Masarykova univerzita

Filozofická fakulta

Katedra anglistiky a amerikanistiky

Bakalářská diplomová práce

Anna Grufíková

2015 Anna Grufíková

2015
 Masaryk University

Faculty of Arts

Department of English and American Studies

English Language and Literature

Anna Grufíková

A Contrastive Study of English and Czech

Idioms
Bachelor’s Diploma Thesis

Supervisor: doc. PhDr. Naděžda Kudrnáčová, CSc.

2015
 I declare that I have worked on this thesis independently,
using only the primary and secondary sources listed in the bibliography.

……………………………………………..

Author’s signature
 Acknowledgement

I would like to thank doc. PhDr. Naděžda Kudrnáčová, CSc., for her guidance and valuable
advice and my family and friends for their support.

Table of Contents
1. Introduction..............................................................................................................6
2. Theoretical background............................................................................................8
2.1. Definitions of an idiom in dictionaries and in other sources.....................................8
2.2. Definition of an idiom for the purpose of this thesis...............................................13
2.3. Methodology............................................................................................................14
2.4. The corpus of idioms................................................................................................14
2.5. Correspondence categories......................................................................................16
a. Total correspondence with no variation.....................................................................17
b. Total correspondence with a slight variation..............................................................17
c. General correspondence.............................................................................................18
d. Partial correspondence...............................................................................................19
e. Non-correspondence...................................................................................................19
3. Evaluative functions...............................................................................................20
3.1. Evaluation as a method of idiom analysis................................................................21
4. List of Abbreviations...............................................................................................26
4.1. Terms and Symbols..................................................................................................26
4.2. Abbreviations of dictionaries and other sources.....................................................27
5. Idiom analysis.........................................................................................................28
5.1. Total correspondence with no variation..................................................................28
5.2. Total correspondence with a slight variation...........................................................30
5.3. General correspondence..........................................................................................33
5.4. Partial correspondence............................................................................................38
5.5. Non correspondence – non idiomatic equivalent....................................................54
5.6. Non-correspondence – no equivalent......................................................................67
6. Conclusion..............................................................................................................69
6.1. Tables and diagrams.................................................................................................72
6.2. Bibliography..............................................................................................................75
6.3. Summary...................................................................................................................79
6.4. Resume.....................................................................................................................80
1. Introduction

The importance of the language is quite essential to every aspect and

interaction in people’s daily lives. Through the language we communicate with others

and connect with them as we share our experiences, desires and feelings. We reflect

our identity and our values. Language is one of the most important features that

distinguish humans from all other animals.

We learn foreign languages in order to understand other people from different

nations, cultures or countries who want to share with us what we want to share with

them. Nevertheless, not all aspects of a foreign language are easy to be understood

and learnt. Idiomatic expressions and phrases are one of these aspects. They play very

important role in language – in everyday communication as well as in literature. When

a person is not familiar with an idiom, the real meaning of a statement may be missed

and vice versa – a person can misuse them and cause a misunderstanding or even

offend someone.

The main issue is that the meaning of an idiom cannot be understood from

the meaning of its parts. Therefore, students of foreign languages as non-native

speakers have great problems dealing with idiomatic language.

There are thousands of English idioms that have been collected by various

writers and placed in many dictionaries; however, there is no dictionary listing only

idioms related to weather. Because of notoriously changeable and unpredictable

weather of Great Britain, many idioms expressing British way of thinking and

perception of weather are expressed in language, by idioms in particular.

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 Some of the idioms listed in this thesis are used very seldom, yet there are

some idioms that are used on daily basis, such as an idiom “come rain or shine”.

Nevertheless, this thesis is an attempt to exhaustively list most of the English

expressions which contain reference to weather and to present their Czech equivalents

and analysis based on their semantic, formal and lexical correspondence. Selected

words for compiling corpus of English weather related idioms are weather, cloud,

wind, snow, rain, storm, thunder, lightning, rainbow and sun.

English and Czech idioms listed in this thesis have been collected from several

printed and online dictionaries and other sources and later analyzed and divided into

few categories according to their correspondence.

The corpus of this dictionary includes traditional English and American idioms

such as to make heavy weather of sth, expressions considered as “semi-idioms” –

common multiword metaphors, for instance a rain-check, metaphorical proverbs such

as every cloud has a silver lining, sayings lightning never strikes the same place twice,

common similes such as as right as rain, and some other expressions that have strong

pragmatic meaning.

There are two main parts of this thesis: A theoretical part and an analytical

part. The theoretical part provides general information about idioms, their meaning

and their usage in human communication. It also involves number of definitions of an

idiom and theoretical background of semantics. Moreover, it contains methodology

used in creating the corpus of idioms as well as methods used for the idiom analysis.

There is also one chapter called evaluation – this chapter offers an insight into

evaluation of the idioms containing main lexeme “cloud”. Although this thesis is based

7
on analysis according to Vokáčová, it could be also divided on the bases of evaluation.

In this chapter, I provided a short example of how such analysis could look like.

The latter part is the analytical part, where collected idioms are divided into

categories such as “total correspondence”, “partial correspondence”, etc. All the

results are concluded at the end of the thesis as well as tables and summaries are

provided for better orientation.

2. Theoretical background

2.1. Definitions of an idiom in dictionaries and in other sources

As foreshadowed in the introduction, idioms are part of the languages that

“enriches it”, idioms are its “spice” (Hrách 5). Word “idiom” itself is one of the issues

deal in this thesis, as all dictionaries and other sources provide different definition.

Because these definitions in majority of the sources differ a lot from each other, it is

important for the purpose of this thesis to find a proper definition so as to cover all

aspects and attributes valid for all idioms. These sources very often present examples

of idioms to demonstrate their usage – however, they all vary a lot as almost every

source emphasizes distinct aspects.

The first of my primary sources for building a corpus of idioms is an online

dictionary The Free Dictionary (Dictionary, Encyclopedia and Thesaurus), which defines

idiom as “a speech form or an expression of a given language that is peculiar to itself

grammatically or cannot be understood from the individual meanings of its elements,

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as in keep tabs on,” as well as “the specific grammatical, syntactic, and structural

character of a given language“.

Another primary source of idioms, Cambridge Dictionary Online, states that an

idiom is “a group of words in a fixed order that have a particular meaning that is

different from the meanings of each word on its own. It provides an example “to have

bitten off more than you can chew”, which means that one has tried to do something

that is too difficult for them”.

General Knowledge of English Literature by Rebecca A. Vorsah provides a

simple definition, paying attention to the uniqueness of using idioms by native

speakers: “idiom is a manner of speaking that is natural to native speakers of a

language” (89).

Phrasal Verb and Idioms by Rawdon Wyatt is a vocabulary workbook

designated for advanced English students. Wyatt defines an idiom as “an expression

where the meaning is different from the meaning of the individual words. “To have

your feet on the ground” is an idiom meaning “to be sensible” (5). He offers there even

more examples that are accompanied by sentences demonstrating more accurately

their usage in context. I consider this to be particularly useful for non-native speakers

as they are able to have a better idea about which situations are appropriate to use

the idioms in and in what company.

Richard A. Spears in McGraw-Hill’s Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal

Verbs points out the importance of using foreign language with confidence. His

definition of an idiom is as follows: “all languages have phrases that cannot be

understood literally and, therefore, cannot be used with confidence. They are opaque

or unpredictable because they don’t have expected, literal meaning. Even if one knows

9
the meaning of all words in a phrase and understands the grammar of a phrase

completely the meaning of the phrase may still be confusing” (5).

Harper Collins in Collin’s Cobuild Dictionary of Idioms says that “an idiom is a

special kind of phrase. It is a group of words which have a different meaning when

used together from the one it would have if the meaning of each word were taken

individually. They are typically metaphorical: they are effectively metaphors which

have become ‘fixed’ or ‘fossilized’” (4). He also pays attention to the difference of

individual language variations.

“Although idioms are often described as “fixed”, they are typically not fixed at

all” (Cobuild 5). For instance, idiom “can’t see the wood for the trees” is a British

variation, whereas “can’t see the forest for the trees” is an American one. These

variations are in the form of differences reflections between the British and the

American English as well as some idioms may differ in dissimilar context and in

formal/informal language. Therefore it is almost necessary to get as many information

as possible on every idiom, so as to be able as a student of the foreign language to use

the idiom correctly, under the right circumstances and using the appropriate

variations.

As for the linguistic sources, John Saeed in his Semantics describes idioms as

“expressions where the individual words have ceased to have independent meanings”

(60). He draws attention to problems with pinning down word meaning, as do most of

the sources. One of the problems is also that with every speaker, the meaning of

words and their intentions differ slightly, therefore, the contextual meaning in

particular is very important in this case. “In expressions like “kith and kin or spick and

span”, not many English speakers would be able to assign a meaning here to kith or

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span” (60). Moreover, “idioms and phrasal verbs are cases where a string of words can

correspond to a single semantic unit” (59).

Frank R. Palmer in Semantics stresses the involvement of collocation of a

special kind as well as that “the meaning of the resultant combination is opaque – it is

not related to the meaning of the individual words, but is sometimes (but not always)

nearer to the meaning of a single word” (98). Palmer discusses also some grammatical

and syntactic restrictions, such as for instance some idioms can be used in past tense

but cannot be changed from singular form to plural form and vice versa. He adds that

some idioms are “more restricted” whereas some of them are more syntactically

flexible (80).

In Dictionary of Correct English by Alderton M. Pink, there can be found that

idioms are expressions which would be “meaningless to a foreigner if they were

literally translated into his language, a mode of expression peculiar to a language” (78).

Pink also stresses the uniqueness of idioms for the matter of grammar as well as the

importance of correct usage of idioms. “Idiomatic expressions do not always square

with the accepted rules of grammar, but they are not to be rejected on that account.

Language is a living thing, and is not always amenable to logical restrictions” (Pink 78).

Another important thing is that “an idiom may not be varied at the whim of an

individual writer. The maltreatments if idiom is a common fault in writing. It arises

either from desire for novelty in expression or from the confusion of two similar

phrases” (79).

English-Czech Dictionary of Idioms by Kroulík et. al. is one of the crucial

resources of idioms used for the purpose of this thesis. At the very beginning, authors

provide Czech definition of idiom: “idiom lze definovat jako ustálené spojení běžných

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slov, které jako celek dává odlišný, specifický význam, jemuž se nedá porozumět

prostým překladem jednotlivých slov v idiomu obsažených. Smysl idiomu většinou

nelze odvodit znalostí gramatiky ani logickou úvahou” (7). I translated this definition to

English as such: an idiom can be defined as a collocation of regular words, which as a

whole make specific sense that cannot be understood simply by translating individual

words that the idiom contains. The meaning of an idiom usually cannot be derived

from the knowledge of grammar or by logical assumption.

Čermák in Slovník české frazeologie a idiomatiky 4 – Výrazy větné describes

idiom as “…každá ustálená a anomální kombinace aspoň dvou slovních útvarů, pro

kterou je příznačné to, že aspoň jeden z nich se v daném významu a funkci

nekombinuje s dalším (jiným) tvarem (popřípadě jen s několika málo dalšími).

Příznačná je jejich přenesená, metaforická povaha, […], ohraničená, anomální

systémová a kombinatorická povaha komponentů, které do frazému vstupují“ (9). The

closest way to deliver his meaning is that, every stable and the anomalous combination

of at least two lexical units for which it is characteristic that at least one of them in

given meaning and function does not combine with another (different) unit (or only

with a few others). Characteristic is also their transferred, metaphorical nature [...],

enclosed, anomalous systematic and combinatorial nature of the components that

enter into the idioms.

Čermák in Frazeologie a idiomatika česká a obecná summarizes key features:

- Underlying (syntagmatic and paradigmatic) anomaly

- Deficient and restricted function and transformation capacity

- Entropic, accidental, non-modelled formation

- Functional analogy to the word-class and sentence function

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 - Economical, abstract, vague denominative quality,

- Ready-made pragmatic tool quality

- Non-additive function and meaning of constituents (258).

“Results of the process of idiomatization […] belong to the norm of a

particular language” states Lipka in An Outline of English Lexicology: Lexical Structure,

Word Semantics and Word Formation (96). He also claims that “idioms are not a

simple, homogeneous category and syntagmas of various kinds are more or less

affected by idiomaticity in the process of lexicalization (96). Lipka points out that

“idioms are other formally complex lexemes that cannot be broken down into

morphemes” (74).

There are sources that deal with idioms more widely, such as Fernando and

Flavell in On Idiom: Critical View and Perspective. They describe five properties

necessary for an idiom.

- Meaning of an idiom is not the compositional sum of constituents

- Idiom is a unit that either has a homonymous literal counterpart or at

least individual constituents that are literal, although the expression as a

whole would not be in interpreted literally

- Idioms are transformationally deficient in one way or another

- Idioms constitute set expressions in a given language

- Idioms are institutionalized (47).

Makkai in Idiom Structure in English defines idiom as “certain lexicographic

and syntactic phenomena which share the fact that the meaning is not predictable

from the composition” (28). He also says, that an idiom is “...any polylexonic lexeme

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made up of more than one minimal free form or word, as defined by morph tactic

criteria” (in Kavka 5).

2.2. Definition of an idiom for the purpose of this thesis

As many definitions provided in previous chapter suggests, there are no clear

boundaries when it comes to defining idioms. However, in some parts, most of the

definitions come to the same conclusion:

- An idiom is an expression of (a word, a phrase or a sentence) whose

meaning cannot be derived from its constituents, therefore cannot be

interpreted literally

- Idioms are grammatically and lexically fixed, so user of an idiom cannot

change its parts

- Idioms are often conventional, which means that they are often

traditional and have accepted standards

2.3. Methodology

The methodology of this thesis is based on comparison of English and Czech

weather related idioms that contain words weather, cloud, wind, snow, rain, storm,

thunder, lightning, rainbow and sun. The comparison is based on their formal, lexical

and semantic level and was inspired by Jana Vokáčová and her dissertation A

Comparative Study of English, Czech, French, and German Idioms. When idioms agree

on semantic level, it means that the meaning of the idioms in English and Czech is

identical. If their syntactic structure in both languages is the same, they agree on

14
formal level. Lastly, if they agree on lexical level, then they are built by the same lexical

units.

