. You never stop swatting. – Well, I like reading. – I can’t stand it. I don’t know why I decided to try to go to the university in the first place. I think I’ll run away and join the army or something. 6. Speak about some peculiarities of informal speech using the examples given below. The examples are taken from the films: “Overboard”, “Blind Date” A. You’re goddamned bored, you gotta invent things. B. If I ever get you, lady. You’re dead meat! You got that? C. I’ m sorry I came down on you (was rude). D. My children may be rotten (bad) but they are mine. E. It’s a lousy idea. F. Where’s my damn boots? G. In the beginning it was okay. I got an “A” in English but I’m flunkin’ math. H. I see this woman, maybe 35, kinda classy (pretty). I. Is she reasonably pretty?  –“Reasonably” doesn’t begin to describe it. I’m looking at her picture now. She’s an honest-to– got knockout (a real beauty). J. I thought you were special, I really did. I’m sorry you got fired. I’m sorry you got arrested. But you know why I’m most sorry? I’m sorry you’re not special. That you’re mean and self-pitying. And you don’t give a damn about how I feel. And I feel shitty. O, God! K. Rambo, shut up! You’ll wake up the whole neighbourhood! What the hell’s got into you? L. Let’s talk business. But this guy, he don’t wanna hear about it. M. Things’re still sort of iffy. N. The boy often plays hooky.

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

11

7. Quite a lot of slang and low colloquial words end in “o”. Sometimes they are called O-words. Here are some examples: promo (promotion), limo (limousine). Give more examples of your own using dictionaries 8. Slang words are often used to show approval or disapproval towards what is being said. Write the given words into two columns: a) word denoting approval; b) words denoting disapproval Swell, nuts, poppycock, nifty, bong, baloney, hogwash, cool, dizzy, balderdash, bum, duff, byzantine. 9. Slang words often appear in those spheres of communication that are important for people. The words “intelligent” and “stupid”, for example, have a lot of synonyms in slang. Read the words. How does each word differ from its neighbours? Intelligent (intellectual): brainy, egghead, bookworm, double dome, smart ass. Stupid (a fool): dumb, dodo, deadhead, bonehead, turkey, peabrained, jerk. 10. Translate the following English slang words and expressions into Russian using Russian slang. For example: a cool girl – клёвая девочка 1. kiddo; 2.  a tough guy; 3.  cranky; 4.  cop; 5.  cop-shop; 6.  shit; 7. gormless; 8. Crickey! 9. A cool cat; 10. I don’t dig it. 11. Read some examples of words used in business (office) slang and their definitions. Speak about the main peculiarities of slang. 404  – clueless person; Alpha geek  – the most knowledgeable person in office; dead tree addition – a paper version of a document also available in an electronic form; idea hamsters – creative people, idea generators; plug-and-play  – an employee who does not require

12

Лексикология английского языка

training for his job; a seagull manager  – a manager who flies in , makes a lot of noise and leaves; walking papers – documents an employee is given in case of being fired; an eager beaver – a person who is characterized by too much industry, initiative and enthusiasm; licensed to print money –an authorized activity that enables people to make a lot of money without much effort 12. Read some examples of cyber-slang. What linguistic terms can be used to describe the phenomenon? To be uninstalled  – to be dismissed; to indulge in nonlinear behavior  – to act irrationally; meatspace  – non-virtual world; dead tree editions  – printed newspapers and magazines; screen-agers  – teenagers who use computers; PONA (persons of no account) – individuals who are not online. 13. A well-known kind of slang is Cockney rhyming slang where an expression is used in place of the word it rhymes with. For example: Adam and Eve – believe. Read the expressions and try to guess the word Box of toys

dustbin lid

half inch

Loaf of bread

skyrocket

china plate

Rat and mouse

cock and hen

tea leaf

Daisy roots

five-to-two’s

tin bath

Bread and honey

pig’s ear

Pete Tong

14. A lot of examples of current slang can be found in Electronic magazines called E-zines or Webzines. Give your own examples of slang taken from them 15. Some words and expressions which people use everyday in their conversations began their life as slang. The word “teenager”, for example, was an American slang word. Give more examples

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

13

of words which originated in slang. Why, do you think, the words managed to get into the basic vocabulary? 16. Substitute slang words by synonyms belonging to the basic vocabulary. What is the difference between them? All the words are nouns A boffin, a buggy, a brig, a ballyhoo, a burb, an airhead, a bog, a  broker, poppycock, a corker, dreck, a gob, a hole-in-the wall, a cabbage, a cakehole, a chestnut, a ciggy, a gaff, a pony, pictures of the Queen. 17. The language used by Alex, the main character of the novel: “A Clockwork Orange” by Anthony Burgess, is described as: “Odd bits of old rhyming slang and a bit of gipsy talk. But most of the roots are Slavonic.”(p. 163, 2004). Read the extract and explain the meaning of the quotation There was me, that is Alex, and my three droogs, that is Pete, Georgie and Dim, Dim being really dim, and we sat in the Korova Milkbar making up our rassoodocks what to do with the evening, a flip dark chill winter bastard though dry… They had no licence for selling liquor, but there was no law yet against prodding some of the new veshches which the used to put into the old moloko… which would give you a nice quiet horrorshow fifteen minutes admiring Bog and All His Holy Angels (p. 5, 2004). 18. The Black Country is an industrial area in the West Midlands of England. People speak a special dialect there which is called Brummy. Guess the meaning of the underlined words. Speak about the peculiarities of the dialect Willparr – I’m fat cause I jest ain’t got no willparr when it cums to eatin’. Caw-fee – Want a cuppa cawfee afore supper? Dawg – Hesh, dawg! Quit thet howlin’ an’ barkin’! Ex-tree – We wuz charged fer thet extree cuppa cawfee.

14

Лексикология английского языка

19. In English there are several ways of saying goodbye: Bye-bye, cheerio, see you later, ta-ta, ciao, farewell. What’s the difference between them? 20. Read some humorous excerpts from the Dictionary of Jewish Slang and the Dictionary of Aussie (Australian) Slang. What features of slang are the excerpts based on? A. 1. Chutzpapa – a father who wakes up his wife at 4 a. m., so that she can change the baby’s diaper. 2. Meinstein – my son, the genius. 3. Kinderschlep  – to transport other kids in your car besides yours. B. 1. Software – wool slippers. 2. Cursor – the old bloke who swears a lot. 3. User – the neighbour who keeps borrowing things. 4. Online – when you get the laundry hung out. 5. Browser – shortened form for the favourite brown noser.

Words in Discourse: Formal Register 1. Read the text. Write out the examples of terms. What terminological field do they belong to? Q: What is a laser? A: Laser is a new kind of light source. The principle of operation is very similar to the operation of the radio generator and quite different from the principle of common light source. Q: What do you require lasers for? A: As I mentioned above the main problem is obtaining very powerful light beams. Lasers give us unique possibility to create megawatt and gigawatt light beams. Q: What is the difference between a maser and a laser? A: Maser is molecular oscillator in the microwave range. In electromagnetic spectrum different ranges differ one from another with wave length. Microwave range corresponds to wave length of order of several centimeters. 2. Here are some difficult words that appear most frequently on the GRE (Graduate Record Examination, an examination done by students in the US who have completed a first degree and want to go to a graduate school). Explain the meaning of the words. Use the dictionary if necessary. What can be said about their stylistic characteristics?

16

Лексикология английского языка

Equivocal, tractable, to engender, garrulous, laconic, to venerate, misanthrope, to corroborate, to buttress, banal, antipathy, pedantic, eulogy, to fawn, heresy. 3. Read the text. Prove that it belongs to formal style These instructions give you basic guidelines for preparing cameraready papers. Do not exceed the allowed limit of 3 pages. Use computer desktop publishing software with several type sizes. All submissions must be actual size. Define all symbols used in the abstract. Do not cite references in the abstract. Your goal is to stimulate, as closely as possible, the usual appearance of typeset papers in regular journals. One difference is that the author’s affiliations should appear immediately following their names. For items not addressed in these instructions, please refer to a recent issue of regular journal. 4. Read the letter. Find the examples of officialese in it. Discuss the peculiarities of formal style Dear Sirs, In respect to the above Addendum it is understood that there are some questions as to whether this order will actually materialize and that you will let us know within the next 30 days (not later than October 31st in any event), as we do not intend to place the orders with the subcontractors until we are advised that the order is actual. After October 31, 2006 we cannot guarantee the prices in Addendum 1, if we have not received the signed Addendum by that date. Delivery for this Addendum to Contract 543 will be during next year. Kindly have the enclosures dated and signed as soon as possible. Thanking you for this opportunity of continuing service to you, we remain, Sincerely yours, Hartley Enterprises, Inc. Enclosure: Addendum 1 to Contract 543 (3 copies).

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

17

5. Read an extract from the article published in the “Daily Mail”. Find the examples of terms in it and write them out. Give your own definition of terms. Find the definitions of the terms in dictionaries. What’s the difference between your definition and the definition given in a dictionary? Speak about the phenomenon of determinologization Remember the hole in the ozone layer? It was going to kill us all before we heard about global warming. Like the current dreaded climate change, this was an environmental catastrophe of our own making. Thanks to our profligacy with certain chemicals, we were punching a hole, 19 miles up, in the layer of the atmosphere that protects us from deadly ultraviolet radiation. Chlorinated fluorocarbons – CFCs – used in fridges and air conditioners were rising into the stratosphere where, under the catalyst of sunlight, they entered into a chemical reaction with ozone, decomposing the gas. The result? A hole, centred over the high southern latitudes. The predictions were grim: the hole would inevitably grow, eventually covering the whole Earth. Within a few decades, sunbathing would be impossible. By 2050 or so, going out without factor 100 sunscreen and welder’s goggles would mean you would be blinded and fried to a crisp in minutes. In short, the hole in the ozone layer was a harbinger of the end of the world. Well, it didn’t happen. This week scientists have confirmed that measures, put in place after the hole was identified, have worked. The Montreal Protocol banning the use of CFCs, which came into effect in 1987, has successfully prevented any further damage to the ozone layer. Furthermore, the hole is healing itself. Sometime this century, the ozone layer will be back in its pristine state.

18

Лексикология английского языка

6. Read the poem by G. G. Byron. Find the words belonging to the poetic diction Farewell, if ever fondest prayer For other’s weal avail’d on high, Mine will not all be lost in air, But waft thy name beyond the sky. ‘T were vain to speak, to weep, to sigh: Oh! More than tears of blood can tell, When wrung from guilt’s expiring eye, Are in that word-Farewell!-Farewell! These lips are mute, these eyes are dry; But in my breast and in my brain, Awake the pangs that pass not by, The thought that ne’er shall sleep again. My soul nor deigns nor dares complain, Though grief and passion there rebel; I only know we loved in vainI only feel-Farewell-Farewell! 7. Read the examples of neologisms and explain their meanings. If necessary, use the dictionary of new words. Classify the words according to the sphere of human activity they belong to Aids, clone (v.), information superhighway, road rage, Reaganomics, global warming, World Wide Web, New Labour, Blairism, Bronco bag, BTW, yuppie, woopies, dinky, hotline, chatline, acid rains, karaoke, software, diskette, marketing, screenager, acryl, keypal. 8. Read the examples and classify them from the point of view of their social setting and style A. Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today in the sight of God and in the face of this congregation to join together in holy matrimony this man and this woman.

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

19

B. Shut about town like a supermodel with a gorgeous Chloe handbag. Leather bags are the only ones to be seen with this summer. C. I swear by almighty God that the evidence I shall give to the court will be the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. D. What’ll it be, Sue? Orange juice or mineral water? E. Hello, this is Linda. I’m afraid I can’t speak to you now, but if you record your message after the tone, I’ll get back to you as soon as I can. F. Dear sir, I am puzzled. A new greeting is common in Hampshire. Is it localized or does it extend nationwide? And how did it start? G. Dear Becky, I’m writing this letter in bed, I’ve got blue! H. It will be a dry day across Greece with plenty of spells of sunshine across all parts of the country and only a few patches of cloud bubbling up. I. A devoted father was shot dead in front of his family after taking a stand against thugs terrorising his neighbourhood. J. 8.00 Fear of flying. Neuro-linguistic practitioner Lawrence Leyton attempts to help 40 members of the public overcome their phobia of flying. 9. Compare newspaper headlines with radio news headlines. What’s the difference? A. US arms sales hit record levels.---The War on Terror has helped to push US military sales to foreign governments to their highest level. B. Rabbit Flu Death.---A young farmer From East Anglia has died after being infected with rabbit flu. C. German Rail Plot Arrest.--- A Lebanese Student was arrested by German police on suspicion of trying to paralyze the railway network. The student had a bomb hidden in his suitcase.

