fly is an acceptable dictionary word for games like scrabble, words with friends, crossword, etc.
The word ‘fly’ is made up of 3 letters.
Meanings:
- (n) two-winged insects characterized by active flight
- (n) flap consisting of a piece of canvas that can be drawn back to provide entrance to a tent
- (n) an opening in a garment that is closed by a zipper or buttons concealed by a fold of cloth
- (n) (baseball) a hit that flies up in the air
- (n) fisherman’s lure consisting of a fishhook decorated to look like an insect
- (s) (British informal) not to be deceived or hoodwinked
- (v) travel through the air; be airborne; «Man cannot fly»
- (v) move quickly or suddenly; «He flew about the place»
- (v) fly a plane
- (v) transport by aeroplane; «We fly flowers from the Caribbean to North America»
- (v) cause to fly or float; «fly a kite»
- (v) be dispersed or disseminated; «Rumors and accusations are flying»
- (v) change quickly from one emotional state to another; «fly into a rage»
- (v) pass away rapidly; «Time flies like an arrow»; «Time fleeing beneath him»
- (v) travel in an airplane; «she is flying to Cincinnati tonight»; «Are we driving or flying?»
- (v) display in the air or cause to float; «fly a kite»; «All nations fly their flags in front of the U.N.»
- (v) run away quickly; «He threw down his gun and fled»
- (v) travel over (an area of land or sea) in an aircraft; «Lindbergh was the first to fly the Atlantic»
- (v) hit a fly
- (v) decrease rapidly and disappear; «the money vanished in las Vegas»; «all my stock assets have vaporized»
Synonyms:
Using the word ‘fly’ in Scrabble will fetch you 9 points while using it in Words with Friends will fetch you 9 points (without taking into consideration the effect of any multipliers).
Check out the Anagrams of fly
Check out the Words which can be formed using the letters of fly
Words Ending With ‘fly’
Following are 20 words which end with ‘fly‘
Words Starting With ‘fly’
Following are 20 words which start with ‘fly‘
Words Containing ‘fly’
Following are 20 words which contain ‘fly‘
Other Info & Useful Resources for the Word ‘fly’
Info | Details |
---|---|
Points in Scrabble for fly | 9 |
Points in Words with Friends for fly | 9 |
Number of Letters in fly | 3 |
More info About fly | fly |
List of Words Starting with fly | Words Starting With fly |
List of Words Ending with fly | Words Ending With fly |
4 Letter Words Starting with fly | 4 Letter Words Starting with fly |
5 Letter Words Starting with fly | 5 Letter Words Starting with fly |
6 Letter Words Starting with fly | 6 Letter Words Starting with fly |
7 Letter Words Starting with fly | 7 Letter Words Starting with fly |
4 Letter Words Ending with fly | 4 Letter Words Ending with fly |
5 Letter Words Ending with fly | 5 Letter Words Ending with fly |
6 Letter Words Ending with fly | 6 Letter Words Ending with fly |
7 Letter Words Ending with fly | 7 Letter Words Ending with fly |
List of Words Containing fly | Words Containing fly |
List of Anagrams of fly | Anagrams of fly |
List of Words Formed by Letters of fly | Words Created From fly |
fly Definition at Wiktionary | Click Here |
fly Definition at Merriam-Webster | Click Here |
fly Definition at Dictionary | Click Here |
fly Synonyms At Thesaurus | Click Here |
fly Info At Wikipedia | Click Here |
fly Search Results on Google | Click Here |
fly Search Results on Bing | Click Here |
Tweets About fly on Twitter | Click Here |
barfly
butterfly
dragonfly
housefly
flypaper
flyover
flyswatter
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Q: Fly the compound word
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This shows grade level based on the word’s complexity.
This shows grade level based on the word’s complexity.
noun, plural flies.
Also called true fly . any of numerous two-winged insects of the order Diptera, especially of the family Muscidae, as the common housefly.
any of various winged insects, as the mayfly or firefly.
Angling. a fishhook dressed with hair, feathers, silk, tinsel, etc., so as to resemble an insect or small fish, for use as a lure or bait.
Fly, Astronomy. the constellation Musca.
QUIZ
CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?
There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?
Which sentence is correct?
Idioms about fly
fly in the ointment, a detrimental factor; detraction: If there’s one fly in the ointment, it’s that there may not be the money to finish the job.