2.4. The corpus of idioms

Creating corpus that would exhaustively list most idioms related to weather

from English dictionaries and academic sources was crucial and most important part of

this thesis. There are two online primary sources of idioms: Dictionary, Encyclopedia

and Thesaurus - The Free Dictionary and Cambridge Dictionary Online. The former one

lists more than half of the idioms present in this thesis as well as provide very

thorough definitions and example sentences. Cambridge Dictionary Online fills in most

of the missing definitions.

There are some English idioms from this online dictionary that were not found

in any of the two dictionaries stated above. Other important sources of idioms, which

are not so widely used (archaic, literary, slang or biblical) are extracted from General

Knowledge of English Literature by Rebecca A. Vorsah and an academic paper “It’s

raining cats and dogs – Weather in English idioms” by Ildikó Gy. Zoltán. Only few

idioms were taken from MacMillan Dictionary, Oxford Dictionary (by Dilys Parkinson,

Ben Francis) and The Slang Dictionary (by John Camden Hotten).

All these sources together create solid corpus which always include English

idiom and one English definition (in rare cases more definitions). It also contains

examples of idioms in the whole sentence or in a short dialogue and, if found,

information about whether it is an informal idiom, disapproving expression, saying,

colloquial expression, biblical expression or proverb. Last information provided is

whether it is an American idiom (AmE), British idiom (BrE) or Australian (AustrE).

15
 Providing example sentences is of great importance, especially because

sometimes a Czech equivalent of an English idiom has not been found. Moreover,

example sentence is a perfect tool in order to recognize grammatical and formal

structure of an idiom and also helps to categorize the idioms.

After collecting English corpus, many bilingual English-Czech and monolingual

Czech dictionaries have been used in order to find Czech equivalents. To these

dictionaries belong Anglicko-český frazeologický slovník by Milena Bočánková and

Miroslav Kalina, Anglicko-český slovník idiomů [a ustálených rčení metaforických,

obrazných a lidových] by Břetislav Kroulík and Barbora Kroulíková, Sbírka anglických

idiomů & slangu by Tomáš Hrách, Velký anglicko-český slovník by Karel Hais and

Břetislav Hodek and finally Velký anglicko-český slovník by Josef Fronek.

2.5. Correspondence categories

The analysis methodology of this thesis has been inspired by Jana Vokáčová

who divides idioms into three categories in her dissertation A Comparative Study of

English, Czech, French, and German Idioms.

It is necessary before proceeding to the definitions of basic correspondence

categories (total correspondence, partial correspondence and non-correspondence)

and the idiom analysis, to understand the principle on which such analysis is made.

Idioms are sorted out according to their stylistic, semantic and formal level.

“The stylistic or functional level expresses the notion that the idiom and its

equivalent should be used in both languages in the same style and should not be part

of e.g. slang in one language and belong to poetic style in the other. Second, semantic

16
level suggests that the meaning of the idiom is identical in both languages compared.

Finally, formal level indicates that the individual components which form the idiom

agree in both languages compared” (Vokáčová 62).

To begin with, total correspondence of idioms means that idioms in both

languages (English and Czech) agree with each other on stylistic, semantic and formal

level. This category forms two subcategories: total correspondence with no variation

and total correspondence with a slight variation. Idioms in the first subcategory agree

on all levels completely. With slight variation correspondence, there is a slight

difference on either formal or stylistic level, which is however not very remarkable.

Moreover, the expression cannot be poetic, biblical or slang in one language and have

different formal level in another language – they have to be both neutral.

Another category is general correspondence. Idioms belonging to this

category have to agree on semantic level and contain the same main lexeme (in this

thesis it is a weather related word). Idioms sorted out to partial correspondence

category “demonstrate a certain degree of correspondence but [they] are not similar

enough to be called totally corresponding” (Vokáčová 64). They have to agree

completely on semantic level; however, lexical or formal meaning differ between the

languages.

Last category is very wide and contains idioms that have neither non-

idiomatic equivalents nor equivalents at all. In non-correspondence category, English

idiom does not have any Czech equivalent or Czech equivalent expression is not

idiomatic.

17
Total correspondence with no variation

These idioms have identical equivalents and they agree totally on semantic,

lexical and formal level. There is an example idiom which belongs to this category, its

Czech equivalent, English definition by Cambridge Dictionary Online (CDO) and an

example sentence from the same dictionary:

To take/to knock Vzít komu vítr To make sb feel I was all ready to
the wind out of z plachet (Kr) less confident or tell him that the
someone’s sails less determined to relationship was
Vzít komu vítr do sth, usually by over when he
z plachet (Hr) saying or doing sth greeted me with a
that they are not big bunch of
expecting (CDO) flowers - it rather
took the wind out
of my sails.

b. Total correspondence with a slight variation

Idioms from this category are not fully identical, there is a minor variation in

the expressions, but they still correspond to each other.

Pure as the driven Jako padlý sníh Pure and chaste, Robert was
snow (Boč) often used notoriously
ironically (TFD) promiscuous, but
Variation: as white Bílý jako (padlý) tried to convince all
as the (driven) sníh (Fron) his girlfriends that
snow he was pure as the
driven snow.
Bočánková’s Czech equivalent lacks the word “pure” or “white”. Fronek, as well as

Bočánková, uses word “padlý” (fallen) instead of word “driven”, which in Czech means

“hnaný, řízený”. This slightly changes the idiom; however, the levels of correspondence

remain almost unchanged.

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General correspondence

Idioms in this category are very similar, nevertheless, they do not agree totally

on all levels – they differ either on formal level or lexical level, in some cases on both of

them. The key weather related words are used in both languages as well as they have

same semantic meaning.

A storm in a Malicherný spor, A situation where I think it's all a Infml

teacup bouře ve sklenici people get very storm in a teacup
(BrE) vody (Hr) angry or worried – there's probably
about something no danger to
Bouře ve sklenici that is not public health at
vody (Fron) important all.

Bouře ve sklenici (TFD)

vody (Hais)

The Czech idiom contains word “sklenice vody” (a glass of water) as a substitute for “a

teacup”. Though, the word “storm” (bouře) is present in both languages and both

idioms carry the same semantic meaning. “Malicherný spor” belongs to a non-

correspondence category.

Partial correspondence

Idioms that are partially correspondent agree only on semantic level. They

differ both on lexical and formal level, which means that the same meaning is

expressed by different idiomatic expressions.

19
To be on cloud Být v sedmém To be extremely "Was Helen infml
nine nebi (Kr) happy or excited pleased about old
getting that job?"
Sedmé nebe; (CDO) "Pleased? She
povznesená was on cloud
nálada (Hr) nine!"

Být bez sebe

blahem (Fron)

Být blahem bez

sebe (Boč)

Both idioms have different structure and different lexical units – only English idiom

contains the main lexeme “cloud” (mrak). Kroulík and other authors substitute main

lexeme with word “sky” (nebe).

Non-correspondence

English idioms in this last category do not have any Czech equivalent (or no

equivalent has been found). There are two subgroups: Non-idiomatic equivalent and

no equivalent. Idioms with non-idiomatic equivalents are idioms whose meaning in

another language is expressed by a single word, a collocation or non-idiomatic

expression or sentence.

To have a cloud Zbavit se To be cleared of She had a cloud

lifted from over podezření; očistit suspicion, to end a lifted from her when
one se (Hr) period of the doctor testified
depression, to be she had been sick all
restored to favor the time.
(GKoEL)

In this case, English idiom is translated by Hrách using a non-idiomatic expression.

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 No equivalent subcategory contains English idioms, whose Czech equivalents

have not been found in any dictionary used, or do not exist.

To have snow on No Czech To have white or Come on, judge, infml

the roof equivalent found much gray hair you’ve had snow
(TFD) on the roof for
years!

3. Evaluative functions

One of the most basic functions of language is to create interpersonal

relationships between speakers and addressees through the way in which text is

worded. Speech acts (any interpersonal relationship between speaker and addressee)

are one of the basic functions of the language. People use it to take a stance towards

themselves and to others. But we also want to socially orient ourselves. We not only

speak to others in order to inform them, we also use the same utterance so as to

demonstrate to what extent we believe in something.

Čermák, in his work Frazeografia siowiaňska, stratifies idioms and divide a

phrase to three basic categories – formal, functional and pragmatic, all of them

involving many classes. “Vedle nich je však třeba zdůraznit ještě existenci dvou tříd

dalších, evaluativní a intenzifikační, které však většinou nevystupují samostatně, ale

jako extenze a modifikace pěti tříd základních. [Besides these classes, it is important to

emphasize the existence of other two classes, evaluating and intensifying, which

however do not appear separately, but as the evolution and modification of five basic

pragmatic classes (factual, voluntary, expressive, emotional an declarative)” (21). This

is why these two classes are not broadly used, because they do not often stay on their

own.

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 Yet, I consider evaluation to be an integral part of the idioms, as they all have

important pragmatic functions. “Pragmatics is the study of the way in which people

use language to achieve different goals” (Collins 4). Because many of them have fairly

general meanings, they are less often used purely to convey factual information and

more often to convey attitude – typically evaluations. “They are used as ways of

expressing approval and admiration, or disapproval and criticism” (Collins 4).

Language users express their evaluative (usually subjective) attitude very

often. According to Čermák, this function is different from, for instance, the expressive

function, in which “evaluation may be directed to the topic (referential function),

setting (contextual f.), or even code (phatic f.), etc., or from the directive function in

that evaluation of something, especially in terms of "good-bad" scale” (in: Travaux du

Cercle linguistique de Prague 77). Therefore, evaluation enables a hearer to get

implied information. Čermák also provides an example of the evaluation function: if a

speaker says “It is a good/bad film”, it may imply to the hearer directive function of the

kind “I recommend/do not recommend you to go to see it” (77).

Values are usually bipolar and scalar and attributed to things, people, events

etc. and are often matter of axiology (a study of value). He presents major working

classification based on values acquired by senses or intellectually and distinguishes

between absolute evaluation (based on generally recognized standards good/bad) and

comparative evaluation (relative and indirect). Comparative evaluation is then divided

into two categories – lexical comparisons or similes, which are either stable or

unstable, belonging to the domain of idioms. The second category is grammatical

comparison (e.g. something is better than…).

22
3.1. Evaluation as a method of idiom analysis

This thesis uses for the purpose of contrasting English and Czech idioms a

method by Vokáčová, based on three levels of correspondence (semantic, formal and

lexical). However, another method would be possible – Szerszunowicz in an article

called On the Evaluative Connotations of Anthroponymic Idioms in a Contrastive

Perspective sets an example of such a method. It is based on evaluation, defined as

“attributing a value to a person, an object etc.” (293).

This article focuses on English and Italian idioms containing proper names.

Such names usually convey evaluative connotations, which often vary between

languages. “One can focus on evaluation expressed by idiomatic expressions with

particular constituents, such animal terms or proper names” (Szerszunowicz 293-294).

Other constituents, such as weather related idioms used in this thesis, are more

difficult to analyse by this method, as they do not develop metaphorical meanings in

given culture to such extent. However, it should be emphasized that idioms are

“carriers of cultural information, reflecting history, customs and beliefs of a given

group” (Pierini in Szerszunowicz 295).

The important thing to notice is that idioms are dependent on the degree of

lexicalization and user’s knowledge of the language (Cieślikowa 66 in Szerszunowicz

295). Some idioms tend to carry a stereotypical image, whereas some of them possess

certain content. For the purpose of this thesis, I have chosen one idiom category,

which will function as an example. This selected group of idioms contains a word

“cloud”.

23
 Lexeme “cloud” standing by itself has, in general, a negative evaluative load, as

it connotes mostly storms and bad weather. Clouds often shade the sun and bring the

rain. Dictionary, Encyclopedia and Thesaurus - The Free Dictionary defines “cloud”

among others as “a state or cause of sadness, worry, or anger”, as “a state or cause of

confusion or misunderstanding” or as “a state or cause of suspicion or disgrace”. It also

connotes words such as anger, suspicion, dark, sorrow, troubles etc. Most of the

idioms containing word “cloud” have a negative evaluation:

1. (To be) under a cloud – Czech equivalent is “V nemilosti, v podezření” [in

disgrace, under suspicion]. English idiom means “Not to be trusted or popular because

people think you have done something bad”. Negative words connoted to this idiom

are “suspicion, distrustful and disgrace”.

2. Every cloud has a silver lining has a Czech equivalent “všechno zlé je k

něčemu dobré” [everything bad is good for sth]. It means that “you can derive some

benefit from every bad thing that happens to you”. Word “cloud” stands here as a

substitution for “a bad thing”.

3. To have a cloud lifted from over one – the Czech equivalent is “zbavit se

podezření; očistit se” [get rid of suspicion, clear oneself]. In English it means “to be

cleared of suspicion, to end a period of depression, to be restored to favor”.

4. To wait till the clouds roll by – “Počkat, až bude po všem; přečkat zlé časy”

[wait, until it is over, survive bad times]. The English idiom means “to wait until the

difficulties have eased”. Main lexeme “cloud” substitutes “difficulties and bad times”.

5. A cloud no bigger than a man’s hand means in Czech “nenápadné nebezpečí”

[inconspicuous danger]. “A distant, insignificant threat, but one that may become

24
dangerous in the course of time”. Again, word “cloud” means something dangerous,

dark and threatening.

6. A (small) cloud on the horizon means “a sign of trouble or difficulty to come”.

7. To cast a cloud over – Czech translation is “uvádět co v pochybnosti” [to

doubt something]. English definition is “to spoil something”. This idiom has also

negative connotations.

8. A cloud hanging over someone is last English cloud idiom possessing negative

load. It means “a situation or future event that makes you worry or feel unhappy”.

On the other hand, some expressions contain constituents conveying a

positive evaluation:

a) To be on cloud nine means “být v sedmém nebi” - “to be extremely happy or

excited”. If a speaker is not properly familiar with the meaning of this idiom, positive

connotations would be most probably missed.

b) To be/to have one’s head in the clouds – Czech translation is “být romantický

snílek; mít hlavu v oblacích” [be romantic, a dreamer]. A person is “a dreamer, out of

touch with reality, idealistic, daydreaming, and not attending to what is going on”.

