PROPERTIES OF MORPHOLOGICALLY BOUND PHRASEOLOGICAL COMPONENTS IN GERMAN

Abstract

Bound components within phrases are characterized by an inflected form which doesn–t occur in free word combinations outside the fixed expression, and which is a remnant of a morphological prototype from Old or Middle High German. From the perspective of methodology, they can be treated as a subclass of cranberry words or components.

This paper distinguishes between morphological boundness proper and a mixed subtype, and between unilateral and bilateral boundness. The main feature of morphological boundness is the heterogeneity of its manifestations, mainly with nouns, but this phenomenon can also occur with prepositions and pronouns. This research concludes that certain subclasses of phrases, above all idioms and proverbs show a higher degree of propensity towards the phenomenon. It occurs less frequently with kinegrams, „winged words”, collocations and idiomatic phrases, and does not occur with pragmatic phraseologisms and binominals.