Terminological synonyms in Czech and English sports terminologies

Terminological synonyms in Czech and English sports terminologies Michaela Cocca (Nuevo León) Taylor J. Kendzora (San Diego) Václav Řeřicha (Olomouc) Elizabeth Alvarado Martínez (Nuevo León) ABSTRACT The following paper deals with the concept and typology of terminological synonyms in English and Czech, focusing on the official sport terms codified in English and/or Czech dictionaries. The analysis focuses on Anglicisms as terminological doublets, hyposynonyms, stylistic synonyms, and false friends. Results show that a high number of synonyms were generated by the process of transshaping or translating English terms into Czech. Our analysis suggests that there may be found three types of sports synonyms in English (real, quasi-, and pseudosynonyms) and four main types in Czech (terminological doublets, Anglicisms as hyposynonyms, false friends, and stylistic synonyms). The use of synonyms is even more evident in modern or newly created sports; mass media and the accessibility of data through the Internet playing an essential role as they mediate an immense input of information to the target population. KEY WORDS Czech, English, terminological synonyms, sport 1. INTRODUCTION The following paper deals with the concept of synonymy and typology of synonyms occurring in sports terminology in English and Czech. The first part focuses on the classification of synonymy (real, quasi, and pseudo), and the second part outlines the use of Anglicisms in Czech sports terminology. The aim of this research is to analyse the types of synonyms developing in English as the source language as well as their Czech equivalents as a result of translation and borrowing. In accordance with a previous study (Milić, 2009), the analysis will point to the development of synonymic relations within a general lexicon, i.e. terms being both terminologically and stylistically marked. As Milić (2009) suggests, it gives us a platform for establishing an additional category of stylistic terminological synonyms. For the purpose of this study, Heřmanský’s (2003) Modern English-Czech dictionary of sports terms Moderní anglicko-český slovník sportovních výrazů, which includes more than 13,100 codified main entries (i.e. official terms, collocations and slang terms) from 68 sports, was used as the primary source. As secondary sources Dictionary of sports and game terminology (Room, 2010), The Sports Book (Stubbs, 2011), Slovník nespisovné češtiny [Dictionary of non-standard Czech] (Hugo et al., 2009), and Zrádná slova v angličtině [False friends in English] (Hladký, 1990) were consulted. All types of synonyms are defined and exOPEN ACCESS 22 LINGUISTICA PRAGENSIA 2/2016 OPEN ACCESS emplified using italics for English examples and small capitals for the Czech ones. The signs “>/<” show the direction of adaptation, the former signifying the translation from English to Czech, the latter from Czech to English. The symbols “=”, “≈”, and “≠” are used to describe fully interchangeable, partly interchangeable, and non-interchangeable synonyms in the respective order. 1.1. DEFINITION OF SYNONYMY Several concepts and classifications of synonymy can be found in the literature. According to Čermák (2010), synonymy can be understood as a horizontal paradigmatic relation of semantic similarity among lexemes. As Klégr (2004) puts it, when defining lexical synonymy, there are three factors that should be taken into account: (1)congruence between meanings (i.e. denotative and connotative contents and connotational and pragmatic elements); (2) congruence between distribution (i.e. the type of environment and texts in which a term may occur); and (3) congruence between the extension of a meaning denoting its collocability. Owing to the above stated, two or more lexical or grammatical units can be treated as synonymous if their core meaning is identical. Yet, they may differ at the peripheral level. According to Murphy (2003, 168) this difference is caused by different expressive elements of meaning such as connotation, register, or dialect, differences in collocational restrictions, frequency, etc. In the light of the degree and intensity of variability of these differences, linguists present different concepts of synonymy, yet regarding it as a scalar semantic category including absolute, propositional, and near-synonymy (Cruse, 2004, 154); absolute, partial, and near-synonymy (Lyons, 1995, 60); or complete, near, and no-synonymy (Shiyab, 2007). Although Cruse (2004) and Lyons (1995) differ in their concepts, they both introduced the term “absolute” synonymy (i.e. two lexemes having the same meaning, complete semantic equivalence, and allowing for a full interchangeability). Nevertheless, such lexemes are generally believed to be extremely rare, since it is impossible for all their meanings to be interchangeable in all contexts (e.g. Cruse, 1986, 88; Lyons, 1995, 61; Palmer, 1981, 89). For instance, jump ≈ leap both mean ‘movement away from the surface and change in vertical position’, but the latter also contains the seme ‘change in horizontal position’ (Štekauer, 2000, 154). Thus, it is more likely to find ‘near’ or ‘graded’ synonymy (having a denotative similarity) instead. The problem of the term ‘synonyms’ can be also nicely shown on the examples of referee ≈ umpire and ≈ judge. Although they are considered as synonyms at the general level on account of having the same denotation (i.e. a person who watches over a game and makes sure that its rules are followed), they are not interchangeable, since they are linked to different kinds of sports (football, basketball, ice-hockey; tennis, volleyball, baseball; swimming, skating, respectively). Although many authors perceive synonymy in technical terminology as a not very welcomed phenomenon (e.g. Dubuc, 1997, 156; Kolaříková, 2012; Polackova, 2001), syno nyms are not uncommon in the area of sports. As Dvořák and Dowson (2011) state, terminological synonyms are created in order to reflect reality from a certain perspective in the area of sports. Using the correct linguistic instruments, sports professionals try to choose the most suitable ones (i.e. either by creating their own cultural equivalents to the foreign terms, or by incorporating international terminology MICHAELA COCCA 23 OPEN ACCESS into the system of their mother tongue). Thus, terminological synonyms are often represented by pairs as a loan word and a domestic/native word (e.g. bully > BULY = VHAZOVÁNÍ, penalty > PENALTA = POKUTOVÝ KOP, out > AUT = ZÁMEZÍ, etc.), or a one-word term and two-(or more) word terms (e.g. BAGR = PŘIHRÁVKA SPODEM < bump pass) (Chromá, 2004, 31–33; Kolaříková, 2012). The following sections (2. and 3.) describe two typologies of synonyms: (a) those established in English and Czech; and (b) those created by adapting the original English terms to the Czech lexicon. 2. TYPOLOGY OF TERMINOLOGICAL SYNONYMS IN ENGLISH AND CZECH Dubuc (1997, 121–123) describes three types of terminological synonyms: real synonyms, quasi-synonyms, and pseudo-synonyms. 2.1. REAL SYNONYMS Real synonyms represent the same concept and are generally interchangeable. The following examples can be considered fully interchangeable, since they differ in terms of conceptual characteristics in both English and Czech alike: entering player = substitute > STŘÍDAJÍCÍ HRÁČ = NÁHRADNÍK, or adversary = opponent > PROTIHRÁČ = SOUPEŘ. More synonymic pairs can be found individually in English, without developing the same synonymous equivalents in the target language: smasher = spiker > SMEČAŘ, playing court = playing area > HRACÍ PLOCHA, delay of game = stalling = time wasting > ZDRŽOVÁNÍ. Interchanging the mentioned terms is possible within the register of any sport, owing to the fact that they represent the same concept. In most of these cases, this is the result of a changed perspective focusing on one distinctive feature in one term and another in the synonymous ones, as in base line = end line, or corner arc = corner circle. In addition, synonyms are produced by the process of abbreviation (as is evident from the following examples mainly formed from the names of players’ positions), such as CB = centre-backcourt player, LW = left wing, and RO = right offense, MVP = most valuable player with the same tendency in Czech, e.g. PK = PRAVÉ KŘÍDLO (< right wing), SS = STŘEDNÍ SPOJKA (< centre back), U = UNIVERZÁL (< hitter ≈ all-rounder), as well as by syntactic variants as dispute ball = ball in dispute. The synonymous pair infringement = violation is interesting as it points to the fact that some synonyms may be established at the same level in various sports; the former is used in football and volleyball, the latter in handball, football and water polo (Milić, 2009). 2.2. QUASI-SYNONYMS As well as real synonyms, quasi-synonyms are interchangeable, with the tendency to differ in conditions under which they are being used, such as geographic labels, as in trials — tryout, tiebreak — tiebreaker, pacemaker — pacesetter, pull-up — chin-up, centre — center, defence — defense, or football — soccer; used in British and American English, respectively. However, this type of synonym is noticeable especially in English due to its numerous variants. In Czech, some examples may be found as well; nevertheless, they would be based on the dialectal level, and thus could not be exemplified 24 LINGUISTICA PRAGENSIA 2/2016 OPEN ACCESS from the analysed corpus. Apart from geographic labels, quasi-synonyms may also differ under temporal, frequency, and professional labels. As Verkuyl, Janssen and Jansen (2003) suggest, there exist two possible ways for a word to lose its firm position in the standard language: (a) a word has been pushed aside by another word; or (b) people no longer use the word, i.e. it becomes archaic or historic (carriage = an archaic term for ‘body posture’ replaced by its synonyms bearing, ding-dong, dolly, etc., or