Though “not attending to what is going on” does not necessarily always mean

something good, it still rather contains positive load – clouds are a substitution for

something nice, pleasant and dreamy.

c) Cloud-cuckoo-land is in Czech “země, kde létají pečení holubi do huby; snový

svět” [a world, where roasted pigeons fly to the mouth, a dream world]. In English it

means „to believe that things you want will happen, when really they are impossible”.

25
 Lemke in Resources for Attitudinal Meaning recognizes “seven semantic

classes of evaluative attributes for propositions and proposals” (2). These classes are

Desirability/Inclination, Warrantability/Probability, Normativity/Appropriateness,

Usuality/Expectability, Importance/Significance, Comprehensibility/Obviousness, and

Humorousness/Seriousness (5-6). Such division applies on corpus of newspaper

editorials, where he also “characterizes important discourse-level patterns of their

expression in connected text” (2). Such analysis and division is however difficult to

apply on weather related idioms, because they often do not contain any word

suggesting desirability, importance etc.

In this chapter, I did not attempt to present exhaustive evaluative meaning of

all idioms. My aim was to present new possibilities for treating and analyzing idioms, as

evaluation is an interesting phenomena. Nevertheless, it is something that needs to be

thoroughly studied.

I believe that this phenomenon is very important, because it is relatively

unexplored, as there are only little sources and just a few linguistic authors dealing

with this topic. People’s actions are shaped by means of their beliefs, which they

transfer and produce in the action of speech. People need to understand evaluative

loads of expressions (idioms in particular) so as to be able to understand other

people’s propositions and attitudes. It “helps to constitute our own identities, and the

identities of others, as agents who believe and doubt, desire and detest, and judge

importance, appropriateness, usuality, comprehensibility, and seriousness” (Lemke

20).

26
4. List of Abbreviations

4.1. Terms and Symbols

- based on The Anthem Dictionary of Literary Terms and Theory by Peter Auger

and Dictionary of Literary Terms and Literary Theory by J. A. Cuddon

AmE American English

AustrE Australian English

bib Biblical

BrE British English

coll Colloquial (the expression is suitable for use in speech rather

than more formal written language)

disappr Disapproving (shows that sb feels sth or sb is bad or wrong)

etc. Etcetera (and so on)

euph Euphemism (the substitution of an offensive or disagreeable

term by one considered more acceptable)

fig Figurative (figures of speech such as metaphor, simile,

alliteration, etc.; must be distinguished from literal language)

infml Informal (used between family members, friends or people who

know each other well, in a relaxed or unofficial context)

lit Literary language (not necessarily any different from everyday

language, though in literature it is usually clearer that language
affects meaning)

neutr Neutral (may be used in all situations, formal, semiformal or

informal, neutral idioms usually not marked in dictionaries)

old Old-fashioned (the expression sounds slightly out of date, is

more likely used by older people)

prov Proverb (a short pity saying which embodies a general truth)

say Saying (a brief phrase that is commonly used, such as proverb,

axiom, etc.)
27
sb, sb’s, sth Somebody, somebody’s, something

sl Slang (very informal language that is usually particular to one social

group)

() Brackets (used to show which parts of an idiom may be omitted

without changing the meaning)

/ Slash (indicates other possible variations)

4.2. Abbreviations of dictionaries and other sources

Boč Bočánková M. and Kalina M. - Česko-anglický frazeologický slovník

CDO Cambridge Dictionary Online (http://dictionary.cambridge.org/)

Čerm4 Čermák František et. al. - Slovník české frazeologie a idiomatiky 4

DoAI Richard A. Spears - McGraw-Hill’s Dictionary of American Idioms and

Phrasal Verbs

Epistles Barnes Albert - Notes, explanatory and practical, on the Epistles of

Paul to the Corinthians

Fron Fronek Josef - Velký anglicko-český/česko-anglický slovník

GKoEL Rebecca A. Vorsa - General Knowledge of English Literature

Hr Hrách Tomáš - Sbírka anglických idiomů & slangu

Kr Kroulík Břetislav, Kroulíková Barbora - Anglicko-český slovník idiomů a

ustálených rčení metaforických, obrazných a lidových

McM MacMillan Dictionary (http://www.macmillandictionary.com/)

OD Oxford Dictionaries Online (http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/)

OxD Parkinson D., Francis B. - Oxford Idioms Dictionary for Learners of

English

SlD John Camden Hotten - The Slang Dictionary

TFD The Free Dictionary (http://www.thefreedictionary.com/squall)

Zolt Zoltán Ildikó Gy. - “It’s Raining Cats and DogsIdiom analysis

28
4.3. Total correspondence with no variation

CLOUD

To be/to have one’s Být romantický (of a person) To be a It’s no good asking
head in the clouds snílek; mít hlavu dreamer, out of him what to do. He
v oblacích (Fron) touch with reality, has his head in the
idealistic, clouds.
daydreaming, not
attending to what is
going on (Zolt)

To be out of touch
with reality (GKoEL)
Fronek lists a Czech equivalent “mít hlavu v oblacích”, which corresponds to an English

idiom on semantic, lexical and formal level, as well as contains the same main lexeme.

It belongs to total correspondence category. On the other hand, his second equivalent

“být romantický snílek” is a Czech non idiomatic expression and belongs to non-

correspondence category (see p. 47).

WIND

To take/knock/trim Vzít komu vítr To make sb feel less I was all ready to tell
the wind out of sb’s z plachet (Kr) confident or less him that the
sails determined to do relationship was over
Vzít komu vítr sth, usually by saying
when he greeted me
z plachet (Hr) or doing sth that they
with a big bunch of
are not expecting flowers – it rather
Sebrat komu vítr (CDO) took the wind out of
z plachet (Fron) my sails.
“Vzít/sebrat komu vítr z plachet” corresponds totally with English idiom “to take the

wind out of sb’s sails”.

29
A fair wind Dobrý vítr (Fron) Favorable conditions No example sentence
(for a project or found.
enterprise) (GKoEL)
“Dobrý vítr” is the only Czech equivalent found for English idiom “a fair wind”. Idioms

from both languages agree on all levels. No example sentence has been found.

STORM

After a storm Po bouři přichází Things are often Jill: I can't believe prov
comes a calm klid (Boč) calm after an how peaceful the
upheaval (TFD) office is today,
when yesterday
everyone was either
being fired or
threatening to quit.
Jane: After a storm
comes a calm.
This English idiom has a totally correspondent Czech equivalent. Other Czech

equivalents were not found.

To ride out/weather Překonat krizi, „ustát To manage not to be The government

the storm to“ (Hr) destroyed, harmed, seems confident that
or permanently it will ride out the
Přečkat bouři; těžkou affected by the storm.
dobu (Kr) difficult situation you
experience (CDO)
Přestát bouři;
proplout úskalím;
vyváznout se zdravou
kůží (Fron)
Idioms “přečkat/přestát bouři” by Kroulík and Fronek are totally correspondent with

no variation to the English idiom “to ride out the storm”. They do not differ on any of

the levels – semantic, formal or lexical.

“Překonat krizi” and “přečkat těžkou dobu” are non-idiomatic and belong to non-

correspondence category (see p. 53). “Ustát to” and “proplout úskalím; vyváznout se

zdravou kůží” are Czech idiomatic equivalents, which lack the main lexeme “storm”.

They belong to partial correspondence category. (see p. 48).

30
4.4. Total correspondence with a slight variation

WEATHER

In all weathers Za každého počasí If something is done He's a real enthusiast

(BrE) (Fron) in all weathers, it is - he goes fishing in all
done in every type of weathers.
weather; every
situation (CDO)
This idiom was found only in Fronek, who provides an idiom that corresponds to his

English equivalent on all levels. There is a slight variation on lexical level – Fronek uses

word “každého”, which in English means “every, each”.

WIND

Way/direction the Kam vítr fouká (Kr) One tries to discover I think I'll see which
wind blows information about a way the wind is
Kam vítr, tam plášť situation, especially blowing before I vote
Variation: how/as (Boč) other people's at the board
the wind blows opinions, before they meeting.
take action (CDO)
Czech equivalent taken from Kroulík is totally correspondent to English idiom “how the

wind blows”. The variation lies on lexical level, because Kroulík uses word “kam”

(where) instead of “how” (jak). This difference is very little and does not change the

meaning. Czech equivalent by Bočánková “kam vítr, tam plášť” belongs to general

correspondence category (see p. 31).

To know/to see Vědět, odkud vítr To foresee the I think we ought to

which way the wind fouká; vědět kolik general drift of talk to other
is blowing uhodilo (Boč) events, to know in members of staff and
advance what is see which way the
Vědět, odkud vítr likely to happen, to wind's blowing
fouká; vědět kolik make a correct before we make any
uhodilo; dělat si prediction (GKoEL) firm decisions.
obrázek (Fron)

31
“Vědět, odkud vítr fouká” is a Czech equivalent found in Bočánková and Fronek. They

are idiomatic, but lack main lexeme “wind” (vítr). Other Czech equivalents belong to

partial correspondence category (see p. 37).

To speak to the Mluvit do větru You speak No example

winds (Boč) where it would sentence found.
not be
understood
(Epistles)
This English idiom was found only in Bočánková. There is a slight difference on

lexical level – Bočánková uses singular “wind” instead of plural “winds”.

Nevertheless, the difference is very little so it belongs to this category. No

example sentence was found.

SNOW

Pure as the Jako padlý sníh Pure and Robert was

driven snow (Boč) chaste, often notoriously
used ironically promiscuous,
Variation: as Bílý jako (padlý) (TFD) but tried to
white as the sníh (Fron) convince all his
(driven) snow girlfriends that
he was pure as
the driven
snow.
Fronek, as well as Bočánková, uses word “padlý” (fallen) instead of word

“driven”, which in Czech means “hnaný, řízený”. This slightly changes the idiom,

yet the levels of correspondence remain almost unchanged. Bočánková’s Czech

equivalent lacks the word “pure” or “white”, which changes formal and lexical

level to the extent that it belongs to general correspondence category (see p.

33).

STORM

The lull/the Ticho před A time that Things seem sa

32
calm before bouří (Boč) seems quiet quiet in the y
the storm but will very office right
Ticho před soon be now, but this
bouří (Fron) followed by is just the lull
something before the
unpleasant storm.
happening
(CDO)
Fronek and Bočánková provide both the same Czech equivalent – “ticho před

bouří”. The main lexeme “bouře” (storm) is present. There is a slight variation in

case of the first lexeme – Czech authors use word “ticho”, which has the same

meaning as the English words “lull” and “calm”, but in English would be

translated as “quiet, silence”. Therefore it belongs to total correspondence

category with slight variation.

(To be in) the Oko bouře To be very International

eye of the (Fron) much involved aid agencies
storm in an argument were in the eye
or problem that of the storm
affects a lot of when war broke
people (TFD) out in the
country.
This idiom would be translated to Czech language as “být v oku bouře”. Fronek

uses only the expression “oko bouře”. He does not include in his expression any

verb. “The eye of the storm” is, however, still correspondent, so it belongs to this

category.

A storm is Schyluje se There is going He looks angry.

brewing/gatheri k bouřce (Fron) to be trouble or A storm is
ng emotional brewing.
upset (TFD)

33
Czech idiom “schyluje se k bouřce” is almost identical with English equivalent “a

storm is brewing”. Both idioms have same lexical units; yet there is a slight

difference in the syntactic structure.

LIGHTNING

Like a streak Jako blesk Extremely She grabbed i

of lightning (Fron) quickly (CDO) the money n
and ran out of f
the shop like m
a streak of l
lightning.
English and Czech idiom agree on semantic and formal level. There is a slight

difference on the lexical level. Fronek uses shortly “jako blesk” (like a lightning),

English language uses on top of that lexeme “streak” (pruh). Nonetheless, it is

only a slight difference which classifies this idiom to total correspondence

category.

4.5. General correspondence

CLOUD

Cloud-cuckoo- Země, kde létají To believe that Anyone who

land pečení holubi things you want thinks this
do huby; snový will happen, project will be
Variation: to svět (Hr) when really finished within
live in cloud- they are six weeks is
cuckoo land Vzdušné zámky impossible living in cloud-

34
 (Kr) (TFD) cuckoo land.

Chodit s hlavou
v oblacích
(Fron)

Vzdušné zámky
(Boč)

Fronek uses an equivalent to English idiom “cloud-cuckoo-land”: “chodit s hlavou

v oblacích”, where main lexeme is present. Formal and lexical levels are very

different. Semantic level remains same in both languages; therefore this

expression belongs to general correspondence category. Equivalents by Hrách,

Kroulík and Bočánková are idiomatic; however, the main lexeme “cloud” is not

present. This classifies them as partially correspondent (see p. 36).

WEATHER

To change like a Točit se jako To forever Her moods

weather-cock korouhvička; changing one’s changed as
být kam vítr, mind, to be rapidly as a
tam plášť (Hr) easily weathercock
influenced before a
Mít dvojí tvář (GKoEL) thunderstorm.
(Fron)
“Točit se jako korouhvička” belongs to this category, because it agrees with

English idiom on semantic and formal level. It differs on lexical level, as Hrách

uses word “točit” (spin, rotate, turn) instead of the word “change” (měnit).

Second equivalent by this author belong together with equivalent by Fronek to

partial correspondence category, because the main lexeme “weather” is not

present (see p. 37).

Fine weather Psí počasí, A greeting Sally: What a C

35
for ducks deštivé meaning that lot of rain! l
počasí (Hr) this Tom: Yeah. i
Variation: unpleasant Lovely c
Lovely Počasí, že by rainy weather weather for h
weather for psa nevyhnal must be good ducks. Don't é
ducks (Boč) for something care for it
(TFD) much myself.
Main lexeme “weather” (počasí) is used with all Czech equivalents; nevertheless,

they differ from English idiomatic on both formal and lexical level. Second

equivalent by Hrách “deštivé počasí” is non-idiomatic and as the only one

belongs to non-correspondence category (see p. 49).

