Phraseologisms(from Greek phrasis + logos - expression, figure of speech) - these are stable reproducible expressive complexes that have a holistic meaning and perform a single syntactic function. They give speech a special expressiveness, emphasize the national specifics, the originality of the language. Without them, a person's speech is colorless and often does not convey what he feels. But mastering phraseology is a difficult process, and shortcomings are encountered here quite often. The formation of a phraseological unit is based on semantic simplification, i.e., the limitation of the meanings of a word that has become a component of a phraseological unit that has its own single phraseological meaning. For example, the word eye in the four-volume "Dictionary of the Russian Language" has three meanings: 1) the organ of vision, 2) the ability to see; vision; vision, 3) the evil eye - the mysterious magical power of the gaze, bringing misfortune. Last word meaning eye is idiomatic. In the proverb Too many cooks spoil the broth component without an eye(singular only) relies on figurative meaning"supervision", which arose in oral speech on the basis of the second meaning. Expression cry out all eyes- to cry a lot and for a long time - relies on the first meaning of the word eye. Phraseologism relies on the same meaning Tet-a-tet- alone with someone. Phraseologism, acquiring a single meaning, receives its subject-conceptual orientation, due to which it can become a synonym for the word: Tet-a-tet− alone, beat the buckets− sit back.

The meaning of a phraseological unit, based on the figurative phraseological meanings of its components, is often motivated differently in different languages. So, the adverbial phraseological unit of the Russian language Tet-a-tet has correspondences: it. uner vier Augen (literally: between four eyes), English, face to face (face to face), fr. tete a tete (head to head). Phraseological units do not allow a literal (word by word) translation: they require the search for a phraseological equivalent of another language, since the phraseological meaning is accompanied by an emotional, semantic and stylistic expression; for example phraseology give bream colloquial, and the expression pitch darkness− bookstore.

The degree of semantic simplification of the components of a phraseological unit is different; the older the phraseological unit and the less connected it is with the words of general use, the less motivated the phraseological meaning, the more its internal form is forgotten. The classification of phraseological units is based on the degree of semantic simplification. The most famous classification is V. V. Vinogradov.

1 . Phraseological unions: to sharpen lyas, how to give a drink, on your mind - the main sign of fusion is its semantic indivisibility, the absolute non-derivation of the values ​​of the whole from the components. It is a semantic unit, homogeneous with the word, devoid of internal form. Phraseological fusions are also called idioms. Idioms (phraseological fusions) do not allow word by word (literal) understanding, since one of the components has fallen out of modern word usage; this is also facilitated by a change in shape: laces(instead of balusters− balustrade posts; cf. ital. balustro - column, baluster), joke to say− vm. tell a joke.

2. Phraseological units: lather your neck; to take dirty linen out of the hut; shot sparrow; you never know. Sayings and proverbs adjoin phraseological units, which do not have the form of phrases, but sentences: The work of the master is afraid; Do not count your chickens before they are hatched.

A feature of phraseological units is their semantic duplicity: they can be understood literally(to take out dirty linen from the hut) and figuratively - as one semantic unit, with its own phraseological meaning "to disclose something".

3. Phraseological combinations- this kind of stable combinations in which non-free phraseological meanings of words are realized, for example - look away(from someone): I With an effort, he averted his eyes from that beautiful face. However, when management changes, phraseological unity arises look away(to someone) - to deceive: The courtesy and dexterity that he flaunted in front of the buyer who came to his shop were nothing more than a means of "averting" the buyer's eyes, "talking his teeth" and meanwhile foisting rotten, clingy(G. Uspensky).

Composite names and terms. Phraseologisms are expressive means of language, they are characteristic of oral and book speech, language fiction. According to these properties, compound names differ from phraseological units: they do not have an emotional-figurative meaning. Compound names are nominative means of the language, its compound lexemes.

Phraseology is a branch of the science of language that studies stable combinations of words. Phraseologism is a stable combination of words, or a stable expression. Used to name objects, signs, actions. It is an expression that arose once, became popular and entrenched in the speech of people. The expression is endowed with figurativeness, it can have a figurative meaning. Over time, the expression can take on a broad meaning in everyday life, partially including the original meaning or completely excluding it.

Lexical meaning has a phraseological unit in general. The words included in the phraseological unit separately do not convey the meaning of the entire expression. Phraseologisms can be synonymous (at the end of the world, where the raven did not bring bones) and antonymous (lift up to heaven - trample into the dirt). Phraseologism in a sentence is one member of the sentence. Phraseologisms reflect a person and his activities: work (golden hands, fool around), social relations (bosom friend, put sticks in wheels), personal qualities (turn up your nose, sour mine), etc. Phraseologisms make the statement expressive, create imagery. Set expressions are used in works of art, in journalism, in everyday speech. Set expressions are otherwise called idioms. Many idioms in other languages ​​- English, Japanese, Chinese, French.

To clearly see the use of phraseological units, refer to their list on the page below or.

You have probably heard more than once that some phrases are called phraseological units. And, we argue, many times they used such turns themselves. Let's check what you know about them. We bet we know more. And we are happy to share information.

What is a phraseological unit?

Phraseologism- a turnover that is freely reproduced in speech, has a holistic, stable and, often, figurative meaning. From the point of view of the structure, it is built as a coordinating or subordinating phrase (it has a non-predicative or predicative character).

In what case does a certain phrase turn into a phraseological unit? When each of its constituent parts loses its independence as a semantic unit. And together they form a phrase with a new, allegorical meaning and imagery.

Phraseological features:

• stability;
• reproducibility;
• value integrity;
• dismemberment of the composition;
• belonging to the nominative dictionary of the language.

Some of these features characterize the internal content of the phraseological phrase, and some characterize the form.

How are phraseological units different from words?

First of all, its pronounced stylistic coloring. Most commonly used words in the vocabulary of the average person are neutral vocabulary. Phraseological units are characterized by evaluative meaning, emotionally expressive coloring, without which the realization of the meaning of phraseological units is impossible.

From the point of view of the stylistics of the language, phraseological units can be divided into:

• neutral ( from time to time, little by little and so on.);
• high style ( cornerstone, rest in Bose and etc.);
• colloquial and vernacular good riddance, catching crows etc.).

How do phraseological units differ from phraseological combinations, proverbs and sayings, popular expressions?

Phraseologisms are capable (and actively carry out this) in terms of composition to be combined with words of free use (that is, all other words of the language, “non-phraseologisms”).

How phraseological units are divided by origin:

• primordially Russian- some free phrases were rethought in speech as metaphors and turned into phraseological units ( reel in fishing rods, fish in troubled waters, knead mud, spread wings, grated kalach and so on.);
• borrowings from Old Church Slavonic (without hesitation, like the apple of an eye, not of this world, a parable of the town, at the time it is, the holy of holies and etc.);
• set phrases-terms that have turned into metaphors (bring to a common denominator= equalize, specific gravity= value, exaggerate= to greatly exaggerate squaring the circle and etc.);
• accepted at home stable names, which do not belong to any terminological system ( Indian summer, goat leg and so on.);
• winged words and expressions who came to us from Greek and Roman mythology (Achilles' heel, sword of Damocles, tantalum flour, wash your hands etc.);
• winged words and expressions come from the Bible and other religious texts ( manna from heaven, the abomination of desolation etc.);
• catchphrases come from literature, which have lost touch with the original source and entered into speech as phraseological units ( mage and wizard- comedy A.V. Sukhovo-Kobylin "Krechinsky's Wedding" (1855), between hammer and anvil- novel by F. Shpilhagen "Between the hammer and the anvil" (1868), between Scylla and Charybdis- Homer, "Odyssey" (VIII century BC);
• phraseological units-tracing paper, that is, a literal translation of set expressions from other languages ​​( smash on the head- it. aufs Haupt Schlagen, not at ease- fr. ne pas etre dans son assiette, dog and wolf time- fr. l'heure entre chien et loup, literally: the time after sunset, when it is difficult to distinguish a dog from a wolf).

Do not apply to phraseological units:

• phrases like scorn, pay attention, win, make a decision; wolfish appetite, maiden memory, bosom friend, sworn enemy, dog cold and the like. The words that make up these phrases retain the ability to connect in meaning and grammatically with another word. Phraseological combinations are classified as specific phrases. And actually phraseological units are not phrases in the common sense of this definition. (* in fact, this is a rather controversial point of classification and in the future we will consider some of these expressions);
• set phrases-terms ( exclamation mark, brain, chest, spinal column, progressive paralysis) and compound names (such as red corner, wall newspaper);
• constructs such as: in the form, for the sake of appearance, under the authority, if they cannot be compared with a literal prepositional combination of words (compare: On the nose= very soon and On the nose mole);
• catchphrases, proverbs and sayings ( Happy hours are not observed; Love for all ages; Whoever comes to us with a sword will die by the sword; Do not renounce the bag and prison etc.) - they differ from phraseological units in that they are combined in speech not with words, but with whole sentences (parts of sentences).