in the case of Czech FRČEK BĚHNUTÝ, which was replaced by DISK (Greek ‘discos’) < discus. Yet, at the level of language contacts, the former way is more apparent: KOPANÁ for FOTBAL < football, ODBÍJENÁ for VOLEJBAL < volleyball, KOŠÍKOVÁ for BASKETBAL < basketball, etc. Although it can be claimed that there is no real difference between the two categories proposed by Verkuyl, Janssen and Jansen (2003), if we look at it from a diachronic point of view, unlike the examples mentioned in (b), the former examples can still be found in specific registers. Based on the results from the Czech National Corpus (syn2015), these examples could also be treated on the frequency level as the native Czech words are used less frequently than their borrowed equivalents: football > KOPANÁ (syn2015 — found 69x) vs. FOTBAL (syn2015 — found 4741x), volleyball > ODBÍJENÁ (syn2015 — found 0x) vs. VOLEJBAL (syn2015 — found 495x), or basketball > KOŠÍKOVÁ (syn2015 — found 9x) vs. BASKETBAL (syn2015 — found 497x). As apparent in these examples, a high number of synonyms in Czech were generated by the process of transshaping1 (i.e. borrowing) or translating English terms to Czech. Thus, they will be discussed in the following section. 2.3. PSEUDO-SYNONYMS Unlike real and quasi-synonyms, pseudo-synonyms are not interchangeable, since specific diagnostic features are added to narrow their semantic contents. For instance, the terms coach and trainer both denote a person who is in charge of a team, but are used in different semantic contexts; the former referring to a professional being in charge of strategy and tactics, as well as starting line-up and substitutes, the latter denoting a person being responsible for players’ physical and psychological fitness. Similarly, athlete and gymnast agree in denoting a person skilled in physical performance requiring agility, endurance, and often, muscular strength. Yet, an athlete usually implies the status of a contender in sports or games2. In basketball, lay-in and lay-up both signify a one-hand shot from near the basket, but lay-in refers to a direct shot and lay-up refers to the one played off the backboard. The case of training and practice is somewhat peculiar. Firstly, both terms refer to the process of preparing for a physical activity or a sports event; the former denoting a process of preparing to take part in a sports competition by doing physical exercise, the latter referring to doing a physical activity or exercise regularly in order to improve one’s skills. At the same time, they can be treated on the basis of geographical labels, since training means a serious prepa1 Prćić (2005, 124) explains the term ‘transshaping’ as a new form that involves an inherent content taken over from English that has been adapted to the orthographic and semantic standards of Czech (e.g. football > FOTBAL). 2 Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary of Synonyms (1984): A Dictionary of Discriminated Synonyms with Antonyms and Analogous and Contrasted Words. Springfield: Merriam-Webster Inc., p.71. MICHAELA COCCA 25 OPEN ACCESS ration for a competitive sports event in American English; in British English it also comprises a recreational connotation. Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary (1984) presents a similar example with the terms practice, exercise, and drill. On one hand, all three terms are comparable when they mean, as verbs, to perform an act or series of acts repeatedly, and, as nouns, such repeated activity or exertion. On the other hand, practice fundamentally implies doing habitually or repeatedly, and it usually presupposes the possession of powers that can be developed or strengthened by activity; exercise refers to those activities directed to the attainment of health or vigour; and drill essentially connotes an intention to fix physical or mental habits deeply. The term stresses repetition as a means of training in order to form correct habits. 3. ENGLISH-BASED TERMINOLOGICAL SYNONYMS IN CZECH As mentioned above, the occurrence of terminological synonyms is the result of the contact of a foreign and a domestic language. Temmerman (1997) states that traditional scientific terminology is built on the so-called ‘univocity principle’, according to which, only one term should be assigned to a concept and vice versa. This tendency is mostly applied to a scientific terminology, which attempts to be precise and unequivocal. Violating this principle can be seen as a source of ambiguity having a negative impact on effective and efficient communication (Polackova, 2001). In the last decades, this phenomenon has been the centre of dispute among linguists and researchers in this area. For instance, Poštolková, Roudný and Tejnor (1983, 77) argue that all terminological doublets represent a language disadvantage, since they can give the impression that they name different concepts. Other scholars have started advocating the occurrence of terminological