Syntactic and semantic features of english idioms containing the word ‘no’ with reference to the vietnamese equivalents

IU MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING HANOI OPEN UNIVERSITY M.A Thesis SYNTACTIC AND SEMANTIC FEATURES OF ENGLISH IDIOMS CONTAINING THE WORD “NO” WITH REFERENCE TO THE VIETNAMESE EQUIVALENTS (ĐẶC TRƯNG CÚ PHÁP VÀ NGỮ NGHĨA CỦA CÁC THÀNH NGỮ TIẾNG ANH CHỨA TỪ “NO” VỚI LIÊN HỆ TƯƠNG ĐƯƠNG TRONG TIẾNG VIỆT) PHẠM THUỲ LINH Field: English Language Code: 60220201 Hanoi, 2017 MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING HANOI OPEN UNIVERSITY M.A Thesis SYNTACTIC AND SEMANTIC FEATURES OF ENGLISH IDIOMS CONTAINING THE WORD “NO” WITH REFERENCE TO THE VIETNAMESE EQUIVALENTS (ĐẶC TRƯNG CÚ PHÁP VÀ NGỮ NGHĨA CỦA CÁC THÀNH NGỮ TIẾNG ANH CHỨA TỪ “NO” VỚI LIÊN HỆ TƯƠNG ĐƯƠNG TRONG TIẾNG VIỆT) PHẠM THUỲ LINH Field: English Language Code: 60220201 Supervisor: Mai Thị Loan, Ph.D Hanoi, 2017 CERTIFICATE OF ORIGINALITY I, the undersigned, hereby certify my authority of the study project report entitled SYNTACTIC AND SEMANTIC FEATURES OF ENGLISH IDIOMS CONTAINING THE WORD “NO” WITH REFERENCE TO THE VIETNAMESE EQUIVALENTS submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master in English Language Except where the reference is indicated, no other person’s work has been used without due acknowledgement in the text of the thesis Hanoi, 2017 Pham Thuy Linh Approved by SUPERVISOR (Signature and full name) Date:…………………… i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to address my most sincere gratitute to the following people for their invaluable support and encouragement First and foremost, I would like to thank my supervisor – Mai Thi Loan, Ph.D for her outstanding supervision, kind treatment and remarkable devotion and for guiding, supporting, encouraging me and providing me with all the materials I would need for the research in order for me to complete this final assignment She was always there for me, without her help, things must be extremely difficult and impossible I would also like to give my thank-you to all of my students at Hanoi University of Business and Technology (HUBT) for helping me answer the questionnaire, from that I am able to bring out the results of the survey and have the most suitable suggestions for teaching and learning English idioms containing the word “no” at classrooms and in daily conversations In addition, I would like to thank all of the teachers and professors at Hanoi Open University for guiding, helping and motivating me when I am studying there ii ABSTRACT This thesis attempts to investigate syntactic and semantic features of English idioms containing the word “no” with reference to the Vietnamese equivalents The study is implemented via the adoptions of descriptive and contrastive, inductive, and deductive methods The investigation is based on 252 samples of English idioms containing the word “no” with reference to the Vietnamese equivalents from a wide variety of dictionaries and websites about idioms The findings are compared and contrasted to reveal the outstanding similarities and differences between English idioms containing the word “no” and their Vietnamese equivalents in terms of syntax and semantics Additionally, the results collected from the questionaire for students help me to find out the common errors, causes of these errors, and give some suggestions for the lecturers and the second-year students at HUBT in teaching and learning EIN iii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS A Adverbial Adj Adjective Adv Adverb C Complement Conj Conjunction Det Determiner EIN English Idioms containing the word “no” N Noun NP Noun Phrase O Object P Predicate Prep Preposition Prep.P Prepositional Phrase Pro Pronoun S Subject Sb Somebody Sth Something V Verb VP Verb Phrase iv LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES Table 3.1 The structures of EIN noun phrase and their Vietnamese equivalents 21 Table 3.2 The structures of EIN verb phrase and their Vietnamese equivalents 24 Table 3.3 The structures of EIN adjective phrase and their Vietnamese equivalents 25 Table 3.4 The structure of EIN adverb phrase and their Vietnamese equivalents 25 Table 3.5 The structures of EIN prepositional phrase and their Vietnamese equivalents 27 Table 3.6 Sentential structures of EIN and their Vietnamese equivalents 30 Table 3.7 A summary of EIN and their Vietnamese equivalents in grammatical Patterns 31 Table 3.8 The occurence and distribution of EIN with reference to the Vietnamese equivalents in terms of syntactic features 33 Table 3.9 Frequency of Semantic Fields of EIN and Their Vietnamese Equivalents 42 Table 4.1 The results of survey questionnaire for students 48 v TABLE OF CONTENTS CERTIFICATE OF ORIGINALITY i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii ABSTRACT iii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS iv LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES v CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1.1 Rationale for the study 1.2 Aims and objectives of the study 1.3 Research questions 1.4 Methods of the study 1.5 Scope of the study 1.6 Significance of the study 1.7 Design of the study CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Previous studies 2.2 An overview of English idioms 2.2.1 Definition of idioms 2.2.2 The word 'no' in English idioms 2.2.3 Main features of idioms 2.2.3.1 Syntactic features 2.2.3.2 Semantic features 10 2.2.4 Idioms and other language units 11 2.2.4.1 Idioms and collocations 11 2.2.4.2 Idioms and proverbs 13 2.2.4.3 Idioms and fixed expressions 14 2.2.4.4 Idioms and phrases 14 2.2.5 Concepts of semantic fields 15 2.3 Summary 16 vi CHAPTER 3: ENGLISH IDIOMS CONTAINING THE WORD ‘NO’ WITH REFERENCE TO THE VIETNAMESE EQUIVALENTS 17 3.1 Syntactic features of English idioms containing the word ‘no’ with reference to the Vietnamese equivalents 17 3.1.1 Phrase Structures 17 3.1.1.1 Noun phrase 17 3.1.1.2 Verb phrase 21 3.1.1.3 Adjective phrase 24 3.1.1.4 Adverb phrase 25 3.1.1.5 Prepositional phrase 26 3.1.2 Sentence Structures 28 3.2 Semantic features of English idioms containing the word ‘no’ with reference to the Vietnamese equivalents 34 3.2.1 Ability 34 3.2.2 Activities 35 3.2.3 Age 35 3.2.4 Personality 36 3.2.5 Psychological State 36 3.2.6 Money 37 3.2.7 Power 37 3.2.8 Situation 38 3.2.9 Success and Failure 38 3.2.10 Warnings 39 3.2.11 Advice 39 3.2.12 Appearance 40 3.2.13 Time 40 3.2.14 Characteristics (Human characteristics and characteristics of objects) 41 3.2.15 Quality 41 3.3 Comparison between English idioms containing the word “no” with reference to the Vietnamese equivalents 42 vii 3.3.1 In terms of syntactic features 42 3.3.2 In terms of semantic features 44 3.4 Summary 45 CHAPTER 4: COMMON ERRORS MADE BY THE SECOND-YEAR STUDENTS OF HUBT WHEN USING ENGLISH IDIOMS CONTAINING THE WORD ‘NO’ 47 4.1 Survey questionnaires 47 4.1.1 Subjects 47 4.1.2 Questionnaires 48 4.1.3 Procedures 48 4.2 Common errors made by the second-year students of HUBT when using English idioms containing the word “no” 48 4.2.1 Common errors 48 4.2.2 Causes of committing errors 49 4.3 Suggestions for teaching and learning English idioms containing the word “no” efficiently 50 4.3.1 For teaching 50 4.3.2 For learning 51 4.4 Summary 51 CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION 53 5.1 Recapitulation 53 5.2 Concluding remarks 53 5.3 Limitation of the study 54 5.4 Recommendations for further study 54 REFERENCES APPENDIX APPENDIX viii 62 Fine words butter no parsnips Lời nói sng khơng ăn thua 63 Good wine needs no bush Hữu xạ tự nhiên hương 64 Grant no quarter Không khoan hồng độ lượng 65 Half a loaf is better than no bread Có khơng 66 Half a loaf is better than no loaf Có khơng 67 Happy is the country which has no history Người hay quên người hạnh phúc 68 Hard words break no bones Lời nói sng khơng ăn thua 69 Have no business to do/doing sth Khơng có quyền làm 70 Have no call to sth Khơng có quyền làm 71 Have no heart for sb/sth Khơng