There are 200 phraseological units that contain the “heart” lexeme: на серці

важко (sick at heart), припасти до серця (catch someone’s fancy), м'який серцем
(tender-hearted), горнутися серцем (with all one’s heart), туга на серці (a heart
loaded with sorrow), серце з перцем (hot as pepper), серце не камінь (heart of
gold), серце радіє (it delights the heart), серцем чути (to feel in one’s bones), брати
до серця (take to heart), з доброго серця (from the bottom of one’s heart), давати
волю серцю (give way to one’s emotions), усім серцем (wholeheartedly), з
відкритим серцем (openheartedly), мати Бога в серці (to have God in one’s heart),
весело на серці (the heart rejoices) etc.
Seven lexico-semantic variants of the lexeme heart are lexicalized in the modern
Ukrainian language. In the proper meaning of the word, heart is the central organ of
the circulatory system that exists in the form of a muscular sac, the rhythmic
contractions of which provide blood circulation.  (Frosyna Poliarush, in tears,
pressing her hand to her heart, tuned her face towards the village, but there was no
one to be seen on the way) (Mykhaylo Stelmakh, I, 1962, 32). (Academic dict.)
The lexeme “heart” is used in literary texts and in everyday speech and has a
rich folklore and literary tradition, because the heart of man is the source and
concentration of all feelings, emotions and experiences. The heart is associated with
mental processes that are localized in the chest, so this organ has a
psychophysiological nature and symbolizes the various manifestations of moods,
feelings, experiences of a person: the heart shrinks, the heart dies, the heart sank, etc.
(He felt the grudge in his heart once again, but this time not towards himself, but
towards Didenko). (Andriy Holovko, II, 1957, 525).(А. Havrychenko)
The usage of the lexeme “heart” reflects:
 the ability to feel and understand others; responsiveness, cordiality – feel with
one’s heart, have a heart
(How will he thank her? Will he have a heart for her, or will he give his
mother only the cold of loneliness in her old age? (Oles Honchar, Brigantine,
1973, 102);
 symbol of love, affection – catch someone’s heart, lose one’s heart to
someone
(I am annoyed by these “couples”, I get jealous, though I realize that it’s not
nice, that it doesn’t befit to complain about your own destiny, which only
separated us for a while. But what can I do when my heart and my reason are
at sixes and sevens (Mykhaylo Kotsyubinskyi, III, 1956, 134);
 figuratively – the inner mentality of a person, their mood, emotions, feelings –
make the heart sad, be light of heart, in one’s heart of hearts, the heart breaks
 (It only takes the boy to talk with a girl for him to think that he loves hers, but
often times he doesn’t even know if this girl has a heart or a soul (Kvitka-
Osnovyanenko, II, 1956, 306);
 man's temper, a set of qualities, traits inherent in a certain person – golden,
good, big, open, hot, callous, stone heart, heartless.
(There is no happiness for a man with whom a woman will be proud; there is
no good for a woman when her man’s heart is impregnable with pride
(Panteleymon Kulish, Selected Writings, 1969, 268)
In parallel with positive emotions, feelings of love and sadness, the lexeme
“heart” is also used to express anger and irritation – strain one’s heart, with all heart,
boiling blood in the heart.
— What if father will not accept me? — Then he can do whatever he wants with you!
— Vasylykha said, with rage in heart. (Ivan Franko, IV, 1950, 30)
The heart is also identified with the middle, the center, the main part of
something, because anatomically, it is the most important organ in the human body.  
— Their [Mongols'] power is great, and the poor way things are done here let them
get to the heart of our country. (Ivan Franko, VI, 1951, 55) (Ukrainian Language
Dictionary).
To create a certain image, the lexemes heart, heartlet are used as affectionate
references, for example, in the works of Lesya Ukrainka: Halt, my heart, halt! Stop
pounding so wildly [7, 113], Go to sleep, my heart! [7, 120], Be quiet, my soul, stop
wailing, my heart, it has to be this way… [7, 231], Burn, my heart, burn like fire [7,
239].
In view of this, the semantics of the heart contain metaphorical and metonymic
transpositions which, above all, are based on the idea of the heart as the center of the
human body, the source of vitality, the main function of which is the perception of
emotional experiences. In the linguistic picture of the world, the heart is interpreted
as a symbol of love, moods, emotions, it is a place of concentration of feelings,
excitements, actions of a person, it is capable of feeling and understanding other
people, it is sensitive. Also it is a set of qualities, traits inherent in a certain person, a
person's nature. (A. Havrychenko)