WIND

Way/direction Kam vítr fouká One tries to I think I'll see

the wind blows (Kr) discover which way the
information wind is blowing
Variation: Kam vítr, tam about a before I vote at
how/as the plášť (Boč) situation, the board
wind blows especially other meeting.
people's
opinions,
before they
take action
(CDO)
Czech equivalent by Bočánková “kam vítr, tam plášť” belongs to general

correspondence category; because the main lexeme is present and semantic

meaning is the same. On the other hand, Czech equivalent taken from Kroulík is

totally correspondent to English idiom “how the wind blows” (see p. 31).

To get/to Polekat se; To be(come) I heard that s

have a wind dostat vítr afraid, he’s selling his l
up (Hr) alarmed, business and i
anxious, moving away. n
(BrE) Být postrašen; worried, I think he’s f
znervózněn, nervous (OxD) got the wind m
dostat vítr up about l
(Kr) something.

36
 Mít nahnáno;
mít malou
dušičku (Boč)
“Dostat vítr” is a Czech idiom, where the main lexeme “vítr” (wind) is present.

Therefore it belongs to this general correspondence category. Other Czech

equivalents are either partially correspondent (mít nahnáno, mít malou dušičku -

see p. 39) or non-correspondent (polekat se, bý postrašen, znervózněn - see p.

50).

To break Pouštět větry Let gas out No example

wind(s) (Kr) from the sentence found.
intestine
through the
anus (OxD)
This idiom was found only in Kroulík. He uses lexeme “pouštět” (let out) instead

of word “break” (zničit). Nevertheless, main lexeme “winds” (větry) is present in

both languages so it belongs to this category. No example sentence has been

found in any of the sources.

Sow the wind Kdo seje vítr, 1. Our enemy p

and reap the sklízí bouři catastrophic has sown the r
whirlwind (Boč) consequences wind by o
for one’s provoking this v
wrongdoing war, and they b
(GKoEL) will reap the i
whirlwind b
2. when we
some kind of vanish the.
trouble that (DoAI)
grows much
larger than
you planned
(DoAI)
Only Czech equivalent was found in Bočánková. She uses the same main lexeme

“wind” (vítr).

In the teeth of the Přímo proti Against the No example sentence

37
wind větru (Kr) wind found.
opposition
(GKoEL)
Although formal and lexical levels differ a lot, Czech equivalent by Kroulík

contains the main lexeme “vítr” (wind) and is idiomatic. It belongs to general

correspondence category. No other equivalents were found in any of the

sources, as well as no English example sentence.

To tilt at Útočit na To fight Aren’t you too

windmills větrné mlýny, imaginary smart to go
hledat si enemies, hence around tilting
imaginární to squander at windmills?
nepřítele (Hr) one’s energy (DoAI)
uselessly
Bojovat (GKoEL) It’s a sad fact
s větrnými that all that
mlýny (Boč) To fight against scandal
unimportant concerning
Bojovat enemies or secret services
s větrnými issues (DoAI) was but tilting
mlýny (Fron) at windmills.
(Hr)
Only Czech expression “hledat si imaginarní nepřítele” is non-idiomatically

translated idiom “to tilt at windmills” belonging to non-correspondence category

(see p. 52). The rest of the equivalents are generally correspondent. Fronek and

Bočánková use word “bojovat” (fight) as a substitution for “tilt” (naklonit se).

Hrách uses lexeme “útočit” (attack). Because the main lexeme is not the same

with English and Czech equivalents, the correspondence is only general.

RAIN

It’s raining/it Prší jako It is raining Take an 1

rains cats and z konve (Kr) very hard umbrella. It's :
dogs (TFD) raining o
Leje jako pitchforks l
Variations: z konve; prší, and hammer d
It's raining jen se leje handles out

38
 (Fron) there!
pitchforks
(and hammer Leje jako
handles) z konve (Boč)

It’s raining
buckets

It’s pouring
with rain

This English idiom has many variations. The main lexeme “rain” (déšť, pršet) is

present in some of the Czech equivalents. Expression “prší jako z konve” belongs

to this category. Idioms, where the main lexeme is not present, belong to partial

correspondence category (see p. 41).

SNOW

Pure as the Jako padlý sníh Pure and Robert was

driven snow (Boč) chaste, often notoriously
used ironically promiscuous,
Variation: as Bílý jako (padlý) (TFD) but tried to
white as the sníh (Fron) convince all his
(driven) snow girlfriends that
he was pure as
the driven
snow.
Bočánková’s Czech equivalent lacks the word “pure” or “white”, which changes

formal and lexical level to the extent that is belongs to general correspondence

category. Fronek, as well as Bočánková, uses word “padlý” (fallen) instead of

word “driven”, which in Czech means “hnaný, řízený”. This idiom belongs to total

correspondence with slight variation (see p. 29).

STORM

39
A storm in a Malicherný A situation I think it's all i
teacup (BrE) spor, bouře where people a storm in a n
ve sklenici get very angry teacup – f
vody (Hr) or worried there's m
about probably no l
Bouře ve something danger to
sklenici vody that is not public health
(Fron) important at all.
(TFD)
Bouře ve
sklenici vody
(Hais)
All Czech expressions except for the first one by Hrách “malicherný spor” are

generally correspondent. The Czech equivalent “bouře ve sklenici vody” contains

word “sklenice vody” (a glass of water) as a substitution for “a teacup” (hrnek).

Nevertheless, the word “storm = bouře” is present in both languages and both

idioms carry the same semantic meaning. “Malicherný spor” belongs to non-

correspondence category (see p.55).

LIGHTNING

Like greased Jako Very fast As soon as I i

lightning namydlený (CDO) mentioned n
blesk (Boč) work, he was f
Variation: like out of the m
hell and high Jako door like l
lightning namydlený greased
blesk (Fron) lightning!
At/with The
lightning powerboat
speed sped up the
river like hell
and high
lightning.
Czech authors Bočánková and Fronek use word “namydlený” (soupy) instead of
“greased” (namazaný). Formal structure is identical with first English variation. As
they differ on lexical level, the idiom belongs to general correspondence
category.

SUN

40
(As) Plain as Jasný, jako Easy to see or It’s as plain as sl
the sun at facka; nad understand; the sun at
noonday slunce jasný obvious (OxD) noonday, this
(Hr) government is
ruining this
economy.
Expression “nad slunce jasný” belongs to general correspondence category,

because main lexeme “sun” is present in both languages. Partially correspondent

is Hrách’s Czech equivalent “jasný, jako facka”, where the main lexeme “facka”

(slap) replaces lexeme “sun”(slunce) (see p. 47).

4.6. Partial correspondence

CLOUD

To be on Být v sedmém To be "Was Helen i

cloud nine nebi (Kr) extremely pleased about n
happy or getting that f
Sedmé nebe; excited (CDO) job?" m
povznesená "Pleased? She l
nálada (Hr) was on cloud o
nine!" l
Být bez sebe d
blahem (Fron)

Být blahem
bez sebe
(Boč)
Both idioms have different structure and different lexical units – only English

idiom contains the main lexeme “cloud” (mrak). Kroulík and other authors

substitute main lexeme with word “sky” (nebe).

(To be) under a V nemilosti, v To not be The cabinet

cloud podezření (Kr) trusted or minister left
popular office under a
Variation: he is V podezření because people cloud after a
under a cloud (Hr) think you have fraud scandal.
done
Být v podezření; something bad

41
 mít potíže (CDO)
(Fron)
To be under
Být v nemilosti; suspicion or in
nepřízni; disrepute, in
dívají se na trouble or
něho skrz prsty disgrace (Zolt)
(Boč)
Only the Czech equivalent “dívají se na něho skrz prsty” by Bočánková is partially

correspondent – she uses a Czech idiom, which, however, does not contain the

main lexeme “cloud”. Translations from other authors belong to non-

correspondence category (See p. 48)

Every cloud Každá věc má You can I'm sorry your p

has a silver v sobě něco derive some business is r
lining dobrého; nic benefit from going badly, o
není tak zlé, every bad but don't v
jak se jeví na thing that despair. Every s
první pohled happens to cloud has a a
(Kr) you (TFD) silver lining. y

Všechno zlé je
k něčemu
dobré (Hr)

Vše zlé je pro

něco dobré
(Boč)

Na všem zlým
je něco
dobrýho
(Čerm4)

Všechno má

42
 své dobré
stránky (Fron)
Czech equivalent “všechno má své dobré stránky“ by Fronek belongs to partial

correspondence category, because he uses Czech idioms as equivalents, yet main

lexeme “cloud” is not present.

Cloud-cuckoo- Země, kde létají To believe that Anyone who

land pečení holubi things you want thinks this
do huby; snový will happen, project will be
Variation: to svět (Hr) when really finished within
live in cloud- they are six weeks is
cuckoo land Vzdušné zámky impossible living in cloud-
(Kr) (TFD) cuckoo land.

Chodit s hlavou
v oblacích
(Fron)

Vzdušné zámky
(Boč)

“Cloud-cuckoo-land is an idiom, which was found in many dictionaries – Hrách,

Kroulík and Bočánková use a Czech idiomatic equivalent, which, nevertheless,

misses the main lexeme “cloud” – it classifies this idiom as partially

correspondent. Nevertheless, Fronek uses an equivalent, where main lexeme is

present, yet formal and lexical levels are very different. Semantic level remains

same in both languages. His equivalent is generally correspondent (See p. 31).

WEATHER

To keep one’s Být ve střehu; To watch for Some trouble is

weather eye předvídat something (to brewing. Keep
open for sth nebezpečí (Kr) happen); to be your weather
on the alert (for eye open.
Být ve střehu; something); to
mít oči be on guard

43
 otevřené (Hr) (TFD)

Mít se na
pozoru; být ve
střehu (Fron)
“Mít oči otevřené, být ve střehu” is an idiomatic expression; therefore this idiom

belongs to partial correspondence category. “Předvídat nebezpečí” is non-

idiomatic and belongs to non-correspondence category (see p. ??).

To make Prohlašovat To find She's making Di

heavy co za something such heavy sa
weather of nesnadné, hard to do weather of p
sth těžké; dělat and spend a that report p
vědu z lot of time on she's writing. r
něčeho (Kr) it, although it in
is not difficult f
Dělat (CDO) m
z něčeho l
vědu; dělat
povyk kvůli
čemu (Hr)

Dělat s čím
ciráfy (Fron)
This informal and disapproving English idiom has many Czech equivalents; most

of them idiomatic, where main lexeme “weather” is not present. “Prohlašovat co

za nesnadné, těžké” belongs to non-correspondence category (see p. ??).

To weather Přečkat bouři, If someone or In the next few

through těžkou dobu something days we shall
(Kr) weathers the see if the
Variation: To storm, they ambassador
weather a/the successfully can weather
storm deal with a very the political
difficult storm caused
problem (CDO) by his ill-
advised
To overcome a remarks.
crisis, often
financial
(GKoEL)

44
This idiom was found only in Kroulík’s dictionary. “Přečkat bouři” belongs to

partial correspondence category, because it is an idiomatic expression. “Přečkat

těžkou dobu” belongs to non-correspondence category (see p.??).

To be/to feel Indisponován; To be or feel I'm feeling a c

under the cítit se ill (CDO) bit under the o
weather mizerně (Kr) weather - I ll
(AmE) To feel think I've i
Cítit se pod unwell, caught a cold. n
psa; nebýt ve depressed or f
své kůži (Hr) out of sorts m
(GKoEL) l
Cítit se pod
psa, necítit se
dobře (Fron)
Czech equivalents “cítit se po psa” and “nebýt ve své kůži” belong to partial

correspondence category. Other two found in Hrách and Fronek belong to non-

correspondence category (see p. ??).

To change like a Točit se jako To forever Her moods

weather-cock korouhvička; changing one’s changed as
být kam vítr, mind, to be rapidly as a
tam plášť (Hr) easily weathercock
influenced before a
Mít dvojí tvář (GKoEL) thunderstorm.
(Fron)
Equivalent used by Fronek “mít dvojí tvář” and the second equivalent by Hrách

“být kam vítr tam plášť” belong to partial correspondence category, because the

main lexeme “weather” is not present, but they are still idiomatic expressions.

“Točit se jako korouhvička” belongs to general correspondence category,

because it agrees with English idiom on semantic and formal level and the main

lexeme of the idioms remain the same (see p. 31).

WIND

To know/to see Vědět, odkud To foresee the I think we ought

45
which way the vítr fouká; general drift of to talk to other
wind is blowing vědět kolik events, to know members of
uhodilo (Boč) in advance staff and see
what is likely to which way the
Vědět, odkud happen, to wind's blowing
vítr fouká; make a correct before we make
vědět kolik prediction any firm
uhodilo; dělat si (GKoEL) decisions.
obrázek (Fron)
“Vědět, kolik uhodilo” and “dělat si obrázek” are Czech equivalents found in

Bočánková and Fronek – they are partially correspondent. “Vědět, odkud vítr

fouká” corresponds with English idiom “to know which way the wind is blowing”

on all three levels, however, minor difference could be found on lexical level.

Czech authors use word “odkud” (from where) instead of “kudy” (which way).

This Czech equivalent belongs to total correspondence category with slight

variation (see p. 31).

To be in the Něco je ve To be about to There are some

wind vzduchu; happen (TFD) major changes in
připravuje se the wind. I expect
(tajně) (Kr) these changes to
happen soon.
Něco se peče;
něco se
připravuje
(Boč)

Něco visí ve
vzduchu (Fron)
This English idiom has three Czech idiomatic equivalents, two of them use as a

main lexeme word “vzduch” (air) instead of “vítr” (wind). Semantic meaning

remains the same. Equivalent “něco se připravuje” is non-idiomatic and belongs

to non-correspondence category (see p. ??).

