Категория интенсивности в английском языке.

                                     РОССИЙСКИЙ  УНИВЕРСИТЕТ  ДРУЖБЫ  НАРОДОВ
      Институт иностранных языков
Кафедра теории и практики иностранных языков

      УТВЕРЖДАЮ
      Зав. кафедрой теории и практики иностранных языков
      ______________к.ф.н., профессор Н.Л.Соколова 
      «______»_______________2016 г
      
      КУРСОВАЯ  РАБОТА
      на тему
      «Категория интенсивности в английском языке»
      45.03.02 – Лингвистика
      
      
      Разработчик
      Студент группы ЛДм202 (2 КУРС)
      Студенческий билет № 1032141310
      С.Д.Бузук
      «______»_______________2016 г.
      
      Руководитель
      к.ф.н., профессор, академик МАНПО 
      _________________Н. Л. Соколова
      
      Научный консультант
      старший преподаватель 
      кафедры теории и практики иностранных языков 
      ________________Е. А. Дроздова 
      
      
      
      
      
      Москва   2016
      PEOPLES’ FRIENDSHIPUNIVERSITY OF RUSSIA
      Institute of Foreign Languages
      Department of Foreign Languages in Theory and Practice

      APPROVED FOR PRESENTATION
      The Head of the Department of Foreign Languages in Theory and Practice
      __________________Ph.D. Prof. N.L.Sokolova
      «______»_______________2016
      
          COURSE PAPER
      « The category of intensity in English  language»
      45.03.02 – Linguistics
      
      
      
      Submitted by
      S.D.Buzuk
      Student’s ID № 1032141310
      Full-time course, group 202LDm
      «______»_______________2016
      
      Course Paper Advisor
      PhD, Professor
      _______________________N.L.Sokolova
      
      Scientific Advisor
      _____________________ Ph.D. E. A. Drozdova,
      Assistant Professor , Department of Foreign Languages in Theory and Practice
      
      
      
      
      
Moscow 2016
Contents


Introduction…………………………………………………………………………...4
I The category of intensity in English 
1.1 Lexical means for expressing intensity……………………………………….......6
1.1.1 Intensifying adjectives…………………………………………………………7 
1.1.2 Synonymic rows of verbs………………………………………………………8
1.1.3 Intensifying adverbs and their synonyms……………………………………..10
II One notion of the using quantifier words in intensification
2.1 Quantifier words…………………………………………………………………12
2.2 Quantification methods in intensification……………………………………….18
2.3 The description of the emotional state with the help of quantifier words……….20
III Amplifying idioms………………………………………………………………..21
Conclusion…………………………………………………………………………...22
Bibliography…………………………………………………………………………24






















INTRODUCTION

      
      
      The idea of "intensity" is not a new word in the latest language research. This and a number of other terms are often found in studies on expressive style, emotion of text, category evaluation and assessment characteristics of the subject of speech.
      The notion of "category intensity" refers a smaller number of researchers, preferring terms such as intensity as a component of the semantics of the word, speech sistemniye and intensifiers, gradually words and gradual characteristics. Often the term "intensity" is replaced by the narrower term "speech intensity", or confined to the field of phonetics – the degree of strengthening or weakening exhaling.
      The problem of expressiveness and, consequently, the category of intensity" are related to any linguistic level and aspect. As you know, the category of intensity (expressively ) corresponding to the articulatory side of speech, it applies to the area of morphemic, the functioning of the various parts of speech (adjectives, verbs, adverbs, particles, nouns ) in the role of intensifiers, the characteristics of the use of expressive syntactic constructions, lexical connotations of the word layers at the underlying value.
      The main question is – the total semantic content megastretch intensifiers. Could their total consumption to be reduced to a system of oppositions? How this system is manifested at different levels of language? The answers to these questions will try to give in this work.
      This course work is devoted to research intensity categories in English.
      Relevance of this work due to the lack of research on the subject.
      The subject of study is the category of intensity.
      The main aim of this work is an attempt to explore the intensity categories in English.
      The novelty of the study lies in the fact that despite the fact that this topic is considering other researchers it was not fully explored. This is because English is constantly changing.
      Works tasks due to its purpose: distinguish lexical means for expressing intensity, explore synonymic rows of verbs and intensifying adverbs and their synonyms, try to explore one notion of the using quantifier words in intensification, pay attention to quantifier words, quantification methods in intensification, the description of the emotional state with the help of quantifier words and to explore amplifying idioms.
      The object of study is the lexical-semantic field of intensity in the modern English language. The study is carried out on a material of texts of monolingual explanatory dictionaries (Oxford English Dictionary, Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English), the original material of literary texts of English and American writers of XIX and XX centuries (T. Capote, Christie A., Fitzgerald F, J. Fowles, His J., Joyce J., M. Mitchell, Myrer, A., R. Oldington, I. Shaw).
      To achieve the research objectives and solving specific problems in the work used the complex of methods of linguistic analysis and their elements: method of theoretical analysis; elements of statistical analysis; method of semantic deployment that is used to identify the status of the component intensity values.
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      