Origin of fly
1
First recorded before 950; Middle English flīe, Old English flēoge, flȳge; cognate with Middle Dutch vliege (Dutch vlieg ), Old High German flioga (German Fliege ); akin to fly2
OTHER WORDS FROM fly
flyless, adjective
Words nearby fly
flux density, flux gate, fluxion, flux linkage, fluxmeter, fly, fly agaric, fly ash, fly at, flyaway, flyback
Other definitions for fly (2 of 3)
verb (used without object), flew [floo] /flu/ or, for 11, flied [flahyd], /flaɪd/, flown [flohn], /floʊn/, fly·ing.
to move through the air using wings.
to be carried through the air by the wind or any other force or agency: bits of paper flying about.
to float or flutter in the air: flags flying in the breeze.
to travel in an aircraft or spacecraft.
to move suddenly and quickly; start unexpectedly: He flew from the room.
to change rapidly and unexpectedly from one state or position to another: The door flew open.
to travel in space: The probe will fly past the planet.
to move or pass swiftly: How time flies!
to move with an aggressive surge: A mother fox will fly at anyone approaching her kits.
Baseball.
- to bat a fly ball: He flied into right field.
- to fly out.
Informal. to be acceptable, believable, or feasible: It seemed like a good idea, but it just wouldn’t fly.
verb (used with object), flew [floo] /flu/ or, for 19, flied [flahyd], /flaɪd/, flown [flohn], /floʊn/, fly·ing.
to make (something) float or move through the air: to fly a kite.
to operate (an aircraft, spacecraft, or the like).
to hoist aloft, as for display, signaling, etc.: to fly a flag.
to operate an aircraft or spacecraft over: to fly the Pacific.
to transport or convey by air: We fly merchandise to Boston.
to escape from; flee: to fly someone’s wrath.
Theater.
- to hang (scenery) above a stage by means of rigging supported by the gridiron.
- to raise (scenery) from the stage or acting area into the flies.
noun, plural flies.
a strip of material sewn along one edge of a garment opening for concealing buttons, zippers, or other fasteners.
a flap forming the door of a tent.
Also called tent fly. a piece of canvas extending over the ridgepole of a tent and forming an outer roof.
an act of flying; a flight.
the course of a flying object, as a ball.
British. a light, covered, public carriage drawn by one horse; hansom; hackney coach.
Machinery. a horizontal arm, weighted at each end, that pivots about the screw of a press so that when the screw is lowered the momentum of the fly will increase the force of the press.
Also called fan. Horology. a regulating device for chime and striking mechanisms, consisting of an arrangement of vanes on a revolving axis.
Printing.
- (in some presses) the apparatus for removing the printed sheets to the delivery table.
- Also called flyboy. (formerly) a printer’s devil employed to remove printed sheets from a press.
(on a flag)
- the horizontal dimension of a flag as flown from a vertical staff.
- the end of the flag farther from the staff.Compare hoist (def. 7).
flies. Also called fly loft .Theater. the space above the stage used chiefly for storing scenery and equipment.
Nautical. a propellerlike device streamed to rotate and transfer information on speed to a mechanical log.
Verb Phrases
fly out, Baseball, Softball. to be put out by hitting a fly ball that is caught by a player of the opposing team.
Origin of fly
2
First recorded before 900; Middle English flīen, Old English flēogan; cognate with Old High German fliogan, German fliegen, Old Norse fljuga
synonym study for fly
1. Fly, flit, flutter, hover, soar refer to moving through the air as on wings. Fly is the general term: Birds fly. Airplanes fly. To flit is to make short rapid flights from place to place: A bird flits from tree to tree. To flutter is to agitate the wings tremulously, either without flying or in flying only short distances: A young bird flutters out of a nest and in again. To hover is to linger in the air, or to move over or about something within a narrow area or space: hovering clouds; a hummingbird hovering over a blossom. To soar is to (start to) fly upward to a great height usually with little advance in any other direction, or else to (continue to) fly at a lofty height without visible movement of the wings: Above our heads an eagle was soaring.
OTHER WORDS FROM fly
fly·a·ble, adjectivefly·a·bil·i·ty, nounnon·fly·a·ble, adjectivere·fly·a·ble, adjective
un·fly·a·ble, adjective
Other definitions for fly (3 of 3)
adjective, fly·er, fly·est.
Slang. stylish, attractive, sophisticated, etc.: She put on silver stilettos, her flyest outfit, and plenty of bling, ready to party till dawn.
British Slang. aware and worldly; clever; smart: Adults generally found him sly and conniving, but his teenage followers were convinced he was fly.
Origin of fly
3
First recorded in 1805–15; perhaps special use of fly2
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
MORE ABOUT FLY
What is a basic definition of fly?
Fly means to move through the air using wings or to be carried by the air. Fly also means to travel in a vehicle that can move through the air. As a noun, fly refers to several two-winged insects. Fly has many other senses as a verb and a noun.
Many birds and insects with wings are able to move through the air—that is, to fly. The wind or air currents can also make some items fly around without control, such as pieces of paper. The wind or other force blows these items around.
