| Abstract in Chinese | 第4-6页 |
| Abstract in English | 第6-8页 |
| Abbreviations | 第12-14页 |
| List of Figures and Tables | 第14-15页 |
| Chapter 1 Introduction | 第15-19页 |
| 1.1 Background of the Study | 第15-16页 |
| 1.2 Objectives of the Study | 第16-17页 |
| 1.3 Significance of the Study | 第17页 |
| 1.4 Organization of the Thesis | 第17-19页 |
| Chapter 2 Literature Review | 第19-28页 |
| 2.1 Previous studies of Xiehouyu | 第19-26页 |
| 2.1.1 The Emergence of Xiehouyu and its Development from the Tang Dynasty to the Qing Dynasty | 第19-20页 |
| 2.1.2 Studies of Xiehouyu before the Founding of the People’s Republic of China | 第20-21页 |
| 2.1.3 Studies of Xiehouyu in the Early Days after the Founding of the People’s Republic Of China | 第21-22页 |
| 2.1.4 Studies of Xiehouyu in the New Era after the Founding of the People’s Republic of China | 第22-24页 |
| 2.1.5 Seven Postgraduate Theses on Xiehouyu from the Cognitive Linguistic Perspective | 第24-26页 |
| 2.1.6 Studies of Xiehouyu Abroad | 第26页 |
| 2.2 Summary | 第26-28页 |
| Chapter 3 Theoretical Foundation and Methodology | 第28-52页 |
| 3.1 Philosophical Foundation of Cognitive Linguistics | 第28-29页 |
| 3.2 Metaphor | 第29-33页 |
| 3.2.1 Traditional views | 第29-30页 |
| 3.2.2 Cognitive Views | 第30-33页 |
| 3.3 Metonymy | 第33-37页 |
| 3.3.1 Traditional Views | 第34页 |
| 3.3.2 Cognitive Views | 第34-37页 |
| 3.4 Basis of Conceptual Metaphor and Metonymy | 第37-38页 |
| 3.5 Similarities and Differences Between Metaphor and Metonymy | 第38-39页 |
| 3.6 Conceptual Blending Theory | 第39-47页 |
| 3.6.1 Network Model of Conceptual Blending | 第41-46页 |
| 3.6.2 Overarching Goal | 第46-47页 |
| 3.7 The Complementary Nature of Metaphor and Conceptual Blending Theory | 第47-49页 |
| 3.8 Research Methodology | 第49-50页 |
| 3.9 Research Questions | 第50-52页 |
| Chapter 4 Grounding of Xiehouyu | 第52-63页 |
| 4.1 Classification of the Concepts in the First Part of Xiehouyu | 第53-56页 |
| 4.2 Nature of the Concepts in the First Part of Xiehouyu | 第56-59页 |
| 4.3 Comparison Between the Concepts /Source Domains in Xiehouyu and Those in English Metaphors | 第59-61页 |
| 4.4 Summary | 第61-63页 |
| Chapter 5 Meaning Construction of Xiehouyu | 第63-84页 |
| 5.1 Classification of Xiehouyu | 第63-64页 |
| 5.2 Meaning Construction of the Nom-exp-typed Xiehouyu | 第64-66页 |
| 5.3 Meaning Construction of the Phr-exp-typed Xiehouyu | 第66-72页 |
| 5.4 Meaning Construction of the Sen-exp-typed Xiehouyu | 第72-77页 |
| 5.5 Xiehouyu in Context | 第77-82页 |
| 5.5.1 The Nom-exp-typed Xiehouyu in Context | 第78-79页 |
| 5.5.2 The Phr-exp-typed Xiehouyu in Context | 第79-80页 |
| 5.5.3 The Sen-exp-typed Xiehouyu in Context | 第80-82页 |
| 5.6 Summary | 第82-84页 |
| Chapter 6 A Special Type of Xiehouyu: Pronunciation-based Xeihouyu | 第84-101页 |
| 6.1 Classification of PBX | 第85-87页 |
| 6.2 Homo-based PBX | 第87-89页 |
| 6.3 AP-based PBX | 第89-95页 |
| 6.4 PBX in Context | 第95-99页 |
| 6.4.1 Homo-based PBX in Context | 第95-97页 |
| 6.4.2 AP-based PBX in Context | 第97-99页 |
| 6.5 Summary | 第99-101页 |
| Chapter 7 Conclusions | 第101-105页 |
| 7.1 Major Findings | 第101-102页 |
| 7.2 Implications of the Study | 第102-103页 |
| 7.3 Limitations of the Study and Suggestions for Future Researches | 第103-105页 |
| Bibliography | 第105-109页 |
| Appendices | 第109-157页 |
| Appendix A: Concepts in the First Part of Xiehouyu and Some Examples | 第109-143页 |
| Appendix B Xiehouyu of Different Types and Some Examples | 第143-149页 |
| Appendix C PBX of Different Types and Some Examples | 第149-157页 |
| Publications During the Postgraduate Program | 第157-158页 |
| Acknowledgements | 第158-159页 |