I The category of intensity in English
1.1 Lexical means for expressing intensity


      " The category of intensity " is a system of oppositions of different language levels. Consider how this process is implemented in the field of lexical-semantic paradigms.
      In the realm of lexical means intensification statements are affixation and compounding, adjectives intensifying content and ranks synonymous verbs, adverbs and intensifiers with predicate, quantifier words and idioms reinforcement. [16]
      Affixation and word composition in the system of means of intensification of the utterance.
      We understand ordinary as the ordinary measure of the amount in the broad sense of the word. The intensification of the content involves the juxtaposition of non-neutral intensity, extraordinary, ordinary, i.e. the ordinary least quantity. An example is apologizie couples like voluptuors: super-voluptuors, warning: hyperalert to compensate: in replay. In terms of disclosure of the notion "intensity" cases of affixation the most obvious: the second member of the pair clearly shows the "increment value", increasing the "volume" tag, the quality, valuation. Note that this increment of value, expressed through the introduction of an intensifying prefix, either through reduplication of the root, is defined as the essence of intensity. As the high-frequency amplifying prefixes in English please note the following: huper-, over-, super-, ultra-. [1]
      For example:
      York was nice comfortable home life, and Ronnie, overloved and overpraised by his parents and worship the younger sister, was adored by the centre about it (the hood).
      In the Russian language respectively allocated the prefixes super-, Nai-, pre-, super-, super-, extra-. From deintensification elements that signal the mark between full level and zero on the intensity scale, we note the English –ish and Russian under- ( tallish, greenish, okeyish and sub-human).
      One of the questions that requires further research is the question of the choice of the adjective affix with close semantic content and the question of the use of different affixes with the same adjective and associated with this phenomenon, the question of differentiation of smyisla. super-voluptuous, but over-anxious, on the one hand, and hyperalert, with another storony. [13]
      The composition affects the area presentational modifiers. The content of compound words, emphasizing the ultimate degree of the trait reflects the physical characteristics of the object, the duration, the scope of an act and a number of other assessments. onyx-black, reven-dark, snow white; the dawn-till-midnight activites, age-old patience; best-loved neighbour, knockout-type girls, full-time nobody.
      