- Real-life examples: Birds, bats, and insects are all able to fly. Paper, confetti, plastic bags, and baseballs often fly through the air when a wind blows.
- Used in a sentence: Canada geese fly often south in the winter, resting in the same areas each year.
Humans can’t fly—not without help, at least. We can fly in airplanes, helicopters, and hot air balloons that fly through the air using air currents to travel.
- Used in a sentence: The airplane flew across the ocean.
As a noun, fly is used generally to refer to small winged insects. The insects in question usually belong to the Muscidae family, such as the housefly.
- Real-life examples: Flies are incredibly common and you have probably been annoyed by them during your life. Food and smelly garbage attracts flies. Spiders hunt and eat flies by trapping them in webs.
- Used in a sentence: He couldn’t concentrate on his work because of an irritating fly that kept landing on his head.
Where does fly come from?
The first records of the verb fly come from before the 900s. It ultimately comes from the Old English verb flēogan. The noun fly is almost as old. The first records come from before 950. It ultimately comes from the Old English flēoge.
Did you know … ?
How is fly used in real life?
Fly is a very common word that most often refers to moving through the air.
Just witnessed a bird fly full speed into glass, be unconscious and not breathing. Gave him CPR with a Starbucks straw and he came back! Crazy!
— Braden Bishop (@bradenbishop7) December 10, 2018
In fifteen minutes, I’m heading to the airport so I can fly to Chicago. I guess I should start packing.
— Michael Aranda (@michaelaranda) August 8, 2012
a waltz
in balancing~
she is
a whimper away
from
falling
flying
dancing#Poetryin13
📷by me pic.twitter.com/VKjXBXD2B7— Poetkisses (@poetkisses) February 18, 2021
Try using fly!
Is fly used correctly in the following sentence?
A caterpillar spends its life on the ground until it turns into a butterfly and uses its wings to fly through the air.
Words related to fly
circle, climb, cross, drift, float, flutter, glide, operate, pilot, reach, rush, sail, shoot, speed, swoop, take off, travel, flee, pass, race
How to use fly in a sentence
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The notion that Republican electoral victories require massive political inequality flies in the face of all kinds of common sense.
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It also has a built-in can holder, as well as a large pocket for a phone and a small fly box.
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Eventually, the hatched queen flies off with about half the worker bees to start a new colony.
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Rather than figuring it out and building that plane as we fly it, we were in a position so to mold the clay that we have been getting already.
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The day the derby began, dozens of cases were confirmed, with some isolated in a school building and at least 20 others flown out of town via helicopter.
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Andrew still plans to fly to Davos in Switzerland for the World Economic Forum on January 21, representing the British government.
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After some animated debate at the conference, Lelaie declared, with some frustration, “If you push on the stick, you will fly.”
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Thus it attracted a wave of cowboy operators to fly passengers and cargo between cities.
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Many of these are small operations that would never, in any case, fly beyond Indonesia.
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Air traffic controllers and pilots together take great care not to fly in conditions that can jeopardize an airplane.
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Aristide darted off like a dragon-fly in the sunshine, as happy as a child with a new toy.
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“Confound it, no;” rejoined Mr. Simmery, stopping for an instant to smash a fly with the ruler.
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They must be kept away from flies—a fly can work havoc with a film in a few minutes.
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The non-elastic character of water made it unsuitable for a machine requiring a fly-wheel.
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What of the infinite goodness of God in teaching the grub of the ichneumon-fly to eat up the cabbage caterpillar alive?
