COGNITIVE MECHANISMS OF MEANING TRANSFORMATION IN PHRASEOLOGICAL UNITS

Phraseological units represent a significant component of linguistic systems, reflecting not only the structural and semantic peculiarities of language but also the cognitive processes through which speakers conceptualize and interpret reality. Their meanings are not always fixed or entirely predictable from the meanings of their individual components. Instead, phraseological units may undergo semantic transformation as a result of various cognitive mechanisms, including conceptual metaphor, metonymy, conceptual blending, and contextual reinterpretation. This article examines the cognitive foundations of meaning transformation in phraseological units, focusing on the processes that contribute to the development of secondary meanings and semantic extensions. Particular attention is paid to the interaction between linguistic structure, conceptual knowledge, cultural experience, and discourse context.