The paper analyses the compatibility and differences in phrasemes in the Croatian, English, German and Italian languages. Four types of equivalence have been established in phrasemes of corresponding structure and identical phraseological significance. 1. Lexical compatibility of phraseme components and compatibility of in-depth structure; 2. Partial compatibility of lexical components and similarity of in-depth structure; 3. Compatibility of phrasemes in some languages and differences of phrasemes in others languages;. 4. Diversity of lexical components and in-depth structures for each language analysed. The compatibility is based on a common experiential base or on calquing and the differences arise from the specific cultures to which the languages belong.

phraseme; calque; language contact; Croatian; English; German; Italian