      
1.1.1 Intensifying adjectives



      The interest to name the adjective in the scientific works of recent years is steadily increasing.
      In the analysis of adjectives, gradable reflective characteristics of the properties and qualities of the objects of interest to the researcher are the following issues: 
      1) Semantic selectivity adjective (semantic selection)
      2) The ability of the adjective to be used only either an attribute or attributive only or predicative only.
      The answer to the first question, apparently, can be considered the compilation of lists cataloging intensifying adjectives and their semantic partners, nouns, with comments on the possibilities of synonymous substitutions and a list of invalid combinations. [15]
      Compare also the possibility/impossibility of synonymous substitutions in the following combinations:
      big/great baby, but gread kid; big/great/complete/utter fool, but absolute fool; close/great friend, but big friend.
      As to the correctness of the sentence John is a complete fool, the fool, the proposal is considered to be complete unchecked. This issue is devoted to a special study.
      The interest for the analysis are also such common phrases as a golden opportunity, a famous sleeper, regular scarecrow, sorry spectacle, stony denials, classic spoilsport, and more specific type wild hurry, profuse apologies, excusess elephantine, gargantuan proportions. Features of functioning of such appraisal expressions, lexical occupancy, correspondence in Russian and English languages hitherto not been investigated. [5]
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
1.1.2 Synonymic rows of verbs
      
      
      In the analysis of issues of representation with varying degrees of intensity with the chain synonymous verbs, we directly come to the fundamentally important issue of distinction "qualitative and quantitative" expression. This problem is closely related to the more General problem of dialectics of quantitative and qualitative changes in the language. This question is extremely relevant in the analysis of problems of intensification, for the factor of quantitatively mentioned as defining for the concept of "intensity". (Recall that the intensity, in our interpretation, as the category represents a measure of the amount of expressiveness). [5]
      However, the differences between expressive and expressively statements cannot be reduced to purely quantitative differences: "less is more". It is possible to construct artificial synonymic chain, each member of which passes a different, purely quantitative degrees of intensity: large – bigger – a lot bigger – the biggest – huge – huge-enormous. However, the differences between the real members of synonymic chains to a purely quantitative factor are not reducible. Between them there is a definite qualitative differences that register all serious dictionaries. Compare the example of synonymic series of verbs:
      
  1. to gaze – to fix the eyes and look with earnestness and/or curiosity
  to stare – to look with eyes fixed and open in wonder, horror, surprise, etc.
  to glare – to look with fierce, piercing, angry, eyes;
  1. to rush – to move swiftly, violently or hastily 
  to race – to move swiftly, usually in contest of running
  to dart – to move swiftly, suddenly and fast
  to sweep (past) – to move steadily with speed and gracefulness, etc.
  
      Therefore, a more accurate and correct from the point of view of scientific analysis in interpreting chains of the type to look – to gaze – to glare would be the following conclusion.
      Every word in a synonymic row has two semes: these things that carries the basic meaning, and this intensity, signaling an extraordinary mark on the intensity scale. Quantitative differences predetermine and make possible qualitative change in values, with the result that the words (lexemes) with an additional value that distinguishes it from other elements in the synonymic row. Changes in the number, thus, lead to certain (and sometimes very substantial) difference. [25]
      The synonymic rows of verbs whose members differ more with the values that characterize the degree of the action verb include verbs of speaking, movements., physical perceptions and sensations, emotional and physical reactions, mental activity, movement in space and several others. There are cases of the use of metaphorical and hyperbole. [7]
      1 Mmm, so warm already! And not quite summer, even. We’re going to burn up when summer really gets started (Williams).
      2 …and at last she whipped out a penknife and plunged it right into him (Christie).
      3 I sat with arms folded, one hip on the sill, dying of hate and boredom (Shaw).




























 1.1.3 Intensifying adverbs and their synonyms
  
  
      According to the classification proposed in the "Grammar of modern English universities", the intensifiers are classified in three semantic classes: emphasizers, amplifiers and downtoners.
      The purpose of emphasizers is to create the overall effect of strengthening. These include: actually, certainly, clearly, definitely, obviously, really, frankly, honestly, just, etc.
      Amplifiers, in turn, are subdivided into maximizers and boosters. And they both indicate a certain mark on the intensity scale above the ordinary level. The difference is that maximizers signal region limit mark (absolutely, completely, utterly, in all respects, most), whereas boosters are used to mark high mark on the intensity scale (badly, deeply).
      Class of downtoners includes:
      Compromisers, signaling a slight downward movement on the scale: kind of, sort of, guite, rather, more or less
      Diminishers: partly, slightly, somewhat, a little
      Minimizers: a bit, barely, hardly.
      Unlike the first second and third represent a significant move down the intensity scale.
      The last in the class of approximators downtoners are aimed at approximation of the verbal action (almost, nearly, as good as, all but).
      All four of subclass carry a step-down charge in relation to the verbal action to the content of the predicate. [8]
     