synonyms as inevitable, especially in the domains that are subject to profound changes (Hauser, 1980, 34). In line with this author, Mayer (2002, 18) states that the most tolerable synonymic pairs are those consisting of an Anglicism and its domestic equivalent. Petráčková and Kraus (1995, 52) define Anglicism as a lexical item that was borrowed from English into the Czech language system. As already pointed out, Prćić (2005, 145) extends the term Anglicism to all transshaped or nontransshaped lexical units borrowed from English and consequently orthographically or semantically adapted. Due to the strong influence that English has on the formation of sports terminology, we can find many terminological synonyms. Thus, the following subsections deal with the analysis of Czech sports terminology that has been created by adapting the original English terms through the process of transshaping and translation. Considering the above stated, the analysis focuses on the following types of synonyms: (1) Anglicisms as terminological doublets; (2) Anglicisms as hyposynonyms; (3) False friends; and (4) Anglicism as stylistic synonyms. 3.1. ANGLICISMS AS TERMINOLOGICAL DOUBLETS Crystal (1992, 109) defines a doublet as a pair of different words with a common etymology, displaying similarities in form and meaning as in price — prize. A different concept is proposed by Gortan-Premk (2004, 122), who considers Anglicisms as terminological doublets if they co-occur in synonymic pairs with domestic words of dif- 26 LINGUISTICA PRAGENSIA 2/2016 OPEN ACCESS ferent etymology, yet parallel meaning. For the purpose of our study, we will follow the definition given by Gortan-Prenk (2004), as it was also used in a study on sports terminology (Milić, 2009). Owing to the above stated, Anglicisms as terminological synonyms are created by the process of adapting the original English term into the Czech sports register and subsequently creating their Czech translated equivalents. Hence, the proposal of this paper is to divide this section into two parts: (1) Anglicisms as inertial synonyms — taking into account the origin of the terms; and (2) translated Anglicisms — focusing on lexical and semantic calquing. 3.1.1. ANGLICISMS AS INERTIAL SYNONYMS IN SPORTS TERMINOLOGY. Lexemes that appear in a synonymic pair, of which one is a transshaped/non-transshaped Anglicism and the other is a local or naturalized term in Czech, are called inertial synonyms (Prćić, 2005, 147–148). Since these synonyms form doublet forms for already existing words or expressions in Czech, we cannot talk about improving language expressiveness. In light of their mutual interchangeability — when belonging to a certain register — they can equally be treated as terminological doublets (see 3.1.2.). However, taking into account their origin, the proposal of this paper is to treat the following examples as “inertial synonyms”, since the translated English term appeared to be used as the first one, consequently followed by the formation of its domestic/synonymic equivalent. Doublet forms that are usually created by being translated and transshaped are for example: match > MAČ = UTKÁNÍ = ZÁPAS, score > SKÓRE = VÝSLEDEK, bully > BULY = VHAZOVÁNÍ, or penalization > PENALIZACE = TREST. Others can be created by translating terminological doublets from English, as in attack line, spike line > ÚTOČNÁ ČÁRA = PŘEDNÍ ČÁRA, or by applying two different translation procedures, usually calquing and word-for-word translation, as in 7m line > ČÁRA SEDMIMETROVÉHO HODU = SEDMIČKA (Milić, 2009). 3.1.2. TRANSLATED ANGLICISMS. Translated Anglicisms, also referred as lexical calques, are another type of synonymic pairs proposed by Prćić (2005, 147–148). According to him, one of the pair is a transshaped/non-transshaped Anglicism and the other is its translated equivalent created later. Since Anglicism and translated equivalent refer to the same concept, they are both fully interchangeable as well as being marked terminologically. Among them: play-off > PLAY OFF [PLEJ OF] = VYŘAZOVACÍ ZÁPAS(Y), penalty area > POKUTOVÉ ÚZEMÍ = ŠESTNÁCTKA, or penalty kick > PENALTA = POKUTOVÝ KOP. Beyond the process of translation, in some cases a new semantic meaning was added to the already existing terms such as in coaching > COACHING [KOUČING] = KOUČOVÁNÍ = TRÉNOVÁNÍ (a form of professional development, in which a client is provided with advice and guidance in order to achieve a specific personal or professional goal)3 or trick > TRIK = FINTA (1 — sport figure in biking, snowboard, etc.; 2 — technical element while playing a record in order to make a special effect)4, creating 3 Fischer-Epe, M. (2006) Koučovaní [Coaching]. Portál: Praha, p. 7. 