20

Лексикология английского языка

10. Write a reply to the advertisement which you saw in the newspaper Experienced Kitchen Designer Required $23,000+ Bonus+ Expenses Nobody can beat our prices Contact Louisa Morris on: 07967 590 298 11. Read an extract from the text “Pre-Relationship Agreement”. What kind of text is this? Find some peculiarities of style. Pay special attention to the grammatical constructions. Write out legal terms used in the text The party of the first part (herein referred to as “she”), being of sound mind and pretty good body, agrees to the following with the party of the second part (herein referred to as “him”): 1. FULL DISCOLURE: At the commencement of said relationship (colloquially referred to as the “first date”), each party agrees to fully disclose any current girl/boyfriends, depended children, bizarre religious beliefs, phobias, fears, social diseases, strange political affiliations, or currently active relationships with anyone else that have not yet been terminated. Further, each party agrees to make known any deep-seated complexes and/or fanatical obsessions with pets, careers, and/or organized sports. Failure to make these disclosures will result in the immediate termination of said relationship before it has a chance to get anywhere 2. INDEMNIFICATION OF FRIENDS: Both parties agree to hold the person who arranged the liaison (colloquially referred to as the” matchmaker”) blameless in the event that the “fix-up” turns out to be a “real loser”. (For definition of “real loser, see “John DeLorean: My Story”, available at most bookstores, or any picture of Bob Guccione in “Penthouse”.) http://people.bu.edu/wwildman/ WeirdWildWeb/jokes-menwomen.htm

21

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

12. In Japan they have replaced the impersonal and unhelpful Microsoft error messages with Haiku poetry messages. Haikus are used to communicate a timeless message, often achieving a wistful powerful insight through extreme brevity. Read some Haiku poetry messages and speak about the stylistic effect achieved through the change 1. Your file was so big It might be very useful. But now it is gone. 2. The Web site you seek Cannot be located, but Countless more exist. 3. A crash reduces Your expensive computer To a simple stone. 4. Serious error. All shortcuts have disappeared. Screen. Mind. Both are blank. 5. Yesterday it worked. Today it is not working. Windows is like that. 13. Below are some fragments of language taken from different contexts. Suggest a possible source for each A. ...cool dry place. Keep well out of … B. …acknowledge the assistance of my colleagues, and lastly … C. …magnificent vistas of coastline, beautiful beaches, … D. …bringing scattered thundershowers … E. …opens with a sad little melody …

22

Лексикология английского языка

F. Simmer gently … G. Arrived Leopoldville. Met at terminus by M., … H. Trap for catching birds or animals, esp. made … I. Carriage hereunder is subject to … J. ..the Canadians were hammered … 14. Read the text and write out informal words and word collocations which occur in it. Say whether they are colloquial words or slang? Be ready to speak about the peculiarities of the informal register A Dog Skirt Makes Dog Days It was on account of style that I first noticed him: a tall guy on a sleek powerful bike with piercing brown eyes and dark curve hair. He looked like a rock star in those ripped jeans. He was obviously neither a man about town nor Mr. Right who could charm your Mum and make an impression on your Dad. All his looks shouted he was not just a man in the street. I got quite a kick out of the way he moved and touched his hair. He had some magnetic power about him that could easily catch you on fire and make you feel a zero gravity. Men like that have always been right down my alley. I was staring at him like a little girl. Well…, no wonder, women have always had greater sensitivity! But if you want to be treated like a lady, get a grip on yourself. Meanwhile the two parts of my consciousness were at war with each other: one part wanted the rock prince to look back and the other was terribly afraid that he would think I was a dodo staring at him so much. I started talking to myself: “Ok, do stop it and turn back to choose an ice-cream”. I watched him parking. Then he raised his head and smiled at me. Gosh! I thought I was not a nervous Nelly until then. But was it a polite smile or a real McCoy? The guy certainly knew the ropes of

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

23

behavior with women. The rational part of my mind seemed to have been on the ropes. I was afraid to say something wrong on the spur of the moment. Suddenly the guy said: “Hello, can I help you?” Help me? He might have said something better or what’s the story? He smiled and said: “I could buy you a new skirt, for example.” I looked down and saw a little puppy playing with my skirt that had turned into a mini. Nice! I wasn’t concealing much from the public…, so he could see me on through.

Words and Their Origin 1. Subdivide the following words of native origin into the following groups: a) Indo-European; b) Germanic; c) English proper Bird, deep, build, six, boy, grey, winter, sit, girl, grow, shoe, cow, lady, bear, heavy, goose, father, tell, spring, tale, woman, always, fox, brown, nose, red, boat, all, hair, glad, sad, star, foot, daisy, stand, brother, milk, honey. 2. Read the text. Why does the text sound funny? How is the humorous effect achieved? Explain the etymology of the italicized words. If necessary, consult a dictionary Two new chemical elements have recently been discovered. Here for the first time is a description of the properties of one of them. Name: WOMAN (synonyms: girl, lady) Symbol: WO Atomic Weight: (don’t even go there!) Physical Properties: Generally round in form. Boils at nothing and may freeze any time. Melts whenever treated properly. Very bitter if not used well. Chemical Properties: Very active. Highly unstable. Possesses strong affinity to gold, silver, platinum, and precious stones. Violent when left alone. Able to absorb great amounts of exotic food. Turns slightly green when placed next to a better specimen. Usage: Highly ornamental. An extremely good catalyst for dispersion of wealth. Probably the most powerful income reducing agent known. Caution: Highly explosive in inexperienced hands.

25

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

3. Look at the map of the British Isles and try to find a placename, containing the following Celtic words: Afon, avon – a river; lan, llan – a church; dun, dum – a  hill or a fort; cum, combre – a deep valley; pen – a hill, a head or a top. 4. Put the Modern English spelling alongside the Old English. Define the etymology of the words Old English

Modern English

faeder

______________

moder

______________

sunu

______________

dohtor

______________

sweoster

______________

brothor

______________

5. Read the following jokes. Explain the etymology of the italicized words A. Do you know the punishment for bigamy? – Two mothers-in-law. B. A beggar walked up to a well-dressed woman shopping on Rodeo Drive and said, “I haven’t eaten anything in four days”. She looked at him and said, “My God! I wish I had your willpower”. C. I haven’t spoken to my wife for 18 months. I don’t like to interrupt her. I married Miss Right. I just didn’t know her first name was Always. D. An English professor wrote the words, “Woman without her man is nothing” on the blackboard and directed the students to punctuate it correctly. The man wrote: “Woman, without her man, is nothing”. The woman wrote: “Woman! Without her, man is nothing”.

26

Лексикология английского языка

6. Classify the words into three groups according to the period of Latin borrowings. What are the characteristic features of the words belonging to each group? Select, money, wine, sonic, hymn, cup, pear, collect, magnitude, butter, elect, solar, solitude, separate, cheese, omit, wall, candle, street, educate, plum, dish, school, psalm, aggravate. 7. Read the following words. When did they appear in English? What historical event are they connected with? Alter, candle, hymn, monk, nun, organ, pope, priest, psalm, rule, temple, lily, school, master, verse. 8. In the following sentences find examples of Latin borrowings: identify the period of borrowings I have nothing to declare except my genius. 2. To be intoxicated is to feel sophisticated but not being able to say it. 3. Age is a high price to pay for maturity. 4.  Do infants enjoy infancy as much as adults enjoy adultery? 5. However, it was when he told me that 99 per cent of the Icelandic population are literate that I got excited. If Icelandic schools can produce such results, why can’t ours in Britain? 6. I knew their house was like our house, with a sideboard and a big black poker for working fire and a picture of the Pope pinned up on the wall. 7. My tutors spoke to me with respect as if I were a sentient and sensitive being; this was a relief after a routine sarcasm of nuns. 8. Language is the instrument of culture, the instrument of domination and liberation (Angela Carter). 9. Read the following examples of Scandinavian borrowings. What can be said about their stylistic characteristics? Find some examples with the words in fiction Nouns: anger, egg, sky, skin, bat, bark (part of a tree), club, dirt, gap, kid, leg, law, mistake, skull, window. Adjectives: clumsy, cunning, flat, loose, odd, gruesome, nasty, rotten, tight. Verbs: bet, hit, raise, snub, bloom, take, happen.

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

27

10. The influence of the Vikings on the regional varieties of northern and eastern England is well documented. It is not surprising that numerous words of Scandinavian origin can be found in dialects. Here are some examples of these words from Yorkshire dialect. Find synonyms belonging to Standard English. If necessary consult a dictionary A barn, to bait, a brig, a dale, a beck, to skift, a poke, nay. 11. In the sentences given below find examples of Scandinavian borrowings A. The wide-leg jeans I bought for myself was a mistake. I looked like Charlie Chaplin in them. B. My husband and I went to Reno for a holiday last year. C. I also want to get brown. I want to see my English skin change from white sliced to wheat germ. D. Sometimes I would hear the London rain against the windows, and feel bleak and far away from home. E. To be happy with a man, you must understand him a lot and love him a little. To be happy with a woman, you must love her a lot and not try to understand her at all. F. Words are the leaves on the tree of language, of which, if some fall away, a new succession takes their place. (John French). 12. Define the etymology of the following words: Aunt, uncle, niece, nephew, cousin, parent, relative, ancestor. 13. Look up the meanings of the following words in a dictionary. Define their etymology. What thematic group do they belong to? Cafe 2, restaurant, menu, a la carte, table d’hote, entre 2e, dessert, vol-au-vent, casserole, patisserie, creme de menthe.

28

Лексикология английского языка

14. In the sentences given below find the examples of French borrowings A. I am in Birmingham sitting in a cafe 2 opposite a hairdresser’s. I’m trying to find courage to go in and book an appointment. B. There’s one piece of advice I have always given and always continue to give: read books. C. William leads a gang called “The Outlaws”, but he is not a wicked boy. Although it has to be admitted that his catalogue of crimes – breaking and entering, kidnapping, forgery, arson – would put him in the care of the social services. D. Whenever you want to marry someone, go have lunch with his ex-wife. E. A man’s home may seem to be his castle on the outside, inside it is more often his nursery. F. Being a parent is tough. If you just want a wonderful little creature to love, you can get a puppy. G. By marrying an aristocrat, he gained entre 2e into higher social circles. H. When a man does a thoroughly stupid thing, it is always from the noblest motives. I. The most precious things in speech are pauses. (R. Richardson). J. If all the world is a stage, where is the audience sitting? 15. Some words were borrowed into English from Italian. They belong to several thematic groups. Read the words and add your own examples to each group A. Music: opera, solo, soprano, libretto, maestro B. Art and literature: novella, stanza, studio, miniature. C. Food: lasagna, aperitif, gorgonzola, broccoli. 16. Read the following loan words. Explain their origin and meaning. If necessary, use a dictionary

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

29

Doberman pinscher, hamster, hertz, kaput, lager, lederhosen, leitmotiv, deli (delicatessen), diesel, edelweiss, ersatz, fest. 17. Read the following words and explain their meaning. Identify the source of borrowing Adios, alligator, armada, avocado, barbecue, booby, cargo, cigar, cigarette, mosquito, tornado, vanilla. 18. Read some examples of words of African origin. What do these words usually name? Baobab, dik-dik, gnu, goober, limbo, kalimbra, gumbo, yam, yambalaya. 19. Many words that came into English from Arabic reflect the contribution of Arabic culture to the world. Analyze the words and speak of their cultural aspect Azimuth, zenith, zero, magazine, marzipan, coffee, alcohol. 20. Identify the origin of the following words Banana, chocolate, hurricane, coffee, spaghetti, solo, kangaroo, yoghurt, kimono, blitz, tea, bungalow, yacht, snack. 21. Read the following sentences. Define the etymology of the words given in italics (Revision) A. If money does not grow on trees, why do banks have branches? B. A successful man is the one who makes more money than his wife can spend. C. Life is a span of time of which the first half is ruined by our parents, and the second half– by our children. D. Teenagers are people who express a burning desire to be different by dressing alike.

30

Лексикология английского языка

E. Children are small people who are not permitted to act as their parents did when they were the same age. F. The true University of these days is a Collection of Books. G. If it is true that the violin is the most perfect musical instrument, then the Greek is the violin of human thought (H. Keller). 22. Use a dictionary and find the etymology of the following words. Write them out in three columns: a) fully assimilated words; b) partially assimilated words; c) barbarisms. Explain the reason for your choice Ciao, padre, tornado, alligator, bronco, delicatessen (deli), camp, mile, street, egg, window, armada, leitmotiv, alter, odd, cup, anger, school, select, fiance 2e, fiasco, solitude, algebra, lesson, soldier, a-la carte, casino, a la mode, crime, roulette, sauna, tycoon. 23. Find synonyms to the words given below. Explain the difference in meaning Tongue, book, ask, wedding, smell, sorrow, rise, time, childish, friendly. 24. Explain the etymology of the italicized words; identify the stage of assimilation A. I was walking down a street in London when I saw the coat in a shop window. It was ankle length, suede and lined in sheepskin. B. The price of the coat is a secret I will take to my grave. My daughters who take an almost obsessive interest in the price I pay for my clothing, put me through their usual KGB interrogation routine, but I didn’t crack. C. When traveling, always buy a local newspaper, even if you can’t read the language. You can sit or lie on it. You can use it as a plate. You can roll it up and swat insects with it. The uses are endless. D. Bear in mind that the fire brigade has been busier since it became more fashionable to bathe by candlelight.

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

31

E. Try to get part time work as a waiter or waitress. You will learn several invaluable things: how to deal with drunks, the secret of the professional kitchen and how to behave in restaurants. F. If, at the age of seventeen, you have a little monkey tattooed on your belly, stop to consider that, by the time you are thirty-one and nine months pregnant, the little monkey will have stretched to look like King Kong. G. What are my own plans for the millennium night? The true answer is that I have none. I may make the ultimate sacrifice and babysit the grandchildren. We could have a midnight winter picnic, with fireworks and joke about their parents. We’d then drive home to eggs and bacon, and the first buttered toast of a new dawn. 25. Classify the following words according to the sphere of human activity they represent. What type of borrowings are these? Gravity, business, cricket, computer, credit, bonus, marathon, video, bank, ballet, tennis, sputnik, comics, terrorism, technology, appetite, golf, cigarettes, coffee, debate, session, energy, media, Internet, player, stylist, film, designer, beret, engineer, critic, parmesan, bracelet, culture, comedy, sport, democracy, seminar, medicine, exam, boutique. 26. Read the following text. Copy out the international words. What sphere of human activity do they belong to? Inventor Thomas Midgley was born in 1889 in Pennsylvania. He graduated from Cornell University with a degree in mechanical engineering. ‘Knock’ was a destructive phenomenon that occurred in internal combustion engines, a phenomenon that became worse at high enginecompression ratios. Midgley discovered that knock was the result of a fuel failure, not an engine failure. A trial-and-error search began to find a fuel additive to reduce the temperature and pressure within the cylinder to suppress the knock.

32

Лексикология английского языка

In December 1921, an engine test was run with a small amount of tetraethyl lead which completely eliminated the ‘knock’. This discovery enabled aeroplane makers to develop more powerful engines. Unfortunately, the addition of lead to gasoline eventually resulted in the release of huge amounts of lead into the atmosphere, causing global health problems. In 1930 Midgley was charged to find an inexpensive, non-toxic refrigerant for use in household appliances for General Motors, and thus he discovered Freon – the trade name for CFC. Midgley died in 1944 before the effect of CFCs upon the ozone layer became widely known. 27. Read the following jokes. Identify examples of international words A. Only in America … do people order double cheese burgers, large fries, and a diet Coke. B. Only in America … do they leave cars worth thousands of dollars in the driveway and put their useless junk in the garage. C. Only in America … do they buy hot dogs in packages of ten and buns in packages of eight. D. Only in America … do they use the word “politics” to describe the process so well; “poly” in Latin means “many” and “tics” means “bloodsucking creatures”. E. Only in America … do they have drive-up ATM machines with Braille lettering. 28. Use a dictionary and state the origin of the following etymological doublets. Compare their meanings and explain why they are called “etymological doublets” A. cavalry  – chivalry, cart  – chart, canal  – channel, captain  – chieftain.

