Shaima’ Abdul Hussein al-Mi’mar,
Karbala University, Iraq
The present paper is a comparative study of lexical collocation in English and Arabic languages. It attempts to study the term “collocation” as the habitual association between words. The purpose of this study is to explore the nature and significance of lexical collocation in the field of translation and interpretation in addition to teaching/learning process in both languages. Further, it aims at pointing out the aspects of similarities as well as differences existed in this area of study. The researcher intends to investigate lexical collocation with reference to some verses in the Holly Quran and some proverbs in the English language. The study reveals that: (A) English and Arabic share some similar categories of collocations whether they are restricted as in رجل طويل (long man) and جبل شاهق (high mountain), امرأة جميلة (beautiful woman) and رجل وسيم (handsome man), or wide range of using as in مات (die); it can be used in many situations. (B) Restricted collocations are given more attention in both languages because they are highly problematic and the learner encounters a difficulty in determining them. (C) Idiomatic expressions in English make confusion in distinguishing them from the collocations rather than Arabic. (D) Metaphor is also used through Arabic collocations as in ليلة بيضاء (sleepless night). These remarks, findings and recommendation, if best employed, could enhance the quality of teaching, learning and interpreting collocations.
The above abstract is a part of the article which was accepted at The Second International Conference on Current Issues of Languages, Dialects and Linguistics (WWW.LLLD.IR), 1-2 February 2018, Iran-Ahwaz.