 Analyzing phraseological units with the component “heart”, we can
distinguish the following semantic variants in the structure of this concept:
 Expression of emotional state of joy, exaltation, happiness, fun, relief:
розквітати серцем (the heart blossoms), посвітлішало на серці (the heart
is light), гарно на серці (the heart feels beautifully), серце молоді (the heart
of youth), заграло серце (the heart sings), серце радіє (the heart rejoices).
 Phraseological units with the component “heart” convey the feeling of
suffering: серце рветься на шматки (the heart is torn to pieces), терзати
 серце (rive the heart), серце плаче, стогне, наболіло (the heart is crying,
groaning, aching), кривавиться серце (the heart is bleeding).
 The heart is a symbol where anxious premonitions and excitement are
concentrated: коти шкребуть на серці (the cats are scratching the heart, be
sick at heart), лежати на серці (lies at heart), серце ладне вискочити з
грудей (heart is about to burst), з завмиранням серця (heart aflutter), серце
не на місці (heart is sinking), боліти серцем (heart is aching), серце
захололо (heart is cold), каменем лягти на серце (like a stone at the heart),
передчувати серцем (feel it with your heart), зашкребло на серці (the heart
flutters), з важким серцем (with a heavy heart).
 Feelings of pity and sympathy are verbalized in the following phraseological
units: серце болить the heart aches, із важким серцем (with a heavy heart),
на серці погано (the heart feels bad), серце обгортається тугою,
печалити серце (the heart is full of sorrow), розбите серце (the heart is
broken).
 Phraseological units with a component “heart” for the designation of mental
pain are represented by the following expressions (units): мов ніж гострий у
серце (stab to the heart), тисне [за] серце, коло серця, груди, в грудях (the
heart, chest clenches).
 The heart as a symbol of love, passion, affection ca be found in the following
phraseological units: запалити серце (to light the heart), знаходити дорогу
до серця (to find the way to one’s heart), кохати цілим серцем (to love with
all heart), пристати до серця (to cling to the heart).
 The heart is a means of expression of such feelings like fear / dread: серце
захололо (the heart is cold), серце ледве не вискочить (the heart almost
popped out), холодна жаба сидить під серцем (a cold frog sits under the
heart), душа в п’яти тікає/втекла (опустилася) the heart leapt into one’s
mouth / dropped.
 Death sensation: серце перестало битися (the heart stops beating), поки
б’ється серце в грудях (till the heart is beating in the chest).
 A set of personality traits inherent in a person, a person's nature: golden, good,
big, open, hot, callous, stone heart, heartless. [Dictionary of phraseological
units of Ukrainian language /
The heart, as the main spiritual and emotional organ, can be filled with both
positive and negative feelings. By characterizing a positive or negative person,
object, action or phenomenon, phraseological units provide the text with a certain
stylistic nuance.
Phraseological units with a heart component express mostly positive traits:
exaltation, joy, love, peace, which are socially accepted for Ukrainians. The heart is
an expression of a feeling of exaltation, it can express a sense of joy – тішити
(веселити) серце (the heart rejoices (cheers)); заграло серце (the heart is singing).
Through association with the heart, a sense of peace can be conveyed - відлягло від
серця, легко на серці (the heart is at ease).
At the same time, as a second interpretation, the heart is the bearer of negative
feelings (anxiety, suffering, fear) or negative attitude towards someone / something.
Such feelings arise when a person is informed of a significant life-threatening thing, a
loss, when a person feels a physical or psychological obstacle on the way to the goal,
that is, a subjective reaction to something very unpleasant. The semantics of sadness,
pain, frustration, hatred, loss of meaning in life, antipathy are frequent – плаче серце
(the heart is crying); з важким (нелегким) серцем (with a heavy heart). (Anastasia
Havrychenko) (D.S. Markova)
The use of phraseological units with the component “heart” allows us to
evaluate people (and ourselves) around us, again, both positively and negatively. У
нього велике, добре, гаряче, вірне серце (He has a big, good, passionate, faithful
heart) – such expressions can be used while characterizing a beautiful, kind,
responsive, friendly person with a gentle nature. Sincere heart is used to emphasize
such qualities of a person's character as truthfulness, honesty, heartiness, spirituality.
And for the description of a cruel, indifferent, soulless person the following
phraseological units are suitable: кам'яне серце, без серця, не мати серця, серце
мохом обросло (a heart of stone, heartless, without a heart, a heart overgrown with
moss).