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

33

B. scabby – shabby, skirt – shirt, screw – shrew. C. chief – chef, mayor – major, liquor – liqueur, corpse – corps. D. dike – ditch, shade – shadow, of – off. 29. In the following sentences find one of a pair of etymological doublets and name the missing member of the pair A. I looked out of the bedroom window and saw that the canal, murky and deep, lay below. B. I’m in another hotel, trying to write another film script. C. The children were playing, jumping on each other shadows. D. Liqueurs are made by adding fruits, herbs or spices to spirits. E. “Too many chiefs and not enough Indians” means that there are too many people in the company who want to say what should be done and not enough people doing the work. F. The refugees were shabby and hungry. G. In a modern army cavalry regiments use armored vehicles and ride horses only on special public occasions. H. A fool and his money are soon parted (A proverb). 30. State the origin of the following translation loans. Give more examples of your own Guest worker, five-year plan, first dancer, roof organization, wonder child, collective farm, blue blood, the pipe of peace, the path of war, the golden age. 31. Supply the adjectives of Latin origin corresponding to the following nouns. Comment on their stylistic characteristics Brother, eye, father, friend, foe, house, heart, hand, life, man, moon, nose, sea, star, youth.

34

Лексикология английского языка

32. What is the difference between the words in the following pairs? Analyze the examples and prove that etymological and stylistic characteristics of words are closely interrelated House  –abode, help  – servant, worker  – laborer, baby  – infant, childish – infantile, home – domestic, youth – juvenile, to forgive – to pardon, to ask  – to implore, to admit  – to confess, to leave  – to abandon. 33. Read the following text. State some tendencies typical of Late Modern English. Give your own examples to illustrate theoretical points The principal distinction between early and late modern English is vocabulary. Pronunciation, grammar, and spelling are largely the same. Late Modern English has many new words. These words are the results of two historical factors. The first is the Industrial Revolution and the rise of the technological society. This necessitated new words for things and ideas that had not previously existed. The second was the British Empire. At its height, Britain ruled one quarter of the earth’s surface. And English adopted many words and made them its own. The industrial and scientific revolutions created a need for neologisms to describe the new creations and discoveries. For this, English relied heavily on Latin and Greek. Words like oxygen, protein, nuclear, vaccine did not exist in the classical languages, but they were created from Latin and Greek roots. Neologisms were not exclusively created from classical roots, though; English roots were used for such terms as horsepower, airplane, typewriter. The burst of neologisms continues today, most visible in the field of electronics and computers. Also, the rise of the British Empire and the growth of global trade served not only to introduce English to the world, but to introduce foreign words into English. Virtually every language on Earth has contributed to the development of English. But the most significant linguistic consequence of the British Empire was the creation and spread of American English.

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

35

Finally, the 20th century saw two world wars, and the military influence on the language during the latter half of the century was great. Before the Great War, military service for English-speaking persons was rare; both Britain and the United States maintained small, volunteer militaries. Military slang existed, but with the exception of nautical terms, rarely influenced Standard English. Military slang entered the language like never before. Blockbuster, camouflage, radar, roadblock, spearhead are all military terms that made their way into Standard English (Dave Wilton).

Word-Building in English Affixation 1. Analyze the following words from the point of view of their morphemic structure. Speak about different types of morphemes in English Anti-reactionary, illegal, carefully, geologist, inspector, military, readership, television, government, total. 2. Analyze the pairs of words and say whether the affixes in them function as word-building morphemes or functional (inflectional) morphemes Alarm  – alarmist, arrange  – arrangement, bitter  – bitterness, book  – books, buy  –buys, divide  – subdivide, flower  – flowers, house – houses, ideal – idealism, novel – novelist, old – older, ox – oxen, push – pushed, symbol – symbolize, wife – wives. 3. Many English words are derived from Latin or Greek roots. Analyze the roots and their meanings. Give your own examples with the same roots

Latin Roots Root (Latin)

Meaning

Example

Dic/dict –

to say, to speak

dictate

Scrib/ script–

to write

transcribe

Mir–

to look at, to wonder

mirage

37

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

Spec/ spect –

to see, to look into

inspect

Liter–

letter

literature

Greek Roots Root

Meaning

Example

Bio–

life

biology

Ge –

earth

geography

Dem–

people

demography

Metr/meter–

measure

metric

Ology –

to discuss formally

sociology

4. One and the same notion (concept) can be expressed by means of different roots in English. The first and the most recognizable root is usually of native origin; it belongs to the basic word stock. The other two come from Latin and Greek. Analyze the examples. Give your own words with the roots; explain their meanings as it is shown in the exercise English

star

starlit

lit or lighted with stars

Latin

stell–

constella­­tion

a group of stars in the sky

Greek

ast(e)r

astrology

a prediction of the events by stars

Scandina­ ­vian

law

law-abiding

always keeping the law

Latin

leg–

legislation

the official making of laws

Greek

nom–

autonomous

following one’s own laws.

38

Лексикология английского языка

5. Derive nouns from the following verbs and put them into the table. Say a few words about the productivity and etymology of the affixes -ment Excitement

-ion discussion

-ation expectation

Add, admire, announce, approve, arrange, astonish, develop, embarrass, educate, form, organize, permit, pronunciation, tax, vary. 6. Derive adjectives or participles from the following verbs and nouns and put them into the table. Explain the etymology, meaning and productivity of the suffixes -ful

– ing

-ed

-ous

-able

beautiful

touching

touched

furious

recogni­ zable

Power, bore, continue, cure, admire, hope (n.), satisfy, excite, suspect, avoid, desire, glory, vice, distress, embarrass, respectful, doubt (n.), virtue, prefer, compare, vary, respect, exhaust, care. 7. Fill in the gaps with a suitable word. Explain the difference in meaning a) delighted– delightful When they knew they had won, they were absolutely __. Thank you for such a __ evening. I know Dad will be __if you send him a letter. b) Economic – economical The __ crisis was caused by the increase in the population. The presentation deals with the __ development of the region. The synonym to the word ‘thrifty’ is __. What is the most __ way of heating the house? c) exhausting-exhaustive She made a __ study of the subject. Most students find this test __, but few find it to be impossible. I’ve nothing to add, the report is __. The trip turned out to be __.

39

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

8. Speak about etymology and productivity of the affixes given below. Give your own examples with the affixes -dom, -ship, -th, -ful, -less, -y, -ly(adv.), -ing, -tion, -able, -ar, -ment, dis-, im-, un-, pre-, post-, semi-, anti-, micro. 9. Knowing about affixes can often help you to work out what words mean. Fill in the table and write 3–4 words of your own using the same affix word

affix

meaning

examples

To mistranslate To rewrite To overeat To underpay Anti-war Ex-husband Employee Bluish Useless 10. The italicized words in the following text are formed by derivation. Write them out in two columns: a) words formed with the help of native affixes; b) words formed with the help of borrowed affixes

40

Лексикология английского языка

Computer Gender A man who was previously a sailor was aware that ships are addressed as “she” or “he”. He often wondered what gender computers should be addressed. To answer that question, he set up two groups of computer experts. The first was comprised of women, and the second of men. Each group was asked to recommend whether computers should be referred to in the feminine gender or the masculine gender. They were asked to give four reasons for their recommendation. The group of women reported that the computers should be referred to in the masculine gender because: In order to get their attention, you have to turn them on. They have o lot of data, but are still clueless. They are supposed to help you solve problems, but half the time they are the problem. As soon as you commit to one, you realize that, if you have waited a little longer you could have had a better model. The men, on the other hand, concluded that Computers should be referred to in the feminine gender because: No one but the Creator understands their internal logic. The native language they use to communicate with other computers is incomprehensible to everyone else. As soon as you make commitment to one, you find yourself spending half your paychecks on accessories for it.

Conversion 11. In the following sentences find cases of conversion A. Dr. Morris said he planned to expand his research. B. The green tax agenda is likely to anger many traditional supporters. C. Back at the office I decided to experiment with alternative transport and borrowed a colleague’s bike. D. I’ve kept the thing to myself so far because I fear public ridicule.

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

41

E. When we lived in caves, I suppose it made sense to have a king who bossed us about. F. Babies are now born knowing how to program the video. I. Shall we walk to the theatre or bus? J. Button up your coat, it’s cold. K. I’m not going to doll myself up just to go to the shops. L. My parents will forward my mail to India while I’m teaching there. M. Does your hair curl naturally or is it permed? N. I don’t like the cut of the jeans. O. I try to do my shopping before the Christmas rush. P. Don’t forget to salt the potatoes. Q. The meeting is scheduled for tomorrow morning. R. I’ve been coaching for 20 years and she is one of the most committed swimmers that I’ve ever taught. S. She told me to zip my mouth. T. After a swim we quickly toweled ourselves down. U. Last year growth in the economy slowed to 2%. V. Why are there so many quiz shows on TV? W. He washed his face and had a shave. X. She gave the box a shake to see if there was anything in it. Y. The new stadium seats 15000 people. Z. After a long search he eventually found the missing papers. AA. The democrats scored a surprise victory in the election. 12. In the following examples one of the italicized words was coined from the other by means of conversion. What is the semantic correlation between the words? A. September is shaping up to be a busy month for the swimmers. Our table is square in shape.

42

Лексикология английского языка

B. After competing at Glasgow, she will pack her things and head for Kelly College, an independent school at Devon. Put the hat on to keep your head warm. C. a) Waskin (a surname of a girl) is hoping to create a splash in an adult world; b) The kids were splashing about in the swimming pool. D. New EU workers face job curbs. He had a puzzled expression on his face. E. Families began leaving the aircraft because they feared that the two men on the Monarch Airlines flight to Manchester were suicide bombers. It was dark but the boy showed no signs of fear. F. One morning Dave woke up to the realization that his only joy was riding his skateboard to work and back. His first idea was to skateboard across Russia, but that was too ambitious. G. The Tories’ call to put state schools on the same footing as feepaying schools comes as the Government pledges to toughen up the exams in English and Maths. He was called to an emergency meeting this morning. H. All young people should master the three Rs by the time they leave school. The painting is clearly the work of a master. I. Dave received $15 for expenses but he pocketed most of it. He lost the keys when they fell out of his pocket. J. He’s rooming with my friend Smith. I’ll be waiting for you in the conference room upstairs. 13. Explain the semantic correlation within the following pairs of words Bottle – to bottle, brush – to brush, comb –to comb, dog – to dog, face –to face, hammer – to hammer, house – to house, monkey – to monkey, mouth – to mouth, nose – to nose, nurse –to nurse, pin –to pin, pocket – to pocket, room – to room, supper – to supper. 14. Read the following funny definitions. Explain the type of word-building of the italicized words and say everything you can about the way they were coined

43

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

BUDGET –A method of going broke methodically. Happiness – An illusion caused by the temporary absence of reality. Jury  – A group of people chosen to decide who has the best lawyer. Liberal – A person who is too poor to be a capitalist, and too rich to be a Communist. Logic – The art of being wrong with confidence. Marriage – A triumph of imagination over intelligence. Patience  – The most important ingredient for dating, marriage and children. Pessimist – A well-informed optimist. Saint – A person who behaves decently in an indecent society.

Composition 15. Classify the compound words from the point of view of their structure Chopping board, daughter-in-law, sales tax, concert hall, earthbound, cool-headed, cross-trainers, V-actor, Anglo-Saxon, down-andout (n.), evergreen (adj.), sunstroke, e-zine, forget-me-not, household, out-of-date, car-club 16. Arrange the compounds given below into two groups: A.  Idiomatic. B. Non-idiomatic. Say whether the semantic change within idiomatic compounds is partial or total. Consult the dictionary if necessary Camp ground, cinemagoer, clodhoppers, cocktail dress, doormat, grasshopper, ladybird, earworm, hedgehog, dragonfly, dressingtable, dumb-struck, dust jacket, cotton-bud, pickpocket, pillowcase, pilot whale, poker-faced (adj.), Portuguese man-of-war, leapfrog, hand-to-hand(adj.), honest-to-goodness (adj.), earwig

44

Лексикология английского языка

17. Identify the compounds in the word-groups below. Say as much as you can about their structure and semantics A chocolate box view, a clean-shaven man, a day care centre, the cut-off date for registration, a shop selling handicrafts, AfroAmerican music, a dog-eared novel, a door-to-door salesman, a highschool dropout, to read an e-book, an easy-going person, to use eyedrops, to play hide-and-seek, to pick lilies-of the valley, to wear jeans and a T-shirt, to fly in a V-formation, according to eyewitnesses, a face-to-face interview, household chores, to use X-rays, a hot-tempered woman, to make a quick U-turn, up-to-date information, a hotshot lawyer, to have a house-warming party, to serve ice-cold drinks 18. In the following sentences find examples of compounds. Write them out in two columns: A. Idiomatic compounds; B.  Non-idiomatic compounds. Define their structural type A. Dr. Evans believes that by 2040 the warming of the Earth and climate disasters will mean the survivors will live as Stone Age hunter-gatherers. B. Professor Taylor also interviewed Abi Freeman. She’s a wildhaired veteran of a Californian cult called The Children of God. C. My job entails installing and maintaining telephone lines, fault-finding and coming up with engineering solutions. D. Reactions of having a female boss in a male-dominated industry are mixed. E. I would not say no to the opportunity of working abroad for a while and can picture myself managing construction sites in the sunshine in Dubai. F. The spokeswoman of Treliske Hospital said:” The doctor has not refused to operate, but the operation has been postponed.” G. Mr. Nuttull cannot understand the U-turn. He said it was a kind of blackmail.