To sail close to Balancovat na Behave in a way She’s been late

the wind ostří nože; být that is almost for work three

46
 na tenkém ledu illegal or times this week,
(Hr) socially which is sailing
unacceptable close to the
Pohybovat se (OxD) wind, I think.
na pokraji
neslušnosti,
hlouposti,
nezodpovědnos
ti (Kr)

Zahrávat si
s ohněm;
balancovat na
ostří nože
(Fron)
Hrách and Fronek provide together three different Czech idiomatic expressions,

which are partially correspondent to this English idiom. Czech expressions

provided by Kroulík are not idiomatic and belong to non-correspondent category

(see p. ??).

To throw Vykašlat se na To do I threw caution

caution/cares co; hodit co za something to the wind and
to the wind(s) hlavu (Hr) without bought the
worrying about most expensive
Variation: To Nechat co the risk or one.
throw/fling/hur plavat; nelámat negative results
l sth to the si s čím hlavu (CDO)
wind (Fron)
All Czech expressions provided are idiomatic; nevertheless, they do not contain

main lexeme “wind”.

It's an ill wind Všechno zlé je Even The tremendous sa

(that blows k něčemu misfortune hailstorm left y
nobody any dobré (Hr) can benefit sb gaping holes in
good) or sth; a most of the
Vše zlé je pro calamity for roofs in town,
něco dobré one person so many
(Boč) usually families were
benefits homeless. The
somebody roofing
else (TFD) companies,

47
 however, made
plenty of money
fixing those
holes. It's an ill
wind that
blows nobody
any good.
Both Hrách and Bočánková translate this English idiom very similarly, using an

idiomatic expression omitting main lexeme. They correspond on semantic level.

To get/to Polekat se; To be(come) I heard that s

have a wind dostat vítr afraid, he’s selling his l
up (Hr) alarmed, business and i
anxious, moving away. n
(BrE) Být postrašen; worried, I think he’s f
znervózněn, nervous (OxD) got the wind m
dostat vítr up about l
(Kr) something.

Mít nahnáno;
mít malou
dušičku (Boč)
Czech idiom by Bočánková “Mít nahnáno; mít malou dušičku” is partially

correspondent to an English idiom “to get/to have a wind up”. These two

expressions are idiomatic; nevertheless, they do not contain main lexeme. Other

Czech equivalents belong to either general correspondence category (see p. 32)

or non-correspondence category (see p. 50).

To get a/one’s Chytit druhý A return of We started to

second wind dech; nabrat strength or feel we couldn't
síly (Hr) energy that walk any
makes it further but
Postavit se possible to when we saw
znovu na nohy continue in an the village in
(Boč) activity that the distance we
needs a lot of got a/our
Znovu nabrat effort (CDO) second wind.
síly (Fron)

48
“Chytit druhý dech” and “postavit se znovu na nohy” are the only equivalents

listed here that are idiomatic, but because of the lack of main lexeme, they are

only partially correspondent. Other two equivalents can be found in non-

correspondent category (see p. ??).

To whistle in Házet hrách na To talk to I told you

the wind stěnu (Hr) someone several times to
without keep your room
Plácnutí do obtaining a in order but it’s
vody (Boč) sensible reply like whistling in
(GKoEL) the wind.
Plácnutí do
vody (Fron)
All Czech equivalents found belong to partial correspondence category.

Three sheets Potácející se Intoxicated He was three i

to/in the opilý (Kr) and unsteady, sheets to the n
wind drunk (TFD) wind and f
Být pod didn’t pay m
parou; být attention to l
v povznesené my warning.
náladě (Fron)
Only Czech idiom “být pod parou” is partially correspondent. Fronek uses as a

main lexeme word “pára”(steam). Formal and lexical structure is also very

different. Other Czech expressions are non-idiomatic (see non-correspondence

category p. ??).

A windbag Velká huba A person Quiet, you in

(Boč) who talks too windbag! f
much about m
Žvanil; kecal; boring things l
držka (CDO) di
plechová sa
(Fron) p
p
r
“Velká huba” is the only Czech idiomatic equivalent. “Big mouth” as would be its

translation, if taken literally, would suggest that the person we talk about has a

49
big mouth. However, someone who “talks too much about boring things” does

not necessarily have to have a big mouth. Other equivalents belong to non-

correspondence category (see p. ??).

The wind(s) of Vichřice změn A new outlook, Business people

change (Kr) a fresh point of have been
view (GKoEL) buffeted by
Variation: the Ohlašují se winds of
winds of změny; blýská change blowing
change are se na lepší časy out of Ottawa.
blowing (Fron)
Partially correspondent is “vichřice změn” by Kroulík and “blýská se na lepší časy”

by Fronek. Kroulík uses main lexeme “gale” (vichřice), whereas Fronek uses

“blýskat se” (flash). The third Czech equivalent “ohlašují se změny” (the changes

are being announced) belongs to non-correspondence category (see p. ??).

Slip one’s Zemřít, To die (SlD) No example sl

wind natáhnout sentence
(AmE) bačkory (Hr) found.
Idiom only found in Hrách. His equivalent “zemřít” (die) corresponds with English

definition “to die” (see non-correspondence category p. ??). “Natáhnout

bačkory” is idiomatic equivalent, which belongs to partial correspondence

category.

To anchor to Pojistit se To make Now that you s

windward proti prudent came into l
nepředvídatel provision for some money,
ným the future you’d better
okolnostem, anchor to
nechat si windward.
zadní vrátka
(Hr)

50
The second Fronek’s expression is idiomatic and belongs to partial

correspondence category. The first Czech equivalent is non-idiomatic and

therefore belongs to non-correspondence category (see p. ??).

RAIN

To rain on Pokazit komu To do I'm sorry to 2

sb’s parade radost; rozbít something rain on your :
komu iluze that spoils parade but s
Variation: to (Hr) someone's you're not l
piss on one’s plans (CDO) allowed to
parade Pokazit komu have alcohol
radost (Fron) on the
premises.
“Rozbít komu iluze” is the only idiomatic equivalent by Hrách. One cannot

literally “break someone’s illusions”. “Pokazit komu radost” is Czech non-

idiomatic equivalent and belongs to non-correspondence category (see p. ??).

The second variation is a slang word.

It’s raining/it Prší jako It is raining Take an 1

rains cats and z konve (Kr) very hard umbrella. It's :
dogs (TFD) raining o
Leje jako pitchforks l
Variations: z konve; prší, and hammer d
It's raining jen se leje handles out
pitchforks (Fron) there!
(and hammer
handles) Leje jako
z konve (Boč)
It’s raining
buckets

It’s pouring
with rain

This English idiom has many variations. The main lexeme “rain” (déšť, pršet) is

present in some of the Czech equivalents, which belong to general

correspondence category (see p. 33). Idioms, where the main lexeme is not

51
present, belong to partial correspondence category. First English idiom variation

is old-fashioned.

To be/ to feel Být (zase) jako To be healthy, I'll be as right i

as right as rybička; být especially as rain as n
rain v pořádku after having soon as I take f
(Hr) been ill for a my pills. m
period of time l
(CDO)
“Být zase jako rybička” is Czech idiomatic equivalent, which belongs to this

category. The second Hrách’s expression is non-correspondent (see p. ??).

It never rains Neštěstí Good (or bad) Fred: This P

but (it) pours nechodí nikdy things do not morning I had r
samo (Kr) just happen a a flat tire. o
Variation: few at a time, When I went v
when it rains, Neštěstí but in large to the garage s
it pours (nikdy) numbers all at to get the tire a
nechodí samo once (TFD) patched, I y
(Fron) discovered I
didn't have
Neštěstí any money,
nechodí nikdy and I couldn't
samo (Hr) even charge it
because my
Smůla na credit card is
smůlu (Boč) expired. Jane:
It never rains
but it pours.
All Czech equivalents found are partially correspondent. They do not contain the

main lexeme “rain”, but they are still idiomatic.

Come rain or Za každou Whatever Come rain or i

shine cenu; stůj co happens shine, I'll see n
stůj; ať se (CDO) you on f
děje, co se Thursday. m
děje (Fron) l

Ať se stane
cokoli;
v dobrém i ve
zlém (Hr)

52
 Za všech
okolností
(Boč)
This English idiom has many equivalents. All expressions by Fronek are partially

correspondent. “V dobrém I ve zlém” by Hrách belongs to this category as well.

“Za všech okolností“ and „ať se stane cokoli“ are non-correspondent (see p.??).

To put sth by Pro strýčka To save Luckily she i

for a rainy Příhodu (Boč) money for the had saved n
day day when one some money f
Myslet na is too old or ill for a rainy m
Variation: to zadní kolečka; to go to work, day. l
save/to keep dát si co or has lost
(money) for bokem (Fron) their job
the rainy day (GKoEL)
Other partially correspondent idioms were found – both Fronek and Bočánková

use idiomatic expressions which do not contain main lexeme.

SNOW

To be snowed Být zavalen To have so She wants me sl

under (with) čím, mít plné much work to take some
sth ruce čeho (Hr) that you have time off but
problems I'm snowed
(AmE) Zavalen (prací, dealing with it under with
objednávkami all (TFD) work at the
atd.) (Kr) moment.

Mít práce nad

hlavu; být
zavalen prací
(Boč)

Mít hrozný fofr

v práci;
nevědět, kam
dřív skočit
(Fron)
This idiom has many Czech equivalents; all of them belong to this category.

A snow job Obratné A systematic You can S

53
(AmE) přemlouvání deception; a generally tell l
za účelem deceptive when a i
Variation: to podvedení, story that student is n
do a snow job mazat med tries to hide trying to do a f
on someone kolem pusy; the truth snow job. m
obratně (TFD) l
připravovaný She thought
podfuk (Kr) To deceive or she did a
confuse snow job on
Balamucení someone the teacher,
(Boč) (TFD) but it
backfired.
Podfuk (Hais)
“Mazat med kolem pusy” is the only Czech equivalent that is partially

correspondent. The rest of the Czech expressions are non-correspondent (see

p. ??).

STORM

To take sth/sb Vzít co útokem To conquer The army took

by storm (Boč) someone or city after city by
something in a storm.
Vzít co útokem, fury;
ztečí (Fron) to succeed The singing star
overwhelmingly took the
Dobýt ztečí; with someone, audience in
strhnout some place, or each town by
obecenstvo a group (TFD) storm.
(Hais)
Many Czech equivalents were found – all of them belong to this category.

To ride Překonat krizi, To manage not The

out/weather „ustát to“ (Hr) to be government
the storm destroyed, seems confident
Přečkat bouři; harmed, or that it will ride

54
 těžkou dobu permanently out the storm.
(Kr) affected by the
difficult
Přestát bouři; situation you
proplout experience
úskalím; (CDO)
vyváznout se
zdravou kůží
(Fron)
“Ustát to” and “proplout úskalím; vyváznout se zdravou kůží” are Czech idiomatic

equivalents, which lack the main lexeme “storm”. They belong to this category.

“Překonat krizi” and “přečkat těžkou dobu” are non-idiomatic and belong to non-

correspondence category (see p. ??). Idioms “přečkat/přestát bouři” are totally

correspondent with no variation (see p. 30).

To be like a Jako tele na Having a No example co

(dying) duck in nová vrata (Kr) dejected, sentence ll
a hopeless and found
thunderstorm Tváří se jako despairing
hromádka expression,
neštěstí (Boč) (behaving) in a
weak, pathetic
and sad
manner (Zolt)
This idiom was found in two Czech idiom dictionaries – both equivalents are

idiomatic, but none of them contain main lexeme “storm”.

Any port in a V nouzi je When one is I don't want to sa

storm každá pomoc having serious live with my y
dobrá (Hr) trouble, one parents, but
must accept it's a case of
Nouze naučila any solution, any port in a

55
 Dalibora whether one storm. I can't
housti (Boč) likes the find an
solution or not apartment I
Nouze láme (TFD) can afford.
železo (Fron)
All Czech equivalents are idiomatic expressions, which belong to this category.

THUNDER

To steal Zastínit koho To do what Sandy stole my

someone’s (Hr) someone else thunder when
thunder was going to do she announced
Vzít vítr z before they do that she was
plachet (Kr) it, especially if pregnant two
this takes days before I'd
Vypálit komu success or planned to tell
rybník; chlubit praise away people about
se cizím peřím; from them my pregnancy.
vzít komu vítr (CDO)
z plachet (Fron)

Vyrazit komu
trumfy z rukou
(Hais)
This idiom was found in four sources – all Czech expressions are idiomatic, each

Czech author provides different equivalent. They all belong to this category,

because none of them uses main lexeme “thunder“ (blesk).

To appear Tvářil se, jako Affected with No example

thunderstruck by mu uletěly sudden sentence found
včely (Boč) astonishment
or amazement
(TFD)
Czech equivalent was found only in Bočánková – she does not use the same main

lexeme, nevertheless, her translation is idiomatic and belongs to this partial

correspondence category.

LIGHTNING

Lightning Nevstoupíš The same It's strange, sa

never strikes dvakrát do highly unlikely but I feel safer y

56
(the same téže řeky thing never since my
place) twice (Boč) happens to apartment
the same was robbed; I
person twice figure
(TFD) lightning
never strikes
the same
place twice.
Bočánková uses Czech idiomatic expression as an equivalent to English idiom

“lightning never strikes twice”. Formal level and syntactic structure are different,

they agree only on semantic level.

As if struck by Zůstal, jako by When No example

lightning do něho hrom something sentence found
uhodil (Boč) unexpected has
just had such an
impact on you
that shock an
amazement has
left you
dumbfounded
and paralyzed
(Zolt)
Bočánková translates this idiom by an idiomatic expression, she substitutes main

lexeme “lightning” (blesk) by “thunder” (hrom).

RAINBOW

To chase a Honit se za To waste your I don't think my

rainbow chimérami, time trying to parents ever
stavět si get or achieve believed I'd
Variation: to vzdušné zámky something make it as an
chase rains (Hr) impossible actor. I think
(usually in they thought I
Honit se za continuous was just
klamnými tenses) (TFD) chasing
nadějemi, rainbows.
stavět větrné
zámky (Fron)
English idiom was found in two dictionaries, by Hrách and Fronek. They provide

many Czech idiomatic equivalents, all of them belonging to this category.

