A Coursebook on English Lexicology. Английская лексикология.

Москва
Издательство «ФлИнта» 

2018

Н.А. Лаврова

A Coursebook on english lexiCology

АНгЛийскАя ЛексикоЛогия

Учебное пособие

Рекомендовано УМО по образованию в области подготовки 
педагогических кадров в качестве учебного пособия
для студентов высших учебных заведений, обучающихся
по специальности 050303.65 – Иностранный язык,
направлению 050100 – Педагогическое образование
(профиль «Иностранный язык (английский)»)

2-е издание, стереотипное

УДК 811.111'373(075.8)
ББК 81.2англ-3-923
          л13

л13

© лаврова н.а., 2012
© Издательство «ФлИнта», 2012

Лаврова Н.А.

A Coursebook on English Lexicology : Английская лексикология [Электронный ресурс]: учеб. пособие / Н.А. Лаврова. – 
2-е изд., стер. – М. : ФЛИНТА, 2018. – 168 с. 

ISBN 978-5-9765-1090-6 

“A Coursebook on English Lexicology” is an assortment of   exercises on English lexicology, which are aimed at raising students’ awareness of the notion of the word, it covers 
stylistic stratification of the English vocabulary, its etymology, word-building patterns, the 
meaning of the word, the major types of semantic transference, systematic relations between 
words, English phraseology, some regional varieties of English.  Hopefully, it will also aid students in understanding systemic relations between words, namely in differentiating between 
paronyms, retronyms, neonyms, various types of synonyms, as well as in activating some 
vocabulary items centered around specific thematic fields.
The book is meant for foreign language students, for post-graduate students, teachers 
and instructors in English lexicology, as well as for a broader audience of philologists and 
linguists.

R e v i e w e r s:
Ph.D., Professor, the Department of English Lexicology, Moscow State Pedagogical 
University, Nataliya N. Morozova.
Dr. Habil., Professor, Head of the Department of English Lexicology, Moscow State 
Pedagogical University, Elena A. Nikulina.
Dr. Habil., Professor, Moscow State Linguistic University, Ekaterina E. Golubkova
Ph.D., Moscow State Regional University of Humanities and Social Sciences, S.A. Reztsova
Professor, The Department of English Philology, Moscow State Regional University, 
Irina I. Shustilova
Ph.D., Professor, the Department of English Lexicology, Moscow State Pedagogical 
University, Marina D. Rezvetsova

УДК 811.111'373(075.8)
ББК 81.2англ-3-923

ISBN 978-5-9765-1090-6 

Пособие состоит из 8 глав, рассматривающих такие актуальные лексикологические проблемы, как «проблема определения слова», «стилистическая стратификация 
словарного состава», «этимология», «значение слова», «словообразование», «фразеология», «некоторые региональные варианты английского языка» и многое другое. 
Схемы, графики, таблицы, а также иллюстрации английских фразеологизмов и идиом 
ставят своей задачей сделать материал наглядным, доступным и запоминающимся.
Предназначено для студентов английского языка продвинутого уровня обучения 
и аспирантов, для преподавателей английского языка, а также для широкого круга читателей, интересующихся вопросами английского лексикологии.

Contents

Acknowledgements ..............................................................................................4

Introduction ..........................................................................................................6

1. Word .................................................................................................................8

2. Stylistic Stratification of English Vocabulary. Slang. Barbarisms. ................22

3. Etymology ......................................................................................................36

4. Word-building ................................................................................................50

5. The Meaning of the Word. Semantic Transference. Metaphor and Metonymy
Euphemisms. Neologisms ..............................................................................69

6. Synonyms. Antonyms. Paronyms. Hyperonyms and Hyponyms.
Meronyms ......................................................................................................98

7. Phraseology ..................................................................................................108

8. Some Regional Varieties of English.............................................................127

References ........................................................................................................136

Answer Key .....................................................................................................143

Acknowledgements

The author is deeply indebted to her teacher, instructor and academic 
advisor, Dr. Habil., Professor, Elena A. Nikulina for her remarkable forbearance, unswerving support, encouragement and inspiration.
My sincere appreciation goes to Professor Nataliya N. Morozova, 
who kindly agreed to read and review the book, bestowed her wise counsel, and suggested the ways to improve and variegate the present work.
I am grateful to Dr. Habil., Professor, Olga G. Chupryna for her comments on some of the contentious issues of the book, which enabled me to 
reconsider some of the original statements made in the book.
I appreciate the help and support provided by Professor Marina D. 
Resvetzova, who was very kind and benevolent in her comments and 
whose love of the Word is shared by the present author.
My appreciation is also due to Dr. Habil., Professor, Ekaterina E. 
Golubkova, to Ph.D., S.A. Reztsova, and to Ph.D., Professor, Irina I. 
Shustilova for a review of the present book.
 

