Original scientific paper
Multi-word lexical units in English and Croatian terminology of electronics
Anuška Štambuk
Abstract
This paper examines and compares the use of multi-word lexical units (MLUs) in the electronics vocabularies of English and Croatian. Using the terminological database of the English-Croatian
and Croatian-English Dictionary of Electronics as a source of lexical data, regular patterns of multi-word correspondence in the two languages are analyzed. The analysis has shown conceptual, syntactic, and lexical differences. We also found that English
multi-word lexemes are shorter than Croatian ones and are limited to a considerably lesser number of combinations. The reasons for this are attributed to differences in the basic structural
characteristics of the two languages, the metaphorical use of language in the two terminological systems, and the formation process of MLUs. Whereas English multi-word lexemes were formed
in the process of primary term formation, most Croatian MLUs were formed as translation equivalents of English lexemes.
Keywords
Hrčak ID:
120347
URI
Publication date:
15.9.1997.
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