Applied Cognitive Linguistics

Abstract

The goal of this entry is to introduce the main tenets of cognitive science and cognitive linguistics and to acknowledge their applications to second language (L2) learning and teaching within the framework of applied cognitive linguistics. Cognitive linguistics addresses language learning in terms of communication, cognition, and their relation to the physical, spatial, and social world. Ample research data suggest that an Applied Cognitive Linguistics approach moves L2 pedagogy away from traditional distinctions, such as the lexicon–grammar dichotomy, and highlights the systematicity that underlies various language structures, for instance figurative language. From this perspective, adopting an applied cognitive linguistics‐based model gives rise to and redefines new and current concepts and teaching tools such as conceptual fluency, motivation, conceptual syllabus, pedagogical grammar, and figurative, metaphorical, idiomatic, and metonymic competence. Taken together, these notions are expected to enhance L2 classroom practice.