Idiom variation

Abstract

Variation is considered to be a change in the form of units that does not affect the meaning. This change gives rise to variants of a unit which, as the meaning is not altered, constitutes an invariant in the content. In this paper, 1) we analyse variation in Spanish idioms; 2) we present different types of formal variation: orthographic, morphological, lexical and combinatorial; 3) we differentiate unmarked variation from the following marked variations: diachronic, depending on the current or non-current use of a unit; diatopic, with regard to Spanish-speaking areas; diastratic, in accordance with the social characteristics of the speakers; and diaphasic, regarding the communicative situation and the language register; 4) we exclude polysemy, synonymy, antonymy, defamiliarisation and error from variation; and 5) we insist on the need to work on variation in Spanish as a foreign language using dictionaries.