4 Cocca, M., Řeřicha, V., and Alvarado Martínez, E. (2015) Comparison of formation processes in English and Czech sports terminologies. Linguistica Pragensia 25/2, 132–144. MICHAELA COCCA 27 OPEN ACCESS a specific group of semantic calques. Many terms have also developed their meanings by adding a new metaphor-based connotation, as in goal > GÓL = BRANKA (borrowed with terminological meaning, yet also referring to a big surprise) or to be out > BÝT OUT [AUT] = BÝT MIMO (newly denoting a person who does not follow a conversation or does not dress according to the latest fashion)5. The fact that Anglicisms represent an easier way of communication in the field of sports, both amongst professionals and the media, will presumably move the Czech terms to the periphery of the lexicon. For instance, in the Czech example volleyball > VOLEJBAL = ODBÍJENÁ, basketball > BASKETBAL = KOŠÍKOVÁ, football > FOTBAL = KOPANÁ, in which the second — domestic term — has been replaced by its more frequent English-based equivalent. On the other hand, not always are domestic equivalents replaced by their English counterparts as in the hockey term icing > zakázané uvolnění, which, despite its use in other languages (e.g. German, Swedish, Dutch, etc.), did not find its way into the Czech terminology. 3.2. ANGLICISMS AS HYPOSYNONYMS Anglicisms as hyposynonyms are English-based synonyms co-occurring in synonymic pairs or sets with a native or naturalized Czech word and sharing the same descriptive meaning, on condition that Anglicisms have additional diagnostic or collocational features narrowing their semantic contents (Milić, 2009). For instance, general manager > GENERÁLNÍ MANAŽER ≈ GENERÁLNÍ ŘEDITEL or scouting > ZKOUMÁNÍ, VYZVÍDÁNÍ (in general lexicon) ≈ SKAUTING (in sport — searching for talented players). It is important to emphasize that these synonyms assume the relation between terminology and general lexicon (as in scouting) or cross-semantic relations (as in general manager). For a better understanding, GENERÁLNÍ ŘEDITEL used to be the only equivalent for the English manager and director. Owing to the change in responsibilities in the current sports world, GENERÁLNÍ ŘEDITEL now denotes a person who is in charge of sports team management, whilst GENERÁLNÍ MANAŽER is the one responsible for strategy, its support and implementation. In the case of scouting > SKAUTING this lexeme has an additional diagnostic feature in sports register, with the meaning of searching for talented players. However, outside the sports world, it is translated as a neutral lexeme ZKOUMÁNÍ, VYZVÍDÁNÍ (Milić, 2009). 3.3. FALSE FRIENDS False friends or false cognates are another type of synonymic pairs with native or naturalized Czech words. Though similar in form and etymologically related, they are semantically divergent (Granger & Swallow, 1988; Ivašina, Rudenka & Janovec, 2006, 5). Even though some authors consider false cognates as a separate category from false friends, the majority of linguists consider these two terms synonymous, since they are used to designate the same linguistic phenomenon (Sabino, 2006, 251). Thus, for the purpose of this study, all examples are treated as false friends. Also, agreement 5 Cocca, M., V. Řeřicha and E. Alvarado Martínez (2015) Comparison of formation processes in English and Czech sports terminologies. Linguistica Pragensia 25/2, 132–144. 28 LINGUISTICA PRAGENSIA 2/2016 OPEN ACCESS can be seen in the aspect and/or degree of interference and transfer of meaning from English to Czech. Owing to that, false friends are the most dangerous, since they may provoke significant interference during communication (Andrade Neta, 2000). Beltrán (2006) classifies false friends according to three variables: (a) whether they are true cognates (with no difference in meaning) or false cognates; (b) whether they are phonetic or graphic cognate words, i.e. whether their English pronunciation evokes the pronunciation of a Czech domestic word (phonetic), or regardless of utterly different pronunciation, the English written form recalls a word in Czech; and (c) whether they are partial or total from the semantic point of view, i.e. total false friends have a univocal relationship between meaning A in English and B in Czech, whereas partial false friends involve a meaning A in English but some other meanings in Czech (A, B, C, D, etc.). In accordance with the above stated, terms such as (a) antenna > ANTÉNA, record > REKORD, sport > SPORT, or start > START, and (b) athlete > ATLET, pump > PUMPA, or train > TRÉNOVAT, are considered as true cognates; the former examples on the phonetic level, the latter on the graphic one. Though embracing the written similarity, the latter examples change in the pronunciation and thus Czech speakers may fail in identifying it correctly. As partial false friends we can name for example the pair division > DIVIZE. The Czech term is in the general lexicon used to define “an army unit”, “an administrative unit”, and “a competition/league in collective sports”. Though at the point of “division” identical, they do not represent its primary meaning. The English division refers to “a mathematical operation, a process of dividing”. In sports terminology the term division may