có tâm trạng 72 Have no staying power Khơng bền bỉ 73 Have no stomach for sth Không muốn làm 74 Have no strings attached Khơng giới hạn 75 Have no time for sb/sth Khơng có thời gian làm 76 Have no truck with sb/sth Khơng liên quan tới 77 Have no use for sb/sth Có thành kiến với ai/cái 78 Have no words for sb/sth Không thể miêu tả từ ngữ 79 He that is down need fear no fall Củi không sợ lửa 80 Hell has no fury like a woman scorned Người phụ nữ bị tổn thương làm điều kinh khủng 81 Hold no brief for sb/sth Không nhường nhịn ai/cái 82 Ignorance is no excuse Vơ tình vi phạm, xử phạt thường 83 In less than no time Rất nhanh, sớm 84 In next to no time Rất nhanh sớm 85 In no case Trong hồn cảnh khơng 86 In no circumstances Dù hoàn cảnh không 87 In no hurry Không vội vã 88 In no mood to sth/for doing sth Không cảm thấy có tâm trạng muốn làm 89 In no time Rất nhanh 62 90 In no time Trong khoảng thời gian ngắn 91 In no uncertain terms Rõ ràng, mạnh mẽ, 92 In no way Không chút nào, không đời 93 In no way Không đời 94 In no way, shape, or form Dù khía cạnh 95 It does no harm for sb to sth Chẳng 96 It don’t make me no nevermind Khơng bận tâm, không quan tâm 97 It is a long lane that has no turning Qua bĩ cực đến hồi thái lai 98 It's an ill wind that blows no good Trong dở có hay 99 It's no crime to dosomething Không sai 100 It's no good crying over spilt milk Không nên luyến tiếc điều qua 101 It's no picnic! Không dễ dàng 102 It's no skin off sb’s nose Không ảnh hưởng 103 It's no use Vơ ích 104 Know no bounds Khơng có giới hạn 105 Leave no stone unturned Khơng bỏ sót 106 Long time no hear Đã lâu khơng gặp 107 Long time no see Đã lâu không gặp 108 Lose no time in doing sth Tranh thủ thời gian làm 109 Make a difference Tạo khác biệt 110 Make no apologies Tin thân không sai 111 Make no bones about sth Không giấu diếm cảm xúc 112 Make no mistake Phạm sai lầm, nhầm 113 Make no mistake about it Không tưởng tượng sai 114 Make no move Khơng làm 115 Makes no difference to me Đừng bận tâm đến 116 Mean no offense Không cố ý 117 Money is no object Tiền bạc không thành vấn đề 118 Necessity knows no law Cùng tắc biến, biến tắc thông 119 No bargain Khơng có đặc biệt 120 No better than Không xấu như, không tệ 121 No big deal Khơng nghiêm trọng 122 No biggie Khơng có gì, khơng 63 123 No brow Người ngốc nghếch 124 No buts Không nghi ngờ, không bàn cãi 125 No buts about it Khơng nói nhiều 126 No call for sb Không hợp lý 127 No chance Không đời nào, 128 No comparison Khác biệt 129 No contest Không bàn cãi 130 No count Người lười biếng 131 No cover Khơng tính phí 132 No dice Khơng xảy 133 No doubt about it Không nghi ngờ 134 No earthly reason Lý không hợp lý 135 No end Rất nhiều 136 No end in sight Không thể thay đổi 137 No end of sth Rất nhiều 138 No expense is spared Không tiếc tiền 139 No fair Khơng cơng 140 No fear! Chính xác, 141 No flies on one Không tốn thời gian 142 No go Bị hỏng 143 No good Vô ích 144 No good deed goes unpunished Lòng tốt bị lợi dụng 145 No great shakes Không tốt, không hay 146 No guts, no glory Có chí làm quan, có gan làm giàu 147 No hard feelings Không tức giận, khơng khó chịu 148 No harm, no foul Khơng có hại, không hôi 149 No harm, no foul Thùng rỗng kêu to 150 No holds barred Khơng giữ lại 151 No horse in this race Không nhận đầu tư 152 No ifs and buts Khơng nhị hết 153 No ifs or buts Khơng nhị hết 154 No joke Nghiêm trọng 155 No joy Không lấy làm vui lòng 64 156 No joy in Mudville Buồn, thất vọng 157 No kidding! Không phải đùa đâu 158 No less Đáng ngạc nhiên 159 No lie! Thật, khơng đùa 160 No longer Khơng 161 No love lost Khơng có cảm giác thích 162 No man can serve two masters Muốn huy phải biết tuân lệnh 163 No man is an island Sống biết người biết ta 164 No mean feat Kết vĩ đại, thành tích to lớn 165 No messing Hồn thành, xong hết 166 No more Không chút 167 No name cigarette Cần xa 168 No need Không cần thiết 169 No news is good news Khơng có tin tức tin tốt 170 No offense Khơng có ý xúc phạm 171 No offense meant Không cố ý xúc phạm 172 No offense