UDC

81’373.49

Authors

Rebrova Nataliya Evgenyevna
Soloviev Rybinsk State Aviation Technical University 53 Pushkina St., Rybinsk, 152934, Yaroslavskaya obl., Russian Federation;
е-mail: rebrova-n@list.ru

Abstract

The article examines the problem of the lexicographical process as far as various means of euphemization are concerned. The qualitative and quantitative analysis of euphemisms represented in the dictionaries under consideration shows the strong correlation between the type of euphemisms and the degree of their availability in the dictionaries. An attempt is made to explain why lexical and phonetic means of euphemization dominate over morphological and syntactical ones in the lexicographical process. The examples given show that such means of euphemization as metaphors, metonymies and phonetic alterations of the word to be substituted are characterized by regular representation in modern dictionaries. It is the relatively standard form and meaning of these euphemisms that make the lexicographical process much easier. In this article, such a property is referred to as linguistic limitation. It means that some euphemisms are supposed to correlate with certain constructions. As a result, the number of euphemisms to enter the dictionaries is restricted. On the other hand, euphemisms formed by means of morphological and syntactical alterations of the word to be substituted are practically not represented in the dictionaries under study as they to a large degree depend on the context. Such euphemisms are characterized by a wide variety of grammatical and syntactical means of euphemization. This kind of investigation can explain why euphemisms are considered to be difficult to introduce into modern dictionaries.

Keywords

euphemisms, means of euphemization, lexicographical process, phonetic euphemisms, morphological euphemisms, lexical euphemisms, syntactical euphemisms

References

1. Baskova Yu.S. Evfemizmy kak sredstvo manipulirovaniya v yazyke SMI: na materiale russkogo i angliyskogo yazykov: avtoref. dis. ... kand. filol. nauk [Euphemisms as a Manipulation Means in the Language of Mass Media: Based on the Russian and English Languages: Cand. Philol. Sci. Diss. Abs.]. Krasnodar, 2006.
   
2. Moskvin V.P. Evfemizmy v leksicheskoy sisteme sovremennogo russkogo yazyka [Euphemisms in the Lexical System of the Contemporary Russian Language]. Moscow, 2007.
   
3. Senichkina E.P. Evfemizmy russkogo yazyka. Spetskurs [Euphemisms in the Russian Language: A Special Course]. Moscow, 2006.
   
4. Rada R. Tabus und Euphemismen in der deutschen Gegenwartssprache. Mit besonderer Berücksichtigung der Eigenschaften von Euphemismen. Budapest, 2001.