A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF THE STRUCTURAL-SEMANTIC FEATURES OF ENGLISH AND UZBEK WORD COMBINATIONS

This study presents a comparative analysis of the structural-semantic features of word combinations in English and Uzbek, focusing on their formation, idiomaticity, and cultural-linguistic influences. English, as an analytic language with fixed word order and extensive phrasal verb usage, contrasts sharply with Uzbek, an agglutinative language that relies on suffixation, postpositions, and auxiliary verb constructions. The research examines key differences in syntax, morphology, and semantic transparency, highlighting challenges in translation and second-language acquisition. While English favors idiomatic expressions with opaque meanings (e.g., "kick the bucket"), Uzbek word combinations tend toward literalness, though Persian- and Russian-derived idioms exist (e.g., "dil kushodasi" [heart’s joy]). The study also explores how cultural and historical borrowings shape collocational patterns in both languages. By systematically comparing these features, the paper aims to enhance cross-linguistic understanding, aiding translators, linguists, and learners in navigating the complexities of both systems. Findings underscore the necessity of context-aware learning strategies to master these divergent structural-semantic frameworks.