Analyzing the grammatical structure of the investigated phraseological units, it

is worth noting that most researchers classify phraseological units by associating
them with parts of speech of the constituent units: verb, substantive, adjective,
comparative, interjective and adverbial. (Korunets) Our research shows that most
Ukrainian phraseological units with a heart component are verbal (about 200) (брати
близько до серця; прикипіти до серця (take to heart; attach to heart)); substantive
(дама серця, крик серця (sweetheart, a cry from the heart)) and adjectival (гаряче
серце, простий серцем (hot heart, simple heart)) in equal numbers (about 20); 26
adverbial (від чистого серця, за велінням серця (with all one’s heart, at the bidding
of the heart)) and several interjective (серденько, сердечко (heartlet)) and
comparative (на серце мов хто камінь навернув (as if someone lay a stone on one’s
heart)) phraseological units.

Verbal phrases are the largest group within Ukrainian phraseology. Therefore,
verbal phraseological units with a component of “heart” also make up the largest
group of all studied. Verbal phraseological units as a simple verb sentence (сердце
крається (the heart is torn apart) – to be very anxious, to feel a heartache; розбивати
серце (to break the heart) – to cause someone’s suffering) constitute the most
productive group.

Verbal phraseological units, similarly to verbs, are characterized by the lexical

and grammatical meaning of the process, for example: відводити тугу від серця (to
remove the longing from the heart – to cheer someone up); вирвати з серця (to tear
from the heart – to make oneself forget someone); ужалити в саме серце (to stab to
the heart – to hurt someone, to cause mental pain.

Adverbial phraseological units within the studied material are substantially

inferior to verbal phraseological units in terms of quantity.

Adverbial phraseological units include those of quantitative or qualitative-

adverbial semantics, which are characterized by the complete absence of a
morphological paradigm and serve in the function of adverbials.

For example:

Motrya's heart turned so heavy with bitterness that she was unable to stay at the
hatchel. She rose to her feet … and burst into tears (Panas Myrnyi).

Phraseological unit heart turned so heavy with bitterness means «woefully».

Pavlo embraced and kissed her from the bottom of his heart (Panteleymon
Kulish).

Phraseological unit from the bottom of his heart means «passionately».

The phraseological units used here have semantics (heavy with bitterness –
woefully, from the bottom of his heart  – passionately), in the sentence they express a
feature of another feature and refer to the predicate verb (turned, kissed), answer the
question of the adverbial: how?

In the phraseological fund of the Ukrainian language, substantive and adjectival

phrases, with the component “heart” in particular, do not hold a high position.

Substantive phraseological units have generalized subject semantics objectified

in the grammatical categories of genus, number, and case.

For example:

1) Крик серця (a cry from the heart) – a manifestation of great despair

2) Порожнеча в серці (emptiness in the heart) – a state of mental devastation
3) Ножем у серці (a knife in the heart) – something very striking, causing
emotional pain
 Notable for substantive phraseological units are those constructed using the
model "adjective (pronoun, numeral) + noun". Grammatically, the noun is principal,
while the adjective (pronoun, numeral) is subordinate, and is usually in the
preposition (золоте серце (a golden heart) – a person with a good, gentle character).

