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3) Phraseological fusions are word-groups with a completely changed meaning but, in contrast to the unities, they are demotivated, that is, their meaning cannot be deduced from the meanings of the constituent parts; the metaphor, on which the shift of meaning was based, has lost its clarity and is obscure.
E.g. to come a cropper (to come to disaster – попасть в беду; прямое значение – упасть с лошади вниз головой); at sixes and sevens (in confusion or in disagreement – в беспорядке); to set one’s cap at smb. (to try and attract a man; spoken about girls and women - завлекать, охотиться за женихом).
It is obvious that this classification system does not take into account the structural characteristics of phraseological units. On the other hand, the border-line separating unities from fusions is vague and even subjective. One and the same phraseological unit may appear motivated to one person (and therefore be labelled as a unity) and demotivated to another (and be regarded as a fusion).
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