British Dictionary definitions for fly (1 of 3)
verb flies, flying, flew or flown
(intr) (of birds, aircraft, etc) to move through the air in a controlled manner using aerodynamic forces
to travel over (an area of land or sea) in an aircraft
to operate (an aircraft or spacecraft)
to float, flutter, or be displayed in the air or cause to float, etc, in this wayto fly a kite; they flew the flag
to transport or be transported by or through the air by aircraft, wind, etc
(intr) to move or be moved very quickly, forcibly, or suddenlyshe came flying towards me; the door flew open
(intr) to pass swiftlytime flies
to escape from (an enemy, place, etc); fleehe flew the country
(intr; may be foll by at or upon) to attack a person
(intr) to have a sudden outbursthe flew into a rage again
(intr) (of money, etc) to vanish rapidly
(tr) falconry (of hawks) to fly at (quarry) in attackperegrines fly rooks
(tr) theatre to suspend (scenery) above the stage so that it may be lowered into view
fly a kite
- to procure money by an accommodation bill
- to release information or take a step in order to test public opinion
fly high informal
- to have a high aim
- to prosper or flourish
fly off the handle informal to lose one’s temper
fly the coop US and Canadian informal to leave suddenly
go fly a kite US and Canadian informal go away
let fly informal
- to lose one’s temper (with a person)she really let fly at him
- to shoot or throw (an object)
noun plural flies
Also called: fly front (often plural) a closure that conceals a zip, buttons, or other fastening, by having one side overlapping, as on trousers
Also called: fly sheet
- a flap forming the entrance to a tent
- a piece of canvas drawn over the ridgepole of a tent to form an outer roof
a small air brake used to control the chiming of large clocks
the horizontal weighted arm of a fly press
- the outer edge of a flag
- the distance from the outer edge of a flag to the staffCompare hoist (def. 9)
British a light one-horse covered carriage formerly let out on hire
Australian and NZ an attemptI’ll give it a fly
printing
- a device for transferring printed sheets from the press to a flat pile
- Also called: flyhand a person who collects and stacks printed matter from a printing press
- a piece of paper folded once to make four pages, with printing only on the first page
(plural) theatre the space above the stage out of view of the audience, used for storing scenery, etc
rare the act of flying
Derived forms of fly
flyable, adjective
Word Origin for fly
Old English flēogan; related to Old Frisian fliāga, Old High German fliogan, Old Norse fljūga
British Dictionary definitions for fly (2 of 3)
noun plural flies
any of various similar but unrelated insects, such as the caddis fly, firefly, dragonfly, and chalcid fly
angling a lure made from a fish-hook dressed with feathers, tinsel, etc, to resemble any of various flies or nymphs: used in fly-fishingSee also dry fly, wet fly
(in southern Africa) an area that is infested with the tsetse fly
drink with the flies Australian slang to drink alone
fly in the ointment informal a slight flaw that detracts from value, completeness, or enjoyment
fly on the wall a person who watches others, while not being noticed himself or herself
there are no flies on him informal he is no fool
Derived forms of fly
flyless, adjective
Word Origin for fly
Old English flēoge; related to Old Norse fluga Old High German flioga; see fly 1
British Dictionary definitions for fly (3 of 3)
adjective flyer or flyest slang
mainly British knowing and sharp; smart
mainly Scot furtive or sneaky
noun
on the fly mainly Scot in secret; sneakily
Word Origin for fly
C19: of uncertain origin
Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Scientific definitions for fly
Any of numerous insects of the order Diptera, having one pair of wings and large compound eyes. Flies include the houseflies, horseflies, and mosquitoes. See more at dipteran.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Ответ: Перевод:
1-f fly in a pirate ship — летать на пиратском корабле;
2-j see the city from the big wheel — видеть город с большого колеса
3-a see flexible trapeze artists — смотреть на гибких воздушных гимнастов;
4-c shake hands with cartoon characters — поздороваться с мультяшными героями;
5-d meet a scary ghost — встретить страшное привидение;
6-g explore a one-storey haunted mansion — исследовать одноэтажный особняк с привидениями;
7-i ride on a rollercoaster — кататься на американских горках;
8-b see clowns performing tricks — увидеть клоунов-трюкачей;
9-e go souvenir shopping — купить сувениры;
10-h eat candy floss — съесть сладкую вату;
Объяснение:
Ну тут все логично
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Семинар 6 Combinability. Word Groups
KEY TERMS
Syntagmatics — linear (simultaneous) relationship of words in speech as distinct from associative (non-simultaneous) relationship of words in language (paradigmatics). Syntagmatic relations specify the combination of elements into complex forms and sentences.
Distribution — The set of elements with which an item can cooccur
Combinability — the ability of linguistic elements to combine in speech.
Valency — the potential ability of words to occur with other words
Context — the semantically complete passage of written speech sufficient to establish the meaning of a given word (phrase).
Clichе´ — an overused expression that is considered trite, boring
Word combination — a combination of two or more notional words serving to express one concept. It is produced, not reproduced in speech.
Collocation — such a combination of words which conditions the realization of a certain meaning
TOPICS FOR DISCUSSION AND EXERCISES
1. Syntagmatic relations and the concept of combinability of words. Define combinability.
Syntagmatic relation defines the relationship between words that co-occur in the same sentence. It focuses on two main parts: how the position and the word order affect the meaning of a sentence.
The syntagmatic relation explains:
• The word position and order.
• The relationship between words gives a particular meaning to the sentence.
The syntagmatic relation can also explain why specific words are often paired together (collocations)
Syntagmatic relations are linear relations between words
The adjective yellow:
1. color: a yellow dress;
2. envious, suspicious: a yellow look;
3. corrupt: the yellow press
TYPES OF SEMANTIC RELATIONS
Because syntagmatic relations have to do with the relationship between words, the syntagms can result in collocations and idioms.