     1) “You’re kind of late, aren’t you, chum?” Dal said in that flat, measuring tone I’d already noticed (Myrer). 
     2)  Still dancing I led out into the hall – it was almost impossible to hear anything she was saying in the living room (Idem).
      
      Thus, the research of amplifying adverbs can lead in two directions: 
      
      1)   Cataloging of intensifiers in accordance with a specific classification; 
      2) Identification of homonymous forms and description of cases of multifunctional use of adjuncts.
      A study of the compatibility of adverbs with subordinating word is pretty interesting. Compare: absolutely perfect, extremely useful, deeply anxious, highly intelligent, sharply critical, strikingly handsome and utterly adorable. [11]
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
II One notion of the using quantifier words in intensification
2.1 Quantifier words
      
      
      The essence of intensification with the help of quantifier words is to express by means of language is a big/is very large/is extremely large (or extremely small) quantities. In the lexical-semantic system of language quantitative intensifiers is their own, very specific, place. In the lexical corpus of the English language, one can distinguish several groups of vocabulary, the components of which must include quantifier words. These groups include the vocabulary of naming the physical characteristics of objects of the real world (size, volume, quantity), vocabulary, accent frequency characteristics of events and phenomena, their temporal and spatial parameters, and, finally, vocabulary of describing emotions and emotional States. [10]
      Lets illustrate it:
      1) Anyway, I can’t wait till June. I’m sick to creeping death of this place – I want to get a million, zillion pinwheeling miles away – and the old Navy’s just the ticket (Myrer). 
      2) Let me give you something, Gilliqan. For your files. He’s worth a hundred Kennedys any – he’s a better man right now, beaten, than your glamor boy will ever be…(Idem).
      Consider the function quantifier words as a means of intensification of the utterance.
      If in our consciousness there are conceptual categories, such as quantity, time, volume, grouped in a common category of action, they must comply with the linguistic means of representation. The first is inconceivable without the perception of objects of objective reality that exist in time and space, and possess the quantitative parameters of the volume. Language means, reflecting our perception of the objective world, are intended to signal these parameters. Since we are talking about the category of intensity, the us in addition to ordinary characteristics of interest are extremely large and extremely small, as well as transitions from the median (tenured) positions for extremely large and extremely small. How is this reflected in the language, illustrated by numerous examples. [14]
      The use of quantifier words is primarily a reflection of the quantitative characteristics of the object speech. Quantitative characteristics may include: 
      1) Living beings (humans and nonhumans), 
      2) Inanimate objects, 
      3) To methods of implementation of an action, 
      4) To the space and time, 
      5) To monetary units.
      The number of people. Indefinitely large number of people: collocations like heaps of people. To transfer a large number of people can be used as numerals, and in order to create more expressive – in other words with portable value. In English the most frequent, as observations show, are the combinations like a frieze of ladies, hordes of teen-aged girls/sportsmen/strangers, a multitude of lovers, platoons of bridesmaids, a swarm of type-writers, etc. [20]
      In some cases, when this is viewed an ironic attitude to the subject of speech (see platoons of bridesmaids). To Express a negative (negative) connotations are used the combinations like a pack of, a bunch of:
      
      1) Also, Handlon had assigned a detective to help Nye “case the pawnbrokers”; as he said, there was “always a pack of then in any gambling town” (Capote).
      2)   Oh, come off it, Currier! Those kids broke in like any second-story man, they stole private documents, burned them like a bunch of delinquents – and you want to build then up into a lot of Emile Zolas (Myrer).  

