The Influence Of Idioms On Language Acquisition

It is estimated that there are over 10,000 idioms in English, some relatively recent and some that have been used for more than 2,000 years (Brenner, 10). Anyone who has ever thought about languages and their use should certainly agree that idioms provide a way to make communication more dynamic than literal and nonidiomatic language. In addition, we can say that idioms are an integral part of the English language just as with any other living and spoken one. Factually speaking, they are used by native speakers of English; often for everyday correspondence and communication purposes. In most general terms, an idiom may be defined as a phrase, the meaning of which cannot be predicted from the meanings of the individual words themselves.

RESEARCH ON IDIOM ACQUISITION Until recently, most of the research on idioms has involved native speakers of English and its focus was entirely on the L1 acquisition of idiomatic expressions. Many applied linguists, with a primary interest in the theory of language acquisition, started their own studies but this time using findings of L1 idiom acquisition as a starting point for investigating the acquisition of idioms in an L2. Before going into the results and findings which will be presented below, a more significant distinction between acquisition and learning should be made. According to Yule, the term acquisition is used to describe the gradual development of ability in a language by using it in natural communicative situations with others who know the language being acquired. On the other hand, the term learning, applies to a more conscious process of expanding knowledge of vocabulary and grammar of a language, typically in an institutional setting. Language teaching activities in schools have a tendency to result in more knowledge about the language than fluency in its use. The author also

Learners of a second language sooner or later realize that idioms can become a stumbling block on their way of mastering it. However, avoiding their use just because a learner finds them difficult to understand gives language an unnatural and perhaps even unimaginative tone. Using idioms in the teaching and learning process of a foreign language is of immense importance, because it could be one of the ways to give students better conditions to improve communicative skill in the daily context. (De Caro,R.Edith, E. 2009) Learning to use idioms is therefore extremely important for achieving communicative competence. Because they constitute such a special language learning problem for non native speakers, idiomatic expressions should deserve special attention in classroom instruction. Moreover, to help learners gain mastery over this important aspect of their L2, teaching techniques and methods need to be based on an understanding of how learners comprehend idioms as we have seen from the data presented in the previously mentioned