Difficulties in Translating Figurative Meanings of Phraseological Units from English Into Uzbek

Abstract

This paper investigates the philological problems of translating the figurative meanings of phraseological units from English into Uzbek. Phraseological units are deeply rooted in the cultural, historical, and social contexts of a nation, and therefore their adequate rendering requires a philological approach that takes into account not only linguistic equivalence but also cultural and semantic nuances. In philology, idioms and phraseological units are considered carriers of figurative thought, metaphorical imagery, and national identity, which means that their translation is one of the most complex philological tasks. The study identifies the challenges faced by translators, including the lack of direct equivalents, semantic shifts, and cultural gaps, while emphasizing the role of philological strategies such as descriptive explanation, functional substitution, and contextual adaptation in achieving translation adequacy. This research contributes to philology by providing theoretical and practical recommendations for improving English–Uzbek bilingual dictionaries and translation studies.