Chapter 9 English Idioms概要1.ppt

English Idioms Objectives: – To discuss the characteristics of idioms; – To explain their classification and uses. Teaching focus: – The characteristics of idioms – The classification of idioms – The uses of idioms Definition Idiom is a set expression made up of two or more words; it functions as a unit of meaning which cannot be predicted from its literal meaning of its component words. 作为一个意义单位使用的意义不能从其独立的组成部分得出的一种表达法。 ? For example, the idiom “show the white feather” means “to show fear”, and the meaning of this idiom has nothing to do with “feather”. Characteristics of idioms 1. Semantic unity 语义的整体性 2. Structural stability 结构的固定性 Characteristics of idioms 1. Semantic unity 语义的整体性 Each idiom is a semantic unity. The semantic unity can be reflected by the fact that the meaning of an idiom is very often not the total sum of the meanings of the constituent words. The semantic unity can also be shown in the illogical relations between the literal meanings of the constituent words and the meaning of the idiom. Characteristics of idioms 1. Semantic unity 语义的整体性 till the cows come home (forever, adv.) She felt that everyone in the meeting was trying to do her down. （批评） do up brown (把…彻底搞好） Characteristics of idioms 2. Structural stability 结构的固定性 Structural stability means that the structure of an idiom usually remains unchangeable. In other words, the constituent components of an idiom can not, generally speaking, be replaced. Characteristics of idioms 1) The constituents of idioms cannot be changed or replaced. lip service *mouth service 2) The word order cannot be inverted or changed. by twos and threes *by threes and twos the lion’s share *the share of the lion 3) The constituents of an idiom cannot be deleted or added to, not even an article. out of the question (impossible) out of question (no question) 4) Many idioms are grammatically unanalysable.