	In order to further intensify use of multiple quantifier words in the same sentence. For example:
      And the planes came over again, and now there were heaps – piles of people crawling and groaning under the carts and wheelbarrows (Myrer). The word heaps is not always a constituent phrases referring to animate subjects. In colloquial speech this word can mean a lot of time to be part of the predicate in the adjunct of the nuclear component. Compare: to have heaps of time, to be heaps better. It can also be used as an indicator of the high frequency steps: I have done it heaps of times.
      Process intensification in the cases considered inseparable from emphatically, hyperbole and exaggeration associated with the desemantisation. Desemantization is reflected in the fact that the exact number is reduced, and this leads to occasional synonymy. Hyperbolizable denote the number of function typical of adverbs – intensifiers and adjectives intensifying content. [48]
      In examples of the type He's worth a hundred Kennedys any day formally specified the exact number. However, quantitative indicator in this case ceases to be and is essentially qualitative characteristic of the person, because the subject of speech compared with well-known personality.
      With the help of the hyperbola provides a high expressiveness expression, enhanced subjective nature of the evaluation. A predicate that includes the quantifier phrase is quantitative in form and qualificative – evaluative content. A measure of expressiveness, evaluation and measure of meaningfulness is indicated intensifier quantifier.

      Time.
      
      The concept of time can also be hyperbolizing expressions, especially when the speaker deliberately highlights the maximum duration (speed) period of time. For example: (to argue) for hours, for months and months, a thousand wakeful nights, for what seemed an age, (you've got) all the time in the world, on the one hand, and in less than no time, on the other hand.
      Noun years often combined with numerals hundred, thousand, million and with the word zillion. For example: I guess that must be true, you've been gone just a hundred zillion years. WHY can't they release you, and right away!!! (Myrer).
      A list of the most frequent intensifiers-adjunct of a verb phrase that functions as the circumstances of the time, includes the following expressions: years ago, for year and years, in years, the past 100-odd years or so, for 101 years and a day, a thousand years later/ago, 3000 years back, after a thousand thousand years, for a million million years, a hundred zillion years, a hundred thousand light years later. This list, of course you can continue. [38]
      The purpose of accent allocation the exact amount of time is the use of adjectives fool, good, solid and flat adverbs. [45] The compatibility of the attributes of intensifiers with nouns is usually selective. Wed.: a full minute on one side, but a solid hour/month/year, on the other hand, and then a good ten minutes/years. In the latter case, the indefinite article when a noun in the plural indicates the implication of the word period.
      Here are a few examples illustrating the phenomenon in the text:
      I stared at her for a full minute before I spoke. “Does he have you watched too?” I asked ( Robbins ).
      ...and Dal made a reservation at the Fox and Hounds – which would put me in hock for a solid month, but I didn't care ( Myrer ).
      He was a good fifteen years my senior, though he hardly looked his forty-five years ( Christie ).
      Full, good, solid translated into the Russian language as a whole, complete, good (comparison .: a good ten minutes).
      
      Very brief periods of time have their stereotypical form of linguistic expression, such as, for example, no minutes/seconds without hesitation, or more specific ones, which can be illustrated by the following sentence: she was seventy-four years, but according to Naya, “looked younger – maybe ten minutes younger”.
      Using phrases of the quantitative words in this case is not only expressive, but also creates a certain ironic effect: how you can – at any age – to look ten minutes younger?
      The above quantifier intensifiers possess great expressiveness and great emotional charge. The average duration of human life – seventy-five years. From this perspective, it is difficult to imagine a segment in a thousand, a million years. Even harder to believe that the separation lasts a hundred "zillion" years. This is unreal. But it is the underlining of such unreality makes the description of an event in the highest degree expressive, gives the recipient a sense of emotional empathy. The narrative not only records the facts, it is impressive, responding to the intentions of the author. Compare the following episode, where the sailors watch as their ship is sinking – the process is definitely limited in time, but no matter how endless it seems the crew. [33]
      A hundred thousand light years later, Jenny went down stern first, the boiling and rattling and hissing, holding her chin up to the last, as the proud lady she was (Myrer). In order to clarify interpretation note that light year is not time, but distance. From this imprecision, however, the author's intent to achieve the utmost expressiveness doesn't suffer.
      Finally, to more General but no less expressive intensifiers the time plan will take expressions like a lot of time, wasted time (compare the opposite in meaning not a heck of a lot of time, so short a time), at any time of the day, around the clock, etc.
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      
      Money.
      