Adjectival phraseological units are characterized by the categorical meaning of

attributiveness, the ability to express a static feature of objects, which performs in a
sentence the function of an uncoordinated definition or a nominal part of a compound
sentence.

For example:

1) М'який серцем (soft-hearted) – kind, trusting (A typically Ukrainian face,

high forehead, but most of all – long gray mustache… always deceived the
soft-hearted lover of Ukrainian antiquity. Hnat Khotkevych)
2) Без серця (heartless) – cruel, ruthless (I’ll have to spend another night at that
heartless man’s home. Ivan Franko)

According to M. Demskyi, one of the main features of adjectival

phraseological units is that they denote not a general feature that is inherent in
adjectives, but refer to, for the most part, "such a feature that describes only a person,
an object itself or an abstract object" [Demskyi 1994: 15].
For example: мати серце з перцем (to have a heart hot as pepper) – to be quick-
tempered, acrid; серце з каменю (heart of stone) – cruel, soulless.

Comparative phraseological units are similar to adjectival ones, as one of their

feature is constructive meaning given to the comparative conjunction, which
indicates the unreality of an action or a state by analogy, for example: наче ножем
полоснуло по серцю (as if a knife went through the heart) – to be extremely struck,
hurt by something; в'ється як гадина коло серця (to snake around the heart) – heavy
anticipation, thoughts; мов п’явки за серце ссуть (as if leeches stuck to the heart) –
poor health.
Among phraseological units with the component “heart” there are several
interjectional (exclamatory), which express positive emotions when addressing a
certain person (The sun is low, the evening is close, come to me, my heart! Ivan
Kotliarevskyi).

For phraseological units, as well as for ordinary lexemes, phenomena such as

ambiguity, synonymy, and antonymy are peculiar.

For example, phraseological unit всім серцем (will all one’s heart) is
polysemantic:
 1) Sincerely, dearly (Love Ukraine with all your heart, and with exultant
faces let all your deeds her majesty maintain!.. (Volodymyr Sosiura, II, 1958, 313)
2) Completely, entirely, with all one’s being (He felt for her with all his
heart and would gladly join the army himself if it weren’t for his old age (Oleksandr
Dovzhenko, I, 1958, 291)

Phraseological unit гаряче серце (fiery heart/warm heart) :

1) Very quick-tempered, incursive character  (He hoped that those fond

memories, those favorite paintings of battles would calm a hot heart, dull the
flamboyant look of Todosh (Нечуй-Левицький, VII, 1966, 107)
2) Sensitive, responsive person (Just so you know, що і серед пропащих
сотворінь існують великі душі.., зустрічаються гарячі серця, готові віддати
увесь свій огонь за щастя ближнього (Hnat Khotkevysh, I, 1966, 51)
In polysemantic phraseological units, a combination of direct and figurative
meanings is possible. For example, phraseological unit серце болить (the heart is
aching) has a direct meaning when it comes to the feeling of physical pain; when it
comes to feeling great pity or anxiety for someone, in this case the unit becomes quite
figurative. The phenomenon of ambiguity among phraseological units in general, and
in the case of the component “heart” in particular, is quite rare. Synonymy is more
common among phraseological units.