taken Không cố ý xúc phạm 173 No one is indispensable Ai có thời 174 No one should be judge in his own cause Khơng tiện mặt 175 No pain, no gain Có chí làm quan, có gan làm giàu 176 No picnic Không dễ dàng 177 No plan survives contact with the Tuỳ ứng biến enemy 178 No point in sth Khơng có mục đích 179 No pressure Thật khơng dễ dàng 180 No problem Khơng có 181 No problem with sth Không thành vấn đề 182 No questions asked Khơng có câu hỏi 183 No rest for the wicked Phải chăm 184 No rhyme or reason Khơng có lí hợp lý 185 No sale Khơng 186 No score Chưa ghi bàn 65 187 No screaming hell Không ấn tượng 188 No show Không đến, không tham dự 189 No sir Chắc chắn không 190 No skin off one's nose Không đáng bận tâm 191 No skin off teeth Khơng khó khăn 192 No slouch Chăm chỉ, nhiệt tình 193 No soap Khơng thể 194 No spring chicken Người khơng trẻ 195 No strings Khơng vấn đề 196 No such luck Khơng vậy, khơng phải 197 No such thing Khơng có thứ 198 No sweat Dễ, không thành vấn đề 199 No thanks to you Không cần cảm ơn 200 No time like present Làm ngay, không chờ đợi 201 No trespassing Cấm vào 202 No trouble Không thành vấn đề 203 No two ways about it Khơng cách khác 204 No way Tuyệt không, không chút 205 No wonder Không ngạc nhiên 206 Not take no for an answer Bắt buộc phải làm 207 Of no account Nhỏ bé, không quan trọng 208 Of no avail Khơng có kết 209 Of/to no effect Khơng có kết 210 On no account Khơng lý 211 On no account Dù lí khơng 212 Pull no punches Không giấu diếm 213 Put no stock in sth Không ý đến 214 Said no one ever Mắc sai lầm hoàn toàn 215 Say no more Đồng ý, tán thành 216 See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil Khơng thấy, khơng nghe, khơng nói 217 See no further than the end of one’s Thiếu hiểu biết; khơng nhìn nhận nose vấn đề 218 See no objection Không phản đối 66 219 Self-praise is no recommendation Mèo khen mèo dài đuôi 220 Set no store by sb/sth Khơng có lòng tin vào ai/điều 221 Set no store in sb/sth Khơng có niềm tin vào ai/điều 222 Shrouds have no pockets Chết hết 223 Spare no effort to do/doing sth Làm điều tốt 224 Spare no effort to sth Cố gắng hết mức 225 Spare no expense Tiêu thật nhiều tiền 226 Spare no pains to do/doing sth Làm điều tốt 227 Take no account of sth Khơng cân nhắc điều 228 Take no notice of sb/sth Không ý đến ai/cái 229 Take no prisoners Hành động/người vơ nhân đạo 230 Take no stock in sth Không ý đến điều 231 The gods send nuts to those who have no teeth Người cần chẳng có 232 The point of no return Phi lao theo lao 233 There is no doing Không phép 234 There is no harm in sb's doing sth Khơng có hại 235 There is no love lost Thù không đội trời chung 236 There is no pleasure without pain Khơng có sung sướng mà không trải qua khổ đau 237 There is no rest for the weary Làm, làm nữa, làm 238 There is no royal road to learning Học vấn đòi hỏi phải gian truân 239 There is no such thing as a free lunch Có làm có ăn 240 There’s no such thing as a stupid Mạnh dạn lên, hỏi question 241 There's no accounting for taste Mỗi người sở thích 242 There's no fool like an old fool Già mà chơi trống bỏi 243 There's no law against sth/sb Khơng có luật cấm 244 There's no place like home Không đâu nhà 245 There's no rose without a thorn Hồng mà chẳng có gai 246 There's no smoke without fire Khơng có lửa có khói 247 Time and tide wait for no man Thời gian chẳng chờ đợi 248 To no avail Khơng có kết 67 249 Under no circumstances Dù hồn cảnh khơng 250 Waste no time in sb/sth Bắt đầu 251 With no frills Khơng có chi tiết thừa thãi 252 With no trace Khơng có dấu hiệu 68 APPENDIX Idiom Questionnaire for Student This questionnaire concludes different types of exercises with the easy and medium levels which are appropriate with the students of English I Choose the best answer No longer He could no longer afford to keep him at school, so a He countinued to study there b He decided to stay in the dormitory c He dropped out and found a job No problem Mary: Do you mind carrying all this up to my apartment? Tim: It’s no problem a It’s