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

45

H. He looked pleased with the Diane Merrick leopard-print handbag, though God knows what he would do with it. I. The Oscar-winning actress ordered a chicken and broccoli takeaway at the Koo Koo Roo restaurant and sat at the table with her food container. J. Show-business isn’t what it used to be, according to Welsh legend Shirley Bassey, who is morning its loss. K. Pete Doherty performed with his band Babyshambles at the weekend’s V-music festival at Chelmsford, Essex. 19. Say whether the following lexical units are word-groups or compounds. Motivate your answer A middle-man, a middle drawer, a straight line, a hot line, a smart house, a hot-house, lemon grass, lemon juice, a loan word, a new word, a white loaf of bread, meat loaf, an old cap, a swimming cap, dairy man, an elderly man, a plastic comb, honey-comb, a black eye, blue eyes, raw meat, sweet meat, cooked beans, jelly beans. 20. Form compound adjectives from the stems given below and use them in the sentences A. World-, short-, sun-, absent-, fair-, eye-, hand-, fourB. – haired, -star, -catching, -famous, -minded, -made, -sighted, -tanned. 1. They stayed in a ____ hotel. 2. He is a ___ actor. 3. After her holiday in Greece she had a ___face. 4. I can’t see very clearly. I’m a bit ____. 5. She was wearing an ___ dress. 6. All these items are ___ by skilled craftsmen. 7. My grandmother’s becoming very ___. 8. She was a __woman with blue eyes.

46

Лексикология английского языка

21. Find the examples of compound words with “half-” as their first element in dictionaries, write them out and translate them into Russian. How are these words written? For example: half-hearted. How do these words differ from other compounds? 22. Write out the following abbreviations into two columns: a) acronyms; b) initialisms. Give the word combinations from which they were formed and explain their meaning ATM, TEAM, UFO, VIP, CC, FEAR, GM, IQ, PC, PIN, AIDS, SAD, PR, GDP, SASE, SAM, ZIP, WTO, BOGOF, WOMBAT, HAND, B2B, B2C, CEO 23. Find the meanings of the following words. How are they coined in English? Characterize them from the point of view of style Hurry-scurry, chop-chop (intj.), dum-dum, hip-hop, hotch-potch, buddy-buddy (adj.), gender-blender, nodge-podge, wishy-washy. 24. What is the type of word-building by which the italicized words in the following extracts were made? A. The blood type diet is chosen by celebs because it promises to help you lose weight and feel healthier. B. The plan recommends organic fruit and veg and drinking lots of water. C. Each light contains a super bright LED that lasts up to 100 hours on a single set of batteries. D. UK’s low-wage economy fuels the brain drain. E. Film-maker Daisy Asquith meets some very OAPs over the age of 100 who still have a youthful glint in their eyes. F. Play all your favorite LPs, 45s and 78s, copy them onto your PC and transfer them onto CDs and MP3 players.

47

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

G. Victoria Beckham is a fan of this new diet book which describes itself as “no-nonsense, tough-love guide for girls who want to stop eating rubbish.” H. British Airways is to launch flight between European capitals and the US next year. A BA spokesman said it intended to fly between a number of European capitals and the US using Boeing 757 jets. 25. Read the following words that are neologisms. Explain their meaning. Consult a dictionary. Define the particular type of word-building process by which they were coined Birtism, burb (n.), foodie (n.), gobsmacked, hearing dog, hotting (n.), homesitter, home-shopping, mobile, power nap, quad bike, road kill (n.), squarial, wolf-dog, V-chip. 26. Define the type of word-building process by which the following words were made An alarm clock, to room, a cut, pick-me-up (n.), self-defence, a phone, a Zoo, an Afro-American, WC, water-proof (adj.), CAL, calculation, A-level, a bike, a cheer-leader, to buzz, WASP, paw-paw, multimedia, to beg, a brunch, ping-pong, to mew, a gent, a statesman, to force-land, boogie-woogie, a bookworm, to bang, a hood, a legislady, a roo, a fridge, to clink, a vegeburger, a newsreader, pay-asyou-go (adj.) 27. Read the following joke. Consider the italicized words in respect of: a) word-building, b) etymology, c) style and say everything you know about them.

Mink Coat A middle-aged man and a woman walk into a very posh Rodeo Drive furrier. “Show the lady your finest mink!” the fellow exclaims. So the owner of the shop goes in back and comes out with an absolutely gorgeous full-length coat. As the lady tries it on, the furrier discreetly whispers to the man, “Ah, sir, that particular fur goes for $65,000.”

48

Лексикология английского языка

“No problem! I’ll write you a check!” “Very good, sir.” says the storekeeper.” Today is Saturday. You may come by on Monday to pick it up, after the check has cleared.” So the man and the woman leave. On Monday, the fellow returns. The store owner is outraged. “How dare you show your face in here?! There wasn’t a single penny in your banking account!’ “I just had to come by,” grinned the guy “to thank you for the most wonderful weekend of my life!”

Words and Their Meanings 1. Define the meanings of words in the following sentences. Say how the meanings of the same word are connected with one another A. a) The only time I leave the house is to see somebody with a medical qualification. b) Can you leave me some money for the bus? B. a) The young man had vanished and there were no eye-witnesses to the attack. b) The company has come under attack for its decision to close the plant. C. a) Mrs. Coleman gave a very spirited account of her attack to the local paper. She was speaking from her son’s home where she was recovering from the injuries. b) In the morning shares seemed to recover from Monday’s collapse. c) The card is printed on recycled paper. D. a) Ministers came under fire for “failing” veterans who had risked their lives for the country. b)  The house was badly damaged in the fire. E. a) Tiny earpieces which link to mobile phones or iPods are being marketed specially to help pupils boost their test results. b) The European Monetary system was designed to link together the currencies in the European Community. F. a) The 11-day hunt for six trapped coal miners in the US was halted yesterday after three rescuers were killed. b) We are going on a fox hunt. G. a) Shakespeare’s plays are being rewritten as comic strips for pupils who find them boring. b) Hold on while I find the car keys.

50

Лексикология английского языка

H. a) Examiners have complained that pupils discuss Shakespeare’s plays as if they were soap operas and pepper their essays with conversational cliche 2s and references to popular culture. b)  Pepper the steak well. I. a) Here is your chance to stand out from the crowd. We have a range of short-sleeved polo-shirts on offer and you can have them embroidered with your name or initials. b) Stand Molly up on the chair so that she can see everything well. 2. Copy out the following pairs of words and group together the ones which represent the same meaning of each word. Give reasons for your answers. Use dictionaries if necessary Floor, n. A dirty floor, to live on the third floor, the floor of the sea, to leave the dancing floor, to play on the floor, the bathroom floor, the ground floor, the floor of the cave, to work on the factory floor. Funny, adj. A funny joke, to have some funny ideas about bringing up children, to feel funny, a funny story, to go a bit funny, to try some funny business, to sound funny on the phone, to have some funny looks. Kill, v. To kill a bird, to kill one’s speed, to kill the engine, my feet are killing me, to kill a dog, to kill one’s husband, my head’s killing me. Knit, v. To knit a sweater, to knit sentences together, to knit one’s brows, to knit socks, to knit people in a team. Nest, n. The nest of a bird, an alligator’s nest, a nest of spies, a nest of thieves, a field mouse’s nest, a nest of tables for the living-room, a nest of boxes Weak, adj. To feel weak, a weak baby, a weak argument, a weak link, a weak spot, weak tea, a weak excuse, a weak attempt, weak coffee.

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

51

3. Read the following newspaper headlines. Why are they funny? Use a dictionary when in doubt A. Police Begin Campaign to Run Down Jaywalkers B. Safety Experts Say School Bus Passengers Should Be Belted C. Iraqi Head Seeks Arms D. Prostitutes Appeal to Pope E. Teacher Strikes Idle Kids F. Juvenile Court to Try Shooting Defendant G. Red Tape Holds up New Bridge H. Typhoon Rips Through Cemetery; Hundreds Dead I. Kids Make Nutritious Snacks J. Local High School Dropouts Cut in Half K. Chef Throws His Heart into Helping Feed Needy L. Air Head Fired M. Steals Clock, Faces Time N. Bank Drive-in Window Blocked by Board O. Sex Education Delayed; Teachers Request Training P. Include your Children when Baking Cookies 4. Try your hand at being a lexicographer. Write simple definitions to illustrate as many meanings as possible for the following words. After you have done it, check your results using a dictionary Character, channel, expression, hot, house, queen, stone. 5. Contextual analysis is one of the main methods of studying the semantic structure of a word. Analyze lexical and grammatical collocations of words A. Hot counties, hot ticket, hot situation, a hot topic, a hot temper. B. The house of Mr. Smith, the House of Lords, the House of Windsor, the house of God.

52

Лексикология английского языка

C. The queen of England, the queen of fashion, the queen of diamonds. D. The Prime minister will fly to Paris for a two-day visit. A wasp flew in through the open window. In the park people were flying their kites. Flags were flying cheerfully in the breeze. E. Smell these flowers. Aren’t they sweet? The coffee smells good. F. He feels much better today. The material feels like silk. I don’t feel like going to the office today. Feel the clothes, they are wet. G. I can’t remember the French word for “knee”. Did you remember to post my letters? 6. Make six collocations from the given words. Write a sentence of your own using each collocation. What type of collocations are these? Confront, due, establish, fair, issue, put

Comment, communication, denial, issue, question, respect

7. Compare Russian and English phrases. Show the difference in collocations На севере, на юге

In the North, in the South

На дереве, на поле

In the tree, in the field

Забыть имя, адрес,

To forget one’s name, address

Забыть ручку, тетрадь

To leave one’s pen, notebook

Банка огурцов

A jar of pickles

Банка меда

A pot of honey

Банка колы

A can of cola

Реклама в журнале

An advert

Реклама по телевидению

A commercial

53

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

Рецепт на лекарство

A prescription

Рецепт кулинарный

A recipe

Дорогой друг

Dear friend

Дорогой ресторан

An expensive restaurant

Чайник для заварки

A tea-pot

Электрический чайник

An electric kettle

Сильный мальчик

A strong boy

Сильное движение

Heavy traffic

Хозяин отеля

The owner of the hotel

Хозяин на вечере

The host of the party

8. You can expand your collocation vocabulary by training yourself to notice different collocations in texts. Go to www. economist.com/index.html and select an article that interests you. Make a list of useful collocations relating to the topic of the economy. 9. Look up the following legal words in the British National Corpus: www.natcorp.ox.ac.uk : witness, verdict, sentence, jury, guilty. Note down any interesting collocations that you find. 10. Horoscopes are a good source of vocabulary on relationship. Read some horoscopes on-line www.horoscopes.co.uk. Make a list of any useful collocations that you find. 11. Read an article from a current issue of a celebrity magazine: www.hellomagazine.com. Highlight any interesting collocations that you find in it. For ex.: a lavish lifestyle, a fairytale wedding, to sell the story to the highest bidder, etc.

The Development and Change of Meaning 1. Read the following extracts and explain the semantic process by which the italicized words acquired their meanings A. “Cereal” comes from Ceres, a Roman goddess of corn and flower and “panic” comes from Pan, a Greek Nature-God. But here the resemblance ends, for not only is one Latin and the other Greek, but one is the name of an object which we can touch and see, while the other relates to that inner world of human consciousness which cannot be grasped with hand. (Owen Barfield. “History in English Words”) B. Most people know that America is named after Amerigo Vespucci, but few know why Vespucci made two trips to the New World as a ship navigator. In his letter sent home he put forward the idea that what Columbus had discovered was not in fact a new route to Asia, but rather a new continent. In 1507 the cartographer Martin Waldseemueller published a map that designated the New World as America and thus the name was coined. Why Waldseemueller chose to use Vespucci’s first name instead of his last name is unknown, but it was because Amerigo was easily Latinized and the term America shared the same first and last letters as Asia and Africa. So America is named after the man who first recognized that it was a new continent. C. “Spring” first appeared in English around 816 with the sense of “rising up” and was originally applied to geological “springs” where water issued from the ground. By the 13th century “spring”

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

55

was being used figuratively to mean the source or the beginning of just about anything. In the 14th century, we began to use “spring “ to mean “ the time of rising or the beginning of existence of something”, in which sense dawn was known, for example, as “day spring”. By the 16th century we were referring to the first of the four seasons as “the spring of the year”. Soon afterwards we shortened it to “Spring”. D. A “couch” was originally a bed or other furniture designed for sleeping, not just sitting, and it takes its name from the French “coucher” meaning “to lay in place”. “Couch” in its modern sense appeared around 1430. “Sofa” which appeared in English around 1625, comes directly from the Arabic “soffah”, meaning a portion of the floor covered for with cushions and carpets for sitting. By about 1717 “sofa” was being used as separate piece of furniture designed for sitting. Another word from the Middle East is “divan”, which originally meant “council of rulers” but later in English came to mean the padded platform where the rulers sat, and eventually was used as a synonym for “couch’. E. “Hamburgers” are so called because they are thought to have been invented in Hamburg, Germany, although chopping up some lean beef and frying it doesn’t seem like a terribly challenging concept. The original recipe for “hamburger steak”, by the way, sounds more like meatloaf than hamburgers, involving beaten eggs, spices and onions. “Hamburgers” made their first appearance in English at the beginning of the 19th century. F. “Chatter” first appeared in English around 1225. The word is onomatopoetic in origin, meaning that it arouse as an attempt to imitate the sound of the birds twittering. By 1250 the word was used to describe people who just couldn’t shut up. Secondary meanings include any sort of rapidly repeated motion or sound, from the chatter of your teeth on a cold morning to the chatter of an old car’s engine. G. The word “blockbuster” appeared during World War II, meaning a large aerial bomb. The second meaning is anything, especially a movie, play or book, that is large, important or popular. Iron-