Collocations
Collocations are word combinations that frequently occur together.
Some examples of collocations:
- Verb + noun: do homework, take a risk, catch a cold.
- Noun + noun: office hours, interest group, kitchen cabinet.
- Adjective + adverb: good enough, close together, crystal clear.
- Verb + preposition: protect from, angry at, advantage of.
- Adverb + verb: strongly suggest, deeply sorry, highly successful.
- Adjective + noun: handsome man, quick shower, fast food.
Idioms
Idioms are expressions that have a meaning other than their literal one.
Idioms are distinct from collocations:
- The word combination is not interchangeable (fixed expressions).
- The meaning of each component is not equal to the meaning of the idiom
It is difficult to find the meaning of an idiom based on the definition of the words alone. For example, red herring. If you define the idiom word by word, it means ‘red fish’, not ‘something that misleads’, which is the real meaning.
Because of this, idioms can’t be translated to or from another language because the word definition isn’t equivalent to the idiom interpretation.
Some examples of popular idioms:
- Break a leg.
- Miss the boat.
- Call it a day.
- It’s raining cats and dogs.
- Kill two birds with one stone.
Combinability (occurrence-range) — the ability of linguistic elements to combine in speech.
The combinability of words is as a rule determined by their meanings, not their forms. Therefore not every sequence of words may be regarded as a combination of words.
In the sentence Frankly, father, I have been a fool neither frankly, father nor father, I … are combinations of words since their meanings are detached and do not unite them, which is marked orally by intonation and often graphically by punctuation marks.
On the other hand, some words may be inserted between the components of a word-combination without breaking it.
Compare,
a) read books
b) read many books
c) read very many books.
In case (a) the combination read books is uninterrupted.In cases (b) and (c) it is interrupted, or discontinuous(read… books).
The combinability of words depends on their lexical, grammatical and lexico-grammatical meanings. It is owing to the lexical meanings of the corresponding lexemes that the word wise can be combined with the words man, act, saying and is hardly combinable with the words milk, area, outline.
The lexico-grammatical meanings of -er in singer (a noun) and -ly in beautifully (an adverb) do not go together and prevent these words from forming a combination, whereas beautiful singer and sing beautifully are regular word-combinations.
The combination * students sings is impossible owing to the grammatical meanings of the corresponding grammemes.
Thus one may speak of lexical, grammatical and lexico-grammatical combinability, or the combinability of lexemes, grammemes and parts of speech.
The mechanism of combinability is very complicated. One has to take into consideration not only the combinability of homogeneous units, e. g. the words of one lexeme with those of another lexeme. A lexeme is often not combinable with a whole class of lexemes or with certain grammemes.
For instance, the lexeme few, fewer, fewest is not combinable with a class of nouns called uncountables, such as milk, information, hatred, etc., or with members of ‘singular’ grammemes (i. e. grammemes containing the meaning of ‘singularity’, such as book, table, man, boy, etc.).
The ‘possessive case’ grammemes are rarely combined with verbs, barring the gerund. Some words are regularly combined with sentences, others are not.
It is convenient to distinguish right-hand and left-hand connections. In the combination my hand (when written down) the word my has a right-hand connection with the word hand and the latter has a left-hand connection with the word my.
With analytical forms inside and outside connections are also possible. In the combination has often written the verb has an inside connection with the adverb and the latter has an outside connection with the verb.
It will also be expedient to distinguish unilateral, bilateral and multilateral connections. By way of illustration we may say that the articles in English have unilateral right-hand connections with nouns: a book, the child. Such linking words as prepositions, conjunctions, link-verbs, and modal verbs are characterized by bilateral connections: love of life, John and Mary, this is John, he must come. Most verbs may have zero
(Come!), unilateral (birds fly), bilateral (I saw him) and multilateral (Yesterday I saw him there) connections. In other words, the combinability of verbs is variable.
One should also distinguish direct and indirect connections. In the combination Look at John the connection between look and at, between at and John are direct, whereas the connection between look and John is indirect, through the preposition at.
2. Lexical and grammatical valency. Valency and collocability. Relationships between valency and collocability. Distribution.
The appearance of words in a certain syntagmatic succession with particular logical, semantic, morphological and syntactic relations is called collocability or valency.
Valency is viewed as an aptness or potential of a word to have relations with other words in language. Valency can be grammatical and lexical.
Collocability is an actual use of words in particular word-groups in communication.
The range of the Lexical valency of words is linguistically restricted by the inner structure of the English word-stock. Though the verbs ‘lift’ and ‘raise’ are synonyms, only ‘to raise’ is collocated with the noun ‘question’.
The lexical valency of correlated words in different languages is different, cf. English ‘pot plants’ vs. Russian ‘комнатные цветы’.
