1. What is the difference between free and bound word combinations?

Questions and task:
1. What is the difference between free and bound word combinations?
Free-Word Combinations - word-groups that have a greater semantic and structural independence: e.g. a week ago, kind to people.
Bound word combinations (groups) - semantically and structurally inseparable: e.g. at least, by means of
2. Define the term “set-phrases” or “phraseological units” and give examples.
set phrase - an expression whose meanings cannot be inferred from the meanings of the words that make it up. idiomatic expression, phrasal idiom, phrase, idiom. locution, saying, expression - a word or phrase that particular people use in particular situations; "pardon the expression"
English uses many set phrases of (mainly) French or Latin origin:
à la carte;
à la mode;
coup d'état
Phraseological units are (according to Prof. Kunin A.V.) stable word-groups with partially or fully transferred meanings ("to kick the bucket", “Greek gift”, “drink till all's blue”, “drunk as a fiddler (drunk as a lord, as a boiled owl)”, “as mad as a hatter (as a march hare)”).
3. What is understood by lexical valency?
Lexical Valency (Collocability) - The ability of a word to appear in various combination with other words, or lexical contexts.ex:heavy table (safe, luggage); heavy snow (rain, storm);
4. What is cliché?
Words habitually collocated in speech make a cliché.
5. Explain the grammatical valency with examples.
Grammatical Valency - the ability of a word to appear in specific grammatical structures, or grammatical contexts.For instance, the adjective heavy discussed above can be followed by a noun (e.g. heavy storm or by the infinitive of a verb (e.g. heavy to lift),
6. Word groups are classified according to…?
Word combinations (word groups) are classified:
according to the distribution;
according to the head-word;
according to the syntactic pattern.
7. Explain endocentric and exocentric distribution with examples.
endocentric – central member functionally equivalent to the whole word-group: e.g. red flower ( I saw a red flower – I saw a flower)
exocentric – the distribution of the whole word-group is different from either of its components: e.g. side by side,
8. According to the head word, word groups are classified into…?
Nominal groups: e.g. red flower.
Adjectival groups: e.g. kind to people.
Verbal groups: e.g. to speak well.
9. According to the syntactic pattern word groups are classified into…?
predicative – have a syntactic structure similar to that of a sentence:
e.g. John went, he works
non-predicative – do not have a structure similar to a sentence:
e.g. red flower, working John
10. Explain the Lexical meaning of word groups with examples.
Lexical meaning. The combined lexical meaning of the component words but the meaning of the word-group predominates over the lexical meanings of its components: e.g. atomic weight, atomic warfare.
11. How do you define the Structural meaning of word group? Give examples
Structural meaning - meaning conveyed by the arrangement of components of a word-group: e.g. school grammar – grammar school.
12. Explain lexically motivated and lexically non-motivated word groups with examples.
Lexically motivated - the combined lexical meaning of a group is deducible from the meanings of its components: e.g. red flower; apple sauce – ‘a sauce made of apples’
Lexically non-motivated – the meaning of the whole is not seen through the meanings of the elements: e.g. red tape – ‘official bureaucratic methods’; apple sauce – ‘nonsense’
13. Non-motivated word-groups are called ….? phraseological units or idioms
Case study
Arrange word groups according to the degree of their motivation, starting with the highest. Ex: Gay bird-beautiful bird, blackbird-beautiful bird, blackbird-gay bird (весельчак)
Cold wind-motivated. “A cold wind blowing” is a metaphor for something unwelcome, or something which suggests that something unwelcome will follow.
cold feet-motivated/non motivated meaning loss of nerve or confidence
cold war—non-motivated. A state of political hostility between countries characterized by threats, propaganda, and other measures short of open warfare.
Light hand—non-motivated meaning having a light or delicate touch