      To transfer values ??"large amount of money" certain funds are used in the English language; to intensify these words are specific representation, and is not always possible analogue of the Russian language. For a tidy sum in Russian ... in English corresponds to the phrase with an adjective cool: a cool sixty thousand, a cool million. In English commonly used as metaphorical phrases like pots of money, a good slice of money. If you can pick up the first analogue of the Russian language (money bag), in the second case, it is not easy to do.

Distance, space, volume, quantity, measure, weight.

With the intensification of the utterance "preferred" measure of weight in the English language is a ton of volume – gallon. In this case, as in the cases described above, there is a strong tendency to hyperbole, accompanied by desemantization word or phrase. 
Compare:
      1) It struck him like a ton of bricks (Capote). 
      2)     I ran into Alexis two weeks ago. In the city. He’s doing guess what? Drinking carrot juice. Yes! Gallons and gallons (Myrer). 
      3)      She’s a ton weight (Castle and Hailey).
      
      At first glance it may seem that in the last example we are dealing with meiosis: we are talking about the airliner, which, of course, weighs far more than one ton. However, the meaning of the expression in a different - not the weight of the aircraft, and in the difficulties of managing them. According to the content of the novel at the helm of a large passenger aircraft man, flew in the war on small combat vehicles, and because of certain circumstances, forced to replace diseased pilots of the aircraft.
      When we meet in the text expressions like the sea went mountains high; a million, zillion miles away; ... Stuff stacked up to the skies, miles and miles of it, in our minds there is not a specific number of units in their total generalization, or in the order. In our minds there is the idea of ??a large, very large number, an idea, the represented expressively. Visually desemantizatsii process can be illustrated by the following passage of text: We washed zillions of dishes. "Zillion" you know is school slang for many-many-many-many. (Analysis of works of art shows that today it is not just school lingo). From the expression of many-many- ... set the transition to the colloquial expression that many - the expression of general semantics, functions as slovosochetaniya- deputy. Example D. Bollinger, We walked a healthy ten miles before we had a chance to rest, on the other hand, demonstrates how quantitative characterization combined with quality.
      Compatibility quantifier with nuclear short, usually hard-coded and can be somewhat predictable. Compare: Rain. Buckets of it; My hair is coming by the handfuls. (in Russian:. Cats and dogs, the hair falls out whole handfuls). In full accordance with the examples in the Russian and English languages ??in the latter, there are also expressions such as it never rains, it pours and it rains cats and dogs.
      
      
      

























2.2 Quantification methods in intensification
      
      
      Such attribute combinations with a lot of in the role of nuclear. For example: to look a lot of somebody, not to remember an awful lot about something, to be one hell of a lot better than ... somebody, to give somebody lots of warning. The scope of their use – speaking. As modifiers of the quantifier, generally used the word extraordinary semantics: Well, the Krauts are one hell of a lot better soldiers than you poor sad bastards will ever be (Myrer).
      Numeral thousand (at least million) in combination with the words, ways, times, words mean recurrence of the action (1), the diversity of forms of its manifestation (2), emphasizes the importance of the content aspect by reference to quantitative manifestations of the speech act (3):
      
      1) “ Daddy, we’ve done all this a thousand times,” Peg said (Myrer).
      2) …people were dying grotesquely, horribly in a thousand ways (Idem).
      3)      There were a thousand words Russ and I needed to say to each other just then, yet I couldn’t think of one of them (Idem).
      