The interrelation of lexical valency and polysemy:
• the restrictions of lexical valency of words may manifest themselves in the lexical meanings of the polysemantic members of word-groups, e.g. heavy, adj. in the meaning ‘rich and difficult to digest’ is combined with the words food, meals, supper, etc., but one cannot say *heavy cheese or *heavy sausage;
• different meanings of a word may be described through its lexical valency, e.g. the different meanings of heavy, adj. may be described through the word-groups heavy weight / book / table; heavy snow / storm / rain; heavy drinker / eater; heavy sleep / disappointment / sorrow; heavy industry / tanks, and so on.
From this point of view word-groups may be regarded as the characteristic minimal lexical sets that operate as distinguishing clues for each of the multiple meanings of the word.
Grammatical valency is the aptness of a word to appear in specific grammatical (or rather syntactic) structures. Its range is delimited by the part of speech the word belongs to. This is not to imply that grammatical valency of words belonging to the same part of speech is necessarily identical, e.g.:
• the verbs suggest and propose can be followed by a noun (to propose or suggest a plan / a resolution); however, it is only propose that can be followed by the infinitive of a verb (to propose to do smth.);
• the adjectives clever and intelligent are seen to possess different grammatical valency as clever can be used in word-groups having the pattern: Adj. + Prep. at +Noun(clever at mathematics), whereas intelligent can never be found in exactly the same word-group pattern.
• The individual meanings of a polysemantic word may be described through its grammatical valency, e.g. keen + Nas in keen sight ‘sharp’; keen + on + Nas in keen on sports ‘fond of’; keen + V(inf)as in keen to know ‘eager’.
Lexical context determines lexically bound meaning; collocations with the polysemantic words are of primary importance, e.g. a dramatic change / increase / fall / improvement; dramatic events / scenery; dramatic society; a dramatic gesture.
In grammatical context the grammatical (syntactic) structure of the context serves to determine the meanings of a polysemantic word, e.g. 1) She will make a good teacher. 2) She will make some tea. 3) She will make him obey.
Distribution is understood as the whole complex of contexts in which the given lexical unit(word) can be used. Есть даже словари, по которым можно найти валентные слова для нужного нам слова — так и называются дистрибьюшн дикшенери
3. What is a word combination? Types of word combinations. Classifications of word-groups.
Word combination — a combination of two or more notional words serving to express one concept. It is produced, not reproduced in speech.
Types of word combinations:
- Semantically:
- free word groups (collocations) — a year ago, a girl of beauty, take lessons;
- set expressions (at last, point of view, take part).
- Morphologically (L.S. Barkhudarov):
- noun word combinations, e.g.: nice apples (BBC London Course);
- verb word combinations, e.g.: saw him (E. Blyton);
- adjective word combinations, e.g.: perfectly delightful (O. Wilde);
- adverb word combinations, e.g.: perfectly well (O, Wilde);
- pronoun word combinations, e.g.: something nice (BBC London Course).
- According to the number of the components:
- simple — the head and an adjunct, e.g.: told me (A. Ayckbourn)
- Complex, e.g.: terribly cold weather (O. Jespersen), where the adjunct cold is expanded by means of terribly.
Classifications of word-groups:
- through the order and arrangement of the components:
• a verbal — nominal group (to sew a dress);
• a verbal — prepositional — nominal group (look at something);
- by the criterion of distribution, which is the sum of contexts of the language unit usage:
• endocentric, i.e. having one central member functionally equivalent to the whole word-group (blue sky);
• exocentric, i.e. having no central member (become older, side by side);
- according to the headword:
• nominal (beautiful garden);
• verbal (to fly high);
• adjectival (lucky from birth);
- according to the syntactic pattern:
• predicative (Russian linguists do not consider them to be word-groups);
• non-predicative — according to the type of syntactic relations between the components:
(a) subordinative (modern technology);
(b) coordinative (husband and wife).
4. What is “a free word combination”? To what extent is what we call a free word combination actually free? What are the restrictions imposed on it?
A free word combination is a combination in which any element can be substituted by another.
The general meaning of an ordinary free word combination is derived from the conjoined meanings of its elements
Ex. To come to one’s sense –to change one’s mind;
To fall into a rage – to get angry.
Free word-combinations are word-groups that have a greater semantic and structural independence and freely composed by the speaker in his speech according to his purpose.
A free word combination or a free phrase permits substitution of any of its elements without any semantic change in the other components.
5. Clichе´s (traditional word combinations).
A cliché is an expression that is trite, worn-out, and overused. As a result, clichés have lost their original vitality, freshness, and significance in expressing meaning. A cliché is a phrase or idea that has become a “universal” device to describe abstract concepts such as time (Better Late Than Never), anger (madder than a wet hen), love (love is blind), and even hope (Tomorrow is Another Day). However, such expressions are too commonplace and unoriginal to leave any significant impression.