Lexico-grammatical classification

Phraseologisms can also be classified from a lexico-grammatical point of view:

• verbal- are used in speech in the form of an imperfect and perfect form: take / take the bull by the horns, hang / hang the nose, stroke / stroke the wrong way etc. A significant number of verbal phraseological units nevertheless entrenched in the language in the form of only one type: perfect ( wave your hand, plug it into your belt, kill two birds with one stone) or imperfect ( lead by the nose, smoke the sky, stand as a mountain(for someone).
• registered- are implemented in nominal phrases ( Indian summer, dark forest, Filkin's letter). In a sentence, they can play the role of a nominal predicate - they are used in I.p. or sometimes in Etc.
• adverbial- implemented in adverbial combinations ( in all shoulder blades, in all eyes, in one word, in a black body, so-so).
• adjectival - are characterized by the fact that their interpretation requires definitive (adjective) phrases ( skin and bones= very thin wet behind the ears= too young).
• verb-nominal predicative - built on the model of a sentence and implemented in verbal-nominal phrases (in fact, sentences where an indefinite pronoun acts as a subject (grammatical or logical): eyes on forehead who, and the flag in hand to whom.

Phraseological units and idioms - is there a difference?

Is it necessary to distinguish between phraseological units and idioms? Idioms- these are speech turns that cannot be divided into constituent parts without losing their original meaning and the general meaning of which cannot be deduced from the values individual words included in their composition. We can say that phraseologism and idiom are related as a genus and species. That is, phraseologism is a broader concept, a special case of which is an idiom.

Idioms are curious in that when they are literally translated into another language, their meaning is lost. An idiom gives such a description of phenomena that is logical for native speakers of a particular language, but relies on definitions and metaphors that cannot be understood outside this language without additional interpretation. For example, in Russian we talk about heavy rain it's raining cats and dogs. The English in this case say it's raining cats and dogs). And, for example, Estonians about a heavy downpour will say that it is pouring like a beanstalk.

About something incomprehensible we will say chinese letter, but for the Danes it is " sounds like the name of a Russian city". German says: “I only understood “station”, Pole - “Thank you, everyone is healthy at my house”, the Englishman will use "It's all Greek to me" (It's all Greek to me).

Or let's take the well-known Russian phraseological unit beat the buckets(= to mess around, to engage in nonsense) - it cannot be translated into another language literally. Because the origin of the expression is connected with the phenomena of the past, which has no analogues in the present. “To beat the buckets” means to split a log into chocks for turning spoons and wooden utensils.

Phraseologisms, speech stamps and clichés

Do not confuse idioms with speech cliches and stamps. Phraseologisms are a product of language metaphorization. They enrich the speech, make it more expressive and diverse, give the utterance figurativeness. Cliches and clichés, on the contrary, impoverish speech, reduce it to some hackneyed formulas. Although phraseological units have a stable structure and are reproduced, as a rule, in their entirety, without changes and additions, they liberate thinking and give free rein to the imagination. But cliches and clichés make thinking and speech stereotyped, deprive them of their individuality and testify to the poverty of the speaker's imagination.

For example, expressions black gold(= oil), people in white coats(= doctors), soul light- have long been no longer metaphors, but real clichés.

Common mistakes in the use of phraseological units

Incorrect use of phraseological units leads to speech errors, sometimes just annoying, and sometimes even comical.

1. The use of phraseological units in the wrong meaning. For example, with a literal understanding or distortion of the meaning of a phraseological unit - In the forest, I always use repellents, so the mosquito will not undermine the nose. The meaning of this phraseological unit is “you can’t find fault with anything”, in this case the turnover was taken too literally and therefore was used incorrectly.
2. Distortion of the form of phraseology.

• Grammatical Distortion - It Works later willows sleeves(Right later I sleeves). me his stories imposed on teeth(Right imposed V teeth). It is also wrong to replace short forms of adjectives with full ones in phraseological units.
• Lexical distortion - plug behind mine someone's belt(it is impossible to freely introduce new units into the phraseological unit). live wide(Right live wide leg - you can not throw out words from the phraseological unit).

Violation of lexical compatibility. He never had his own opinion - he always repeated after everyone and sang to someone else's tune(in fact, there are phraseological units dance to someone else's tune And sing from someone else's voice).

Modern phraseological units

Like any lexical units, phraseological units are born, exist for some time, and some of them sooner or later go out of active use. If we talk about the relevance of phraseological units, then they can be divided into:

• common;
• obsolete;
• obsolete.

The system of phraseological units of the Russian language is not once and for all frozen and unchangeable. New phraseological units inevitably arise in response to phenomena modern life. Borrowed as cripples from other languages. And they enrich modern speech with new, relevant metaphors.

Here, for example, are a few relatively “fresh” phraseological units, relatively recently (mainly in the 20th century) that have taken root in the Russian language:

On a live thread- to do something not too carefully, temporarily, with the expectation in the future to redo the work as it should, to do it without extra effort. The origin of the phraseological unit is quite transparent: when seamstresses sew the parts of the product together, they first sweep them with large stitches so that they just stick together. And then they sew the parts neatly and firmly.

cloudless nature- a characteristic for a calm and unflappable person with a benevolent and balanced character, a person without special flaws and not subject to mood swings. And it can also be used not only to describe a person, but also to characterize abstract phenomena (relationships between people, for example).

How to send two bytes- a characteristic for any action, which is completely easy to perform.

Speak different languages- do not find mutual understanding.

Make lemonade out of lemons- to be able to apply even the most unfavorable conditions and circumstances to your advantage and achieve success in this.

Why do we need phraseological units-synonyms?

By the way, phraseological units can be both synonyms and antonyms among themselves. Having understood what connections exist between phraseological units that are different at first glance, one can more deeply comprehend their meanings. And also to diversify the use of these turns in speech. Sometimes synonymous phraseological units describe various degrees of manifestation of a phenomenon or its various, but similar aspects. Look at these examples of phraseological units:

• About a person who means nothing to society and is nothing of himself, they say and small fry, And the last spoke in the chariot, And low flight bird, And bump in place.
• The antonyms for these phraseological units are turns: important bird, high-flying bird, big cone.

Interpretation of phraseological units

We bring to your attention the interpretation and even the history of the origin of some phraseological units. They are included in the active stock of the modern Russian language. And, despite the fact that some are no longer just tens, but even a couple of hundred years old, they remain popular and are widely used in everyday speech and literature.

Augean stables- so they burn about a very dirty place, a neglected and untidy room, things scattered in disorder. Applies also to messy, disordered and neglected cases.

Phraseologism comes from ancient Greek myths. One of the exploits of Hercules was cleaning the stables of the king of Elis Avgii, which had not been cleaned for 30 years.

Ariadne's thread- a wonderful way to find a way out of a predicament.

This turnover also came to us from ancient Greek myths. According to legend, the daughter of the Cretan king Minos, Ariadne, helped the Athenian hero Theseus get out of the labyrinth of the minotaur, giving him a ball of thread so that he could return from the tangled corridors along the thread fixed at the entrance to the labyrinth. By the way, if you ever wonder ancient literature, then you will find out that subsequently Ariadne probably regretted that she undertook to help Theseus.

Achilles' heel- the weakest and most vulnerable place, a secret weakness.

According to ancient Greek mythology, the hero Achilles was miraculously tempered from any danger. And only one heel remained humanly vulnerable. From the wound inflicted by an arrow in the heel, Achilles subsequently died.

lamb in paper- a bribe.

It is believed that phraseology originated in the eighteenth century. At that time, there was a magazine called "Vssakaya Vsyachina", the editor of which was the Empress Catherine II. The monarch was sharply critical of the bribery common among officials. And she claimed, they say, officials, hinting at a bribe, demand to bring them a "lamb in a piece of paper." The turnover was popular with the Russian writer M.E. Saltykov-Shchedrin, who, as you know, often ridiculed the vices of contemporary society.

without a hitch, without a hitch– flawlessly, without complications and problems, well and smoothly.

A hitch used to be called roughness, unevenness on the surface of a smoothly planed board.

beat the alarm- to draw everyone's attention to something of great public or personal importance, to something dangerous and disturbing.

Nabat - in the Middle Ages and earlier periods of history to alert people about trouble (fire, invasion of enemies, etc.) alarm signal served with the sound of bells, less often drums were beaten.

good obscenities(scream) - shout very loudly, at the top of your lungs.

Phraseologism has nothing to do with modern swear words, i.e. matu. From Old Russian good can be translated as strong, and mat - as a voice. Those. the expression should be taken literally only if you know what each of its parts means separately.

big boss- an important, respected and significant person in society.

In the old days, heavy loads on the rivers were rafted with the help of the draft power of people (barge haulers). The most experienced, physically strong and hardy person, who was called a bump in the jargon accepted in this environment, walked ahead of everyone in the strap.

shave forehead- send to military service, into soldiers.

Before the new statute on conscription was adopted in 1874, recruits for the army were recruited (usually under duress) for a period of 25 years. While the recruitment lasted, everyone fit for military service had the front half of the head shaved bald.

Babel- confusion and crowding, disorder.

The biblical traditions describe the construction of a grandiose tower up to the sky (“pillar of creation”), which was started by the inhabitants of Ancient Babylon and in which many people from different lands took part. In punishment for this insolence, God created many different languages, so that the builders stopped understanding each other and, in the end, could not complete the construction.

bartholomew night- massacre, genocide and extermination.

