Cognitive processing of english idioms and implications for language teaching

Abstract

Traditionally, idioms in English are treated as a composite expression from which meaning cannot be predicted from individual components. From the cognitive viewpoint, this paper revisits the mental processes in human brain when dealing with idioms and discusses the conceptual metaphor theory as an alternative to the traditional view of English idioms. From examples of English idioms analyzed, the paper proves that idiom meaning in English is activated by conceptual metaphor rather than being abstract.