Of course, any expression that has become a cliché was original and innovative at one time. However, overuse of such an expression results in a loss of novelty, significance, and even original meaning. For example, the proverbial phrase “when it rains it pours” indicates the idea that difficult or inconvenient circumstances closely follow each other or take place all at the same time. This phrase originally referred to a weather pattern in which a dry spell would be followed by heavy, prolonged rain. However, the original meaning is distanced from the overuse of the phrase, making it a cliché.
Some common examples of cliché in everyday speech:
- My dog is dumb as a doorknob. (тупой как пробка)
- The laundry came out as fresh as a daisy.
- If you hide the toy it will be out of sight, out of mind. (с глаз долой, из сердца вон)
Examples of Movie Lines that Have Become Cliché:
- Luke, I am your father. (Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back)
- i am Groot. (Guardians of the Galaxy)
- I’ll be back. (The Terminator)
- Houston, we have a problem. (Apollo 13)
Some famous examples of cliché in creative writing:
- It was a dark and stormy night
- Once upon a time
- There I was
- All’s well that ends well
- They lived happily ever after
6. The sociolinguistic aspect of word combinations.
Lexical valency is the possibility of lexicosemantic connections of a word with other word
Some researchers suggested that the functioning of a word in speech is determined by the environment in which it occurs, by its grammatical peculiarities (part of speech it belongs to, categories, functions in the sentence, etc.), and by the type and character of meaning included into the semantic structure of a word.
Words are used in certain lexical contexts, i.e. in combinations with other words. The words that surround a particular word in a sentence or paragraph are called the verbal context of that word.
7. Norms of lexical valency and collocability in different languages.
The aptness of a word to appear in various combinations is described as its lexical valency or collocability. The lexical valency of correlated words in different languages is not identical. This is only natural since every language has its syntagmatic norms and patterns of lexical valency. Words, habitually collocated, tend to constitute a cliché, e.g. bad mistake, high hopes, heavy sea (rain, snow), etc. The translator is obliged to seek similar cliches, traditional collocations in the target-language: грубая ошибка, большие надежды, бурное море, сильный дождь /снег/.
The key word in such collocations is usually preserved but the collocated one is rendered by a word of a somewhat different referential meaning in accordance with the valency norms of the target-language:
- trains run — поезда ходят;
- a fly stands on the ceiling — на потолке сидит муха;
- It was the worst earthquake on the African continent (D.W.) — Это было самое сильное землетрясение в Африке.
- Labour Party pretest followed sharply on the Tory deal with Spain (M.S.1973) — За сообщением о сделке консервативного правительства с Испанией немедленно последовал протест лейбористской партии.
Different collocability often calls for lexical and grammatical transformations in translation though each component of the collocation may have its equivalent in Russian, e.g. the collocation «the most controversial Prime Minister» cannot be translated as «самый противоречивый премьер-министр».
«Britain will tomorrow be welcoming on an official visit one of the most controversial and youngest Prime Ministers in Europe» (The Times, 1970). «Завтра в Англию прибывает с официальным визитом один из самых молодых премьер-министров Европы, который вызывает самые противоречивые мнения».
«Sweden’s neutral faith ought not to be in doubt» (Ib.) «Верность Швеции нейтралитету не подлежит сомнению».
The collocation «documentary bombshell» is rather uncommon and individual, but evidently it does not violate English collocational patterns, while the corresponding Russian collocation — документальная бомба — impossible. Therefore its translation requires a number of transformations:
«A teacher who leaves a documentary bombshell lying around by negligence is as culpable as the top civil servant who leaves his classified secrets in a taxi» (The Daily Mirror, 1950) «Преподаватель, по небрежности оставивший на столе бумаги, которые могут вызвать большой скандал, не менее виновен, чем ответственный государственный служащий, забывший секретные документы в такси».
8. Using the data of various dictionaries compare the grammatical valency of the words worth and worthy; ensure, insure, assure; observance and observation; go and walk; influence and влияние; hold and держать.
Worth & Worthy | |
Worth is used to say that something has a value:
• Something that is worth a certain amount of money has that value; • Something that is worth doing or worth an effort, a visit, etc. is so attractive or rewarding that the effort etc. should be made. Valency:
|
Worthy:
• If someone or something is worthv of something, they deserve it because they have the qualities required; • If you say that a person is worthy of another person you are saying that you approve of them as a partner for that person. Valency:
|
Ensure, insure, assure | ||
Ensure means ‘make certain that something happens’.