 
 

Words are mirrors of their times. By looking at the areas in which the vocabulary of a 
language is expanding in a given period, we 
can form a fairly accurate impression of the 
chief preoccupations of society at that time 
and the points at which the boundaries of 
human endeavor are being advanced. 
(John Ayto, 1999. 20th Century Words. 
The Story of the New Words in English 
over the Last Hundred Years)

introduction

English lexicology is not only a purely theoretical discipline aimed 
to upgrade students’ knowledge of its past, its present and its perspectives 
for the future, but is also an in-depth practical course with multiple objectives, namely: 
• to inspire students’ curiosity about the past of words;
• to help them differentiate between subtle shades of meaning;
• to facilitate the recognition of different word-building patterns;
• to further the recognition of novel formations, actively used in the 
modern media-discourse;
• to broaden their repertoire of synonymic ways of referring to reality;
• to make students’ English more authentic and idiomatic;
• to ultimately make students’ interaction with foreigners smoother 
and more gratifying, so that it should become a mutually beneficial experience.
While writing this book, the author took into account some of the latest trends both in theoretical lexicology and in the lexical changes typical 
of modern English. It must also be noted that some sections are covered 
in greater detail, while others represent a narrower scale of material. Here 
is the rationale behind some of the exercises offered by the author.
 The exercises on word-building do not only cover traditional and 
typical word-building patterns in English, such as composition and derivation, but also less wide-spread and codified, such as blending (contamination), formations with semi-affixes, combining forms. The rationale 
behind including such formations is manifold. Firstly, some of them are 
traditionally made use of in the formation of terms (combining forms), 
others have gained popularity quite recently and are extensively used in 
media-discourse (blending). Secondly, if a word-building pattern becomes 
foregrounded, it should not be overlooked. This is the case with blending (or contamination), whose activation is down to several factors: the 
condensed and compressed form of blends makes them a very efficient 
means of expressing several notions through a single lexeme; it also aids 
to create a new notion, more often than not, pragmatically and emotion

ally charged and/or humorously tinged. Blends are a potential metaphoric 
formation: two notions and two words are merged due to some more or 
less objective or subjective similarity. The more distant the notions are, 
the more striking the emerging blend is likely to be.
The introduction of endocentric, exocentric (bahuvrihi), copulative 
and appositional compounds highlights various semantic and structural 
types of compound words and deepens students’ understanding of the 
nature and essence of nomination and the features that were chosen as 
the basis of nomination – whether reflecting the essence of the referent 
or seemingly superficial. In the latter case the resultant compound is, as a 
rule, idiomatic, metaphorical and evokes vivid imagery.
Paraphrasing a text belonging to a different register makes a learner of 
English sensitive to formal and informal contexts and to stylistic colouring of 
words. Ultimately, it is supposed to inculcate in them a sense of appropriateness of a particular word or an expression and stylistic specifics thereof. 
Exercises centered around regional varieties of English are meant to 
raise students’ awareness of different types of English and to get them to 
understand that they are not to be mixed up. Getting familiar with some of 
the dialects of the British Isles may prove to be beneficial for learners of 
English and to facilitate interaction in case of their travelling abroad.
Finding a Russian equivalent for English idioms as well as constructing proverbs from smaller rearranged blocks does not only expand students’ knowledge thereof, but also develops their analytical skills and establishes typological characteristics of both languages. The exercise that 
involves converting a literally described situation into a metaphoric idiom 
provides entertainment, fun, a diversion from the traditional academic exercises and activates students’ mental skills that involve searching for the 
relevant item in the long-term memory and filling a fitting slot.
Each section of the book is divided into two parts – the “Points to 
ponder” part and the “Exercises” part. In the first part some theoretical 
questions, tasks as well as theoretical information are provided to facilitate a transition to the second part, which is comprised of exercises that 
are related to the topic under consideration. 
Many of the exercises are provided with keys, but only those where we 
felt learners may have difficulty in finding answers on their own or when 
access to the pertinent reference sources may not easily be available.

1. Word

Points to ponder

Over the years different definitions of the word 
have been suggested, some of them are based on the 
purely semantic criterion, others put the premium 
on structural, functional, stylistic, communicative or 
pragmatic aspects of the word. 

investigate the problems of word definition and answer the following questions (do the tasks suggested):

– Comment on the following definitions of the word and choose the 
one which seems the most appropriate to you. Specify the criterion that underlies each definition. Which of the definitions is the 
least precise?

1. A word is an uninterrupted string of letters which is preceded by a blank space and followed by a blank space or 
punctuation mark.

2. A word is an utterance conveying a single meaning.

3. A word is a speech sound or series of speech sounds that 
symbolizes and communicates a meaning usually without 
being divisible into smaller units capable of independent use 
(Merriam-Webster’s New Collegiate Dictionary, 2008).

– In Western linguistic tradition it is still fashionable to single out 
the morpheme as the minimal unit of communication. What is the 
problematic aspect underlying this methodology?
– Enumerate structural and semantic characteristics of the word and 
say how it differs from a word-combination. Are there any fuzzy 
sets (borderline cases)?
– How can you prove that “washing machine” is a word? Supple 
some other similar cases of a two-unit word.
– Are “wrap up” and “single out” cases of one word or are they two 
words?
– What is the difference between a word and a sentence?