57
To spread a Pozvracet se, To vomit (SlD) No example sl
technicolour hodit šavli (Hr) sentence
rainbow found
(AmE)
This idiom was found only in Hrách. “Hodit šavli” is an idiomatic expression and

belongs to partial correspondence category. “Pozvracet se” belongs to non-

correspondence category (see p. ??).

SUN

(As) plain as Jasný, jako Easy to see or It’s as plain as sl

the sun at facka; nad understand; the sun at
noonday slunce jasný obvious (OxD) noonday, this
(Hr) government is
ruining this
economy.
Partially correspondent is only Hrách’s Czech equivalent “jasný, jako facka”. Main

lexeme “sun” replaces lexeme “facka” (slap). Expression “nad slunce jasný”

belongs to general correspondence category, because main lexeme “sun” is

present (see p. 36).

To think sun Považovat se Have a very We need more sl

shines out of za střed high opinion of money for this
one’s /pupek světa sb and think job. I think you
arse/bum/behi (Hr) that should be the
nd/backside everything one to ask the
(BrE) Tváří se jakoby they do is boss – he
sežral good (OxD) thinks the sun
Variation: * Šalamounovo shines out of
ass (AmE) ho*no your backside!
(vulgární –
Boč)
Idiom was found in Hrách and Bočánková. In both Czech expressions, main

lexeme “sun” is missing. Therefore both of them belong to this category.

To catch the Dostat barvu; Become red or Look at the

sun opálit se (Fron) brown because color of you!
of spending You really
time in the sun caught the sun,
58
 (OxD) didn’t you?
Czech expression by Fronek “dostat barvu” is idiomatic, so it belongs to partial

correspondence category. “Opálit se” is non-idiomatic Czech equivalent, which

belongs to non-correspondence category (see p. ??).

To make hay Kuj železo, To make good I've got a few sa

while the sun dokud je use of an hours to finish y
shines žhavé (Kr) opportunity the housework
Co můžeš while it before the kids
udělat dnes, lasts (CDO) come home so
neodkládej na I might as
zítřek (Hr) well make
Kuj železo, hay while the
dokud je sun shines.
žhavé (Boč)
All Czech equivalents are partially correspondent.

4.7. Non correspondence – non idiomatic equivalent

CLOUD

(To be) under a V nemilosti, v To not be The cabinet

cloud podezření (Kr) trusted or minister left
popular office under a
Variation: he is V podezření because people cloud after a
under a cloud (Hr) think you have fraud scandal.
done
Být v podezření; something bad
mít potíže (CDO)
(Fron)
To be under
Být v nemilosti; suspicion or in
nepřízni; dívají disrepute, in

59
 se na něho skrz trouble or
prsty (Boč) disgrace (Zolt)
All Czech equivalents are non-correspondent except for the last one by

Bočánková “dívají se na něho skrz prsty”. She uses a Czech idiom, therefore

belongs to partial correspondence category (see p. 37).

Every cloud Každá věc má You can I'm sorry your p

has a silver v sobě něco derive some business is r
lining dobrého; nic benefit from going badly, o
není tak zlé, every bad but don't v
jak se jeví na thing that despair. Every s
první pohled happens to cloud has a a
(Kr) you (TFD) silver lining. y

Všechno zlé je
k něčemu
dobré (Hr)

Vše zlé je pro

něco dobré
(Boč)

Na všem zlým
je něco
dobrýho
(Čerm4)

Všechno má
své dobré
stránky (Fron)
Every Czech equivalent belongs to this category, except for the equivalent used

by Fronek “všechno má své dobré stránky”. This well-known English idiom is

translated by various authors without using a Czech idiomatic expression.

Fronek’s idiom belongs to partial correspondence category, because he does not

use main lexeme “cloud” (see p. ??).

To have a cloud Zbavit se To be cleared of She had a cloud

60
lifted from over podezření (Hr) suspicion, to lifted from her
one end a period of when the
depression, to doctor testified
be restored to she had been
favor (GKoEL) sick all the time.

Now that the

cloud over
Richard has
been lifted, he
will be much
happier at the
office.
This idiom was found only in Hrách – he uses a non-idiomatic Czech equivalent

“zbavit se podezření”, therefore belongs to non-correspondence category.

To wait till the Počkat, až bude Wait until the I’m sure our
clouds roll by po všem; difficulties have difficulties are
přečkat zlé časy eased (GKoEL) only temporary.
(Hr) We must wait
till the clouds
roll by.
This idiom is listed only in Hrách as a non-idiomatic equivalent.

To be/to have Být romantický (of a person) To It’s no good

one’s head in snílek; mít be a dreamer, asking him
the clouds hlavu v oblacích out of touch what to do. He
(Fron) with reality, has his head in
idealistic, the clouds.
daydreaming,
not attending to
what is going
on (Zolt)

To be out of
touch with
reality (GKoEL)
“Být romantický snílek” is a Czech non-idiomatic expression used by Fronek.

Nevertheless, he offers another equivalent “mít hlavu v oblacích”, which

corresponds to an English idiom on semantic, lexical and formal level, as well as

61
contains the same main lexeme. It belongs to total correspondence category (see

p. 29).

A cloud no Nenápadné A distant, Behold, a cloud

bigger than a nebezpečí (Hr) insignificant as small as a
man’s hand threat, but one man's hand is
that may coming up from
become the sea.
dangerous in
the course of
time (GKoEL)
“Nenápadně nebezpečí” is a Czech non-idiomatic equivalent. It correspondents

on neither of the levels, nor contains main lexeme “cloud”.

To cast a cloud Uvádět co To spoil The news of her

over v pochybnosti something father’s illness
(Fron) (Zolt) cast a cloud
over Mary’s
To become sad, honeymoon.
to fill with
gloom, to mar
one’s pleasure
(GKoEL)
English idiom “to cast cloud over” has been found only in Fronek’s dictionary.

WEATHER

A fair-weather Přítel, který tě Someone who Bill stayed for

friend zná, jen když is your friend lunch but he
máš úspěch (Kr) only when wouldn't help
things are me with the
pleasant or yard work. He's
going well for just a fair-
you (TFD) weather friend.
This idiom was found only in Kroulík.

To keep one’s Být ve střehu; To watch for Some trouble is

weather eye předvídat something (to brewing. Keep
open for sth nebezpečí (Kr) happen); to be your weather
on the alert (for eye open.

62
 Být ve střehu; something); to
mít oči be on guard
otevřené (Hr) (TFD)

Mít se na
pozoru; být ve
střehu (Fron)
This idiom has many Czech equivalents, but only equivalent “předvídat

nebezpečí” by Kroulík belongs to non-correspondence category. Other

translations belong to partial correspondence category; because they are

idiomatic (see p.??).

To make Prohlašovat To find She's making Di

heavy co za something such heavy sa
weather of nesnadné, hard to do weather of p
sth těžké; dělat and spend a that report p
vědu z lot of time on she's writing. r
něčeho (Kr) it, although it in
is not difficult f
Dělat (CDO) m
z něčeho l
vědu; dělat
povyk kvůli
čemu (Hr)

Dělat s čím
ciráfy (Fron)
Only first Czech equivalent by Kroulík “prohlašovat co za nesnadné, těžké”

belongs to this category. Other equivalents are partially correspondent (see p.

??).

To weather Přečkat bouři, If someone or In the next few

through těžkou dobu something days we shall
(Kr) weathers the see if the
Variation: To storm, they ambassador
weather a/the successfully can weather
storm deal with a very the political
difficult storm caused
problem (CDO) by his ill-
advised

63
 To overcome a remarks.
crisis, often
financial
(GKoEL)
“Přečkat těžkou dobu” is a Czech equivalent by Koulík, which is not idiomatic.

“Přečkat bouři” belongs to partial correspondence category, because it is an

idiomatic expression (see p. ??).

In this thesis, one can find this idiom also as generally correspondent, because in

group of idioms containing main lexeme “storm”, it correspondents on semantic

level and the main lexeme is present (see p. ??).

To be/to feel Indisponován; To be or feel I'm feeling a c

under the cítit se ill (CDO) bit under the o
weather mizerně (Kr) weather - I ll
(AmE) To feel think I've i
Cítit se pod unwell, caught a cold. n
psa; nebýt ve depressed or f
své kůži (Hr) out of sorts m
(GKoEL) l
Cítit se pod
psa, necítit se
dobře (Fron)
Non-idiomatic Czech equivalents were found in Kroulík and Fronek. The latter

author though provides another equivalent “cítit se po psa”, which together with

“nebýt ve své kůži” from Hrách belong to partial correspondence category (see p.

??).

Fine weather Psí počasí, A greeting Sally: What a C

for ducks deštivé meaning that lot of rain! l
počasí (Hr) this Tom: Yeah. i
Variation: unpleasant Lovely c
Lovely Počasí, že by rainy weather weather for h
weather for psa nevyhnal must be good ducks. Don't é
ducks (Boč) for something care for it
(TFD) much myself.

64
Second equivalent “deštivé počasí” by Hrách is non-idiomatic and as the only one

belongs to non-correspondence category. Other Czech equivalents belong to

general correspondence category (see p. 31).

WIND

To be in the Něco je ve To be about to There are some

wind vzduchu; happen (TFD) major changes
připravuje se in the wind. I
(tajně) (Kr) expect these
changes to
Něco se peče; happen soon.
něco se
připravuje (Boč)

Něco visí ve
vzduchu (Fron)
This English idiom has a non-idiomatic Czech equivalent “něco se připravuje”, the

rest of the Czech expressions belong to partial correspondence category (see p.

??).

To sail close to Balancovat na Behave in a way She’s been late

the wind ostří nože; být that is almost for work three
na tenkém ledu illegal or times this week,
(Hr) socially which is sailing
unacceptable close to the
Pohybovat se (OxD) wind, I think.
na pokraji
neslušnosti,
hlouposti,
nezodpovědnos
ti (Kr)

Zahrávat si
s ohněm;
balancovat na
ostří nože
(Fron)

65
Czech expressions provided by Kroulík are not idiomatic and belong to non-

correspondent category, the rest of the Czech equivalents are partially

correspondent (see p. ??).

To get/to have Doslechnout se, To hear a piece I don't want my

the wind (of dozvědět (Kr) of information colleagues to
sth) that someone get wind of the
Doslechnout se else was trying fact that I'm
o čem; dovědět to keep secret leaving.
se o čem (Hr) (CDO)

Zaslechnout co
(Fron)
All Czech equivalents are non-idiomatic.

To get/to Polekat se; To be(come) I heard that s

have a wind dostat vítr afraid, he’s selling his l
up (Hr) alarmed, business and i
anxious, moving away. n
(BrE) Být postrašen; worried, I think he’s f
znervózněn, nervous (OxD) got the wind m
dostat vítr up about l
(Kr) something.

Mít nahnáno;
mít malou
dušičku (Boč)
Only Czech equivalents “polekat se” and “být postrašen, znervózněn” are non-

idiomatic and belong to non-correspondence category. Other Czech expressions

belong to either general correspondence category (see p. 32) or partial

correspondence category (see p. 39).

To put a wind Vyděsit koho Make sb You put the

up somebody (Hr) frightened wind up me,
(BrE) about sth (OxD) telephoning at
Nahnat komu three in the
strach (Boč) morning. I
thought that
Nahnat komu something
strach (Fron) terrible had

66
 happened.
All Czech equivalents are non-idiomatic.

A straw in the Ukazatel směru An unimportant The recent

wind (BrE) budoucího incident or demands on
vývoje, signál piece of lowering taxes
(Hr) information were but a
which shows straw in the
Náznak, že se you what might wind – the
něco může stát happen in the greater
(Kr) future (OxD) pressure on
lowering the tax
will most
certainly follow.
Czech equivalents were found only in Hrách and Kroulík. They are all non-

correspondent.

To get a/one’s Chytit druhý A return of We started to

second wind dech; nabrat strength or feel we couldn't
síly (Hr) energy that walk any
makes it further but
Postavit se possible to when we saw
znovu na nohy continue in an the village in
(Boč) activity that the distance we
needs a lot of got a/our
Znovu nabrat effort (CDO) second wind.
síly (Fron)
Many Czech equivalents were found, yet only half of them are idiomatic. To this

non-correspondence category belong expressions “nabrat síly” and “znovu

nabrat síly”. Expression by Bočánková and “chytit druhý dech” by Hrách are

idiomatic and belong to partial correspondence category (see p. ??).

Three sheets Potácející se Intoxicated He was three i

to/in the opilý (Kr) and unsteady, sheets to the n
wind drunk (TFD) wind and f
Být pod didn’t pay m
parou; být attention to l
v povznesené my warning.
náladě (Fron)

67
Czech idiom “být pod parou” does not belong to this category, because it is

partially correspondent (see p. ??). Other two expressions are non-idiomatic.

A windfall Neočekávané An amount of Investors each fig

štěstí money that received a
(zejména you win or windfall of
výhra peněz) receive from $3,000.
(Kr) someone
unexpectedly
(CDO)
This English idiom was found only in Kroulík. Expressions from both languages

agree on semantic level, however, Czech equivalent is not idiomatic.

A windbag Velká huba A person Quiet, you In

(Boč) who talks too windbag! f
much about m
Žvanil; kecal; boring things l
držka (CDO) di
plechová sa
(Fron) p
p
r
Only Czech equivalent by Bočánková is idiomatic (see partial correspondence

category p. ??), the rest of the expressions by Fronek are not, so they belong to

this category.

To get to Dostat se do To attack from No example

windward of výhodnější a favorable sentence found.
sb/sth pozice oproti angle (GKoEL)
komu/čemu
(Hr)
The only Czech expression was found in Hrách. His equivalent is not idiomatic

however.

The wind(s) of Vichřice změn A new outlook, Business people

change (Kr) a fresh point of have been
view (GKoEL) buffeted by
Variation: the Ohlašují se winds of
winds of změny; blýská change blowing

68
change are se na lepší časy out of Ottawa.
blowing (Fron) (Kr)
Only Czech equivalent “ohlašují se změny” (the changes are being announced)

belongs to this category, other two Czech expressions are partially

correspondent (see p. ??).

