REMEMBERING FIGURATIVE IDIOMS BY HYPOTHESIZING ABOUT THEIR ORIGIN

Abstract

Despite their apparent arbitrary nature, numerous figurative idioms can in fact be taught and learned in an insightful way, as opposed to random and blind memorisation. Controlled experiments in recent years have shown, for example, that learners’ recall of L2 figurative idioms is facilitated by the explicit use of imagery in the presentation stage. This imagery technique can only be fruitful to vocabulary acquisition in the long term, however, if it extends into learner autonomy. A new small-scale experiment was therefore set up to estimate learners’ ability to apply the strategy of imagery processing to figurative idioms independently. One specific imagery technique was put to the test: hypothesising about the origin of L2 idioms. The results were very encouraging both with respect to the feasibility of the task and with respect to its beneficial effect on retention.

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