be even trickier. Despite naming a specific league on the regional basis both in Czech and English football, in English it also refers to the general system in which the leagues are divided. Thus, ‘premier league’ is sometimes referred to as ‘premier division’ (translated as PRVNÍ LIGA ≠ PRVNÍ DIVIZE). Yet, this reference could not be used in Czech, since PRVNÍ DIVIZE does not describe the highest professional football league. Another confusion may arise by understanding the sports term condition > KONDICE. Although in both languages denoting a physical or mental state, or a shape trained person is in, when determining the capacity and ability of bearing physical effort (i.e. being able to perform at a certain level) the correct English equivalent is not condition, but fitness. As the representatives of total false friends both on the graphic and phonetic levels we can mention, for instance gymnasium, in English sports terminology referring to a club, building or any large room with special equipment where people go to perform physical exercise, yet its formal Czech equivalent GYMNÁZIUM denotes a type of secondary school (in English grammar school). Similarly, the Czech multiword term TĚLESNÁ KULTURA, with the meaning of physical education, is formally equivalent to the English physical culture. However, such a collocation does not exist in English. Thus the correct expression would be physical education. The English word training, Czech TRÉNINK, was in Czech first semantically adapted as a sports term, meaning a development of one’s physical fitness. Nevertheless, due to its primary meaning in English, i.e. referring to a process of learning and developing skills for a particular job or activity, it has been extended to the full semantic range (particularly used in MICHAELA COCCA 29 OPEN ACCESS business or for describing a process of further education) (Milić, 2009). Going more in depth, false friends can be further categorized according to their: (a) morphology — in terms of different part of speech (active [adj., quick in physical movement] > AKTIV [n., translated as meeting], areal [adj., related to or involving an area] > AREÁL [n., translated as limits]); and (b) orthography — spelling variation in terms of consonant and vowel changes and/or shifts as in active >AKTIV, basin > ≠ BAZÉN (pool) = UMYVADLO; as well as consonant simplification as in dress > ≠ DRES (a sports outfit) = ŠATY; null > ≠ NULA (consonant simplification + addition of a vowel “a”) = NULOVÝ, NEPLATNÝ. Though not numerously represented, a category of zero-equivalent false friends can be found in sports terminology, too. Despite resembling or sounding as an Anglicism due to unusual spelling or having an English-like suffix, these words do not have their English counterparts. Thus, the Czech term REKORDMAN can be considered as a one-side false friend, since it possesses an analogical resemblance with the English suffix –man, yet there does not exist such a word as ‘recordman’. The English equivalent stands for a record holder (Hladký, 1990). 3.4. ANGLICISMS AS STYLISTIC SYNONYMS These are synonyms occurring in a synonymic pair that consists of a transshaped/ non-transshaped Anglicism and a Czech equivalent. In this pair, the Anglicism is marked stylistically, whilst the Czech equivalent is general. Thus, REKORDNÍ (= OBROVSKÝ) from English record stresses the fact that any non-sport concept has reached the utmost limit by a metaphoric reference to the best or highest level of sports performance ever reached. Also, the English word fight > BOJ (= VELMI NÁROČNÁ SITUACE) expresses in Czech non-sport communication, achieving a task while putting in a lot of effort as in a boxing match (Milić, 2009). Similarly, the expression to be out of the game > BÝT VENKU ZE HRY (for instance due to an injury) is metaphorically used in the general lexicon describing situations in which a person is not involved any more (= NEPOČÍTAT S NĚKÝM). Apart of being stylistically marked in the standard communication, many sports terms have also come to be used on the colloquial level; for instance, to score > SKÓROVAT (= USPĚT), to scratch > SKREČOVAT (= ODHLÁSIT SE), goal > GÓL (= VELKÉ PŘEKVAPENÍ), etc. (Hugo, 2009). In line with Milić (2009), it is not possible to establish this type of synonymy as a terminological category, since it is identified at the level of the general lexicon. 4. CONCLUSION Even though many authors expect terminology to be synonymy-free, i.e. a concept should be expressed by only one term in a thematic register (Poštolková, Roudný & Tejnor 1983, 77; Dubuc, 1997, 156; Kolaříková, 2012), this phenomenon is less likely to happen in sports terminology. The ability to develop synonymous relations does not belong only to lexemes in the general lexicon, but also to terms developing synonymic pairs in the terminological and general lexicon alike. Terminological synonyms exist in both source and target language, the latter acquiring them from the