The notion of “word” is one of the central in 
lexicology. However, there is still no unanimous 
opinion as to what the word really is, that is to say, 
it is not amenable to an unambiguous definition. The 

4. A word is a sound or a combination of sounds, or its representation in writing or printing, that symbolizes and communicates a meaning and may consist of a single morpheme 
or of a combination of morphemes (American Heritage Dictionary, 4th edition, 2000).

5. A word is one of the units of speech or writing that native 
speakers of a language usually regard as the smallest isolable meaningful element of the language, although linguists 
would analyze these further into morphemes (Collins English Dictionary, 6th edition 2007).

6. A word is the smallest unit of language that can be used independently; such a unit represented in writing or printing, 
usually separated off by spaces (Chambers Dictionary, 9th 
edition, 2003).

term “word” usually designates a structure smaller than a word combination, but larger that a single sound segment (Zé Amvela E., 2010). This 
simple and comprehensible definition is not free from fault: the indefinite 
article in the English language is a single sound segment and yet it is 
definitely a word. Definitions of the word are legion, some of them highlighting structural, notional, functional, phonological and other aspects 
of the word (see above). From the structural perspective, a word can be 
defined as a unit of language or speech that consists of one or more morphemes at least one of which can be used independently. This is, so to 
speak, the ideal scenario, because some words consist of morphemes that 
are no longer used in speech independently. Some examples are: receive, 
conceive, confer, refer, etc. These words consist of a prefix and a remnant 
root which is, synchronically, a bound form no longer recognized by the 
majority of native speakers as a meaningful element.
According to the notional criterion, the word is defined as a linguistic unit conveying a single notion. This definition purports to distinguish 
between a word and a phrase, which conveys not one but at least two 
notions. According to the functional criterion the word possesses a fullyfledged nominative function. Unlike that of a word, the functions of a 
morpheme and a phrase can be, respectively, defined as constitutive and a 
poly-nominative, the function of a sentence being predicative-communicative. According to the phonological criterion, the word is a combination 
of sounds preceded and followed by pauses and conveying a meaning 
which distinguishes it from other words in a language.
One of the most daunting lexicological tasks concerning the word 
is to distinguish between a compound word and a word-combination (a 
phrase). Some compounds represent the so-called fuzzy sets, that is, language elements whose status veers. What is meant here is that orthographically compounds can be spelt solid, hyphenated and spaced (A. Cruse, 
Jackson H., G.G. Bondarchuk): “Note that the orthographic treatment of 
compounds is by no means consistent. Some are written as one word 
(with or without a hyphen between two roots), while others are written as two or more words (emphasis mine)” [Jackson H., Zé Amvela E., 
2010:92]. “Compounds may be spelt either solid (landmark) or hyphenated (land-law) or open (land mass). There may be some variation especially between hyphenated and open compounds: land-crab appears hy

phenated in COD8 (1990) but open in COD9…” [Jackson H., Zé Amvela 
E., 2010:192]. The almost unpredictable nature of how compounds can or 
should be spelt is summed up by R.W. Zandvoort and H.W. Fowler: “The 
reader of the last and other sections of this handbook cannot fail to have 
been struck by a lack of consistency in the use of HYPHENS in the writing of compounds. This lack of consistency is entirely in keeping with 
English practice, on which the late H.W. Fowler in his Dictionary of Modern English Usage (a book to be used with care) expresses himself thus: 
‘The chaos prevailing among writers or printers or both regarding the use 
of hyphens is discreditable to English education.’ Logic would, of course, 
prescribe that undoubted compounds, like goldsmith, should be spelt as 
single words; that a hyphen should be used when the two elements are 
only occasionally combined, and, therefore, to some extent preserve their 
individuality in combination (she-wolf); and that the two words should 
be written apart when they form a group of adjectives + noun, or attrib. 
noun + noun, etc., not a compound (the London streets). The very logic 
of this division, however, makes it difficult to apply in many cases, with 
the result that it is often ignored in cases of less difficulty. The best advice 
to be given in this matter is: when in doubt, consult the Concise Oxford 
Dictionary” [Zandvoort, 288:1962].
In the traditional sense, the word consists of at least one free lexical 
morpheme, “but it can also be made up of a whole series of lexical morphemes, like beer-drinker, theatergoer, segregationist, or denationalization. Leech … gives the examples drum-majorettishly and railway-station refreshment room” [Lipka, 2002:89].
One of the meaningful differences between a compound and a word 
combination is that the meaning of a free phrase can usually be inferred 
from its constituents, whereas “compounds are characterized semantically 
by the fact that they tend to acquire specialized meanings, thus becoming 
very much like idioms. Only in rare cases is the meaning of a compound 
derived from that of its constituents in the literal sense. In most cases, the 
meaning of at least one of the constituents is somehow obscured” [Jackson H., Zé Amvela E., 2010:94].
Compounds are also prototypically characterized by a single primary 
stress that falls on the first stem of a compound. If a compound, however, consists of three or more morphemes it is rarely the first stem that