Sprachliche Bilder und Modelle: Bedeutungskonstruktion abstrakter Begriffe durch Metaphernphraseme Beispiele: GESUNDHEIT und RISIKO

Abstract

Images and models: H theow meaning of abstract terms is constructed through phraseological metaphors concepts of HEALTH and RISK

Modern abstract terms such as HEALTH and RISK can be paraphrased by metaphorical idioms auf dem Damm sein / to be back to normal, auf Messers Schneide stehen / to be on a razor’s edge, mit dem Feuer spielen / to play with fire. Some questions arise concerning the relationship between concept and image. It can be shown that the images represent some cognitive models of the meaning of the term. Special interest deserve semantic constructions as inventions within the framework of the fantasy world which allow making highly abstract concepts concrete. The onomasiological approach provides some preference for the understanding of the interaction between source domain and target domain instead of transfer directed from the image to the concept.