英语习语结构初探

习语是词汇的分支,是言语行为的一个重要方面。通过对习语作为固定表达方式的行为的探 究,证明习语具有内在结构,且其内在结构与非习语表达形式或实际意义的结构密切相关。 由此,透明化习语和不透明化习语的区分便应运而生。透明化习语的语法结构与其非习语表 达方式的结构相同;非透明化习语的句法结构与其非习语表达方式的结构不同。前者在语句 构成上表现出更多的灵活性。习语语言极为复杂,就其句法、语义、语用和概念特征而言, 每 个短语都值得一番精细解析。对习语的研究可以更深入地探讨固定表达方式、借喻性用语, 以致语言的本质。

Seeking the Features of Idiomatic Structure

Idioms are parts of the lexicon, representing a significant aspect of language behavior. Examination of their behavior as fixed expressions has proved that they have internal linguistic structures. The authors also find that idioms do not only have structures, but the structure is also related to that of their non-idiomatic or actual meaning. This leads to a division between transparent idioms, whose syntactic structure is the same as its non-idiomatic meaning, and opaque idioms, whose structure is disjoint from that of its non-idiomatic meaning. We discover that an idiom can behave syntactically only in ways that its literal counterpart does. This is by no means a complete picture of idioms and there is still much to be learned. Idiomatic language is remarkably complex and each phrase demands its own analysis in terms of its syntactic, semantic, pragmatic, and conceptual properties. The study of idioms can reveal more about the nature of fixed expressions, figurative language, and finally, of language itself.