56

Лексикология английского языка

ically, the term “bomb” in show business or publishing means a complete failure, while “blockbuster” is a huge success. 2. Explain the logical associations in the following groups of meaning for the same words. Define the type of transference which has taken place A. The face of a woman – the face of a clock, the wing of a bird – the wing of an aircraft, the neck of a child – the neck of a bottle, the leg of a person – the leg of a table, the cap of a schoolboy – the cap of a bottle, the coat of Mrs. Smith – the coat of a dog, grains of wheat – grains of sand. B. A green leave – a green party, a cool night – a cool head, a white T-shirt – white coffee, a big house – a big decision. C. To catch a bird  – to catch a breath, to lose one’s purse  – to lose one’ eyesight, to give somebody a present – to give somebody a chance, to take an apple – to take a hint, to exchange badges – to exchange glances. D. Mentor – mentor, Lord Cardigan – cardigan, P. Magnol – magnolia, I. Newton – newton, A. Volta – volt, Solomon – Solomon Islands, Queen Victoria – Lake Victoria, G. Washington – Washington D. C., Lynch  – to lynch, Jean Morean de Seychelles  – Seychelles, Henry Royce and Charles Rolls  – Rolls-Royce, Romulus  – Rome, Sakichi Toyoda – Toyota. 3. Analyze the process of development of new meanings in the italicized words in the examples given below 1. To steal ideas from one person is plagiarism; to steal from many is research. 2. To succeed in politics, it is often necessary to rise above your principles. 3. The sooner you fall behind the more time you’ll have to catch up. 4. A clear conscience is usually a sign of a bad memory. 5. Change is inevitable except from vending machines. 6.  Get a new car for your spouse – it will be a great trade. 7. If you think nobody cares, try missing a couple of payments. 8. No

57

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

one is listening until you make a mistake. 9. Bills travel through the mail at twice the speed of checks. 10.  Support bacteria  – they are the only culture some people have. 11. Love may be blind but marriage is a real eye-opener. 4. During WWII lots of slang words appeared in English to describe military food. Read the examples and analyze the process of development of new meanings Sausages – bags of mystery, coffee –battery acid, black strap – ink, milk – cow juice, tapioca – fish eyes, canned salmon – goldfish, salad  – grass, pancake  – gasket, hash  – mystery, catsup  – red paint, toast  – shingles; a cook  – a pan rattler, a dishwasher  – a pearl diver. 5. Explain the basis for the following jokes. Trace the logical associations between the different meanings of the same word

No Other Victims A man met his friend loitering in the street in the soldier uniform. – Hello, Jim, he greeted him. What’s it you’re doing here? – Nothing. Just killing the time. – Oh, I see. There’s no war at the moment.

Language of Times A little boy was looking through the newspaper. “Daddy”, he asked, “do you remember you told me mushrooms were very nice things?” “Yes, what of it?” “Well, look at this one,” said the boy, pointing at a photo in the paper. That was a photo showing American H-bomb tests at Bikini. 6. Try your hand at doing research. Write a short essay on the development of the meanings of the two of the following

58

Лексикология английского языка

words. Try to explain each shift of meaning. Use any etymological dictionary you have Apology, apostle, butterfly, cybernetics, curfew, fortune, peach, peacock, peanut, peasant. 7. In the examples given below identify the cases of widening and narrowing of meaning A. An elderly lady, Mrs. Coleman, was mugged outside her house last week. B. It was a beautiful day, the sort of day, when you feel glad to be alive. C. Fate struck me down the day before the First Night of my new play “The Queen and I”. D. I left a packet of cigarettes on a shop counter and as I was leaving the shop I heard the girl on the till say: “Whose are these?” E. I asked him what impression Lord Archer had made on him. “His wife is very nice”, said Elius diplomatically. F. I’m not the fittest woman in the world and I arrived at the maternity hospital in an enfeeble state. G. I keep remembering the emergency plumber’s face when he broke the news to us that the pipe which runs under the kitchen floor for some inexplicable reason seemed to have restricted flow. H. The cat is also silly. Our house is clock-a-block with sofas and beds. There’s even a cat basket, yet the fool chooses to sleep in the center of the bottom step of the stairs. I. A typical meal could be brown rice with green lentils or broccoli and white fish. It is also recommended you keep your diet meat and dairy-free. J. I ran round to the front of the house to see the boys trying desperately to start their car. K. Penguins and ostriches are flightless birds.

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

59

8. Explain the basis for the following puns A. Why did the teacher wear sunglasses? Because his students were so bright. B. The cook in our school is really cruel. How do you know? Yesterday I saw him beat some eggs. C. What did one pocket calculator say to the other?  – You can always count on me. D. Call me a taxi. – OK. You’re a taxi. E. Jim has just swallowed some coins! – Really? I haven’t notice any change in him. F. Why should you never hold a party on the moon?  – Because there’s not much atmosphere. 9. Look up the meanings and histories of the following words in one or more etymological dictionaries. For example: the word ‘gas’ was invented by Van Helmont on a Greek word khaos. Universe, dwarf, giant, chaos, galaxy, modern, current, volcano, twitch, fragile 10. There are lots of metaphorical collocations in English based on movement. They vary in their stability from fixed collocations (idioms) which cannot be changed in any way to strong collocations where words are closely associated with each other, though some changes are possible. Read the examples given in the exercise and explain the meaning of each collocation in English; translate the expressions into Russian. If possible use Russian metaphorical word combinations. To run into trouble / difficulties, to hop mad, to jump to the conclusion, to walk straight into a job, to go far, to find oneself at a crossroads, to reach the peak of one’s career, to go downhill, to jump from

60

Лексикология английского языка

one topic to another, to run a tap, to run a temperature, to run before you can walk, to walk the walk, to be walking on air, to go back on one’s word / promise, it goes without saying. 11. Write 5–7 sentences with the collocations from exercise 8 12. To revise what you have learnt from the preceding chapters, say everything you can about the italicized words in one of the following aspects: etymology, style, word-building, semantics

BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU WISH FOR A man walks into a restaurant with a full-grown ostrich behind him. As he sits down, the waitress comes over and asks for their order. The man says, “I’ll have a hamburger, fries and coke”, and turns to the ostrich. “What’s yours?” “I’ll have the same,” says the ostrich. A short time later the waitress returns with the order. “That will be $6.40 please”. The man reaches into his pocket and pulls out exact change for payment. The next day the man and the ostrich come again and the man says, “I’ll have a hamburger fries and a coke.” And the ostrich says, “I’ll have the same.” Once again the reaches his pocket and pays with exact change. This becomes a routine until late one evening the two enter again. “The usual?” asks the waitress. “No, this is Friday night, so I’ll have a steak, baked potato and salad,” says the man. “Same for me,” says the ostrich. A short time later the waitress comes with the order and says, “That will be $12.62.” Once again the man pulls the exact change out of his pocket and places it on the table. The waitress can’t hold back her curiosity any longer. “Excuse me, sir. How do you manage to always come up with the exact change out of your pocket every time?” “Well,” says the man, “several years ago I was cleaning the attic and found an old lamp. When I rubbed it a Genie appeared and offered me two wishes. My first wish was that if

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

61

I ever had to pay for anything, just put my hand in my pocket, and the right amount of money would always be there.” “That’s brilliant!’ says the waitress. “Most people would wish for a million dollars or something, but you’ll always be as rich as you want for as long as you live!” “That’s right! Whether it’s a gallon of milk or a Rolls Royce, the exact money is always there,” says the man. The waitress asks, ”One other thing, sir, what’s with the ostrich?” The man sighs, pauses and answers, “My second wish was for a tall chick with long legs who agrees with everything I say!”

English Homonyms 1. Find homonyms in the following extracts. Classify them into homonyms proper, homographs and homophones A. The parrot was green with red and grey bands on its wings. The Beatles are probably the most famous band in the world. B. UK’s low-wage economy fuels the brain drain. Wood, coal, oil are different kinds of fuel. C. Greece is considered the birthplace of western philosophy. He put some grease on the wheel. D. Your voice is hoarse. Do you have a cold? Cowboy Tom had a horse named Joe. E. The soldier decided to desert in the desert. F. There was a row among the oarsmen about how to row. G. We polish the Polish furniture. H. These flowers grow on the sloping river banks and near streams. I have to go to the bank at lunchtime. I. Let me say from the start that I have the highest possible admiration of the performing skills of Elvis Presley. I need to start early because the journey takes six hours. J. He quickly walked down the aisle and took his seat. She grew up on the isle of Elba. K. I shed a tear when I saw the tear in my clothes. L. The bandage was wound around the wound.

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

63

M. It was only towards the end of the second week that I let slip that I was not in any way qualified to teach writing. Hold your breath for a second. N. The scent in the air was fabulous. One cent isn’t worth much. O. The doors in the house all creak. The creek winds through the beautiful valley. P. The insurance for the invalid is invalid. Q. I didn’t object to the object. R. She can’t bear exams. He stood outside in the rain completely bare. S. The present is a good time to present a present. T. Keep your head up and your back straight. The safari look is never away for long and this season it is back with a vengeance. 2. Find homonyms proper to the following words and give their Russian equivalents Toast – sliced bread; blind – a cover for the window; bill – a formal statement of a planned new law; chip  – a plastic coin; figure  – the shape of the human body; fine – an amount of money that has to be paid; fur – a grey substance which can form on the inside of water pipes, kettles; corn – a hard, horny thickening of the skin, especially on the foot; hail – to greet, to salute; suit – a legal problem. 3. Find homophones to the following words, translate them into Russian or explain the meaning in English Male, paws, dear, fir, draft, hail, inn, none, pair, peal, rays, roam, vain, to, sink, flew, key, cell, chili, cite, buy, bread, brake, beach, counsel. 4. Find homographs to the following words and transcribe both words Bow (v.) – the act of bending the top part of your body forward in order to show respect;

64

Лексикология английского языка

Tear (n.) – a drop of salty liquid that comes out of your eye when you are crying; Minute (adj.) – extremely small; Row (n.) – a line of things or people; Wind (n.) – moving air; Invalid (adj.) – not legally or officially acceptable; Present (v.) – to give something to someone at a formal occasion. 5. Classify the following italicized homonyms. Use the classification system worked out by professor A. I. Smirnitsky A. The story was on the front page of every newspaper. A page was a boy who worked as a servant for a knight. B. Who can resist giving people of any age the benefit of our experience and wisdom? He works in a factory where they can fruit. C. I used to lie about my age but now I don’t bother. The cat likes to lie in front of the fire. D. This type of grass is found only in the swamp. She left a large sum of money in her will to found a wildlife sanctuary. E. My date is taking me out to dinner. A date is the sweet fruit of various types of palm-tree. F. Her hair was pulled back with a rubber band. Radio signals are transmitted in a different band. G. The pain was almost more than she could bear. I’m a bear of very little brain and long words bother me. H. There are sixty seconds in a minute. The jackets were sold seconds because they had some buttons missing. I. You should keep your savings in a bank. You ought to bank the money as soon as possible. 6. Explain the usage of homonyms which form the basis for the following jokes.

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

65

A. The judge asked the woman witness: “In what suit did you appear as a witness before? “In my blue serge”. B. A little daughter: A strange man was here to see you today, Daddy. Father: Did he have a bill? A little daughter: Oh, no, Daddy. Just a plain nose as everybody else. C. The booking clerk at a small station warned a villager: “You’ll have to change twice before you get to York.” The man, unused to traveling by train, mused:” Goodness me! And I’ve only got the clothes I’m wearing.” D. A crowd gathered on the shore to watch a ship in distress. A lady asked in horror: “Can’t something be done to the crew in danger?” “It’s all right, ma’am,’ said a sailor, “we sent a line to the crew to come ashore.” “Good gracious! Must they have a formal invitation?” E. Teacher: Now, who can tell me the name of an animal that has horns and is very dangerous for us to get near? Little Bobby: I know – it’s a truck. F. А Hotel manager: Now, look here, my boy. If you don’t turn over a new leaf I shall have to get a new page! 7. Explain how the following italicized words became homonyms A. Never resort to arms, except in the face of a direct threat to national independence. My arms ache from carrying this heavy bag. B. Now is therefore the time to set a firm date for British withdrawal from Iraq. The name of a sweet brownish fruit date goes back to the Greek root which meant “finger”. C. There are more than 1000 crew members on board the ship including a large number of Wrens. A wren is a small brown bird with short rounded wings and a short tail. D. A bear is a large mammal with long shaggy hair. The room was completely bare of furniture.

66

Лексикология английского языка

E. After years of civil war most population longed for peace. The building was taken apart, transported across the Atlantic and reassembled piece by piece. F. We witness the death of so-called ‘fast fashion’, which you can buy, wear and throw away because it cost you the same as a big coffee from Starbucks. He signed the treaty in the presence of the witness. G. Each light contains a super bright LED that lasts up to 100 hours on a single set of batteries. Light up dark corners and cupboards. H. I hate going in lifts. I always think they are going to get stuck. I’ll give you a lift to the station if you like. I. If you have mousy, dirty blonde hair, colouring one or two shades darker will work really well. She lowered her bucket into the well.

8. Do the following italicized words represent homonyms or different meanings of polysemantic words? Give reasons for your answers A. I think I’ve had a bit too much sun today. We’ve got two sons and three daughters. B. But Rich’s game went further downhill. At the 9-th hole he broke his 5-th iron club when he hit the ground instead of a ball. Venison and pheasants are types of game. Our football club needs new members. A lot of small businesses went broke in a recession. There’s still a whole month before my birthday. C. According to Dr. Patrick Bowler, a cream that is too rich cannot be absorbed properly into the skin. Peal banana skin. D. A man’s suit consists of a matching jacket and trousers. The four suits in a pack of cards are hearts, spades, clubs and diamonds. E. It’s important to get ingredients right. He had a scar on the right side of his face.