On the night of August 24, 1572 in Paris, on the eve of St. Bartholomew's Day, Catholics staged a massacre of Protestant Huguenots. As a result, several thousand people were physically destroyed and wounded (according to some estimates, up to 30 thousand).

Versta Kolomna- a characteristic for a person of very high stature.

In the past, milestones marked the distance on the roads. This particular expression was born from the comparison tall people with milestones on the way between Moscow and the village of Kolomenskoye (the summer residence of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich was located there).

hang dogs- accuse someone, condemn and blame, slander and blame someone else.

By "dog" is not meant an animal, but an outdated name for thorns and thorns.

in all shoulder blades- very fast.

This turnover was born to denote a very fast run of a horse, when it jumps "in all front legs."

free Cossack- a definition for a free and independent person.

In the Muscovite state of the 15th-17th centuries, this was the name given to free people from the central regions of the country who fled to the periphery in order to escape enslavement (that is, turning into serfs).

newspaper duck- unverified, distorted or generally false information in the media from beginning to end.

There are several versions of the origin of this phraseological unit. Journalists have a popular one: in the past, in newspapers, next to dubious and unverified reports, they put the letters NT ( non-testatum= "not verified" in Latin). But the fact is that the German word for "duck" ( ente) is consonant with this abbreviation. This is how the expression was born.

highlight of the program- the most important part of the performance, the best and most important number, something very important and significant.

The famous Eiffel Tower was built in Paris specifically for the World Exhibition (1889). To contemporaries of those events, the tower looked like a nail. By the way, it was assumed that 20 years after the exhibition, the tower would be dismantled. And only the development of radio broadcasting saved it from destruction - the tower began to be used as a tower for placing radio transmitters. And the expression has since taken root to denote something unusual, noticeable and significant.

pillars of Hercules(pillars) - the highest, extreme degree of something.

It was originally used to describe something very distant, almost "on the edge of the world." So in ancient times they called two rocks located on the banks of the Strait of Gibraltar. In those days, people believed that the ancient Greek hero Hercules installed the pillars there.

naked as a falcon- a characteristic for a very poor person.

Falcon - the so-called ancient wall-beater used during the siege. It looked like an absolutely smooth cast-iron blank, fixed on chains.

sword of Damocles- constant threat, danger.

In ancient Greek myths, there was a story about a tyrant from Syracuse, Dionysius the Elder. He taught a lesson for envy to his position of one of his associates named Damocles. At the feast, Damocles was seated in a place over which a sharp sword was hung on a horsehair. The sword symbolized the many dangers that constantly haunt a person of such a high position as Dionysius.

case burned out– i.e. something completed successfully, in a satisfactory manner.

The origin of this phraseological unit is connected with the peculiarities of judicial office work in the past. A defendant could not be charged with anything if his case was destroyed, for example, by fire. Wooden courts, together with all the archives, often burned in the past. And just as often there were cases when court cases were destroyed intentionally, for a bribe to judicial officials.

reach the handle- to reach the extreme degree of humiliation, extreme need, finally sink and lose self-respect.

When old Russian bakers baked rolls, they gave them the shape of a padlock with a round bow. This form had a purely utilitarian purpose. It was convenient to hold the kalach by the bow while eating. Apparently, they already guessed about the diseases of dirty hands even then, so they disdained to eat the handle of the kalach. But it could be served to the poor or thrown to a hungry dog. It was possible to reach the point of eating a kalach handle only in the most extreme case, in extreme need, or simply not caring at all about one's health and image in the eyes of others.

bosom friend- the closest and most reliable friend, soul mate.

Before the arrival of Christianity in Rus', it was believed that the soul of a person is in the throat, "behind the Adam's apple." After the adoption of Christianity, they began to believe that the soul is located in the chest. But the designation of the most trusted person, who can even be trusted own life and for whom you will regret it, it remains as a “bosom”, i.e. "soul" friend.

for lentil soup- to change their ideals or supporters for selfish motives.

According to biblical tradition, Esau gave up his birthright to his brother Jacob for nothing more than a bowl of lentil stew.

golden mean- an intermediate position, behavior aimed at avoiding extremes and making risky decisions.

This is a tracing-paper from the Latin saying of the ancient Roman poet Horace " aurea mediocritas".

history with geography- a state when things took an unexpected turn that no one expected.

Phraseologism was born from the outdated name of the school discipline - "history with geography".

and no brainer- something that should be clear even to the most obtuse, self-evident.

There are two versions of the origin of this phraseological unit. It is also possible that both are true and one follows from the other. One turn went to the people after the poem by V. Mayakovsky, in which there were such lines: “It is clear even to a hedgehog / This Petya was a bourgeois.” According to another, the expression took root in boarding schools for gifted children that existed in Soviet time. The letters E, G and I denoted classes with students of one year of study. And the students themselves were called "hedgehogs." In terms of their knowledge, they lagged behind students from classes A, B, C, D, E. Therefore, what is understandable to the “hedgehog” should have been all the more understandable for more “advanced” students.

not by washing, so by skating- not one way, but another way to achieve the desired result.

This phraseological unit describes the old way of washing, adopted in the villages. The linen was rinsed by hand, and then, due to the lack of such benefits of civilization as an iron at that time, they were “rolled back” with a special wooden rolling pin. After that, things became squeezed out, especially clean and even practically ironed.

latest Chinese warning- empty threats that do not entail any decisive action.

This phraseological unit was born relatively recently. In the 1950s and 1960s, US Air Force reconnaissance aircraft frequently violated Chinese airspace. The Chinese authorities responded to any such violation of the borders (and there were several hundred of them) with an official warning to the US leadership. But no decisive action was taken to stop the reconnaissance flights of American pilots.

on the sly- secretly and gradually do something, act on the sly.

Sapa (from it. zappa= "hoe") - a ditch or dig, imperceptibly pulled out towards the enemy's fortifications in order to take him by surprise. In the past, in this way they often dug under the walls of enemy fortresses, laying gunpowder charges in the trenches. Exploding, the bombs destroyed the outer walls and opened up the opportunity for the attackers to break through. By the way, the word "sapper" of the same origin - that was the name of the people who left the powder charges in the saps.

Conclusion

We hope that we were able to at least slightly open for you a diverse and interesting world phraseological units. If you continue this journey on your own, there are still many interesting discoveries ahead of you.

Phraseological phrases change over time, new phenomena in life lead to the emergence of new phraseological units. If you know any interesting new phraseological units, tell us about it in the comments. We will definitely supplement this article with them and do not forget to thank those who send us novelty phraseological units.

site, with full or partial copying of the material, a link to the source is required.

Phraseologisms are pearls, nuggets and

gems of the native language.
A.I. Efimov

Phraseologisms, winged words and expressions- these are figurative, well-aimed, stable expressions, sayings, turns of speech that have come into common use. They are called winged because they quickly fly from mouth to mouth. The meaning of such expressions is sometimes difficult to unravel, because it does not consist of the meanings of the words included in them.

Phraseological phrases greatly decorate our speech, make it expressive, figurative. The richer lexicon, the more interesting, brighter a person expresses his thoughts. The study of phraseological units helps to instill in the child an interest in the word, in the history of the native language.

Understanding phraseological units when reading fiction, newspapers and magazines, watching films, using them in oral and writing is an indicator of the level of proficiency in the native language.

funny and entertaining materials brought to your attention books help children in game form learn to find, recognize and memorize phraseological units, it is appropriate to use winged expressions in your speech, enrich your vocabulary, develop their ability to logically and consistently express their thoughts.

Get to know selected materials from book Ageeva I.D.

PHRASEOLOGICAL RIDDLES-FOLDS

Finish the line of the catchphrase in rhyme.

Sits very straight
proud sir -
As if now
SWALLOWED he ... (ARSHIN).

"Arshin swallowed"- so they say about a person who stands or sits unnaturally straight. And "arshin" here is a ruler 0.71 m long. Such was the old Russian measure of length.

Borka has two "twos" in a quarter.
Yes, WITHOUT THE KING my friend IN ... (HEAD).

“Without a king in the head” they say about a stupid, unthinking, imprudent person.

Be like all girls
I didn't want to since childhood.
I don’t shed tears, I don’t paint -
I AM A CROW… (WHITE).
I do boxing
Disobedient temperament.
I don't want a bird
Get black!

"White Crow" they call a person who stands out sharply among others, not at all like everyone else.

Oh, our messy Taras -
Waiting for a friend BEAT... (HOUR)

"The Dead Hour"- for a long time, for a long time, endlessly. The broken hour - from the fact that the time was previously reported by striking the bell.

Ilyusha has nothing to do -
All day long he BEATS ... (BUCKLUSHI).
Doesn't draw, doesn't read
Just TIME... (KILLS).
WASTE SUMMER -
There is no Internet at the cottage.

"beat the buckets"- to be idle. "Waste time"- to fill unoccupied time with some random occupation, to waste time in vain. "Abyss for nothing"- no result.

My little brother started smoking
We urgently need to BEAT IN ... (NABAT).
From dangerous cigarettes
So much trouble for health!

"Beat the alarm"- raise the alarm, call for help.

We don't care about a cold
Health HAPPENS in us ... (KEY).
Sun, air and water
Here we are always healthy.

"Beat the key"- vigorously, actively express themselves, flow.

With difficulty "R" we
Second year already
FIGHT HARD
LIKE A FISH ABOUT ... (ICE).
And wonderful
Our speech therapist
During this time
It has become completely gray.

"Fight like a fish on ice"- make every effort, painfully look for a way out of a difficult situation.

I have not grown up over the summer -
Here he is my SICK ... (QUESTION).
Below I am the girls of all -
There is no chance of success.

"Sick question"- a question, a problem, haunting.

I'm getting ready to be a border guard
Like my older brother, become
And Russian borders
Securely guard.
Spy on the border
I'll spot it instantly
On patrol with Mukhtar
I WILL… (ALWAYS).

"Be on the lookout"- means to be ready, is in vigilant expectation.

Vadim convinces everyone everywhere:
From Mars, an alien communicates with him.
They just don’t believe Vadim anywhere -
EVERYTHING IS WRITTEN WITH A PITCH ON ... (WATER).

"Written with a pitchfork on the water"- so they will say that it is almost impossible, unlikely.

A friend does not notice us all,
He dreams of his beloved.
With her name in my mouth
He HAVES IN ... (IN THE CLOUDS).

"Soar in the clouds"- to be in a dreamy state, not noticing the surroundings.

Our Tanya is very clever
From the boys VIET ... (ROPES).
Just blink - any kid
Jump into the pool with ... (HEAD).

"Twist the ropes"- to do with someone as you please. "Throw yourself into the pool with your head"- recklessly decide on some bold, desperate act.

Irishka granny
Helps to wash
The picture is nice
EYE... (RESTING).

"The eye rests (rejoices)"- so they say about a pleasant, soothing sight.

I asked a friend in vain
Leave me a piece of melon
mine was not heard
THE VOICE OF ONE CRYING IN ... (DESERT).

"Voice in the wilderness"- so they say about useless calls that remain unheeded.

SHIRT-GUY classmate Mishka,
Although his father is a BIG ... (BONE).

"Big boss"- important, influential person holding a high position. In the old days, the most experienced and strong barge hauler, walking in the strap first, was called a bump. And then it turned into a modern catchphrase. "Shirt Guy"- an open, easy-to-handle person.

Our neighbor all night
That knocked, then drilled -
And the BEAST IN ME he
By morning ... (Woke up).

"Wake up the beast"- to infuriate, infuriate, infuriate, annoy someone. "Do not wake the beast in me!"- this is an urgent request that it is not necessary to awaken his base, animal instincts in a person, because this can end badly for everyone.

And many, many more phraseological riddles-folds in the book

PHRASEOLOGICAL MATHEMATICS

Insert numbers, numerals in known phraseological units.

Lonely, without a family, without relatives, loved ones - ... like a finger.

(One.)

Very little, not enough on ... tooth.

(One.)

Completely sober - not in ... the eye.

(One.)

Easy to win ... left.

(One.)

The first signs of forthcoming auspicious events are … martin.

(First.)

Neither good nor bad neither two nor...

(One and a half.)

Very stupid - he has everything ... meanders.

(Two.)

About who is still very small - from a pot ... an inch.

(Two.)

Similar, indistinguishable - like ... drops (of water).

(Two.)

Do two things at the same time, achieve two goals - kill ... hares.

(Two.)

In any case, dispute, take a vacillating, ambiguous position - sit between ... chairs.

(Two.)

On foot - on their…

(Two.)

For a long time - before ... advent.

(Second.)

Very little - once ... and miscalculated.

(Two.)

Very simple - like twice...

(Two.)

It's very sad to cry cry in... the stream.

(Three.)

The basis of the foundations is ... a whale.

(Three.)

Expel decisively, quickly, without delay - drive in ... necks.

(Three.)

So many - with ... boxes.

(Three.)

Without talking, without leaving the house - live within... the walls.

(Four.)

Anywhere you want - on all... sides.

(Four.)

Absolutely not needed like a dog... leg.

(Fifth.)

Something superfluous, unnecessary - ... a wheel in a cart.

(Fifth.)

Hostile agents within countries - ... Column.

(Fifth.)

To refer to people who do not keep their promises, they say: he … Fridays of the week.

(Seven.)

Very smart - ... spans in the forehead.

(Seven.)

About something absolutely incomprehensible, inaccessible to understanding, hidden from the uninitiated - a book behind ... seals.

(Family.)

Feel immensely happy in ... the sky (from happiness).

(Seventh.)

Very distant family ... water on jelly.

(Seventh.)

The highest rise, takeoff - ... shaft.

(Ninth.)

Not so important, completely unimportant - case...

(Tenth.)

Bold, brave not cowardly...

(Ten.)

Expression of dissatisfaction with something repetitive and boring - again...

(Twenty five).

About the one with whom all sorts of troubles constantly happen - ... misfortune.
(Thirty three.)

MYSTERIES GUESSED BY CUTE PHRASES

Remembering famous catchphrases and their meanings guess the hidden words. The fewer hints you need for this, the better.

HE is in the head of a frivolous, frivolous person.
HIM is advised to search in the field when someone has disappeared without a trace.
Words and money are thrown at HIM by those who do not appreciate them.

(WIND: "wind in the head", "look for the wind in the field", "throw words into the wind")

It is brewed, starting some unpleasant, troublesome business, and then disentangled, unraveling this business.
You can’t weld it with someone with whom it’s hard to come to an agreement.
HER "asks" for torn shoes.
SHE is in the head of confusion.

(PORRIDGE: “brew porridge”, “(with him) you can’t cook porridge”, “(boots) ask for porridge”)

It is pounded in a mortar or carried in a sieve by those who are engaged in a useless business.
HER is typed into the mouth when they are silent.
IT cannot separate inseparable friends.
Unfortunate people hide the ends in HER
Sometimes they come out dry.

(WATER: “crush water in a mortar”, “like taking water in your mouth”, “ends in water”, “do not spill water”, “get out of the water dry”.)

IT is in the hat when the problem is close to being solved.
IT smells of kerosene when unpleasant consequences are expected.
IT burns out in case of successful completion.
It can be smoked in a negative situation.

(CASE: “the case is in the bag”, “the case smells of kerosene”, “the case is burned out”, “the case is tobacco.”)

HIM is swallowed, stubbornly refusing to speak.
HE is well suspended in a person who speaks easily and glibly.
They pull or pull for HIM, forcing him to speak out.
HIM is kept behind the teeth when they do not want to say too much.

(LANGUAGE: “tongue swallowed”, “tongue well suspended”, “who pulled you by the tongue?”, “Keep your mouth shut.”)

They are not hares, but run away.
They are not chicks, they hatch.
THEM are dusted, creating a false or better impression of themselves.
THEY can stick together, flare up and be in a wet place.
(EYES: “eyes run wide”, “eyes popped out”, “splurge”, “eyes stick together”, “eyes flared up”, “eyes in a wet place.”)

HIM hanged, becoming discouraged.
HIM is bullied, conceited.
ITS shoved everywhere, interfering in their own business.

(NOSE: “hang your nose”, “turn up your nose”, “poke your nose.”)

They are not flowers, but wither.
Not underwear, but THEM are hung by overly gullible and curious.
Not hands, but THEM clap if they don’t understand something.

(EARS: “ears wither”, “ears to hang out”, “ears to clap.”)

They draw water into HIM when you need to be silent.
It is opened wide when greatly surprised.
HE is full of trouble for someone who takes on many things at once.

What is a completely useless job called?
a) Martyshkin labor;
b) Mouse fuss;
c) Dog joy;
d) a disservice.

What do they say about a person of very large stature?
a) Kolomna verst;
b) Rostov arshin;
c) Vologda sazhen;
d) London mile.

How do you talk about someone disappearing without a trace?
a) The trace is cold;
b) The imprint caught a cold;
c) Kolya got sick;
d) The track is infected.

Where are the sweet sleeping people?
a) Pandora's box
b) On the scales of Themis;
c) In the arms of Morpheus;
d) In the cup of Dionysus.

How else can you call a commotion, confusion or a difficult situation?
a) Curd forest;
b) Cheese-boron;
c) Sour cream-grove;
d) Sausage-thicket.
(Here "cheese" is short adjective. Syr-boron is a damp pine forest growing in marshy places. In Russian folklore, the burning of raw pine forest is a symbol of angry, hot emotions.)

What word is missing in the catchphrase that characterizes the life of rich people: "Live on a wide scale"?
a) leg
b) Soul;
c) the hand;
d) Waist.
(To live in a big way is richly, not embarrassed in means.)

Which of these "fishing" expressions means "let yourself be deceived, outwitted"?
a) Throw a bait;
b) Reel in fishing rods;
c) fall for the bait;
d) Hook on the bait.

(“Throw the bait” - carefully hint at something in order to find out, find out the situation, the situation, someone’s decisions. “Reel the bait” - hastily, hastily leave, get out of somewhere. “Hook on the bait” - deceit, cunning get something from someone.)

What do pretenders and insincere people “break”?
a) comedy
b) tragedy;
c) drama
d) farce.
(Breaking comedy.)

What do they say about a person who dramatizes the situation?
a) Sharpen pencils
b) washes brushes;
c) thickens colors;
d) Breaks the palette.

What is a good warrior armed with?
a) to the knees;
b) To toe;
c) To the teeth;
d) To the crown.
(Armed to the teeth.)

Which of these expressions should be added to get the idiom: "keep ..."?
a) With all your might
b) In constant voltage;
c) In calloused hands;
d) In a black body.
(“Keep in a black body” - severely, strictly treat someone, oppress someone.)

How do they talk about a new surge of strength?
a) Second violin;
b) Second wind;
c) second birth;
d) Second house.
(“Second violin” is not a leader; “second birth” is a successful outcome of a difficult situation; “second home” is a native, significant place.)

Insert the missing word into a catchphrase characterizing a very stupid, narrow-minded, stupid person: "Without ... in my head."
a) king
b) Sultan;
c) Emperor;
d) President.
(Without a king in the head.)

And many, many more questions on the knowledge of phraseological units in the book

Ecology of life: Often, to achieve some speech effect simple words is not enough. Irony, bitterness, love, mockery...

Speech is a way of communication between people. In order to achieve complete mutual understanding, to express one's thoughts more clearly and figuratively, many lexical techniques are used, in particular, phraseological units (phraseological unit, idiom) - stable turns of speech that have an independent meaning and are characteristic of a particular language.

Often, to achieve some kind of speech effect, simple words are not enough. Irony, bitterness, love, mockery, one's own attitude to what is happening - all this can be expressed much more capaciously, more precisely, more emotionally.

We often use phraseological units in everyday speech, sometimes without even noticing - after all, some of them are simple, familiar, and familiar from childhood. Many of the phraseological units came to us from other languages, eras, fairy tales, legends.

"The game is not worth the candle" and other popular expressions

Augean stables

Rake first these Augean stables, and then you will go for a walk.

Meaning. A cluttered, polluted place where everything is in complete disarray.

Origin. He lived in ancient Elis, according to an ancient Greek legend, King Augius, a passionate lover of horses: he kept three thousand horses in his stables. However, the stalls in which the horses were kept had not been cleaned for thirty years, and they were overgrown with manure up to the roof.

Hercules was sent to the service of Avgius, to whom the king instructed to clean the stables, which no one else could do.

Hercules was as cunning as he was powerful. He directed the waters of the river through the gates of the stables, and a stormy stream washed out all the dirt from there in a day.

The Greeks sang this feat along with the other eleven, and the expression "Augean stables" began to apply to everything neglected, polluted to the last limit, and in general to denote a great mess.

Arshin swallow

It stands as if the arshin swallowed.

Meaning. Stay unnaturally straight.

Origin. The Turkish word "arshin", meaning a measure of length of one cubit, has long become Russian. Until the revolution, Russian merchants and artisans constantly used arshins - wooden and metal rulers seventy-one centimeters long. Imagine how a person who swallowed such a ruler should look like, and you will understand why this expression is used in relation to stiff and arrogant people.

henbane overeat

In Pushkin's "The Tale of the Fisherman and the Fish" an old man, indignant

with the shameless greed of his old woman, angrily says to her:

“What are you, woman, overeating with henbane?”

Meaning. Act absurdly, viciously, like crazy.

Origin. In the countryside, in the backyards and dumps, you can find tall bushes with dirty yellowish, purple-veined flowers and an unpleasant smell. This is henbane - a very poisonous plant. Its seeds resemble poppies, but the one who eats them becomes like a madman: he raves, rages, and often dies.

Buridan's donkey

He rushes about, cannot decide on anything, like Buridan's donkey.

Meaning. An extremely indecisive person, hesitating in the choice between equivalent decisions.

Origin. The philosophers of the late Middle Ages put forward a theory according to which the actions of living beings do not depend on their own will, "but solely on external causes. The scientist Buridan (more precisely, Buridan), who lived in France in the 14th century, confirmed this idea with such an example. Let's take a hungry donkey and put on either side of his muzzle, at equal distances, are two identical bundles of hay. The donkey will have no reason to prefer one of them over the other: they are exactly alike. He will not be able to reach out either to the right or to the left, and in the end he will die. with hunger.

Back to our sheep

However, enough about this, let's get back to our sheep.

Meaning. A call to the speaker not to digress from the main topic; a statement that his digression from the topic of conversation is over.

Origin. Let's return to our rams - tracing paper from the French revenons a nos moutons from the farce "Lawyer Pierre Patlin" (c. 1470). With these words, the judge interrupts the rich clothier's speech. Having initiated a case against the shepherd who stole the sheep from him, the clothier, forgetting about his lawsuit, showers reproaches on the shepherd's defender, Patlen's lawyer, who did not pay him for six cubits of cloth.

Versta Kolomna

At such a verst of Kolomna as you, everyone will immediately pay attention.

Meaning. So they call a person of very tall stature, a tall man.

Origin. In the village of Kolomenskoye near Moscow, there was a summer residence of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich. The road there was busy, wide and was considered the main one in the state. And when they put up huge milestones, the likes of which have never happened in Russia, the glory of this road increased even more. The savvy people did not fail to take advantage of the novelty and dubbed the lanky man the Kolomna verst. That's what they still say.

lead by the nose

The smartest man, more than once or twice led the enemy by the nose.

Meaning. To deceive, mislead, promise and not fulfill the promise.

Origin. The expression was associated with fairground entertainment. Gypsies took bears to the show for a ring threaded through their noses. And they forced them, poor fellows, to do various tricks, deceiving them with the promise of handouts.

Hair on end

Horror seized him: his eyes popped out, his hair stood on end.

Meaning. So they say when a person is very scared.

Origin. “Stand on end” is to stand at attention, on your fingertips. That is, when a person is frightened, his hair stands on tiptoe on his head.

That's where the dog is buried!

Ah, that's it! Now it is clear where the dog is buried.

Meaning. That's the thing, that's the real reason.

Origin. There is a story: the Austrian warrior Sigismund Altensteig spent all campaigns and battles with his beloved dog. Once, while traveling in the Netherlands, the dog even saved his owner from death. The grateful warrior solemnly buried his four-legged friend and erected a monument on his grave, which stood for more than two centuries - until early XIX century.

Later, the dog monument could be found by tourists only with the help of local residents. At that time, the saying "That's where the dog is buried!" Was born, which now has the meaning: "I found what I was looking for", "got to the bottom of the matter."

But there is an older and no less likely source of the proverb that has come down to us. When the Greeks decided to give the Persian king Xerxes a battle at sea, they put old men, women and children on ships in advance and transported them to the island of Salamis.

They say that the dog that belonged to Xanthippus, the father of Pericles, did not want to part with his master, jumped into the sea and swam, following the ship, reached Salamis. Exhausted from fatigue, she immediately died.

According to the historian of antiquity Plutarch, this dog was placed on the seashore with a kinosema - a canine monument, which was shown to the curious for a very long time.

Some German linguists believe that this expression was created by treasure hunters, who, out of fear of the evil spirit that allegedly guarded every treasure, did not dare to directly mention the purpose of their search and conditionally began to talk about a black dog, meaning the trait and the treasure.

Thus, according to this version, the expression "this is where the dog is buried" meant: "this is where the treasure is buried."

Pour in the first number

For such deeds, of course, they should be poured on the first number!

Meaning. Severely punish, scold someone

Origin. Something, but this expression is familiar to you ... And where did it just fall on your unfortunate head! Believe it or not, but... from the old school, where students were flogged every week, regardless of whether they were right or wrong. And if the mentor overdoes it, then such a spanking was enough for a long time, until the first day of the next month.

rub glasses

Do not believe it, they rub glasses on you!

Meaning. To deceive someone by presenting the matter in a distorted, incorrect, but favorable light for the speaker.

Origin. We are not talking about glasses that are used to correct vision. There is another meaning of the word "points": red and black marks on playing cards. Ever since there were cards, there have been dishonest players, cheaters in the world. They, in order to deceive a partner, indulged in all sorts of tricks. By the way, they were able to quietly “rub glasses” - turn a seven into a six or a four into a five, on the go, during the game, gluing a “point” or covering it with a special white powder. It is clear that “rubbing glasses” began to mean “cheating”, hence the special words were born: “fraud”, “fraudster” - a trickster who knows how to embellish his work, pass off bad as very good.

Voice in the wilderness

Wasted labor, you won't convince them, your words are the voice of one crying in the wilderness.

Meaning. Denotes vain persuasion, calls that no one heeds.

Origin. As biblical legends convey, one of the Hebrew prophets called out from the desert to the Israelites to prepare the way for God: to lay roads in the desert, to make the mountains go down, the valleys to be filled, and the curvature and unevenness to straighten. However, the calls of the prophet-hermit remained "a voice crying in the wilderness" - they were not heard. The people did not want to serve their fierce and cruel god.

Goal like a falcon

Who will say a kind word to me? After all, I'm an orphan. Goal like a falcon.

Meaning. Very poor, beggar.

Origin. Many people think that we are talking about a bird. But she is neither poor nor rich. In fact, the “falcon” is an old military wall-beating weapon. It was a completely smooth (“bare”) cast-iron ingot, mounted on chains. Nothing extra!

Naked truth

This is the state of affairs, the naked truth without embellishment.

Meaning. Truth as it is, no bluff.

Origin. This expression is Latin: Nuda Veritas [nuda veritas]. It is taken from the 24th ode of the Roman poet Horace (65 - 8 BC). Ancient sculptors allegorically depicted the truth (truth) in the form of a naked woman, which was supposed to symbolize the true state of affairs without silence or embellishment.

Woe onion

Do you know how to cook soup, onion woe.

Meaning. Idiot, unlucky person.

Origin. The caustic volatile substances contained in the onion in abundance irritate the eyes, and the hostess, while she crushes the onion for her cooking, sheds tears, although there is not the slightest grief. It is curious that tears caused by the action of irritating substances differ in chemical composition from sincere tears. There is more protein in fake tears (this is not surprising, because such tears are designed to neutralize caustic substances that have entered the eye), so fake tears are slightly cloudy. However, every person knows this fact intuitively: there is no faith in muddy tears. And onion grief is not called grief, but a transitory nuisance. Most often, half-jokingly, half-sorrowful, they turn to a child who has again done something wrong.

Two-faced Janus

She is deceitful, quirky and hypocritical, a real two-faced Janus.

Meaning. Two-faced, hypocritical person

Origin. In Roman mythology, the god of all beginnings. He was depicted with two faces - a young man and an old man - looking into opposite sides. One face is turned to the future, the other to the past.

In the bag

Well, everything, now you can sleep peacefully: it's in the bag.

Meaning. It's all right, everything ended well.

Origin. Sometimes the origin of this expression is explained by the fact that in the days of Ivan the Terrible, some court cases were decided by lot, and the lot was drawn from the judge's hat. However, the word "hat" came to us no earlier than in the days of Boris Godunov, and even then it was applied only to foreign headdresses. It is unlikely that this rare word could get into a folk saying at the same time.

There is another explanation: _, much later, clerks and clerks, sorting out court cases, used their hats to receive bribes.

If only you could help me, - the plaintiff says to the deacu in a caustic poem. A. K. Tolstoy, - I would have poured those, she-she, ten rubles into a hat. Joke? "Rash now," said the deacon, holding up his cap. - Come on!

It is very possible that the question: “Well, how am I doing?” - the clerks often answered with a sly wink: "It's in the bag." This is where the proverb could come from.

Money doesn't smell

He took this money and did not wince, the money does not smell.

Meaning. It is the availability of money that is important, not the source of its origin.

Origin. To urgently replenish the treasury, the Roman emperor Vespasian introduced a tax on public urinals. However, Titus reproached his father for this. Vespasian held the money to his son's nose and asked if it smelled. He answered in the negative. Then the emperor said: “But they are from urine ...” On the basis of this episode, a catchphrase developed.

Keep in a black body

Don't let her sleep in bed

By the light of the morning star

Keep a lazy man in a black body

And don't take the reins off her!

Meaning. to be harsh, to be strict with someone, making you work hard; oppress someone.

Origin. The expression comes from the Turkic expressions associated with horse breeding, meaning - moderately nourish, undernourish (kara kesek - meat without fat). The literal translation of these phrases is "black meat" (kara - black, kesek - meat). From the literal meaning of the expression came "keep in a black body."

Bring to white heat

Vile type, brings me to white heat.

Meaning. To piss off to the limit, to bring to madness.

Origin. When the metal is heated during forging, it glows differently depending on the temperature: first red, then yellow, and finally dazzling white. At higher temperatures, the metal will melt and boil. An expression from the speech of blacksmiths.

smoke rocker

In the tavern, smoke stood like a yoke: songs, dances, screams, fights.

Meaning. Noise, noise, confusion, turmoil.

Origin. In old Rus', the huts were often heated in black: the smoke did not escape through the chimney, but through a special window or door. And the shape of the smoke predicted the weather. There is a column of smoke - it will be clear, dragged - to fog, rain, rocker - to the wind, bad weather, and even a storm.

Egyptian executions

What kind of punishment is this, just Egyptian executions!

Meaning. Calamities that bring torment, heavy punishment

Origin. It goes back to the biblical story about the exodus of the Jews from Egypt. For Pharaoh's refusal to release the Jews from captivity, the Lord subjected Egypt to terrible punishments - ten Egyptian plagues. Blood instead of water. All the water in the Nile, other reservoirs and containers turned into red, but remained transparent to the Jews. Execution by frogs. As Pharaoh was promised: “They will go out and enter into your house, and into your bedroom, and onto your bed, and into the houses of your servants and your people, and into your ovens, and into your kneaders. Frogs filled the whole land of Egypt.

Midge invasion. As a third punishment, hordes of midges fell upon Egypt, which attacked the Egyptians, stuck around them, climbed into their eyes, nose, ears.

Dog flies. The country was flooded with dog flies, from which all animals, including domestic ones, began to throw themselves at the Egyptians.

Sea of ​​cattle. All the Egyptians lost their livestock, the attack did not affect only the Jews. Ulcers and boils. The Lord commanded Moses and Aaron to take a handful of furnace black and throw it up in front of Pharaoh. And the bodies of the Egyptians and animals were covered with their terrible sores and boils. Thunder, lightning and fiery hail. A storm began, thunder roared, lightning flashed, and fiery hail fell on Egypt. Locust invasion. A strong wind blew, and behind the wind hordes of locusts flew into Egypt, devouring all the greenery down to the last blade of grass on the land of Egypt.

Unusual darkness. The darkness that fell on Egypt was thick and dense, you could even touch it; and candles and torches could not dispel the darkness. Only the Jews had light.

Execution of the firstborn. After all the first-born in Egypt (with the exception of the Jews) died in one night, the pharaoh surrendered and allowed the Jews to leave Egypt. Thus began the Exodus.

Iron curtain

We live like behind an iron curtain, no one comes to us, and we don't visit anyone.

Meaning. Barriers, obstacles, complete political isolation of the country.

Origin. At the end of the XVIII century. an iron curtain was lowered onto the theater stage to protect the audience in the event of a fire on it. At that time, open fire was used to illuminate the stage - candles and oil lamps.

This expression acquired political overtones during the First World War. On December 23, 1919, Georges Clemenceau declared in the French Chamber of Deputies: "We want to put an iron curtain around Bolshevism so as not to destroy civilized Europe in the future."

Yellow press

Where did you read all this? Do not trust the yellow press.

Meaning. Base, deceitful, greedy for cheap sensations press.

Origin. In 1895, the New York World newspaper began to publish a series of comic strips called "The Yellow Kid" on a regular basis. Its main character, a boy in a toe-length yellow shirt, made funny comments on various events. In early 1896, another newspaper, the New York Morning Journal, poached the creator of the comic book, artist Richard Outcolt. Both publications thrived on the publication of scandalous material. A dispute flared up between competitors over the copyright to the "Yellow Baby". In the spring of 1896, the editor of the New York Press, Erwin Wardman, commenting on this lawsuit, contemptuously called both newspapers "yellow press."

Alive Smoking Room

A. S. Pushkin wrote an epigram to the critic M. Kachenovsky, which began with the words:

"How! Is Kurilka a journalist still alive? It ended with wise advice:

“... How to put out a smelly splinter? How to kill my Smoking room? Give me advice.

- "Yes ... spit on him."

Meaning. An exclamation at the mention of the ongoing activity of someone, his existence, despite difficult conditions.

Origin. There was an old Russian game: a lit splinter was passed from hand to hand, singing: “The Smoking Room is alive, alive, alive, not dead! ..” The one whose splinter went out, began to smoke, smoke, lost.

Gradually, the words “Kurilka is alive” began to be applied to various figures and to various phenomena that, logically, should have disappeared long ago, but, despite everything, continued to exist.

Behind seven seals

Well, of course, because this is a secret for you with seven seals!

Meaning. Something beyond understanding.

Origin. It goes back to the biblical turnover “a book with seven seals” - a symbol of secret knowledge that is inaccessible to the uninitiated until seven seals are removed from it, III from the prophetic New Testament book “Revelations of St. John the Evangelist". “And I saw in the right hand of the One sitting on the throne a book written inside and out, sealed with seven seals. And I saw a mighty angel proclaiming with a loud voice: “Who is worthy to open this book and break its seals?” And no one in heaven, or on earth, or under the earth, could open this book and look into it. The Lamb, who “was slain and redeemed us to God with his blood, opened the seals from the book. After the removal of six seals, the seal of God was placed on the inhabitants of Israel, according to which they were accepted as true followers of the Lord. After the opening of the seventh seal, the Lamb told John to eat the book: "... it will be bitter in your womb, but in your mouth it will be sweet as honey" in order to tell about the future renewal of the whole world and dispel the fears of believers about the future of Christianity, on which Jews, Gentiles and false teachers are on all sides.

Nick down

And cut it on your nose: you will not be able to deceive me!

Meaning. Remember firmly, firmly, once and for all.

Origin. The word "nose" here does not mean the organ of smell. Oddly enough, it means "commemorative plaque", "record tag". In ancient times, illiterate people carried such sticks and tablets with them everywhere and made all kinds of notes and notches on them. These tags were called noses.

Truth in wine

And next to the neighboring tables Sleepy lackeys stick out,

And drunkards with rabbit eyes shout "In vino Veritas".

Meaning. If you want to know exactly what a person thinks, treat him to wine.

Origin. It's famous latin expression: In vino Veritas (in wine veritas). It is taken from the work "Natural History" by the Roman scientist Pliny the Elder (1st century AD). where it is used in the sense: what is on the sober mind, then the drunk on the tongue.

It is not worth it

You shouldn't do it. The game is clearly not worth the candle.

Meaning. The effort you put in is not worth it.

Origin. The phraseological expression is based on a card term, which means that the stakes in the game are so insignificant that even the winnings will be less than the funds spent on candles to illuminate the card table.

To the hat analysis

Well, brother, you came late, to the most hat analysis!

Meaning. Be late, show up when it's all over.

Origin. The saying arose in those days when in our frosty country people, coming to church in warm clothes and knowing that it was impossible to go inside in a hat, folded their three-pieces and caps at the very entrance. At the end of the church service, leaving, everyone took them apart. “To the hat analysis” came only those who were clearly in no hurry to go to church.

Like chickens in cabbage soup (get in)

And he got with this case, like chickens in cabbage soup.

Meaning. Bad luck, unexpected misfortune.

Origin. A very common saying that we repeat all the time, sometimes having no idea about its true meaning. Let's start with the word chicken. This word in old Russian means "rooster". And there was no “schey” in this proverb before, and it was pronounced correctly: “I got into a pluck like chickens,” that is, I was plucked, “bad luck.” The word "pluck" was forgotten, and then people willy-nilly changed the expression "pluck" into cabbage soup. When she was born is not entirely clear: some think that even under Dimitry the Pretender, when “to pluck”; hit the Polish conquerors; others - what's in Patriotic war 1812, when the Russian people forced Napoleon's hordes to flee.

King for a day

I would not trust their generous promises, which they distribute right and left: caliphs for an hour.

Meaning. About a man who happened to be endowed with power for a short time.

Origin. In the Arabic tale “A dream, or Caliph for an hour” (collection “A Thousand and One Nights”), it is told how the young Baghdadian Abu-Shssan, not knowing that Caliph Grun-al-Rashid is in front of him, shares with him his cherished dream - at least for a day to become caliph. Wanting to have some fun, Haroun al-Rashid puts sleeping pills in Abu-Ghassan's wine, orders the servants to take the young man to the palace and treat him like a caliph.

The joke succeeds. Waking up, Abu-1kssan believes that he is a caliph, enjoys luxury and begins to give orders. In the evening, he again drinks wine with sleeping pills and wakes up already at home.

Scapegoat

I fear you will forever be their scapegoat.

Meaning. The defendant for someone else's guilt, for the mistakes of others, because the true culprit cannot be found or wants to evade responsibility.

Origin. The turnover goes back to the text of the Bible, to the description of the Hebrew rite of laying the sins of the people (community) on a live goat. Such a rite was performed in case of desecration by the Jews of the sanctuary where the ark of revelation was located. In atonement for sins, a ram was burned and one goat was slaughtered "as a sin offering." All the sins and iniquities of the Jewish people were transferred to the second goat: the clergyman laid his hands on him as a sign that all the sins of the community were transferred to him, after which the goat was expelled into the wilderness. All those present at the ceremony were considered cleansed.

Lazarus sing

Stop singing Lazarus, stop being ashamed.

Meaning. Begging, whining, exaggeratedly complaining about fate, trying to arouse the sympathy of others.

Origin. In tsarist Russia, crowds of beggars, cripples, blind men with guides gathered everywhere in crowded places, begging, with all sorts of miserable lamentations, alms from passers-by. At the same time, the blind especially often sang the song “About the Rich and Lazarus”, composed according to one gospel story. Lazarus was poor, but his brother was rich. Lazarus ate the remnants of the rich man's food along with the dogs, but after death he went to heaven, while the rich man ended up in hell. This song was supposed to frighten and conscience those from whom the beggars begged for money. Since not all beggars were actually so unfortunate, their plaintive moans were often feigned.

Climb on the rampage

He promised to be careful, but he deliberately climbs on the rampage!

Meaning. Do something risky, run into trouble, do something dangerous, doomed to failure in advance.

Origin. Rozhon - a pointed stake that was used when hunting a bear. Hunting with a goad, the daredevils put this sharp stake in front of them. The enraged beast climbed on the rampage and died.

Disservice

The incessant praise from your lips is a real disservice.

Meaning. Unsolicited help, a service that does more harm than good.

Origin. The primary source is the fable of I. A. Krylov “The Hermit and the Bear”. It tells how the Bear, wanting to help his friend the Hermit to swat a fly that sat on his forehead, killed the Hermit himself along with it. But this expression is not in the fable: it took shape and entered folklore later.

Cast pearls before swine

In a letter to A. A. Bestuzhev (end of January 1825), A. S. Pushkin writes:

"The first sign smart person- know at a glance who you are dealing with,

and not throw pearls in front of the Repetilovs and the like.

Meaning. Wasting words talking to people who can't understand you.

Origin. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus Christ says: “Do not give anything holy to dogs and do not throw your pearls before swine, lest they trample it under their feet and, turning, tear you to pieces” (Gospel of Matthew, 7: b). In the Church Slavonic translation, the word "pearl" sounds like "beads". It was in this version that this biblical expression entered the Russian language.

You can't ride a goat

He looks down on everyone, you can’t drive up to him even on a crooked goat.

Meaning. He is completely unapproachable, it is not clear how to address him.

Origin. Amusing their high patrons, using both the harp and bells for their fun, dressing up in goat and bear skins, in the plumage of a crane, these “spies” sometimes knew how to do good deeds.

It is possible that their repertoire included riding goats or pigs. Obviously, it was the buffoons who sometimes met with such a bad mood of a high-ranking person that "even a goat did not act on him."

unlucky person

Nothing went right with him, and in general he was a good-for-nothing person.

Meaning. Frivolous, careless, dissolute.

Origin. In the old days in Rus', not only the road was called the way, but also various positions at the prince's court. The falconer's path is in charge of princely hunting, the trapping path is dog hunting, the equestrian path is carriages and horses. The boyars, by hook or by crook, tried to get a way from the prince - a position. And to those who did not succeed, they spoke of those with disdain: an unlucky person.

Shelving

Now put it aside in a long box, and then completely forget.

Meaning. Give the case a long delay, delay its decision for a long time.

Origin. Perhaps this expression originated in Muscovite Rus', three hundred years ago. Tsar Alexei, father of Peter I, ordered in the village of Kolomenskoye in front of his palace to install a long box where anyone could put their complaint. Complaints fell, but it was very difficult to wait for a decision: months and years passed. The people renamed this "long" box to "long".

It is possible that the expression, if not born, was fixed in speech later, in “presences” - institutions of the 19th century. The then officials, accepting various petitions, complaints and petitions, undoubtedly sorted them, putting them in different boxes. "Long" could be called the one where the most unhurried things were put off. It is clear that the applicants were afraid of such a box.

Retired goat drummer

I am now out of office - a retired goat drummer.

Meaning. No one needs, no one respected person.

Origin. In the old days, trained bears were taken to fairs. They were accompanied by a dancer boy dressed up as a goat, and a drummer accompanying his dance. This was the "goat drummer". He was perceived as a worthless, frivolous person. And if the goat is also “retired”?

Bring under the monastery

What have you done, what am I to do now, led me to the monastery, and nothing more.

Meaning. Put in a difficult, unpleasant situation, bring under punishment.

Origin. There are several versions of the origin of the turnover. Perhaps the turnover arose because people who had big troubles in life usually left for the monastery. According to another version, the expression is connected with the fact that Russian guides brought enemies under the walls of monasteries, which during the war turned into fortresses (bring a blind man under a monastery). Some believe that the expression is associated with the hard life of women in Tsarist Russia. Only strong relatives could save a woman from her husband's beatings, having achieved protection from the patriarch and the authorities. In this case, the wife "brought her husband to the monastery" - he was exiled to the monastery "in humility" for six months or a year.

put a pig

Well, he has a vile character: he planted a pig and is satisfied!

Meaning. Secretly set up some filth, play a dirty trick.

Origin. In all likelihood, this expression is due to the fact that some peoples do not eat pork for religious reasons. And if such a person was imperceptibly put pork meat in his food, then his faith was defiled by this.

Get into a bind

The small one got into such a bind that even the guards shout.

Meaning. Get into a difficult, dangerous or unpleasant situation.

Origin. In dialects, BINDING is a fish trap woven from branches. And, as in any trap, being in it is an unpleasant business.

Professor of sour cabbage soup

He is always teaching everyone. Me too, professor of sour cabbage soup!

Meaning. Unlucky, bad master.

Origin. Sour cabbage soup is a simple peasant food: some water and sauerkraut. It wasn't hard to prepare them. And if someone was called a master of sour cabbage soup, it meant that he was not good for anything worthwhile.