not ok b It’s ok, don’t worry c It’s very busy No way Now he’s asking me to lend him my car No way! a It’s impossible b It’s possible c I’ll lend him my car No sweat Alice: Can you fix my car for me? Jim: No sweat! a It’s easy for me b It’s hard to be done c It’s my sweat No earthly reason I can think of no earthly reason why the repairs should cost so much a A suitable reason b No appropriate reason c The reason why the earth is dirty 69 No big deal We’ll have to pay a little more – it’s no big deal a The deal is big b A small deal c Not so important No time like the present Jill: When should we start cleaning up the house? Jane: No time like the present a I like presents b Let’s wait for a present c Just it now No joke It’s certainly no joke when you have to walk home a This joke is funny b Very serious c To tell a joke No offense No offense, I just don’t like parties a I don’t mean to make you sad b I care much about you c You like parties 10 No great shakes Your idea is no great shakes, but we’ll try it anyway a Impossible; not attractive b A good idea c Brilliant II Read the conditions, then choose the best suitable idiom 11 If someone is not young any more, which idiom is most suitable used to say? a No spring chicken b No mean feat c No big deal 70 12 If you don’t give others any chance to find the excuses to delay doing something, you can say: a No return b No ifs and buts c No call for it 13 If something does not affect your mood, it’s _ a No thanks to you b No rest for the wicked c No skin off your nose 14 If it has been a long time since the last time you saw someone, when meeting that person again, which idiom might be used first? a Long time no see b No holds barred c No man is an Island 15 If someone is proud of himself/herself and just forgets about others’ achievements, you can say: a No cigarette smoking here b No news is good news c Self-praise is no recommendation 16 Which idioms describe the meaning “we don’t care much about anythings when we are in an emergency”? a No crime b Necessity knows no law c There is no smoke without fire 17 No wonder No wonder the children are excited – this is the first time they’ve been abroad a The children love wonderful time b Foreign countries are wonderful c It is easy to understand why 18 All talk and no action She may brag about donating money to the school, but I know she’s all talk and no action a Planning to take into consideration 71 b Just talking and doing nothing c Thinking about that donated money 19 No horse in this race Now that I've stopped practicing medicine, new regulations don't bother me in the slightest — I have no horse in this race anymore a There is no financial investment for me any more b There is no horse in the race c No horse needs taking medicine 20 If you something in vain, that means a No one will be any the wiser b Expense is no object c It is no use III Fill in the blanks with the most appropriate idiom 21 Sometimes I regret not taking that job in London Oh well, _ a There’s no point crying over spilt milk b There’s no such thing as a free lunch c There is no harm in taking that job in London 22 A: Some people seemed to like the music, although I thought it was worse than noise B: _ a Hell has no fury like a women scorned b There's no accounting for taste c He could not serve two masters 23 The product I've invented is so excellent that it needs no ad campaign, _ a Just as good wine needs no bush b A closed mouth gathers no feet c Fine words butter no parsnips 24 Ellen: It's time to leave Aren't you finished dressing yet? Fred: I can't decide which necktie looks best with this shirt Ellen: _, dear a Half a loaf is better than none 72 b A lie has no legs c Time and tide wait for no man 25 Soon after Melissa lost her hearing, she won season tickets to the symphony a The gods send nuts to those who have no teeth b There is always room for improvement c No laughing matter 26 That horse can start fairly fast, but , and as result, it loses the race a It’s no match for