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

67

F. I took a bite of the cheese. Be careful of the dog, he bites. G. I’m a crazy football fan and this has been a dream of time. Why Birmingham? It was destiny  – the right time and the right situation. There was no air conditioning, just a ceiling fan turning slowly. H. The company will produce an initial run of 23 million of the bars (The Wispa) to test the market. Don’t cry, or your makeup will run. I. The fact that they (Prince William and Kate Middleton) are holidaying together suggests that he is keen to put the row behind them and make a go of their relationship. We stood in a row to receive our certificates from the Chancellor. What time does the last train to Bath go? 9. Read the following sentences and choose the correct word to fill the gap A. break / brake The man managed to stop the car safely using the hand _____. B. male / mail My secretary opens my ____ as soon as it arrives. C. pain / pane If you have a ____in the chest, you should see a doctor. D. paste / paced She ___ backwards and forwards in front of the door. E. sale / sail The ___ of the house produced $ 500,000. F. steaks / stakes The men hammered ____ into the ground to put up a wire fence. G. stationary / stationery The letter was typed on his office ___. H. suede / swayed

68

Лексикология английского языка

The girl was wearing black ___ shoes. I. tail / tale Granny told the children a ___ of princesses and wicked fairies. J. tic / tick Put a ___ against the names of the people who have accepted the invitation. K. vain / vein Some drugs have to be injected directly into a patient’s ___. L. whale / wail She started to ___ when she read the news. M. waist / waste She measures 32 inches around the ___. N. ware / wear The company must do more to promote their ___ overseas. 10. Read the following sentences aloud. Find the homographs and transcribe them A. They were too close to the door to close it. B. A farm can produce produce. C. He could lead if he would get the lead out. D. The dump was so full, it had to refuse refuse. E. I didn’t object to the object. F. The wind was too strong to wind the sail. G. He had to subject the subject to a series of test. H. How can I intimate this to my most intimate friend? 11. To revise what you have learnt from the preceding chapters, say everything you can about the italicized words (etymology, word-building, semantics, style)

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

69

Let’s face it – English is a crazy language. There’s no egg in the eggplant, nor ham in hamburger; neither apple nor pine in the pineapple. English muffins were not invented in England or French fries in France. Sweetmeats are candies while sweetbreads, which aren’t sweet, are meat. Sometimes I think that all the English speakers should be committed to an asylum for the verbally insane. In what language do people recite at a play and play a recital? Ship by truck and send cargo by ship? Have noses that run and feet that smell? How can a slim chance and a fat chance be the same, while a wise man and a wise guy are opposites?

Paradigmatic Relations of Words 1. The sentences given below contain synonyms. Write them out and explain the difference A. A) The US seems set to elect the least experienced president (Barack Obama) in modern history. B) Contemporary classical music can be overwhelming and off-putting because it’s too formal. B. A) The climax of the election campaign coincided with a financial crisis that was shaking the US capitalism to its core. B) On the glacially cold morning of 10 February 2007 I stood shivering in the crowd outside the Old State House in Springfield (Illinois), as Barack Obama formally declared himself a candidate to be the 44 President of the United States. C. A) I (Mick Jones) used not to like jazz but as you get older you appreciate it more. B) At Newman we value the contribution international students bring to the academic and cultural development on campus. D. If you want glitz and glamour you can find it in Antigua. E. A) Mr. Nkunda had promised to set up a ‘humanitarian corridor’ to allow aid through  – but the message clearly hasn’t got through to his troops. B) As the security situation continues to deteriorate MSF urgently needs your help to provide people with the medical care, shelter and clean water. F. A) People are tired, scared and in desperate need of shelter and food. B) For eleven years in the seventies the city of Florence was terrorized by a serial killer.

71

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

G. A) To be world champion you need to be quick, you need to be consistent, you need to work well with the team and you need to be lucky. B)  Three months on from the painful disappointment, the fastest female marathon runner of all time is rapidly regaining fitness and form. H. The 15-nation Southern African Development Community has called for a summit to try to break the deadlock. Officials said the meeting might be held as early as this week. I. An average of 344 children a day are suspended from English schools for violence against other pupils. The figured published yesterday show 65,390 pupils were temporary excluded for violence against classmates in 2006–2007. J. A) During what has been the most grueling election campaign ever, the candidate has aged. B) The working lives of Mr. Ali and his fellow rickshaw drivers is hard and brutal, made worse by Dhaka’s awful traffic. C) Almost the last act of the Bush administration will be to make life tougher for travelers. 2. Give as many synonyms as you can for the italicized words in the following jokes. If you don’t know any, consult a dictionary

Woman Thoughts A. Women over 50 don’t have babies because they would put them down and forget where they left them. B. My mind not only wanders, it sometimes leaves completely. C. The best way to forget your troubles is to wear tight shoes. D. Amazing! You hang something in your closet and it shrinks 2 sizes. E. Skinny people irritate me. Especially when they say things like this: “You know sometimes I forget to eat!” Now. I’ve forgotten my address, my mother’s maiden name and my keys. But I’ve never forgotten to eat. You have to be a special kind of stupid to forget to eat!

72

Лексикология английского языка

F. I read the article that said that the typical symptoms of stress are: eating too much, impulse driving and driving too fast. Are they kidding? That’s my idea of a prefect day! G. The older you get, the tougher it is to lose weight because by then your body and your fat are really good friends. 3. Carry out definitional and transformational analysis on the italicized synonyms using the explanations of meanings given below. Draw diagrams and define the types of connotations A. To shut is to close something, or to become closed; to lock is to shut by using a lock; to bolt is to shut by using a metal bar; to bar is to close something by putting a bar or a piece of wood. B. To laugh is to make sounds with your voice because you think that something is funny; to chuckle is to laugh quietly; to giggle is to laugh quickly in high voice because you are nervous or embarrassed; to snigger is to laugh quietly in an unkind or unpleasant way; to cackle is to laugh in an unpleasant loud way; to guffaw is to laugh very loudly. C. Smell denotes the quality that people and animals recognize by using their nose; perfume is a good smell of a liquid; aroma is a pleasant smell used especially about food or coffee; odour is a bad smell; stink is a very strong bad smell. D. Angry means feeling strong emotions because you think that the situation is unfair, cruel, offensive; annoyed feeling not very angry; furious means feeling very angry; outraged means very angry and shocked, because you think that something is unfair or wrong. E. Attractive means someone who is pleasant to look at; pretty is usually used about a woman or a girl while handsome as a rule refers to a man or a boy; gorgeous or stunning are used about anyone who is very attractive or beautiful in Informal English; cute is used to describe a child or an animal; cute in American English means sexually attractive.

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

73

4. Use the definitions of the following synonyms which are given in contemporary dictionaries and prove that synonyms possess a dual nature. Draw diagrams to illustrate your answer Cold – cool – chilly – freezing; mishap – accident – disaster; to advertise – to promote – to market; answer – reply – response – retort; lazy – idle – indolent; to leave – to quit – to resign – to retire; to leave one’s country  – to emigrate  – to migrate  – to exile  – to banish; to close – to shut – to slam; to find – to discover – to trace – to locate – to unearth; fashionable  – trendy  – stylish; flame  – blaze  – flash  – flare; gift – present – donation; honest – fair – sincere; to imitate – to copy – to counterfeit; clean – pure; cheap – low-priced, worthless. 5. Find the dominant synonym in the following groups of synonyms. Explain your choice Nail-biting – gripping – thrilling – exciting; to fasten – to clip – to tie – to button – to zip (up); to assemble – to build – to construct – to erect; to sip – to gulp – to drink – to swig; tough – hard – difficult; dirty – dusty – muddy – greasy; to sob – to cry – to weep; unstable – disturbed – insane – crazy; clean – spotless – pristine – immaculate; grave – serious – solemn. 6. The following humorous quotations contain members of groups of synonyms. Provide as many synonyms as you can for each, explaining the difference between them; single out the dominant synonym giving reasons for your choice A. A celebrity is a person who works hard all his life to become well-known, then wears dark glasses to avoid being recognized (Fred Allen). B. A compromise is an agreement whereby both parties get what neither of them wanted (Author Unknown). C. A conclusion is the place where you got tired of thinking (Attributed to Arthur McBride Bloch). D. All generalizations are bad (R. H. Grenier).

74

Лексикология английского языка

E. All my life, I always wanted to be somebody. Now I see that I should have been more specific (Jane Wagner, The Search for Intelligent Life in The Universe). F. Say what you will about the ten Commandments, you must always come back to the pleasant fact that there are only ten of them (H. L. Mencken). 7. Read the following groups of words. What do we call them? How do they differ from the groups of synonyms? Give several examples of your own Flowers: daisy, buttercup, rose, sunflower, iris, poppy, geranium. Vegetables: lettuce, onion, beetroot, garlic, peppers, radish. 8. Read the following headlines from British newspapers. Provide synonyms for the italicized words. Analyze them using the classification worked out by academician V. V. Vinogradov. A. House prices are starting to cool. B. Greedy GPs (general practitioner) kick out patients. C. Here is yet another casualty of oppressive political correctness. D. Pet camel kills owner on ranch. E. Are Tories right to target inheritance tax? F. The tattoo that needn’t needle you all your life. G. Pick up a new French Language Dictionary today. H. Jane calms protest with cups of tea. I. Preacher Graham rushed to hospital. J. Police to swoop on British suspect. 9. There are a lot of euphemistic substitutes for such words as: god, devil, to die, drunk, stupid, lavatory in English. Find some examples from dictionaries. What is the difference between social euphemisms and superstitious taboos?

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

75

10. Find euphemisms in the following sentences. Classify them from the point of view of Linguistics

Political Correctness for Teens A. These days, a student isn’t lazy. He’s “energetically declined”. B. Your homework isn’t missing, it’s just having an ‘out-ofnotebook experience”. C. You’re not sleeping in class, you’re “rationing consciousness”. D. You’re not late, you just have “rescheduled arrival time”. E. You’re not having bad hair today. You’re suffering from “rebellious follicle syndrome”. F. No one is tall any more. He’s “vertically enhanced”. G. You’re not shy. You’re “conversationally selective”. H. You don’t talk a lot. You’re just-abundantly verbal”. I. You weren’t passing notes in class. You were “participating in the discreet exchange of penned meditations”. J. It’s not called gossip anymore. It’s the speedy transition of “near-factual information”. 11. Find antonyms for the words given below. What type of antonyms are these? Busy, adj.; bright adj.; brutal, adj.; bitter, adj.; artificial, adj.; ancient, adj.; beauty, n.; beginning, n.; accuse, v.; accept, v.; courage, n.; evil, n.; lose, v.; permit, v.; create, v.; cry, v.; arrive, v.; remember, v. 12. Form antonyms from verbs by using one of the following prefixes: dis-, mis-, un-. Sometimes you can use different prefixes to form new words from the same root: disinterested – ‘impartial’, uninterested - ‘not interested’ Agree, behave, fold, like, load, lock, pack, obey, trust, use. 13. Give the opposite word combinations by using root antonyms (for example: to be present – to be absent).

76

Лексикология английского языка

Casual clothes, to capture a person, to be proud of one’s country, a public telephone, rich soil, rigid methods, dangerous animals, a sad look, rural districts, a serious injury, a timid child, to pass an exam, to loosen the shoelaces. 14. To revise what you have learned from the preceding chapters, say everything you can about the italicized words in one of the following aspects: a) etymology; b) word-building; c) homonymy; d) synonymy An elderly couple had dinner at another’s couple house, and after eating the wives left the table and went to the kitchen. The two gentlemen got talking and one of them said: “Last night we went out to a new restaurant and it was really great. I recommend it highly.” The other man said: “What’s the name of the restaurant?” The first man thought for a moment and then said: “What’s the name of the flower you give to someone you love? You know, the one that’s red and has thorns.” “Do you mean a rose?” “Yes, that’s the one,” replied the man. He then turned towards the kitchen and yelled: “Rose, what’s the name of that restaurant we went to last night?”

English Phraseology 1. Read the following sentences. Identify phraseological units in them by using two major criteria: structural and semantic. Write out the examples and translate them into Russian A. “It was the most terrifying thing I have ever done in my entire life”, admits Fearne, 27, who cut her teeth on children’s TV. B. Helena Christensen gets the green light to photograph illuminating new eco campaign. A mother herself she doesn’t merely pay lip service to her eco beliefs. C. Bond fans will remember the iconic scene from 1964’s Goldfinger in which Shirley Eaton’s character Jill Masterson comes to a sticky end when she is coated top to toe in gold paint. D. Gemma, 22, and Shirley now 72, were all smiles when they met at the Top to Tail charity evening where Gemma joined fellow Bond girls, past and present, on the catwalk. She was not the only one. In fact, the venue was packed to the grills with celebrities and their children, including Spice Girls, Olympic medalist Sally Gunnell and musician Dan Hipgrave. E. In her 56 years as head of state, the Queen and her husband have embarked on 326 tours abroad together, beating the drum for Britain in a way no-one else can. And who else could bring the heart of the city to a standstill as they did, attracting crowds five-deep as they went on a walkabout through the center of the Slovenian capital. F. It’s as hot as hell on set. I (Nicole Kidman) fell a little under the weather but we had a beautiful day yesterday, swam in the hot

78

Лексикология английского языка

springs and pretended we were in Italy. I’m not sure how I can get to the end. I’m in every single scene now six days a week, for months on end. I can’t see the light at the end of the tunnel. G. The cocktail is a fitting tribute to the writer (Jackie Collins), whose best-selling novels have been lifting the lid on Tinseltown for the last 40 years. 2. Read the following questions and give your answers to them. What are the two major criteria for distinguishing between idioms and free word groups? A. What kind of party is a stag party? B. Our postman kicked the bucket last week. What has happened to him? C. A tiresome, irritating person is described as a pain in what part of the body? D. Jack‘s behind bars. Where is he? E. Where on the body would you find crow’s feet? F. What’s a busman’s holiday? G. What sort of person is an early bird? H. How would you be feeling if you were full of beans? 3. Read the idioms and classify them according to the source of their origin: the Bible, quotations from Shakespeare, Greek and Roman poetry and mythology, customs and traditions A land of milk and honey, to cast pearls before swine, cakes and ale, to rub salt in the wound, to cross the Rubicon, the black sheep, to over-egg the pudding, to give the devil his due, to paint the lily, to cast the first stone at somebody, the green-eyed monster, baker’s dozen, bread and circuses. 4. Fill in the gaps using one of these words: blue, white, green, red, yellow, pink. Translate the idioms into Russian.

