A Conceptual Metaphor-based Approach to Facilitate English Idiom Comprehension

Abstract

The study explores the pedagogical feasibility of Conceptual Metaphor-based Approach to teaching idioms to Kurdish university-level EFL students to find out to what extent the approach enhances idiom comprehension, and whether it is better than traditionally practiced approaches accordingly. Additionally, the aim of this study is to check the L1 transfer and interference role in comprehension of idioms by the participants, and how idiom grouping under corresponding Conceptual Metaphors helps students in figuring out L1 equivalents. The quantitative data were based on and collected from testing 73 participants who were divided into an experimental and a control group. Results showed that the experimental group participants outscored the control group participants, and the difference was statistically significant. Though, the traditional group had better posttest scores in comparison to their pretest. Findings also reveal that clustering idioms around corresponding Conceptual Metaphors was more helpful than randomly listed idioms; L1 transfer was observed in the idioms that have exact equivalents or closest equivalents, and sharing the same Conceptual Metaphors was helpful in understanding and finding Kurdish idioms, particularly for the experimental group. Besides, L1 interference was noticeable in all types of idioms being exact or closest equivalent or having no equivalent linguistically. Meanwhile, literal translation was also relied on by the participants as a strategy due to probably a lack of conceptual metaphor knowledge