Valency:
|
Insure — make sure
Valency:
|
Assure:
• to tell someone confidently that something is true, especially so that they do not worry; • to cause something to be certain. Valency:
|
Observance & Observation | |
Observance:
• the act of obeying a law or following a religious custom: religious observances such as fasting • a ceremony or action to celebrate a holiday or a religious or other important event: [ C ] Memorial Day observances [ U ] Financial markets will be closed Monday in observance of Labor Day. |
Observation:
• the act of observing something or someone; • the fact that you notice or see something; • a remark about something that you have noticed. Valency:
|
Go & Walk | |
Walk can mean ‘move along on foot’:
• A person can walk an animal, i.e. exercise them by walking. • A person can walk another person somewhere , i.e. take them there, • A person can walk a particular distance or walk the streets. Valency:
|
Influence & Влияние | |
Influence:
• A person can have influence (a) over another person or a group, i.e. be able to directly guide the way they behave, (b) with a person, i.e. be able to influence them because they know them well. • Someone or something can have or be an influence on or upon something or someone, i.e. be able to affect their character or behaviour in some way Valency:
|
Влияние — Действие, оказываемое кем-, чем-либо на кого-, что-либо.
Сочетаемость:
|
Hold & Держать | |
Hold:
• to take and keep something in your hand or arms; • to support something; • to contain or be able to contain something; • to keep someone in a place so that they cannot leave. Valency:
|
Держать — взять в руки/рот/зубы и т.д. и не давать выпасть
Сочетаемость:
|
- Contrastive Analysis. Give words of the same root in Russian; compare their valency:
Chance | Шанс |
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Situation | Ситуация |
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Partner | Партнёр |
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Surprise | Сюрприз |
|
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Risk | Риск |
|
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Instruction | Инструкция |
|
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Satisfaction | Сатисфакция |
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Business | Бизнес |
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Manager | Менеджер |
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Challenge | Челлендж |
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10. From the lexemes in brackets choose the correct one to go with each of the synonyms given below:
- acute, keen, sharp (knife, mind, sight):
• acute mind;
• keen sight;
• sharp knife;
- abysmal, deep, profound (ignorance, river, sleep);
• abysmal ignorance;
• deep river;
• profound sleep;
- unconditional, unqualified (success, surrender):
• unconditional surrender;
• unqualified success;
- diminutive, miniature, petite, petty, small, tiny (camera, house, speck, spite, suffix, woman):
• diminutive suffix;
• miniature camera/house;
• petite woman;
• petty spite;
• small speck/camera/house;
• tiny house/camera/speck;
- brisk, nimble, quick, swift (mind, revenge, train, walk):
• brisk walk;
• nimble mind;
• quick train;
• swift revenge.
11. Collocate deletion: One word in each group does not make a strong word partnership with the word on Capitals. Which one is Odd One Out?
1) BRIGHT idea green
smell
child day room
2) CLEAR
attitude
need instruction alternative day conscience
3) LIGHT traffic
work
day entertainment suitcase rain green lunch
4) NEW experience job
food
potatoes baby situation year
5) HIGH season price opinion spirits
house
time priority
6) MAIN point reason effect entrance
speed
road meal course
7) STRONG possibility doubt smell influence
views
coffee language
SERIOUS
advantage
situation relationship illness crime matter
- Write a short definition based on the clues you find in context for the italicized words in the sentence. Check your definitions with the dictionary.
Sentence | Meaning |
The method of reasoning from the particular to the general — the inductive method — has played an important role in science since the time of Francis Bacon. | The way of learning or investigating from the particular to the general that played an important role in the time of Francis Bacon |
Most snakes are meat eaters, or carnivores. | Animals whose main diet is meat |
A person on a reducing diet is expected to eschew most fatty or greasy foods. | deliberately avoid |
After a hectic year in the city, he was glad to return to the peace and quiet of the country. | full of incessant or frantic activity. |
Darius was speaking so quickly and waving his arms around so wildly, it was impossible to comprehend what he was trying to say. | grasp mentally; understand.to perceive |
The babysitter tried rocking, feeding, chanting, and burping the crying baby, but nothing would appease him. | to calm down someone |
It behooves young ladies and gentlemen not to use bad language unless they are very, very angry. | necessary |
The Academy Award is an honor coveted by most Hollywood actors. | The dream about some achievements |
In the George Orwell book 1984, the people’s lives are ruled by an omnipotent dictator named “Big Brother.” | The person who have a lot of power |
After a good deal of coaxing, the father finally acceded to his children’s request. | to Agree with some request |
He is devoid of human feelings. | Someone have the lack of something |
This year, my garden yielded several baskets full of tomatoes. | produce or provide |
It is important for a teacher to develop a rapport with his or her students. | good relationship |