Long-winded Mnohomluvný; Verbose, using No example

užvaněný (Fron) several words sentence found.
when one
would have
done (GKoEL)
This English idiom was found only in Fronek’s dictionary. His expression is not

idiomatic so it belongs to this category.

To tilt at Útočit na To fight Aren’t you too

windmills větrné mlýny, imaginary smart to go
hledat si enemies, hence around tilting
imaginární to squander at windmills?
nepřítele (Hr) one’s energy
uselessly It’s a sad fact
Bojovat (GKoEL) that all that
s větrnými scandal
mlýny (Boč) To fight against concerning
unimportant secret services
Bojovat enemies or was but tilting
s větrnými issues (DoAI) at windmills.
mlýny (Fron)
Only Czech expression “hledat si imaginarní nepřítele” is non-idiomatically

translated idiom “to tilt at windmills”. The rest of the equivalents are generally

correspondent (see p. 33).

To raise/rise Dostat To obtain the Wait a few ol

69
the wind potřebné necessary days perhaps d
peníze (Hr) finance I’ll be able to sl
(GKoEL) rise the wind.
Sehnat prachy
(Kr)
Hrách and Kroulík translate this English idiom non-idiomatically.

Slip one’s Zemřít, To die (SlD) No example sl

wind natáhnout sentence
(AmE) bačkory (Hr) found.
This idiom was found only in Hrách. His equivalent “zemřít” (to die) corresponds

with English definition “to die”. “Natáhnout bačkory” is idiomatic equivalent,

which belongs to partial correspondence category (see p. ??).

To (all) the Do všech In all directions It would be a

(four) winds směrů, na (TFD) disaster if we
všechny strany allowed all that
(Hr) know-how to be
scattered to the
four winds.
Only Hrách provides a non-idiomatic equivalent.

To anchor to Pojistit se proti To make Now that you sl

windward nepředvídatel prudent came into
ným provision for some money,
okolnostem, the future you’d better
nechat si zadní anchor to
vrátka (Hr) windward.
First Fronek’s Czech equivalent is non-idiomatic and therefore belongs to this

non-correspondence category. The second expression is idiomatic. It belongs to

partial correspondence category (see p. ??).

To bat/shoot Tlachat, Talk in a We sat around s

the breeze žvanit, kecat friendly, in the bar, l
(AmE) (Hr) informal way; shooting the i
chat (OxD) breeze. n
f

70
 m
l
Only found in Hrách. He translates this English idiom with few Czech slang words.

RAIN

To rain on Pokazit komu To do I'm sorry to 2

sb’s parade radost; rozbít something rain on your :
komu iluze that spoils parade but s
Variation: to (Hr) someone's you're not l
piss on one’s plans (CDO) allowed to
parade Pokazit komu have alcohol
radost (Fron) on the
premises.
“Pokazit komu radost” is Czech non-idiomatic equivalent and belongs to this

category. “Rozbít komu iluze” is an equivalent by Hrách, which is idiomatic

because one cannot literally “break someone’s illusions” (see p. ??). The

variation is a slang word.

(To take a) Pozvání, které Used to tell Mind if I take i

rain check (on lze využít someone that a rain check n
sth) v příhodnější you cannot on that drink? f
(AmE) dobu (Kr) accept an I have to work m
invitation late tonight. l
Já si to now, but s
nechám na would like to l
jindy (Fron) do so at a
later time
Smířit se (CDO)
s odkladem;
odložit na
neurčito (Hr)
None of the Czech equivalents is idiomatic; therefore they all belong to this

category.

To be/ to feel as Být (zase) To be I'll be as right as i

right as rain jako healthy, rain as soon as I n
rybička; especially take my pills. f
být after m
v pořádku having l
(Hr) been ill

71
 for a
period of
time
(CDO)
The second Hrách’s expression “být v pořádku” is non-idiomatic and therefore

belongs to this category. “Být zase jako rybička” is Czech idiomatic equivalent,

which belongs to partial correspondence category. (see p. ??).

Come rain or Za každou Whatever Come rain or I

shine cenu; stůj co happens shine, I'll see n
stůj; ať se (CDO) you on f
děje, co se Thursday. m
děje (Fron) l

Ať se stane
cokoli;
v dobrém i ve
zlém (Hr)

Za všech
okolností
(Boč)
This English idiom has many equivalents “Za všech okolností“ and „ať se stane

cokoli“ are non-correspondent. All expressions by Fronek are partially

correspondent. “V dobrém I ve zlém” by Hrách belongs to this category as well.

(see p.??).

Keep out of the Vyhýbat se To avoid, evade No example

rain (AusE) potížím, dávat trouble (SlD) sentence found.
si bacha, být
opatrný (Hr)
Idiom only found in Hrách. All his equivalents are non-idiomatic

SNOW

72
A snow job Obratné A systematic You can S
(AmE) přemlouvání deception; a generally tell l
za účelem deceptive when a I
Variation: to podvedení, story that student is n
do a snow job mazat med tries to hide trying to do a f
on someone kolem pusy; the truth snow job. m
obratně (TFD) l
připravovaný She thought
podfuk (Kr) To deceive or she did a
confuse snow job on
Balamucení someone the teacher,
(Boč) (TFD) but it
backfired.
Podfuk (Hais)
All Czech equivalents are non-correspondent, except for an idiom “mazat med

kolem pusy”. This idiom belongs to partial correspondence category (see p. ??).

Not to Nemít vůbec To have no If he can't

have/stand a žádnou šanci chance of afford a good
snowball's (Hr) succeeding lawyer, he
chance in hell (CDO) doesn't have a
Nemít ani tu snowball's
nejmenší šanci chance in hell
(Fron) of winning the
case.
Absolutně
žádná naděje
(Hais)
All Czech equivalents are non-idiomatic.

STORM

To ride Překonat krizi, To manage not The

out/weather „ustát to“ (Hr) to be government
the storm destroyed, seems confident
Přečkat bouři; harmed, or that it will ride
těžkou dobu permanently out the storm.
(Kr) affected by the
difficult
Přestát bouři; situation you
proplout experience
úskalím; (CDO)
vyváznout se
zdravou kůží

73
 (Fron)
“Překonat krizi” and “přečkat těžkou dobu” are non-idiomatic and belong to

non-correspondence category. Idioms “přečkat/přestát bouři” are totally

correspondent with no variation (see p. 28). “Ustát to” and “proplout úskalím;

vyváznout se zdravou kůží” are Czech idiomatic equivalents, which lack the main

lexeme “storm”. They belong to partial correspondence category. (see p. 43).

To ride the Vypořádat se s To confront a I refuse to

storm těžkostmi (Hr) crisis resolutely, resign. I shall
to control or ride the storm,
Variation: to deal with a no matter how
ride a whirlwind situation of long it lasts.
great disorder
or violence
(Zolt)
This idiom was found only in Hrách. It is a non-idiomatic expression.

A storm in a Malicherný A situation I think it's all i

teacup (BrE) spor, bouře where people a storm in a n
ve sklenici get very teacup – f
vody (Hr) angry or there's m
worried probably no l
Bouře ve about danger to
sklenici vody something public health
(Fron) that is not at all.
important
Bouře ve (TFD)
sklenici vody
(Hais)
“Malicherný spor” is the only Czech equivalent, which belongs to this category.

“Bouře ve sklenici vody” belongs to generally correspondence category (see

p.34).

To cook Usilovně, To do Rob was in I

up/dance pilně, s something the kitchen n
up/talk up, nasazením with a lot of cooking up a f
etc. a storm všech energy and storm. m
(AmE) schopností often skill l
(Hr) (CDO) s
74
 l
This informal idiom was found only in Hrách.

To look out for Mít se na Be on your No example sl

squalls pozoru, být guard against sentence
ostražitý (Hr) trouble found
(GKoEL)
Main lexeme “squall”, in Czech “bouřková přeháňka” is not used in Czech

equivalents. Expressions by Hrách belong to non-correspondence category.

THUNDER

Blood and Melodramatick A speech or We sat through

thunder ý (Fron) performance 2 hours of
that is loud and blood and
full of emotion, thunder and
especially anger came out
(TFD) feeling
exhausted.
Fronek provides a non-idiomatic equivalent. This idiom belongs to non-

correspondence category.

As black as Jako kakabus Full of rage or When I looked

thunder (Fron) hostility, up, his face was
likened to the as black as
black clouds thunder, and I
that accompany knew that I was
thunderstorms in trouble.
(TFD)
This idiom was found only in Fronek.

RAINBOW

To spread a Pozvracet se, To vomit (SlD) No example sl

technicolor hodit šavli (Hr) sentence
rainbow found
(AmE)
This idiom was found only in Hrách. “Pozvracet se” belongs to this category.

“Hodit šavli” is an idiomatic expression and belongs to partial correspondence

category (see p. ??).

75
SUN

To catch the Dostat barvu; Become red or Look at the

sun opálit se (Fron) brown because color of you!
of spending You really
time in the sun caught the sun,
(OxD) didn’t you?
“Opálit se” is non-idiomatic Czech equivalent, which belongs to this category.

Another Czech expression by Fronek “dostat barvu” is idiomatic, so it belongs to

partial correspondence category (see p. ??).

4.8. Non-correspondence – no equivalent

A (small) No Czech A sign of Although we are

cloud on the equivalent trouble or making good profits
horizon was found difficulty to there is one cloud on
come (OxD) the horizon – the
government may
increase taxes.
A cloud No Czech A situation or When you’re waiting
hanging over equivalent future event for an operation, you
someone was found that makes feel like there’s a cloud
you worry or hanging over you.
feel unhappy
(CDO)
To be pissing No Czech To be trying You can try to change
in the wind equivalent to do her mind if you like, but
was found something you'll be pissing in the
when there is wind.
no hope of
succeeding
(CDO)
To sail No Czech To be trying He's sailing against the
against the equivalent to achieve wind in his attempt to
wind was found something stop women using the
that is club.
unlikely to
succeed
because
most people
would
oppose it
(CDO)
To wish sth No Czech To wish No example sentence

76
or sb a fair equivalent something or found.
wind was found someone a
success
(GKoEL)
To sell snow No Czech To take No example sentence
to Eskimos equivalent something to found.
was found a place
where it is
already
plentiful; to
engage in
completely
unnecessary
activity (Zolt)
To have No Czech To have Come on, judge, you’ve
snow on the equivalent white or had snow on the roof
roof was found much gray for years!
hair (TFD)
To bow No Czech To submit to No example sentence
before the equivalent public found
storm was found indignation
and protest
(GKoEL)
To kick up a No Czech To become a Oh, what pain! My
storm equivalent nuisance; to arthritis is kicking up a
was found misbehave storm.
and disturb
(someone)
(TFD)
To No Czech To cause an His arrest provoked a
provoke/caus equivalent outburst of storm of protest.
e/spark a was found fury (McM)
storm
To go down a No Czech Be The film went down a
storm equivalent enthusiastica storm at Cannes.
was found lly received
by an
audience
(OD)
(To have) a No Czech To look She suddenly came into
face like equivalent extremely the room with a face
thunder was found angry (CDO) like thunder.
(BrE)

Variation: to
look like
thunder
77
To be faster No Czech Very fast No example sentence
than a cat equivalent indeed (TFD) found
lapping chain was found
lightning
To catch No Czech Try to do No example sentence
lightning in a equivalent something found
bottle was found that's
impossible
(TFD)
Under the No Czech Of any kind; He’s tried every
sun equivalent in the world medicine under the
was found (OxD) sun, but nothing works.
A place in the No Czech (of a person) When he was offered a
sun equivalent a very professorship at
was found favorable Caltech, he felt that he
position, had finally found his
especially in place in the sun.
your
professional
life (OxD)

5. Conclusion

The aim of this thesis is to analyse correspondence of English and Czech idioms

containing weather related constituents on three levels – semantic, formal and

lexical. Another short analysis was provided in one chapter, discussing evaluative

connotations of listed group of idioms with a view to the means of evaluation

implemented in phraseological units and presenting another possible way of

idiom correspondence analysis. 101 units for the analysis have been excerpted

from various lexicographic sources, such as specialized linguistic sources and

dictionaries.

The process of creating corpus of idioms involved in the first stage compiling

English idioms from various English dictionaries (online and printed), as well as

English definitions of the idioms and if possible, example sentences. In the

78
second stage, bilingual English-Czech/Czech-English dictionaries were used in

order to fill in the Czech equivalents. Other selected sources were included so as

to provide as many equivalents and English variations, definitions and examples

as possible. The corpus has been composed of 101 units of English idioms. Czech

equivalents are provided in most of the cases, exactly 85.

Since the purpose of this thesis is to exhaustively list weather related idioms, 10

main lexemes chosen for the corpus were weather, cloud, wind, snow, rain,

storm, thunder, lightning, rainbow and sun. Included were idioms, semi-idioms

(rain-check), metaphorical proverbs (every cloud has a silver lining), sayings

(lightning never strikes twice), common similes (as right as rain) and some other

expressions that have strong pragmatic meaning.

In the first part of this thesis, theoretical part, the background information from

the field of semantics and appropriately the idioms themselves were provided.

Different definitions of an idiom have been gathered from different lexical

sources and elaborated, so as a sample idiom definition could be established.

Such definition involves incapability of idioms to be understood by the meanings

of its parts. They also tend to be conventional and they are grammatically and

lexically fixed. Another part includes methodology and definitions of

correspondence categories.

One chapter of the theoretical part deals with evaluations of idioms. This chapter

provides an insight into this phenomenon and shows a short idiom analysis

based on evaluation. There have been found 11 idioms containing main lexeme”

cloud – this group of weather related idioms provides an example of another

possible idiom analysis, which is very different from the analysis by Vokáčová

79
according to the levels of correspondence. Most of the idioms were classify as

having a negative evaluation load (8 idioms – 73% of all “cloud” idioms). The rest

of them (3 idioms – 27%) were categorized as positive. People use speech acts to

take a stance towards themselves and to others and demonstrate their beliefs,

fears and desires - convey attitudes. I consider evaluation to be an integral part

of the idioms, as they have important pragmatic function.

