Branches of linguistics. Synchronic vs diachronic approaches to the language study. Lexicology – ‘the science of the word’

The Formal Classification
Types of phraseological units:
-nominal phrases: the root of trouble;
- verbal phrases: the break the news;
- adjectival phrases: as good as gold, head and shoulders over sb;
- adverbial phrases: in the long run, from head to foot, by heart;
- conjunctional phrases: on the one hand, as long as;
- prepositional phrases: in the course of sth;
- interjectional: Well, I never!
Phraseological units functioning like nouns:
N + N maiden name
N’s + N cat’s paw, ladies’ man
N + prep + N the arm of the law
N + subordinate clause ships that pass in the night
Phraseological units functioning like verbs:
V +N to take advantage
V + postpositive to give up
V + and + V to pick and choose
V + one’s + N + prep to snap one’s fingers at
V + one + N to give one the bird
V+subordinate clause to see how the land lies
Phraseological units functioning like adjectives:
A + A high and mighty
A + as + N as old as the hills
Phraseological units functioning like adverbs:
N + N tooth and nail
prep + N by heart, of course
adv + prep + A + N once in a blue moon
prep + N + or + N by hook or by crook
Phraseological units functioning like interjections:
imperative sentences: Bless (one’s) soul!, God bless you!
According to their origins, phraseological units in Modern English may be divided into:
native, e.g. to eat the humble pie ‘to submit to humiliation’ < ME to eat umble pie (umbles ‘the internal organs of a deer’); to save for a rainy day; to beat about the bush ‘not to speak openly and directly’; to lose one’s rag ‘to lose one’s temper’ etc.;
borrowed, which, in their turn, can be either intralingual (borrowed from American English and other variants of English) or interlingual (borrowed from other languages).
37. Polysemy, synonymy and stylistic features of phraseological units.