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

79

1. I was …with envy when I heard that he would be going to Paris for a week while I had to stay and work. 2. Lily argued with him until she was … in the face. 3. The company has been in the … for two years now – ever since their exports to Asia decreased by 20 per cent. 4. She was tickled … that you made the effort to go and visit her when you were in Spain. 5. The new stereo that he bought is a … elephant. He doesn’t need it at all. 6. He has a … streak running down his back. He is not a person to support you when things become difficult. 5. Lots of idioms have words denoting colour in their structure. Read the questions and choose the right answer. Translate the idioms into Russian. A. What do you say when a person is fired? a) to get the brown slip; b) to get the pink slip; c) to get the white slip B. How would you call an ideal man? a) blue knight; b) green knight; c) white knight C. How do you feel when you are sad? a) green; b) blue; c) yellow D. How do you describe a person who feels very happy? a) to be tickled pink; b) to be tickled white c) to be tickled red E. How do you call a person who is very envious? a) green with envy; b) blue with envy; c) yellow with envy F. What would you say if a person feels fit? a) to be in the red; b) to be in the pink; c) to be in the black G. What would you say if a person is a coward? a) a blue streak; b) a red streak; c) a yellow streak 6. Read the sentences and find idioms in them. Correct the mistakes in the usage of idioms. What principle of a phraseological unit is violated in the examples?

80

Лексикология английского языка

A. When he lost all his money, he still tried to keep appearances even though he could not afford his lifestyle. B. She is always the odd out one. When her friends do one sport, she does a different one. C. Sometimes it is better to give a low profile at work. In that case nobody asks you to do difficult tasks. D. He is always putting on grace and air, but everyone knows he’s just an ordinary person with a very ordinary background. E. She became a name for herself by being the first woman to climb Mount Everest. 7. One of the main functions of proverbs is their didactic function. Read the proverbs and explain what moral principles and values of the society are reflected in them. Translate the proverbs into Russian –– –– –– –– –– –– –– ––

An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. Cowards die many times before their death. Hope for the best and prepare for the worst. Haste makes waste. Idleness is the root of all evil. One day is worth two tomorrow. He’s a fool that makes a doctor his heir. Genius without education is like silver in the mine.

8. Proverbs are characterized by their poetic form. Read the proverbs and find the cases of alliteration and rhyme. Translate the proverbs into Russian. –– –– –– –– –– ––

Barking dogs seldom bite. Look before you leap. Every dog has its day. Where there’s a will, there’s a way. A light purse is a heavy curse. Velvet paws hide sharp claws.

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

–– ––

81

A little pot is soon hot. It’s a sin to steal a pin.

9. Some popular proverbs are twisted by the speakers or advertisers to achieve a humorous effect. Read some new versions of the proverb “An apple a day keeps the doctor away.” Explain the changes in the structure and meaning of the proverb –– Eat on apple on going to bed and you’ll keep a doctor from earning his bread. –– An onion a day keeps everybody away. –– A beer a day keeps the doctor away. –– A potato a day could keep high blood pressure away. 10. Read the following English proverbs. Translate them into Russian. Do British and Russian people use the same or different imagery? –– Don’t teach fishes to swim. –– The same knife cuts bread and fingers. –– Dumb dogs are dangerous. –– A single bamboo can’t make a row. –– A cat in gloves catches no mice. –– It never rains but it pours. –– Make hay while the sun shines. –– An hour in the morning is worth two in the evening. –– 11. Give the English equivalents for the following Russian proverbs –– –– –– –– –– –– ––

В гостях хорошо, а дома лучше. Поспешишь – людей насмешишь. Он пороху не выдумает. Взялся за гуж, не говори, что не дюж. Слезами горю не поможешь. Дуракам закон не писан. Нет худа без добра.

82

Лексикология английского языка

12. Read the examples of English sayings. Translate them into Russian. What is the difference between proverbs and sayings? –– –– –– –– –– –– ––

Boys will be boys. Take while the taking is good. Heads I win, tails you lose. Will a duck swim? A little bird told me. Queen Ann is dead! All is fish that comes to his net.

American English A lot of people study English worldwide. However, not all of them are fully aware that there are two main variants of English taught at schools, colleges and universities – British and American. While the differences are small enough and you will be generally understood wherever you go, they are also great enough to cause some confusion. In this part of the book we would first of all like to draw your attention to some peculiarities in the vocabulary and spelling. 1. Give British and American variants of pronunciation of the words given below. When in doubt, use a dictionary A. Dynasty, privacy, vitamin, patriot, zebra, leisure, zenith, blouse, erase, tomato, pasta, Slovak, either, neither, apricot, patent, Asia, version. B. Advertisement, predicative, hospitable, controversy, princess, weekend, aristocrat, kilometer, escalope, guru, mama, papa (stress differences). 2. In his article “American English in Europe” D. Crystal classifies Americanisms into five broad categories. Study the classification and explain the grounds for every point of the classification. Add 3–5 examples of your own to each group A. Usages where the American term is unused in Britain (it may or may not be understood), though the phenomenon referred to is shared by both, e.g. sidewalk.

84

Лексикология английского языка

B. Usages where the term is familiar, but its sense differs in Britain, though the phenomenon is shared by both, e.g. billion, gas. C. Usages where the term or sense refers to an American ‘institution’ (in the broadest sense, including geographical, political, botanical, etc. phenomena) and could be used in Britain, but only when referring to that institution, e.g. senator, baseball. D. Usages where term, sense and phenomenon are shared but the occurrence is more normal in the United States than in Britain, e.g. hi, can. E. Usages where there are still definite overtones of American origin, but there is no obvious difference in frequency of use between Britain and the United States, e.g., O.K., coke (coca-cola). 3. Give the British equivalents for the following Americanisms. What group do they belong to? Apartment, baby carriage, sidewalk, subway, truck, round trip, backpack, eraser, pants, resume, faucet, garbage, cab, supermarket cart, fall, elevator, candy, flashlight, fortnight, bottled water, spare room, shrimp, intersections, parking lot, drugstore( pharmacy), downtown, installment plan, dormitory (dorm), principal, mailman, pedestrian crossing, vacation. 4. Explain the difference in the meanings of the words in British and American English. What group do they belong to? Minced meat, mean (adj.), lacquer, bathroom, gas, corn, biscuit, hold-up, to table an item (on the agenda). 5. Early Americans had to coin words for the unfamiliar fauna and flora, food, features of landscape, etc. Later on new words were coined to describe a peculiar American lifestyle. Analyze the following words from the point of view of wordbuilding and add 5–8 examples of your own to each group

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

85

A. Blue grass, bullfrog, sunfish, rattlesnake; New York, New Jersey; Georgia, Virginia; B. Superpower, yuppie, weight watcher, sitcom, unisex, zip code, jogging, laser, hit parade, summit, foxtrot. 6. Words were also borrowed from other languages to name the unfamiliar fauna and flora, new objects. Identify the etymology of the following words: Wigwam, moccasin, tomahawk, Michigan, Texas, Ohio, canoe, toboggan; tornado, ranch, canyon, sombrero; pumpkin, prairie, rapids, cache; pipe of peace, pale-faced, to go on the war path. 7. Words in British and American English might differ in their collocations. Study the examples given below and illustrate the differences using sentences from original texts A. The use of prepositions in British.  –American English: in the street – on the street, to do things at the weekend – to do things on the weekend, to be in two minds about something – to be of two minds about something, to enroll on a course – to enroll in a course, to leave on Monday – to leave Monday, to fill in a form – to fill out a form, to meet somebody – to meet with somebody; B. The difference of usage of idiomatic expressions in British  – American English: to sweep under the carpet  – to sweep under the rug, not to see the wood for the trees – not to see the forest for the trees, a drop in the ocean  – a drop in the bucket, flogging a dead horse  – beating a dead horse, touch wood  – knock on the wood, to take something with a pinch of salt – to take something with a grain of salt, to blow one’s own trumpet – to blow one’s own horn, a storm in a teacup – a tempest in a teacup / teapot. C. The difference in some collocations in British and American English: to have a bath – to take a bath, to ship goods by sea – to ship goods by sea or by land, to ride a horse, a bicycle – to ride a horse, a bicycle + in a car, in a train, in a boat, to do a deal – to make a deal, to go to university – to go to the university, to go to hospital – to go to

86

Лексикология английского языка

the hospital; the collocations to go to church/ school / college, to be at church, school / college are shared by both of the variants. 8. In some spheres (such as advertizing, commerce, technology, pop culture, rock music, show biz etc.) the impact of American English on British English and other languages (e.g. French, German, Swedish, Spanish, Russian) is great. Choose one of the spheres mentioned above and compile a list of words (neologisms) which appeared in American English two or three decades ago. Later on the words were borrowed into other languages, becoming international words. 9. Analyze the spelling differences between BrE and AmE. Classify the differences into systematic (affect large groups of words) and non-systematic (affect a small group of words) and state what spelling norms are accepted in Great Britain and the US. Colour, flavour, humour, labour, odour  – color, flavor, humor, labor, odor; Centre, fibre, litre, theatre – center, fiber, liter, theater; Distil, fulfil, enrol, instil – distill, enroll, fulfill, instill; Apologise, civilise, organise, – apologize, civilize, organize; Catalogue, dialogue, monologue, prologue  – catalog, dialog, monolog, prolog; Judgement, acknowledgement – judgment, acknowledgment; Cheque – check; axe –ax; gaol –jail; plough – plow, grey – gray; Nouns: defence, offence, practice – defense, offense, practise; Marvellous– marvelous, woollen –woolen. 10. Visit Wikipedia website and read the information about American and British spelling differences (http//en.wikipedia. org) Add 3–5 examples to each group mentioned above. 11. Read the text. Analyze the italicized words. What group of Americanisms do they belong to?

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

87

Crime Report: Subway Showdowns, Cell Swipes, Purse Pinches, and More Here’s the latest installment of “Police and Thieves”. A. A guy asked a woman for directions in the Second Avenue subway station and then snatched her cellphone on March 17. The 23-year-old victim said that after she gave the suspect directions at around 9:50 p.m., he grabbed her iPhone 45 from her hand. She gave chase but lost the thief on the street. B. After drinking till closing time At Double Down Saloon on March 18, a 27-year–old from Wisconsin passed out on a subway platform. He woke up four hours later and was missing his cellphone as well as the iPhone that he used for browsing the Internet. To add insult to injury, when he tried to report the crime to a booth clerk at the station she wouldn’t help him out. C. A woman realized her wallet was missing while she ate dinner at Otafuku on March 12. A $175 transaction had already been made on her credit card by the time she canceled it. D. A woman’s purse went missing from Webster Hall on Jan.1. The victim decided to report the crime on March 7 after she was alerted by her bank that she had a negative balance of $5,196 due to the suspect writing numerous bad checks. 12. Read some extracts from the text dealing with American higher education. Write out words and word collocations related to the topic. What group of Americanisms do they belong to? Point to some cases of American spelling. Find additional information about Universities mentioned in the text. A. Super senior. A super senior is a student in an American fouryear educational institution such as a high school or university who has been attending the institution for 5 or more years or has more than the usual number of credits required to graduate without achieving a diploma or bachelor's degree. B. Redshirt student athlete. A student athlete may have been made a redshirt during their freshman year, which delays their four year

88

Лексикология английского языка

eligibility for competition in the NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association, the organization which is in charge of sports at American colleges and universities) till their sophomore year. As a result, they will still be eligible the year after their senior year and may stay in college to continue competition. C. Leave of absence. Students may take a leave of absence from their university for the difficult circumstances described below or pursue other endeavors, such as living, working, or studying abroad, tending to a fledgling business, or pursuing opportunities in their chosen career. Stanford University in particular is known for its sizable constituency of fifth-year (and sometimes even of six-year) seniors who took time off to volunteer or work overseas. Many of Stanford’s more famous alumni have taken a leave of absence and never returned to the school. Another school well-known in this regard is Brigham Young University, the flagship school of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Many Male BYU students, both at the main campus in Utah and at its branch campuses in Hawaii and Idaho, take two years off during their studies to go on LDS missions. D. Community College Transfers. Many times when a student transfers to a 4-year school after completing 2  years at community college not all credits transfer over and the student may have to attend 3 years at the 4-year university or college for a total of 5 years. All classes that a student wants to transfer over to the University must be transferable. Although the grades will show up on all college transcripts, the units for the classes may not count and should always be checked. Additionally, a student needs to check their catalog and bulletin rights as these change yearly. However, the year a student enters the school system is the year their catalog rights begin and most changes do not affect them as long as they have not had a leave of absence. 13. Read the text. Is it written in British or American English? Prove your point of view by the examples from the text. Analyze the italicized words from the point of view of vocabulary and / or spelling. What are the stylistic characteristics of the text?

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

89

Navy pilots eject from jet and send fighter careening into apartments Virginia Beach, Va. – Two Navy pilots ejected from a fighter jet after dumping loads of fuel to avoid major explosion, sending their unmanned plane careening into a Virginia Beach apartment complex and engulfing several buildings in flames, officials said. Seven people, including both pilots, were injured. The Navy said both aviators on board the jet ejected before it crashed around noon and were being taken to the hospitals for observations. Dozens of police cars, fire trucks and other emergency vehicles filled the densely populated neighborhood where the plane crashed. Yellow fire hoses snaked through side streets as fire crews poured water on the charred rooftops of brick apartment houses. By late afternoon, the fire had been put out. Joanie Coleman said she heard several explosions and saw the black smoke. She picked up her bag and ran around behind the apartment, where people were tending to the pilot. “He fell on someone’s patio,” she said, “He was in shock and he apologized to the person who was trying to help him. He said, ’I’m sorry I landed in your back yard.” A multicolored parachute could be seen hanging from the roof of an apartment closest to the crash center. As authorities closed roads in the neighborhood, highway traffic backed up on side streets and on nearby Interstate 264, with slowmoved columns of vehicles bringing drivers to a virtual standstill early Friday afternoon. The attorney said the jet suffered a mechanical failure, but a series of bad decisions led the pilot student-to-bypass a potentially safe landing at a coastal Navy base after his engine failed. The pilot ejected and told the investigators he screamed in horror as he watched the jet plow into the neighborhood, incinerating two homes. The court ordered the US government to pay the family nearly $18 million in restitution.

Revision 1. Read the text. In what vein is the article written: is the text formal, informal, neutral? Can you spot some cases of irony?