Analytical part deals with idiom analysis. As stated above, there have been 101

weather related idioms excerpted from the sources. For instance, most idioms

contain main lexeme “wind” – exactly one third (33%) of all idioms in this thesis.

Table 1 (see. p 67) provides more detailed overview. Table 2 represents number

of idioms divided according to the presence of the main lexeme and the

correspondence category they belong to. In the idiom analysis, one can found

135 idioms, because 34 English idioms have more than one Czech equivalent and

belong to more than one category. There are exactly 3 English idioms whose

Czech equivalents belong to three categories (see Table 3 p.??)

Most of the idioms (35%) belong to non-correspondence category. It means that

non-idiomatic Czech equivalent has been found to more than a third weather

related English idioms. Only little less English idioms and their equivalents belong

to partial correspondence category (33%). Such outcome shows that there are

many Czech idiomatic expressions equivalent to English idioms; however, they

do not contain the same main lexeme. On the other hand, the same main lexeme

was present in both languages in 28 cases – 5 idioms belong to total

correspondence category with no variation, 9 idioms in total correspondence

category with a slight variation and finally 14 idioms are correspondent

80
 generally. Last group of idioms has gathered in non-correspondence category

with no variation: no equivalent has been found in 16 cases, which suggests that

such Czech equivalent do not exist or is provided in a source that has not been

explored.

The purpose of this thesis is to provide a short dictionary of English and Czech

idioms that have relevance to weather. Idioms and the study of semantics itself

belong to advanced language phenomena and for the learners of foreign

language (in this case English) it is one of the most difficult parts of grammar

study. This dictionary may help English students to orientate better in the field of

idioms and help them to use such idioms appropriately. The chapter of

evaluation of idioms may help other students of English philology or academics

to elaborate on this field.

5.1. Tables and diagrams

Table 1 – In the first column, there are names of 10 groups of idioms selected

according to the weather related main lexeme that the idioms contain. The

second column provides numbers of idioms containing given main lexeme.

GROUPS OF IDIOMS NUMBER OF IDIOMS

CLOUD 11
WEATHER 8
WIND 33
RAIN 8
SNOW 6
STORM 16
THUNDER 5
LIGHTNING 6
RAINBOW 2
SUN 6
TOTAL AMOUNT OF GROUPS: 10 TOTAL NUMBER OF IDIOMS LISTED:
101

81
 6
6 2 11

5 8
CLOUD
WEATHER
WIND
16 RAIN
SNOW
STORM
6 THUNDER
33 LIGHTNING
RAINBOW
8 SUN

TOT SLIG GEN PAR NO NO SU

AL HT ERA TIAL N M-
L UP
CLOUD 1 0 1 4 7 2 15
WEAT 0 1 2 5 6 0 14
HER
WIND 2 3 6 13 19 3 46
RAIN 0 0 1 6 5 0 12
SNOW 0 1 1 2 2 2 8
STOR 2 3 1 4 5 4 19
M
THUN 0 0 0 2 2 1 5
DER
LIGHT 0 1 1 2 0 2 6
NING
RAINB 0 0 0 2 1 0 3
OW
SUN 0 0 1 4 1 2 8
5 9 14 44 48 16 135
Table 2 – The first column provides weather related words, next six columns

stand for correspondent categories – TOTAL means Total correspondence

82
category with no variation. SLIGHT stands for Total correspondence category

with no variation. GENEGAL means General correspondence category, PARTIAL

signifies Partial correspondence category. NON stands for Non-correspondence

category: non-idiomatic equivalent and lastly, NO counts for Non-

correspondence category: no equivalent. Last column sums up number of idioms

of particular group (divided by the main lexeme) listed in this theses – this

number is usually higher than in the first table, because some idioms appear in

more than one correspondence category.

50
45
40 SUN
35 RAINBOW
LIGHTNING
30 THUNDER
25 STORM
SNOW
20
RAIN
15 WIND
10 WEATHER
CLOUD
5
0
TOTAL SLIGHT GENERAL PARTIAL NON NO

83
Table 3 - This table extends previous table – horizontal lines show number of

every idiom containing different main lexemes and their appearance in two or

three correspondent categories. For example, there are two idioms containing

main lexeme “cloud” that appear both in the Partial correspondence category

and Non-correspondence category: non-idiomatic equivalent. One idiom is listed

both in General and Non-correspondence categories: non-idiomatic equivalent

and also only one appears in Partial and General correspondence categories.

There is no “cloud” idiom that would belong into different two or three

categories at the same time. This means that there are 4 idioms out of 11 that

appear in more categories, the rest of them (7) belong to only one category.

Therefore, there are 15 idioms containing word “cloud” that can be found in this

thesis.

P G P G P N S I A
A E A E A O u D N
R N R N R N m I A
T + T + T + - O L
+ N + S + G u M Y
N O G L S E p S S
O N E I L N I
N N G I S
H G (
T H T
T O
T
)
+
P
A
R
T
(
+

84
 1
)
clo 2 1 1 0 0 0 4 1 1
ud 1 5
we 3 2 1 0 0 0 6 8 1
at 4
he
r
wi 8 1 0 1 1 1 1 3 4
nd 3 3 6
rai 3 0 1 0 0 0 4 8 1
n 2
sn 1 0 0 1 0 0 2 6 8
ow
sto 0 1 0 0 0 1 3 1 1
rm 6 9
th 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5 5
un
de
r
lig 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 6
ht
nin
g
rai 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 3
nb
ow
su 1 0 1 0 0 0 2 6 8
n

5.2. Bibliography

Auger, Peter. The Anthem Dictionary of Literary Terms and Theory. London:

Anthem, 2010. Print.

Barnes, Albert. Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Epistles of Paul to the

Corinthians. London: Thomas Ward and Co., 1840. Google Book Search. Web. 20

October 2015.

85
Bočánková Milena, Kalina Miroslav. Česko-anglický frazeologický slovník. Praha:

Ekopress, 2004. Print.

Cambridge Dictionary Online. Cambridge University Press, 2015. Web. 15 Feb.

2015. <http://dictionary.cambridge.org/>.

Collins, Harper. Collins Cobuild Dictionary of Idioms. London: HarperCollins, 1995.

Print.

Cuddon, John A. Dictionary of Literary Terms and Literary Theory. London:

Penguin Books, 2000. Print.

Čermák, František. Frazeologie a idiomatika česká a obecná. Praha: Karolinum,

2007. Print.

Čermák, František. Zásady zpracování a užívání slovníku. In: Čermák, F.

Slovník české frazeológie a idiomatiky: výrazy slovesné. Praha: Academia,

1994. Print.

Čermák, František. „Functional System and Evaluation, in: Travaux du Cercle

linguistique de Prague n.s. Prague Linguistic Circle Papers, vol. I. Amsterdam:

Philadelphia, 1995. Print.

Čermák, František. Frazeografia słowiańska Propoziční frazémy a idiomy v češtině

in: Lilic, Galina Aleksejevna: Frazeografia słowiańska. Red. naukowa Balowski,

Mieczysław et al., Wyd. Uniw. Opolskiego: Opole, 2001.

86
Dictionary, Encyclopedia and Thesaurus – The Free Dictionary. Farlex. Web. 20

Feb. 2015. <http://thefreedictionary.com>.

Fernando, Chitra, Flavell, Roger. On Idiom: Critical views and Perspectives. Exeter:

University of Exeter, 1981. Print.

Hotten, John Camden. The Slang Dictionary: or the Vulgar Words, Street Phrases,

and “Fast” Expressions of High and Low Society. London: Piccadilly, 1869. Print.

Hrách, Tomáš. Sbírka anglických idiomů & slangu. Praha: Argo, 1998. Print.

Kavka, Stanislav J. A Book on Idiomatology. Žilina: University of Žilina, 2003. Print.

Kroulík Břetislav, Kroulíková Barbora. Anglicko-český slovník idiomů [a ustálených

rčení metaforických, obrazných a lidových]. Praha: Svoboda-Libertas, 1993. Print.

Lemke, J. L. Resources for Attitudinal Meaning: Evaluative Orientations in the

Text Semantics. City University of New York: Brooklyn. Web. 15 September 2015.

<http://static1.1.sqspcdn.com/static/f/694454/12424871/1306519637880/

Resources-for-Attitudinal-Meaning.pdf?token=iJLupLJnqIBcwqJdmXjxVBHUMeE

%3D>.

Lipka, Leonhard. An Outline of English Lexicology: Lexical Structure, Word

Semantics and Word Formation. Tübingen: Niemeyer, 1990. Print.

MacMillan Dictionary. Macmillan Publishers, 2015. Web. 20 June 2015.

<http://www.macmillandictionary.com/>.

Makkai, Adam. Idiom Structure in English. Hague: Mouton, 1972. Print.

87
Palmer, Frank. R. Semantics. Cambridge: Cambridge University, 1981. Print.

Parkinson Dilys, Francis Ben. Oxford Idioms Dictionary for Learners of English.

New York: Oxford University Press, 2006. Print.

Pink, Maurice Alderton. A Dictionary of Correct English: a manual of information

and advice concerning grammar, idiom, use of words, points of style,

punctuation, spelling, and other practical matters. London: Pitman and Sons.

1948. Print.

Saeed, John I. Semantics. Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell, 2009. Print.

Spears, Richard A. McGraw-Hill’s Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal

Verbs. The McGraw-Hill, 2005. Web. 3 September 2015.

<http://www.fisiologia.ufc.br/ABS/McGraw-

Hill's.Dictionary.of.American.Idioms.and.Phrasal.Verbs.pdf>.

Szerszunowicz, Joanna. On the Evaluative Connotations of Anthroponymic Idioms

in a Constrastive Perspective (Based of English and Italian). Uniwersytet w

Bialymstoku. Web. 20 October 2015.

<http://repozytorium.uwb.edu.pl/jspui/bitstream/11320/1056/1/BAJ_12_Szersz

unowicz.pdf>.

Vokáčová, Jana. A Comparative Study of English, Czech, French, and German

Idioms. Doctoral dissertation. Brno: Masaryk University, 2008. Web. 3 February

2015. <http://is.muni.cz/th/11410/ff_d/>.

88
Vorsah, Rebecca A. General Knowledge of English Literature. Manchester: Xlibris,

2012. Print.

Wyatt, Rawdon. Phrasal Verbs and Idioms. London: AC Black, 2006. Print.

5.3. Summary

89
The aim of the thesis is to analyse equivalence of English and Czech idioms

containing weather related constituents on three levels – semantic, formal and

lexical. The thesis demonstrates the similarities and differences of the usage of

idiomatic expressions in the two languages – English and Czech. Evaluation of

idioms is provided in one chapter, giving an example of a different possible idiom

analysis. 101 units for the analysis have been excerpted from various printed and

online lexicographic sources, such as specialized linguistic sources and

dictionaries.

This thesis consists of three parts. In the first theoretical part, the background

information of semantics and definitions of an idiom have been provided in order

to establish a sample idiom definition. The method of creating the corpus and

methodology of analysis id described here as well. Evaluations of idioms can also

be found here.

Second analytical part deals with idiom analysis. All English idioms were

categorized according to their Czech equivalents; some English idioms belong to

more than one category, because more different Czech equivalents have been

found. The author comments on the differences between English and Czech

expressions if necessary in order for a reader to better comprehend given

information.

The third part provides a conclusion together with tables and diagrams. First

table (and diagram) shows results of composing dictionary corpora. Second table

provides results of idioms with different idiomatic groups and their appearance

in correspondent categories. Last table elaborates more thoroughly on the

90
categorization of English idioms and their Czech equivalents, as some of them

belong to more than one category.

This thesis shows that idiomatic expressions are often used in both languages;

however, there is a significant difference in their form and usage. This dictionary

may help foreign learners of English language to better orientate in phenomena

of idioms and also, as it provides an insight into evaluative idiom analysis, it can

help academics in semantic field to elaborate on evaluation.

5.4. Resume

Cílem této práce je analyzovat ekvivalenci anglických a českých idiomů

obsahujících slova související s počasím, a to na třech úrovních - sémantické,

formální a lexikální. Bakalářská práce demonstruje podobnosti a rozdíly v užívání

idiomatických výrazů ve dvou jazycích - angličtině a češtině. Evaluace idiomů je

poskytnuta v jedné kapitole, demonstrující další možnou metodologii pro analýzu

idiomů. 101 idiomů sloužících pro analýzu bylo vybráno z různých tištěných i on-

line lexikografických zdrojů, například specializovaných jazykových zdrojů a

slovníků.

Tato práce se skládá ze tří částí. První teoretická část poskytuje informace o

sémantice a definice idiomů, které slouží k vytvoření vlastní definice idiomu.

Způsob vytváření korpusu a metodologie analýzy je zde také popsána, stejně jako

kapitola zabývající se evaluací idiomů.

Druhá analytická část se zabývá analýzou idiomů. Všechny anglické idiomy byly

rozděleny do kategorií podle jejich českých ekvivalentů; některé anglické idiomy

91
patří do více než jedné kategorie, neboť bylo nalezeno více různých českých

ekvivalentů. Autorka komentuje rozdíly mezi anglickými a českými výrazy, pokud

to čtenáři pomáhá lépe porozumět poskytnutým informacím. Ve třetí části může

čtenář najít závěr spolu s tabulkami a grafy. První tabulka (a graf) ukazuje

výsledky sestavení slovníkového korpusu. Druhá tabulka obsahuje idiomy z

různých idiomatických skupin a jejich příslušnost do jednotlivých

korespondenčních kategorií. Poslední tabulka rozpracovává důkladněji

kategorizaci anglických idiomů a jejich českých ekvivalentů, protože některé

ekvivalenty patří do více kategorií.

Tato práce ukazuje, že idiomatické výrazy jsou často používány v obou jazycích;

nicméně zde existuje významný rozdíl v jejich tvaru a použití. Tento slovník může

pomoci zahraničním studentům anglického jazyka, aby se lépe orientovali v

problematice idiomů. Také může pomoci odborníkům v oblasti sémantiky,

protože součástí práce je kapitola věnující se evaluaci idiomů, což je téma, které

je v sémantice relativně neprobádané.

92