Semantic features of phraseological units of the English language denoting negative emotions

Abstract

The article is devoted to the study of the semantic features of phraseological units (FE) of the English language, denoting negative emotions. The study of PHE reflecting emotional states is an urgent task of modern linguistics, since phraseology plays a key role in understanding culture, mentality and emotional perception of native speakers. The main attention is paid to the analysis of the functional characteristics of these units, their semantic structure and the way negative emotions are expressed. The research used descriptive and contextual analysis, as well as the method of component analysis. The research material was phraseological dictionaries of the English language, as well as examples from fiction and the media. The study was conducted taking into account cultural specifics, cognitive and semantic aspects, according to which phraseological units form and convey emotional meanings. The analysis showed that phraseological units associated with negative emotions contain stable images and metaphorical components. Metaphors based on bodily sensations (for example, trembling with fear), zoomorphism (for example, crocodile tears) and natural phenomena (storm of anger) turned out to be the most frequent. The formation of the meaning of such units is tied to universal emotional concepts, but their specific implementation may vary depending on the cultural context. The main lexical and semantic groups of negative emotions were identified: fear, anger, sadness, irritation. The results of the study confirm that phraseological units denoting negative emotions are an essential element of the linguistic and cultural code. Their study contributes to an in-depth understanding of the emotional coloring of expressions and helps to more accurately interpret the meaning of phrases in intercultural communication. In the future, it is planned to expand the research by using comparative material from other languages.