Beluga roar

For three days in a row she roared like a beluga.

Meaning. Shout or cry loudly.

Origin. "Mute like a fish" - this has been known for a long time. And suddenly "roar beluga"? It turns out that we are not talking about a beluga here, but about a beluga whale, as the polar dolphin is called. He really roars very loudly.

Breed antimony

All conversation is over. I have no time to raise antimony here with you.

Meaning. Chatting, empty talk. Observe unnecessary ceremonies in a relationship.

Origin. From the Latin name of antimony (antimonium), which was used as a medicinal and cosmetic agent, after grinding it and then dissolving it. Antimony is poorly soluble, so the process was very long and laborious. And while it was dissolving, the pharmacists had endless conversations.

The side of the bake

Why would I go to them? Nobody called me. It's called came - on the side of the bake!

Meaning. Everything accidental, extraneous, adhering to something from the outside; superfluous, unnecessary

Origin. This expression is often distorted by pronouncing "side-baked". In fact, it could also be conveyed by the words: “side baking”. Baking, or baking, bakers have burnt pieces of dough that stick to the outside of bread products, that is, something unnecessary, superfluous.

Orphan Kazan

Why are you standing, rooted to the threshold, like an orphan from Kazan.

Meaning. So they say about a person who pretends to be unhappy, offended, helpless in order to pity someone.

Origin. This phraseological unit arose after the conquest of Kazan by Ivan the Terrible. Mirzas (Tatar princes), being subjects of the Russian Tsar, tried to beg him for all sorts of indulgences, complaining about their orphanhood and bitter fate.

Grated roll

As a grated kalach, I can give you good advice.

Meaning. This is the name of an experienced person who is difficult to deceive.

Origin. There used to be such a kind of bread - “grated kalach”. The dough for it was kneaded, kneaded, “rubbed” for a very long time, which made the kalach unusually lush. And there was also a proverb - "do not grate, do not mint, there will be no kalach." That is, a person is taught by trials and tribulations. The expression came from a proverb, and not from the name of bread.

Pip on your tongue

What are you saying, pip on your tongue!

Meaning. An expression of dissatisfaction with what was said, an unkind wish to someone who says something that is not what should be said.

Origin. It is clear that this is a wish, and not a very friendly one at that. But what is its meaning? A pip is a small, horny bump on the tip of a bird's tongue that helps them peck at food. The growth of such a tubercle can be a sign of illness. Hard pimples on the tongue of a person are called pips by analogy with these bird tubercles. According to superstitious ideas, a pip usually appears in deceitful people. Hence the unkind wish, designed to punish liars and deceivers. From these observations and superstitions, the incantation formula was born: “Pip on your tongue!” Its main meaning was: "You are a liar: let a pip appear on your tongue!" Now the meaning of this spell has changed somewhat. "Pip on your tongue!" - an ironic wish to someone who expressed an unkind thought, predicted an unpleasant one.

Sharpen laces

Why are you sitting idle and whetting your hair?

Meaning. To idle talk, engage in useless chatter, gossip.

Origin. Lasy (balusters) are chiseled curly posts of railings at the porch; only a real master could make such beauty. Probably, at first, “sharpening balusters” meant having an elegant, bizarre, ornate (like balusters) conversation. And the craftsmen to conduct such a conversation by our time became less and less. So this expression began to denote empty chatter. Another version raises the expression to the meaning of the Russian word balyas - stories, Ukrainian balyas - noise, which go directly to the common Slavic "tell".

pull the gimp

Now they are gone, he will pull the rigmarole until we give up this idea ourselves.

Meaning. To procrastinate, to drag out any business, to speak monotonously and tediously.

Origin. Gimp - the thinnest gold, silver or copper thread, which was used to embroider galloons, aiguillettes and other decorations of officer uniforms, as well as chasubles of priests and simply rich costumes. It was made in a handicraft way, heating the metal and carefully pulling out a thin wire with tongs. This process was extremely long, slow and painstaking, so that over time the expression "pull the gimp" began to refer to any protracted and monotonous business or conversation.

Hit the face in the dirt

You don’t let me down, don’t lose face in front of the guests.

Meaning. Embarrass, shame.

Origin. To hit the dirt with the face originally meant "to fall on the dirty ground." Such a fall was considered by the people to be especially shameful in fisticuffs - competitions of wrestlers, when a weak opponent was knocked over prone to the ground.

In the middle of nowhere

What, go to him? Yes, this is in the middle of nowhere.

Meaning. Very far, somewhere in the wilderness.

Origin. Kulichiki is a distorted Finnish word "kuligi", "kulizhki", which has long been included in Russian speech. So in the north were called forest clearings, meadows, swamps. Here, in the wooded part of the country, the settlers of the distant past were always cutting down “kulizhki” in the forest - areas for plowing and mowing. In old letters, the following formula is constantly found: "And all that land, as long as the ax walked and the scythe walked." The farmer often had to go to his field in the wilderness, to the farthest "sandbags", developed worse than the neighbors, where, according to the then ideas, goblin, and devils, and all kinds of forest evil spirits were found in swamps and windbreaks. So we got ordinary words its second, figurative meaning: very far, at the end of the world.

fig leaf

She is a terrible pretender and lazy, hiding behind her imaginary illness,

like a fig leaf.

Meaning. A plausible cover for unseemly deeds.

Origin. The expression goes back to the Old Testament myth about Adam and Eve, who, after the fall, knew shame and girded themselves with fig tree (fig tree) leaves: “And their eyes were opened, and they knew that they were naked, and they sewed together fig leaves, and made themselves belts » (Genesis, 3:7). From the 16th to the end of the 18th century, European artists and sculptors had to cover up the most explicit parts in their works. human body fig leaf. This convention was a concession to the Christian church, which considered the depiction of naked flesh sinful and obscene.

Filkin's letter

What kind of filkin's letter is this, can't you really state your thoughts?

Meaning. Ignorant, illiterate document.

Origin. The author of the expression was Ivan the Terrible. To strengthen his power, which was impossible without weakening the princes, boyars and clergy, Ivan the Terrible introduced the oprichnina, which terrified everyone.

Metropolitan Philip could not come to terms with the revelry of the guardsmen. In his numerous letters to the tsar - letters - he sought to convince Grozny to abandon his policy of terror, to dissolve the oprichnina. The disobedient Metropolitan Tsyuzny contemptuously called Filka, and his letters - Filkin's letters.

For the bold denunciations of Grozny and his guardsmen, Metropolitan Philip was imprisoned in the Tver Monastery, where Malyuta Skuratov strangled him.

Grab the stars from the sky

He is a man not without abilities, but there are not enough stars from heaven.

Meaning. Do not differ in talents and outstanding abilities.

Origin. Phraseological expression, apparently associated by association with the award stars of the military and officials as insignia.

Enough kondrashka

He was a heroic health, and suddenly kondrashka was enough.

Meaning. Someone suddenly died, was suddenly paralyzed.

Origin. According to the assumption of the historian S. M. Solovyov, the expression is associated with the name of the leader of the Bulavinsky uprising on the Don in 1707, ataman Kondraty Afanasyevich Bulavin (Kondrashka), who exterminated the entire royal detachment led by the voivode Prince Dolgoruky with a sudden raid.

Apple of discord

This trip is a real bone of contention, can't you give in, let him go.

Meaning. That which gives rise to conflict, serious contradictions.

Origin. Peleus and Thetis, the parents of Achilles, the hero of the Trojan War, forgot to invite the goddess of discord, Eris, to their wedding. Eris was very offended and secretly threw a golden apple on the table, at which the gods and mortals were feasting; on it was written: "To the most beautiful." A dispute arose between the three goddesses: the wife of Zeus Hera, Athena - the maiden, the goddess of wisdom, and the beautiful goddess of love and beauty Aphrodite.

The young man Paris, the son of the Trojan king Priam, was chosen as a judge between them. Paris gave the apple to Aphrodite who bribed him; For this, Aphrodite forced the wife of King Menelaus, the beautiful Helen, to fall in love with the young man. Leaving her husband, Elena went to Troy, and in order to avenge such an insult, the Greeks began a long-term war with the Trojans. As you can see, the apple of Eris actually led to discord.

Pandora's Box

Well, now hold on, Pandora's box has opened.

Meaning. All that can serve as a source of disaster if not careful.

Origin. When the great titan Prometheus stole the fire of the gods from Olympus and gave people the fire of the gods, Zeus terribly punished the daredevil, but it was too late. Possessing a divine flame, people ceased to obey the celestials, learned different sciences came out of their miserable state. A little more - and they would have won complete happiness for themselves.

Then Zeus decided to send punishment on them. The blacksmith god Hephaestus fashioned the beautiful woman Pandora from earth and water. The rest of the gods gave her: who is cunning, who is courage, who is extraordinary beauty. Then, handing her a mysterious box, Zeus sent her to earth, forbidding her to open the box. Curious Pandora, barely having come into the world, slightly opened the lid. Immediately all human disasters flew out from there and scattered throughout the universe. Pandora, in fear, tried to close the lid again, but in the box of all misfortunes, only a deceptive hope remained. published . If you have any questions on this topic, ask them to specialists and readers of our project .