      Independent status in the general classification of quantifier words takes number seven. In Russian, it is most often found in proverbs and sayings. Compare: Seven one do not expect to work up a sweat, one with a plow, seven with a spoon, etc.
      In English, the expression with the numeral seven types to think of seven most plausible stories, to have seven too many (unnecessary to sort) also quite common in everyday speech.
      A separate group are also phrases that include every pronoun plus quantifier amounts. For example: ... and after that we went out to the garage and pulled the light tarp from a long low shape - and there she was, alert and proud and gleaming, waiting for us; every inch a queen (Myrer).
      Description of the machine, with which the heroes of the novel are connected the best memories of student youth, and expressive, and emotionally. In this context, the highest degree of kvalifikativnoy assessment highlights appeal to the words of every inch a queen: the subject of beauty in general harmony with the beauty of every little detail.
      In other cases, so to speak, the fractional quantity can be used to describe the degree of the emotional state of the hero (I could feel this woman in every cell of my being (Robbins)) or may contribute to the expressive mapping process observed (Every day I watch my husband die in little pieces (Idem)).
      The purpose of such methods of intensive content of statements - description of the general state by detail); assessment of the overall state by reference to the evaluation of the smallest parts of speech subject.
      Recent examples lead us to the next section of studies on the minimum number of quantifiers.

Very small amount.


The most typical frequency and quantifiers – intensifiers, conveying the idea of small quantity, a low degree of manifestation of the trait associated with the description of the emotional state of man, his intellectual activity. Compare the following expressions that can be classified as minimizers, and which signal above the zero mark, but below ordinary level on the intensity scale: the ghost/vestige of a smile, the ghost of an idea, a shred of evidence, some shred of victory.
      The following example is interesting in that it has a double minimization:
      That’s where he was so clever, he put so little direct pressure on us. Never the shadow of the shadow of a false move on his part (Fowles).
      The minimum number of quantifiers can be characterized by the distance (1), effective (2), financial position (3), the degree of moral responsibility (4):
      1) It’s only a step from here to …
      2) To smash to a million pieces; to be blown to atoms
      3) Without a dime to one’s name 
      4)       Do I feel guilty? Not one iota.
      The most typical quantifier words that convey a whole range of connotative meanings: bit, bite, grain, ounce, peck, shade, touch, etc. For Example:
      1) You’ve probably had a bit of a share, so we’ll take it easy for a minute or two (Castle and Hailey). 
      2)      We had a peck of trouble with that machine (Bolinger). [34]
      









2.3 The description of the emotional state with the help of quantifier words



      The quantifiers used in a metaphor in characterizing the emotional state of the individual, include words like flock, horde, legion, fountain, torrent, and several others.
      Quantifier words serve different content emotional state.
      The emotional state with the sign "plus":
      Barrels of fun, loads of fun (the opposite colloquially it isn't any gallon of ice-cream);
      Oceans/lotions/mountains/worlds/hurricanes/tons of love ( this is also specific as to miss a ton smb);
      A stable of emotions, a storm of congratulations/kisses, a transport of passion, bursts of laughter.
      Emotional state negative (grief, suspicion, fear, etc.): a heap of grief, a flock of wild surmises, a horde/legion of fears, a sea of troubles, the battalions of sorrows.
      The phrase designed to describe the emotional state with the sign "plus" and emotional state with the sign "minus":
      A fountain of good news, a bedlam of shouts/roars/rebel yells; a torrent of French and English, torrents of tears, a torrent of entreaty/disasters.
      Finally, complete the review of quantifier phrases that serve not only to indicate a large, vast quantities ( above battalions of sorrows, a sea of troubles), but a pack of lies, a sizeable chunk of fear, a barrage of questions, a whale of a story.
      The appropriate combinations in the Russian language are built according to the same rules and models, using metaphors and similes. These phrases can be found in various functional styles in literature and in journalism, drama and scientific presentation. Here are a few of the most common phrases: the flow of complaints, the hail of reproaches/taunts, vast sea of sand, ocean energy, mar.......................