Scientific discourse through the lens of the internal form of the term

Discourse is a dynamic linguistic phenomenon that occupies an intermediate position between language and speech, and its study through the lens of the internal form of the term allows for the revelation of its semantic motivation and cognitive foundations. The research aimed to investigate the functioning of terms in scientific discourse and to analyse the importance of their internal form for precise interpretation and communication. The methodological framework included descriptive, analytical, component, definitional, comparative, contextual and discourse analysis. It was revealed that a great number of terms show clear evidence of internal form indicators. The internal form is substantiated to function as a cognitive mechanism, connecting linguistic form and conceptual content. Statistical analysis confirmed that the majority of terms possess at least partial motivation, either morphological, semantic, or metaphorical. The analysis noted that metaphors play a crucial role, extending common physical experiences into abstract economic reasoning. It was further revealed that metaphors showcase the internal form as a link between empirical experience and theoretical abstraction. The cross-linguistic comparison showed that English-Ukrainian term pairs display full or partial motivation equivalence. It was identified that the internal form also preserves conceptual precision by anchoring the term to its original semantic motivation, which is particularly vital in written discourse. The findings confirmed that the internal form of a term is an active component in meaning construction and a mental schema that mediates between an abstract concept and its linguistic expression. Its cognitive, communicative, and epistemological functions were studied. The research concluded that preserving the internal form in translation and adhering to terminological standards is vital for maintaining semantic accuracy and international consistency in scientific communication