Phraseological synonyms, like all phraseological expressions, reveal the

distinctive character of language. The appearance of a large number of different
synonymous variants give the language a certain emotional nuance and stylistic
emphasis. The synonymous richness of the phraseology of the Ukrainian language
consists of a large number of phraseological units of common or very close meaning.
Synonymous phraseological units may have some common components, but if
phraseological units are based on different images, we have the right to call them
synonyms. Phraseological units can be formed into synonymic rows and antonymic
pairs. Yes, there are several synonymous phraseological units about bothering:
діймати до серця, вціляти в саме серце (strike at the heart); гнітити серце (ride
the heart); заганяти гострі спички у серце (fire at the heart); пекти до живого
серця (burn the heart), кусати за серце (bite the heart). Phraseological units such as
жити в серці (live in one’s heart), бути серцем з кимось (to be with someone in
the heart), пронести в серці (to bear something in one’s heart), зберігати в серці
(to keep something in one’s heart) are also synonymous with the meaning to keep in
memory, not forget. The origin of certain feelings can be conveyed by other
synonymous phraseological units: ворухнутися в серці (to move in the heart), серце
горнеться (the heart is clinging), серце заговорило (the heart is speaking), серце
серцю стало вість подавати (one heart sent a message to another), прилягти до
серця (to lie at heart), покоряти серце (to conquer the heart).

Phraseological antonyms play an important role in the system of phraseology.

With their help, the opposite lexical meaning is revealed – a semantic antithesis, they
convey opposite meanings and evaluations: упадати серцем (to fall with the heart)
(to worry about something) – угамувати серце (to calm the heart) (to calm down, to
stop worrying); мати Бога в серці (to have God in the heart) (to be conscientious,
compassionate) – мати кам'яне серце (to have a stone heart) (to be cruel, soulless).
Some phraseological units are already antonymic in their structure, because they
contain the opposition: з добрим серцем (with a good heart) (sensitive, sincere) –
без серця (without a heart) (cruel, ruthless), камінь ліг на серце (a stone lay on the
heart) (to feel disturbed) – камінь з серця скотився (a stone rolled off one’s heart,
weight off one’s chest) (to feel calm). A contrast can also occur through negation:
мати серце (to have a heart) (to be kind) – не мати серця (to have no heart) (to be
unkind, insensitive), or through antonymic components: з легким серцем (with a
light heart) (without anxiety, pain and pity) – з важким серцем (with a heavy heart)
(with depressing, anxious mood).

Phraseological homonyms, compared to phraseological synonyms, are very

rare and are not studied enough as of today. Phraseological units that do not have an
associative connection are homonymous. For example, запеклося серце (the heart
hardened/burned):

1) To become a callous person (Khrystia is crying, but my heart hardened so

much that I cannot cry... (Panas Myrnyi)
2) To go through difficult, painful emotions (And I remembered my village. Who
did I leave there? Both my father and mother are six feet under... And suddenly
my heart burned with sadness, because there was no one to remember me...
(Taras Shevchenko)
Прохололо серце (the heart grew cool/cooled down):
1) The feelings for someone have decreased (They say, first love is a trifle. And
once the heart grows cold, there will be reproaches upon reproaches (Panas
Myrnyi).
2) Stop being angry, irritated (I felt that my heart cooled down, stopped hating
him... (Hanna Barvinok)
Мати серце (to have a heart):
1) To be kind, sensitive (I am only guilty of having a heart (Mykola Zerov)
2) To be angry with someone (“Here, neighbor, I have a heart for you”, –
Petrykha jokingly complained to my mother (Stepan Vasylchenko)
 All phraseological units that have arisen in the Ukrainian language differ in
source and time of origin. A large number of phraseological units, and with the
component “heart” in particular, come from folklore. Most of the phrases are related
to the realities of life, the actions of people, family relationships. For example,
кусати за серце, заганяти гострі спички у серце (to bite the heart, to fire at the
heart) – to bother, to hurt someone; серце палає (heart is burning) – to worry about
something. People’s observations on the environment, natural phenomena, fauna and
flora have also been reflected in phraseological units: каменем лягти на серце (a
stone lay on the heart) – to have heavy feelings about something; коти шкребуть
на серці (cats are scratching the heart) – to be in a state of anxiety; холодна жаба
сидить під серцем (a cold frog sits under one’s heart) – to have a premonition of
something bad. Many phraseological units have a religious background, but among
the units studied, there is only one expression that is associated with religion – мати
Бога в серці (to have God in the heart) (to be conscientious, compassionate), жити
з Богом в серці (to live with God in the heart).

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