Even Candy Can Be Health For many people, the scariest part of starting off on a new, healthier way of eating is the idea of giving up their favorite sweet treats – forever! If you are a cookie-and-candy craver, don’t despair. Candies can be part of a healthy, lifelong eating pattern. But for the least harm and – don’t forget this – the fullest enjoyment, they should be eaten in moderation. That means in small amounts, or only a couple of times a week. Even a woman who has made a career out of eating candy admits she has cut back her consumption to one day a week. Hilary Liftin, blessedly svelte, wrote the critically acclaimed, tongue-inthe-cheek memoir Candy and Me: A Love Story. “Candy’s meaning,” she says, “has more subtlety than it tastes. It affords a fleeting spike of pleasure, sometimes guilty, or elusive or bittersweet, like an impossible love affair.” Such a romanticization aside, the smorgasbord of candy – not to mention cheeseburgers, cookies, cakes, pies, fries, chips, barbeque, and ice-cream – that Americans consume has helped to lead to skyrocketing obesity rates and a near-epidemic of diabetes. So why would anyone in his or her right mind ever think it’s OK to eat candy, cake, or pie?

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

91

“Some choices are better than others,” says Larrian Gillespie, MD, author of The Goddess Diet. “You have to know the consequences before you make the choice.” When asked about the half pound of candy Liftin reportedly eats in a sitting (only on Fridays, mind you), Gillespie said such a binge would definitely affect insulin levels, stressing the body’s hormone system. In other words, it might taste good going in, but the price will be paid. So from now on take a course on self-control and healthy eating. But what if, despite your best intentions, you throw moderation to the wind and have that second piece of cake, or even a whole bag of candy? “Start anew,” Gillespie says. “You can’t change the hormone response, so forgive yourself and get on with life.” (By Jean Lawrence, Web MD, Weight Loss Clinic). 2. Study the text and analyze the underlined words and wordcombinations from the point of view of one of the criteria given below: – register; – etymology; – word building; – neologisms & nonce words; – collocations of words; – polysemy; – synonyms / antonyms; – American English (vocabulary & spelling)

ONLINE REFERENCE TOOLS 1. Dictionaries and thesauruses http://thesaurus.com/ http://dictionary.reference.com http://www.harpercollins.co.uk http://www/websters-online-dictionary.org/ http://www.merriam-webster.com/info/ http://www oed.com/about/history.hml http://etymonline.com/ http://www.allwords.com/ http://www.wordsmith.org All the major monolingual learners’ dictionaries are sold with a CD-ROM. The CD-ROMs often have the following features: search (ability); audio recordings; games and exercises; information on typical errors; thesaurus functions; information on frequency. 2. Corpuses British National Corpus http://natcorp.ox.ac.uk/ American National Corpus http://americannationalcorpus.org/ 3. Translators for language analysis http://babelfish.altavista.com/

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

4. Encyclopedias for research and project work http://britannica.com/ http://en.wikipedia.org/ http://encyclopedia.com/ 5. Real language searches www.ask.com/ www.altavista.com/ 6. Some useful websites http://www.slangsite.com/ www.siliconvalleyslang.com/ www.coolslang.com/ http://www.behindthename.com/ (some articles about the origin of names and surnames) http://www.homepages.newnet.co.uk/dance/webpjd/index.htm. http://www.word-detective.com/ www.bbc.co.uk/ http://www.macmillandictionaryblog.com/us-vs-uk-english http://uk.cambridge.org/journals http:// www.askoxford.com/

93

Answer Key Words in Discourse: Informal Register Ex. 5 A. busy; B. crazy; C. a small sum of money; D. policemen; caught; E. failed; F. a large luxurious car; G. man; H. threw away; I. serious; J. was stolen.

Ex. 9 a) swell, nifty, bong, cool; b)  nuts, baloney, dizzy, hogwash, balderdash, poppycock, bum, duff, byzantine.

Ex. 11 A. Кiddo – чувак; B. a tough guy – крутой парень; C. cranky – чокнутый; D.  cop мент; E.  cop-shop ментовка; F.  shit  – блин; G.  gormless  – тормоз; H.  crickey!  – ни фига себе! I.  a cool cat  – клевый мужик; J. I don’t dig it – я не врубаюсь.

Ex. 13 Noise, head, house, boots, money, kid, pocket, ten, shoes, beer, pinch (steal), mate, thief, laugh, wrong.

Ex. 16 A boffin  – scientist, a buggy  – a car, a brig  – a prison, a ballyhoo  – an advert, a burb  – a suburb, an airhead  – a fool, a bog  – a toilet, a broker – a drug-dealer, poppycock – nonsense, a corker – a fun, dreck – rubbish, a gob – a mouth, a hole-in-the-wall – ATM, a cabbage – a slow foolish person, a cakehole – a mouth, a chestnut –

95

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

an old and predictable joke, a ciggy – cigarette, a gaff – a house or place, a pony – 25-pound banknote, pictures of the Queen – paper money.

Words and their Origin Ex. 10 A barn – a child , to bait – to offer food, a brig – a bridge, a dale – a valley, a beck – a stream, a brook, to skift – to shift, a poke – a sack, a bag, nay – no.

Ex.18 A tree, antelope, a large antelope, a peanut, a type of dance, a musical instrument, a type of soup, a sweet potato, rice with ham, sausage and vegetables.

Ex.20 A, B, C – Spanish; D – Arabic; E, F – Italian; G – African; H – Turkish; I – Japanese; J – German; K – Chinese; L – Hindi; M, N – Dutch.

Ex. 21 A. Latin (1 period), Native (Germanic), Italian, French (Norman). B.  Native (Indo-European), Native (Germanic), Native (Germanic). C. Native (Germanic), Native (Germanic,) Native (Germanic), French (Norman). D.  Latin (1 period), French (Norman), Latin (3  period). E.  Native (Germanic), Latin (3  period), French (Norman), Scandinavian, Scandinavian. F.  Latin (3  period), Latin (3  period), Native (Germanic). H. Italian, Latin (3 period), French (Norman).

Ex. 22 A. Italian. B. Spanish. C. Spanish. D.  Spanish. E.  Spanish. F. German. G–I. Latin. J, K. Scandinavian. L. Spanish. M. German. N.  Latin (2 period). O.  Scandinavian. P.  Latin (1  period). Q.  Scandinavian. R. Latin (2 period), S. Latin (3 period). T. French (Parisian). U.  Italian. V.  Latin (3  period). W.  Arabic. X–Y.  French (Norman). Z. French (Parisian). AA. Italian. AB. French (Parisian). AC. French (Norman). AD. French (Parisian). AE. Finnish. AF. Japanese.

96

Лексикология английского языка

Ex. 23 Tongue – language, book – volume, to ask – to question, wedding – marriage, smell – scent, sorrow – grief, rise – mount (ascend), time – age (epoch), childish – infantile, friendly – cordial.

Ex. 31 Brother – fraternal, eye – ocular, father – paternal, friend – amicable, foe – hostile, house – domestic, heart – cordial, hand – manual, life – vital, man – human, moon – lunar, nose – nasal, sea marine, star – stellar, youth – juvenile.

Word-building Ex. 20 World-famous, short-sighted, sun-tanned, absent-minded, fairhaired, eye-catching, hand-made, four-star.

Ex. 22 Acronyms: TEAM – Together Everyone Achieves More; UFO – Unidentified Flying Object; VIP – Very Important Person; FEAR – False Evidence that Appears Real; PIN – Personal Identification Number; AIDS – Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome; SAD – Seasonal Affective Disorder; SAM  – Surface  -to-Air Missile; ZIP  – Zoning Improvement Plan; BOGOF – Buy One Get One Free; WOMBAT – Waste of Money, Brains and Time, HAND – Have a Nice Day. Initialisms: ATM – Automates Teller Machine; CC – Credit Card; GM  – General Manager; IQ  – Intelligence Quotient; PC  – Political Correctness; PR – Public Relations; GDP – Gross Domestic Product; SASE – Self-Addressed Stamped Envelope; WTO – World Trade Organization; B2B – business-to-business, B2C – business-to-customer, CEO – Chief Executive Officer.

Ex. 23 Hurry-scurry – a fuss. Chop-chop – hurry up! Dum-dum  – a soft bullet that causes serious wounds because it breaks into pieces when it hurts you.

97

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

Hip-hop – a type of popular dance music. Hotch-potch – a number of things mixed up without order. Buddy-buddy – very friendly. Gender-blender  – someone who is dressed or behaves in a way typical of the opposite sex. Nodge-podge – a lot of things mixed up together in no order (Am E.). Wishy-washy  – an adjective used to describe people who do not have firm, clear ideas (used to show disapproval).

Ex. 25 Birtism – the principles of John Birt – the Director General of the BBC from 1992. Burb – from suburb. Foodie – a person whose hobby is food, a gourmet. Gobsmacked – a slang word which means astounded, speechless; from gob which means mouth in slang and smacked – the image of clapping a hand over the mouth. Hearing dog – a dog trained to guide and help the deaf. Hotting – driving recklessly in a stolen car. Homesitter  – a person who stays at home for a certain sum of money waiting for a gas worker etc. Home-shopping – the purchase of goods from home. Mobile – from mobile phone. Power nap – a nap taken in a day-time to refresh a person. Quad bike – off-road four-wheeled motorcycle used for sport; quad is from quadruple. Road kill – the killing of an animal by a vehicle on the road. Squarial – an aerial for receiving satellite TV broadcasting; from square and aerial. Wolf-dog – a hybrid between a dog and a wolf. V-chip – a chip which prevents children viewing violence and sex programs.

98

Лексикология английского языка

Words and Their Meanings Ex. 6 To confront an issue, due respect, to establish communication, a fair comment, to issue a denial, to put a question (to the class).

The Development and Change of Meaning Ex. 8 To run into trouble / difficulties  – to start to experience a difficult or unpleasant situation to hop mad to be extremely angry to jump to the conclusion – to form an opinion before you have all the facts to walk straight into a job – to get the job easily to go far – to have a great future to find oneself at a crossroads – having to choose one thing or another to reach the peak of one’s career – be become very successful to go downhill – to go badly to jump from one topic to another – to change quickly from one idea to another to run a tap – to make water come out of it to run a temperature – to have a body temperature that is higher than normal to run before you can walk – to try to do something difficult before you’ve learnt the basic skills to walk the walk – to do the things that people expect or think necessary in a particular situation to be walking on air – to be feeling extremely happy to go back on one’s word / promise  – not to do something that you’ve promised

99

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

I goes without saying – something is so clearly true that it doesn’t need to be said

Homonyms Ex. 2 (B) Male – mail, paws – pause, dear – deer, fir – fur, draft – draught, hail – hale, inn – in, none – nun, pair – pear, peal – peel, rays – raise, roam – Rome, vain – vein, to – two/too, sink – sync, flew – flu, key – quay, cell – sell, chili – chilly, cite – site/sight, buy – by, bread – bred, brake – break, beach – beech, counsel – council.

Paradygmatic Relations of Words Ex.13 Formal, to free, to be ashamed of, private, poor, flexible, safe or harmless, a happy or joyful, minor, confident, fail, tighten.

English Phraseology Ex.1 Keys: to cut one’s teeth on something  – to get your first experience in a particular job by doing something; to get the green light – to be given an official approval for something to be done; to pay lip service to something – to say that you support something although you don’t really; to come to a sticky end (Br. Inf.)  – to die or suffer badly, especially when this is deserved; from top/head to toe – over the whole of your body; packed to the grills – extremely crowded; to beat / bang the drum  – to publicly show support for something or somebody; to bring to a standstill – to stop moving or happening; to feel under the weather – do not feel well; light a t the end of the tunnel  – something that makes you think that the difficult situation will improve; to lift the lid on something/ to take the lift off something  – to tell someone about something bad or something that was a secret.

100

Лексикология английского языка

The bible: a land of milk and honey, to cast pearls before swine, to cast the first stone at somebody; Works of Shakespeare: cakes and ale (the Twelfth Night), to give the devil his due (King Henry the V), to paint the lily (King John), the green-eyed monster (Othello); Geek and Roman poetry and mythology: to rub salt in the wound, to cross the Rubicon, bread and circuses; Customs and traditions: the black sheep, to over-egg the pudding, baker’s dozen.

Ex.4 A. green with envy (завидовать черной завистью); B. to be blue in the face (спорить до посинения, до хрипоты); C. to be in the red (быть в трудном финансовом положении); D. to be tickled pink (быть радостным, щенячий восторг); E. a white elephant (ненужная дорогая покупка); F. a yellow streak (малодушие, трусость).

Ex.5 1 – b; 2 – c; 3 – b; 4 – a; 5 – a; 6 – c; 7 – c.

Ex.6 To keep up appearances; the odd one out; to keep / maintain a low profile; to put on airs; to make a name for yourself.

American English Ex.1 Dynasty, privacy, vitamin (i-ai), patriot, zebra, leisure, zenith, (e-ei) blouse, erase (z-s), tomato, pasta, Slovak (a-ei) either, neither (ai-i:), apricot, patent (ei-ae), Asia, version.

Ex.4 Minced meat – ground beef in Britain while in America mincemeat is sweet spicy ground meat for pies cooked for Christmas or Thanksgiving;

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

101

Mean (adj.) – stingy in Britain, nasty, spiteful in the US; Lacquer (n.) – hair spray in Britain, wood vanish in the US; Bathroom (n.) – a bath, washbasin and shower in Britain, a toilet in the US; Gas (n.)  – a clear substance like air in Britain, gas (gasoline) is what is they call petrol in the US; Corn (n.) – all grain crops in Britain, maize in the US; Biscuit (n.) – a small thin dry cake that is usually sweet and made for one person (American cookie), a type of bread that is baked in small round shapes in the US; hold-up (n.) – traffic jam in Britain, robbery at gunpoint in the US; to table an item – to open it up for discussion in Britain, to remove from discussion or to delay discussion in the US.

Наталия Николаевна Морозова

ЛеКСиКОЛОГия АНГЛийСКОГО яЗыКА PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT Учебное пособие для семинарских занятий по курсу «Английская лексикология»

Издательство «Прометей» 115035, Москва, ул. Садовническая, д.72, стр.1, Тел/факс: 8 (495) 799-54-29 E-mail: [email protected]

29.08.2013. 60 90/16. 500

.

6,38 . . 378.