the game b It has no staying power c That horse is up to no good 27 I agree he's got a good body, but he's _ a Holding no brief for his partner b Having spared no effort to help c All brawn and no brains 28 He about the service his dissatisfaction with a Made no bones b Who understands the wise is wise already c He had no heart 29 You'll _ in John's promises if you know what's good for you because, more often than not, he'll end up letting you down a Spare no effort b Put no stock c Set no store 30 You _ reading my private letters a Had no business b Are all fur coat and no knickers c Come as no surprise 73 IV Choose the answers which have the same meanings with the idioms 31 I thought this report would be groundbreaking, but it's all vine and no taters a It’s just on paper, no real b It is groundbreaking c That wine is tasty 32 I was there on time No lie! Ask my sister a That lies b I say the true c I ask my sister 33 We've got one last chance to secure an investor for the company, so it's all duck or no dinner with this meeting! a An investor has got one last chance to be in this meeting b There is no duck for dinner c This chance or never 34 He talks as though he knows more than anyone else, but he's all hat and no cattle a Knowing nothing, but talking b Has a hat and no cattle c He knows much more than anyone else 35 You need to get out and have fun - you know, all work and no play a Let’s get out and work together b Working and playing need to be balanced c Working is more important than playing 36 There is no point in locking the barn door now that the horse has been stolen a It’s necessary b It’s useful c It’s useless 37 There seems to be no end in sight to quicker and better computers a Easy b Impossible c No happy ending 74 38 You have to go to the doctor whether you like it or not There's no two ways about it a You don’t have any choice b There is only one way to get to the destination c This is a two-way lane 39 Hey Jenna, long time, no hear! What are you doing these days? a I haven’t heard anything about you for a while b It has been a long time since the last time Jenna heard about me c I don’t hear you 40 No expense was spared in making the guests feel comfortable a The guests are free to feel comfortable b We had no expense c We spent a lot of money V Basing on the cohesive meanings of the following sentences in order to choose True or false 41 You the homework in less than no time means you it quickly a True b False 42 If someone is doing a trick to win the game, you can say “no fair” a True b False 43 I take no joy in meeting my new boss means I love seeing her a True b False 44 If someone helps carry your luggage to your apartment, you say thanks to him and he replies “it’s no trouble” a True b False 45 When you don’t want to something, you can say “there is no way i will that stuff” a True b False 46 You say “no such luck” when you are having luck in doing things 75 a True b False 47 To discourage some to to stubborn with something, you can use the idiom “no pain, no gain” a True b False 48 “No harm, no foul” means there is no use in restoring the files which have been deleted a True b False 49 If you don’t care about how much the expensive watch is, that means you feel money is no object a True b False 50 “There’s no pleasure without pain” means to be happy in the end, you need to go through the extreme sorrow first a True b False 76 ... word ‘no’ with reference to the Vietnamese equivalents - focuses on the analysis of syntactic and semantic features of English idioms containing the word ‘no’ Furthermore, English idioms containing. .. interpret English idioms containing the word ‘no’ and their Vietnamese equivalents with the help of a powerful source of dictionaries and lexicons to obtain their syntactic and semantic features The. .. describe the syntactic and semantic features of English idioms containing the word ‘no’ with reference to the Vietnamese equivalents - Find out the similarities and differences between English idioms