Second language learner intuitions of idiom properties: What do they tell us about L2 idiom knowledge and acquisition?

Ferdy Hubers,Catia Cucchiarini,Helmer Strik

doi:10.1016/j.lingua.2020.102940

Abstract

The present study investigated intuitions of L2 learners about important properties of L2 idiomatic expressions to gain insights for research on L2 idiom processing and acquisition. More specifically, we examined (a) how reliable L2 learners’ intuitions are, (b) how much they differ from native speakers’ intuitions, and (c) whether they are better predictors of L2 idiom knowledge than native speaker intuitions. To this end, Dutch native speakers and German L2 learners of Dutch rated 110 Dutch idioms on frequency of exposure, frequency of use, meaning familiarity, imageability, and transparency and were tested on idiom knowledge. This study shows that L2 learner intuitions about idiom properties are a valuable and reliable source of information on L2 idiom knowledge.

Highlights

Idiomatic expressions like add fuel to the fire and hit two birds with one stone -- usually defined as recurrent sequences of words that convey a figurative meaning (Abel, 2003; Cacciari and Glucksberg, 1991; Titone et al, 2015) -- appear to be challenging for second language (L2) learners (Cieślicka, 2006; Conklin and Schmitt, 2008; Ellis et al, 2008; Wray, 2000)
To address RQ1, we examined the reliability of the L1 and L2 intuitions by calculating the Intraclass Correlation Coefficient (ICC) using the ‘rel’ package (Lo Martire, 2017) in R, version 3.4.0 (R Development Core Team, 2008)
We investigated whether L1 intuitions are good predictors of L2 idiom knowledge, or whether L2 intuitions would be preferable

Summary

Introduction

Idiomatic expressions like add fuel to the fire and hit two birds with one stone -- usually defined as recurrent sequences of words that convey a figurative meaning (Abel, 2003; Cacciari and Glucksberg, 1991; Titone et al, 2015) -- appear to be challenging for second language (L2) learners (Cieślicka, 2006; Conklin and Schmitt, 2008; Ellis et al, 2008; Wray, 2000). Research has shown that L1 and L2 idiom processing is affected by specific properties of idioms such as frequency, familiarity, transparency, imageability, and L1-L2 similarity (García et al, 2015; Steinel et al, 2007) Data on these idiom properties are usually obtained by collecting people's intuitions through subjective judgment scales (Bonin et al, 2013; Libben and Titone, 2008; Nordmann et al, 2014; Nordmann and Jambazova, 2017). These can be intuitions subjects have even though they do not know the meaning of an idiom or the intuitions they have formed after learning the meaning of an idiom

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion