Attitudes Towards Idioms and Idiom Learning Strategies: Provided by Croatian Digital Thesis Repository

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J. J. Strossmayer University of Osijek
Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences
Double Major MA Study Programme in English Language and Literature and German
Language and Literature – Teaching English as a Foreign Language
Mirna Pucelj
Attitudes towards idioms and idiom learning strategies
Master's Thesis
Supervisor: Dr. Višnja Pavičić Takač, Full Professor
Osijek, 2018
J. J. Strossmayer University of Osijek
Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences
Double Major MA Study Programme in English Language and Literature and German
Language and Literature – Teaching English as a Foreign Language
Mirna Pucelj
Attitudes towards idioms and idiom learning strategies
Master's Thesis
Scientific area: humanities
Scientific field: philology
Scientific branch: English studies
Supervisor: Dr. Višnja Pavičić Takač, Full Professor
Osijek, 2018
Sveučilište J. J. Strossmayera u Osijeku
Filozofski fakultet Osijek
Dvopredmetni sveučilišni diplomski studij engleskog jezika i književnosti i

njemačkog jezika i književnosti – nastavnički smjer
Mirna Pucelj
Stavovi prema idiomima i strategije učenja idioma
Diplomski rad
Mentor: prof. dr. sc. Višnja Pavičić Takač
Osijek, 2018
Sveučilište J. J. Strossmayera u Osijeku
Filozofski fakultet Osijek
Dvopredmetni sveučilišni diplomski studij engleskog jezika i književnosti i

njemačkog jezika i književnosti – nastavnički smjer
Mirna Pucelj
Stavovi prema idiomima i strategije učenja idioma
Diplomski rad
Znanstveno područje: humanističke znanosti
Znanstveno polje: filologija
Znanstvena grana: anglistika
Mentor: prof. dr. sc. Višnja Pavičić Takač
Osijek, 2018
Table of contents
1. Introduction ...................................................................................................................................... 1
2. On idioms ......................................................................................................................................... 3
2.1. Defining an idiom ...................................................................................................................... 3
2.2. Features and classifications of idioms ....................................................................................... 4
2.2.1 The influence of culture on idioms ...................................................................................... 5
2.2.2. The importance of idioms ................................................................................................... 5
2.5. Difficulties connected with idiom learning ............................................................................... 6
3. Attitudes in learning English ............................................................................................................ 8
3.1. The importance of attitudes in language learning ..................................................................... 8
3.2. Overview of research on attitudes towards the English language ............................................. 9
3.2.1. Overview of research on attitudes towards the English language in Croatia ..................... 9
3.3. Overview of research on attitudes towards learning idioms in English .................................. 10
4. Strategies of learning idioms in English ........................................................................................ 11
4.1. Overview of research into L1 idiom comprehension strategies .............................................. 12
4.1.2. Relationship between L1 and L2 idiom comprehension strategies .................................. 13
4.2. Overview of research into L2 idiom comprehension strategies .............................................. 14
5. Attitudes towards idioms and idiom learning strategies: research report ...................................... 15
5.1. Aim and research questions ..................................................................................................... 15
5.2. Participants .............................................................................................................................. 16
5.3. Instrument ................................................................................................................................ 16
5.4. Procedure ................................................................................................................................. 17
5.5. Results ..................................................................................................................................... 18
5.5.1. Descriptive statistical analysis of attitudes ....................................................................... 18
5.5.2. Descriptive statistical analysis of strategies ...................................................................... 20

5.5.3. Correlation analysis .......................................................................................................... 24
5.6. Discussion ................................................................................................................................ 26
6. Conclusion ...................................................................................................................................... 31
7. Bibliography ................................................................................................................................... 34
8.1. Questionnaire ........................................................................................................................... 38
8.2. Idiom quiz ................................................................................................................................ 40

Abstract
Idioms are powerful figurative expressions that can convey very complex thoughts through just a
few memorable words, which makes them very useful in both spoken and written discourse. The
present study investigates the relationships between Croatian EFL learners’ attitudes towards
idioms, learning strategies they utilize to acquire unknown idioms, their gender, academic
performance, and experience in English. For the purpose of this research, a questionnaire and idiom
quiz were designed and administered to a sample of 96 students of the 1st and 2nd year BA
programme at the Department of English at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences,
University of Osijek. The findings reveal that the majority of the participants have a positive attitude
towards learning idioms and they tend to employ a variety of different learning strategies while
acquiring new idioms. The idiom learning strategies that were reported to be the most successful and
thus most used were inferring the meaning from context, frequent repetition and a combination of
visualization and verbal information. The statistical analysis suggests that there is a statistically
significant relationship between gender and learning strategies, while gender does not have a
significant role in the participants’ attitudes towards idioms. The participants’ academic
achievement, on the other hand, seems to be positively connected only with their attitudes towards
idioms and not with the applied idiom learning strategies. Additionally, the findings have shown a
positive correlation between the attitudes and learning strategies, which suggests that learners with a
more positive attitude towards idioms will also employ more idiom learning strategies.
Keywords: English idioms, attitudes towards idioms, idiom learning strategies, gender, Croatian
EFL learners
Sažetak
Idiomi su moćni simbolični izrazi koji su u stanju prenijeti veoma složena razmišljanja putem samo
nekolicine upamtljivih riječi, što ih čini neizostavnim dijelom usmenog i pismenog diskursa. U
ovomu se radu istražuju međusobne povezanosti stavova hrvatskih učenika, koji uče engleski kao
strani jezik, prema idiomima, strategija učenja koje koriste pri usvajanju nepoznatih idioma,
učenikova spola, obrazovnih postignuća i iskustva u učenju engleskog jezika. U svrhu istraživanja
su oblikovani upitnik i kviz o idiomima koji su provedeni među 96 studenata prve i druge godine
preddiplomskog studija Odsjeka za engleski jezik i književnost na Filozofskom fakultetu u Osijeku.
Rezultati pokazuju da većina sudionika ima pozitivan stav prema učenju idioma i da su skloni
koristiti raznolike strategije učenja prilikom usvajanja novih idioma. Strategije učenja idioma koje
su se pokazale najuspješnijima, a samim time i najčešće korištenima, jesu izvesti zaključak o
značenju na temelju konteksta, učestalo ponavljanje te spoj vizualizacije i usmenih informacija.
Statistička analiza ukazuje na međusobnu povezanost spola i strategija učenja, dok spol istovremeno
ne pokazuje značajnu ulogu u stavovima prema učenju idioma. S druge strane, obrazovna
postignuća sudionika se čine povezanima samo s njihovim stavovima prema idiomima, ali ne i sa
strategijama učenja idioma. Također, rezultati pokazuju proporcionalnu povezanost između stavova
i strategija učenja, ukazujući na to da će učenici sa pozitivnijim stavom prema idiomima također
primijeniti više strategija učenja idioma.
Ključne riječi: idiomi engleskog jezika, stavovi prema idiomima, strategije učenja idioma, spol,
hrvatski učenici engleskog kao stranog jezika
1. Introduction
Every second (SL) or foreign language (FL) learner and teacher is vividly aware of the fact
that vocabulary is, in Brown’s words (2001: 377), “the building blocks of language”. As of late, the
focus has shifted from teaching individual words to teaching whole chunks of language, because
they are believed to be more natural and thus more important in language learning (Ababneh, 2016).
In the ESL and EFL classroom figurative expressions occupy a special position and idioms stand out
among all of them.
Idioms are lexical items whose meanings often cannot be inferred from the individual meanings of
their constituents. Therefore, they usually have to be learnt through rote memorization, which is a
stumbling block for a majority of language learners. According to McDevitt (1993), idioms are often
used in everyday situations and can be an indicator of a speaker’s native-like mastery of the target
language. When taken into account that idioms also contain cultural aspects and are an interesting
way of comprehending the culture of the target language (Bachman, 1990), it is evident that they
can enable effective communication and should be given special attention in language teaching and
learning.
There have been various studies investigating the relationship between attitude and proficiency in
the target language (Bachman, 1990; Gardner, 1985; Malallah, 2000) and all of the findings suggest
the same: a positive attitude towards the target language can facilitate the language learning process.
However, not much is known about the ESL and EFL learners’ attitudes towards learning idioms, as
well as what type of idiom learning strategies these learners apply to be able to successfully use a
newly acquired idiomatic expression. The present study will attempt to add to the ever-growing
body of research in these two fields.
This paper is divided into two sections. The first section offers the theoretical background needed as
a basis for the research report and is divided into three segments. The theoretical overview will first
attempt to define an idiom and then name some of their features and how idiomatic expressions are
usually classified, followed by a description of the most common issues associated with idioms. The
second theoretical segment focuses on defining attitudes and states their importance in the language
classroom, as well as provides an overview of research conducted in this field across the world but
also in Croatia. The third and last theoretical portion of the paper is dedicated to learning strategies.
1
This part will first briefly list and explain the idiom comprehension strategies employed by L1
learners and then turn to L2 idiom comprehension strategies, as this is also how research of this field
of study has evolved over the years. What follows is the second major section of the paper, namely
the research report. Here the results of the present study will be revealed and discussed. Finally, the
most important findings are outlined in the conclusion together with some recommendations for
future studies.
2
2. On idioms
2.1. Defining an idiom
Aside from metaphors, similes, and proverbs, idioms are the most frequently encountered
figurative expressions found in both spoken and written discourse (Cooper, as cited in Asl, 2013).
They are, in fact, so often used in everyday communication that Hoffman (1984, as cited in Liontas,
2017) roughly estimates that native speakers of English use approximately 7,000 idioms per week,
although these numbers have yet to be corroborated by empirical data.
In the past, idioms were often referred to as “dead metaphors”, which can be defined as “figurative
expressions that have acquired conventionalized meanings” (Irujo, 1986: 288). However, linguists
today agree that this type of definition fails to encompass all the different types of idioms, a part of
which can be at least to some extent defined by the individual meanings of the constituents
(Vasiljević, 2015). Even though research into idiomatic expressions has been quite extensive, there
is no generally accepted definition of an idiom. There is a myriad of definitions accounting for
different points of interest over the years. Makkai (1972, as cited in Liontas, 2017) focused
primarily on lexically and grammatically regular idioms, while Fillmore, Kay, and O’Connor’s
(1988, as cited in Liontas, 2017) research led them the opposite way – to the idiosyncrasies of
English, a majority of which are both lexically and grammatically irregular. Liontas (2017), on the
other hand, focused mainly on vivid phrasal idioms, which he defines as a type of idiomatic
expressions that combines powerful literal visual imagery with a memorable expression (ibid).
Since there is no clear-cut definition of an idiom, a majority of researchers reached out to the classic
and very often cited Oxford English Dictionary (1989) sense 3a definition of an “idiom”, using it as
the working definition for their articles:
“A form of expression, grammatical construction, phrase, etc., peculiar to a language; a peculiarity

of phraseology approved by the usage of the language, and often having a significance other than its
grammatical or logical one” (OED 1989 s.v. idiom).
Nowadays, the sense 1 definition of an idiom that the online version of the Oxford English
Dictionary (2018) offers its users is that of “a group of words established by usage as having a
meaning not deducible from those of the individual words (e.g. over the moon, see the light)” (OED
3
2018 s.v. idiom). It is evident that this definition, albeit a bit shorter than its precursor, also focuses
on the conventional, non-decomposable, opaque nature of idioms. Having made an overview of
some definitions of an idiom, the following sections will focus on defining the main features of
idiomatic expressions.
2.2. Features and classifications of idioms
Liontas (1999, as cited in Liontas, 2017) stipulates that there are at least three relevant
dimensions to any given idiomatic expression: the semantic opacity dimension (also known as
transparency), the structural dimension, and the conventionalized pragmatic dimension.
Semantic opacity or transparency is, according to Glucksberg (2001: 74), “the extent to which an
idiom’s meaning can be inferred from the meanings of its constituents”. Mäntylä (2004) further
classifies idioms in terms of their transparency into three categories: transparent, semi-transparent,
and opaque idioms. Transparent idioms, such as give the green light, are examples of idiomatic
expressions whose figurative meaning is clearly connected to the literal meaning. In the case of
semi-transparent idioms, e.g. break the ice, the connection between the literal and the figurative
meaning is not as obvious and transparent. The figurative meaning of a semantically opaque idiom,
however, is impossible to infer from the literal meanings of its individual words, unless the learner
is aware of the etymological background of the given idiomatic expression. Such is the case with the
idiom spill the beans, whose origin can be traced back to the voting tradition of ancient Greece:
“When there was a secret vote, white beans were placed in a jar to express support, and black ones
to express opposition. Therefore, spilling the beans meant ‘disclosing a secret’ (Vasiljević, 2015). A
vast majority of research generally describes idioms as being “semantically opaque” (Glucksberg,
2001; Ababneh, 2016), although this only accounts for one category of idioms. This is probably due
to the fact that for English language learners semantically opaque idioms seem unsurpassable when
first encountered, so the main focus of idiom research justifiably lies on this category.
Idioms are very special parts of any given language, as they are quite visual figures of speech. From
a structural point of view, they are memorized configurations which are identified when those word
configurations become unique to the idiomatic expression in the minds of language learners
4
(Glucksberg, 2001). By being “frozen in time”, their meanings do not have to be deduced and
interpreted anew every time they are used by a language learner (Gibbs, 1980). Thus, idioms are
capable of conveying complex thoughts through a few memorable words (Liontas, 2017), which
makes them indispensable especially in spoken discourse.
2.2.1 The influence of culture on idioms
Idiomatic expressions offer a unique opportunity to teach and learn about the vocabulary
richness of the target language as well as the cultural aspects hidden behind those fixed expressions.
Every culture has developed its own expressions, which second (SL) and foreign language (FL)
learners should acquire if they wish to exhibit a “native-like command” of the target language
(Wray, 2000, as cited in Asl, 2013). Because language is at any given point “used with a purpose
and for a purpose” (Liontas, 2017: 10), idioms can be the source of potential misunderstandings
when culture-specific knowledge is implied. This is especially true for those idioms whose literal
meaning could hinder understanding (Glucksberg, 2001) or those expressions that reflect themes and
ideas not present in the learners’ own culture. Boers and Demecheleer (2001) conducted a study on
cross-cultural differences of imageable English idioms on French-speaking students. The idioms in
the experiment did not have one-to-one equivalents in French and were also given without context,
thus forcing the students to truly guess the meanings of the given idioms. The study showed that
their French-speaking students had fewer issues interpreting idioms using the source domain of
‘food’, such as cry over spilt milk, than with those exploiting the theme of ‘ships’, such as sail
through something, as the English language is much more productive in terms of ‘ships’ metaphors
while French is more rich in the domain of ‘food’ metaphors.
2.2.2. The importance of idioms
As Liontas (2002: 298) states, one cannot “participate fully” in a conversation without
having the ability to understand the figurative expressions used. Although idiom competence is not
entirely necessary for an effective communication, it is one of the marks of a competent and
effective speaker (Liontas, 2017), which every language learner strives to become. Idiomatic
competence can be defined as “the ability to understand and use idioms appropriately and accurately
5
in a variety of sociocultural contexts, in a manner similar to that of native speakers, and with the
least amount of mental effort” (Liontas, 2002: 300). As knowledge of the idiomatic expressions of a
target language helps language learners to be better speakers (Al-Khawaldeh et al., 2016) and
enables them to use the language in a variety of social situations (Beloussova, 2015), it is evident
that there is a close connection between the EFL learners’ idiomatic and overall communicative
competence. Although it has been proven to be useful and necessary, idiomatic competence is,
nevertheless, a skill set not many learners and teachers consciously attempt to develop. The
following section will try to provide some answers to this dilemma.
2.5. Difficulties connected with idiom learning
The acquisition of idiomatic expressions is one of the most outstanding challenges

(Beloussova, 2015) in both language teaching and learning and should therefore be appointed
special attention in class. Interestingly, Mäntylä (2004) observed that even native speakers have
issues with the correct usage of idioms and do, in fact, make mistakes. As already mentioned,
idioms are fixed expressions and must be memorized. Consequently, they often have to be learnt by
heart, which can be remarkably easy or painstakingly difficult, depending on the learner’s language
knowledge and the idiom in question (Glucksberg, 2001).
As Mäntylä (2004) points out, the majority of SL learners is not able to identify an unknown string
of words as a figurative expression, which is the crucial first step to understanding and acquiring a
new idiom. Thus, they are at an obvious disadvantage as their linguistic competence is at a lower
level than that of native speakers (Cooper, 1999). Although there are extensive studies showing how
a supporting context can facilitate idiom understanding (Irujo, 1986; Rohani et al., 2012; Asl, 2013;
Jelčić, 2014), sometimes not even context is enough to decidedly discard all the possible meanings
of a given idiom. This is especially true for idioms without a one-to-one counterpart in the learners’
L1 language (Irujo, 1986; Liontas, 1999) and which cannot be translated literally and maintain their
figurative meaning at the same time. Similarly, the majority of researchers are unanimous: students
do not know whether to consider the literal or the idiomatic meaning of an idiom in certain contexts
(Irujo 1986, Alhaysony, 2017) or tend to reach for the literal meaning even if they are aware of its
figurative nature (Al-Khawaldeh et al., 2016; Liontas, 2002; Mäntylä 2004; Cieslicka, 2006, as cited
6
in Vasiljević, 2015). This confusion is probably due to the fact that some idioms do have literal
counterparts in other languages (Irujo, 1986), but their meanings are oftentimes either not figurative
at all or they possess a completely different idiomatic connotation. Pimenova (2011, as cited in
Alhaysony, 2017) argues that all the issues language learners could exhibit while learning idioms
can be classified as one of the following five challenges: (1) unknown vocabulary and unfamiliar
idioms, (2) no analogous idioms in L1, (3) cultural differences, (4) lack of experience with dealing
with idioms, and (5) lack of the broad context for a given idiom.
When it comes to lack of experience with dealing with idioms, in a large number of cases the root of
the problem lies in the ESL classroom. Many teachers choose to take a so-called “hands-off
approach” (Liontas, 2017: 6) in order to simplify the course materials to their students (Asl, 2013).
Alhaysony (2017) believes this to be the result of language teachers traditionally putting more
emphasis on the acquisition of grammar than on other aspects of the language such as vocabulary
and, by extension, idiomatic expressions. Fact is that there is so much non-idiomatic material to
cover that idioms do not seem important enough to be diligently and directly focused on in class.
This working principle is noticeable in textbooks. Back in 1986, Irujo pointed out that idioms were
either completely omitted from textbooks or just listed in the vocabulary segment of the individual
chapters, without being used in any activities that could facilitate their acquisition (1986). Vasiljević
(2015) notes that nowadays, three decades later, little has changed. However, it is important not to
rely on language learners to master them by themselves. Unless the learners are very independent
and internally motivated to achieve language proficiency, there is little hope that they will fulfill one
of the most important requirements for a successful uptake – frequent repetition. Another significant
reason why learners should not be left to their own devices is the fact that in natural communication
speakers usually focus on the overall meaning rather than on the correct linguistic form of an
utterance. Vasiljević (ibid) observes that learners will pay no attention to the precise phrasing of the
expressions, which is essential for correct idiom acquisition and consequent usage. Therefore,
language teachers should not avoid discussing idiomatic expressions in class but rather be
encouraged to offer their students the much needed guidance in acquiring these interesting but
complex lexical items.
7
3. Attitudes in learning English
3.1. The importance of attitudes in language learning
Every educator is aware that, when his or her students step inside the classroom, they bring
with them all their personality traits (Hosseini and Pourmandnia, 2013), also known as individual
learner differences. In that moment the real challenge for the profession begins. One of the most
significant individual differences is surely motivation, which Masgoret and Gardner (2003, as cited
in Hosseini and Pourmandnia, 2013: 67) define as “goal-directed behavior”. It consists of three
components: effort, desire to achieve a particular goal, and attitudes. All of them can be viewed as
internal factors influencing the motivation level of every language learner differently. Larsen-
Freeman and Long (1991), whilst listing individual learner differences, actually isolated language
learners’ attitudes as a socio-psychological factor, side by side with motivation. Gardner (1985: 9)
defines an attitude as an individual’s appraisal of a person, situation, idea, etc. based on the
individual’s opinion or beliefs. Hosseini and Pourmandnia (2013) expanded this definition by
adding the aspect of positive and negative response. Gardner (1985) was also one of the first
researchers who investigated the role of attitudes in language acquisition and he reached the
conclusion that, when it comes to language learning, the learners’ attitudes seem to be more
connected with achievement than in many other school subjects (ibid). However, the overall term
‘attitudes’ in the field of language learning is quite complex, as it can refer to many different types,
such as attitudes towards “the target language, target-language speakers, the target language culture,
the social value of learning the L2, [and] particular uses of the target language” (Ellis, 2008: 287, as
cited in Hosseini and Pourmandnia, 2013), all of which influence language acquisition. Spolsky
(1969, as cited in Gardner, 1985) noted that the attitude of the learners towards the target language
and to its speakers was one of most significant attitudinal factors and the majority of research has
focused on the former type of attitudes. The overall conclusion is that a positive attitude towards the
target language can facilitate the language learning process as it can help to conquer challenges and,
by doing so, uphold motivation, whereas negative beliefs can potentially lead to “decreased
motivation, frustration, and even anxiety” (Puchta, 1990, as cited in Hosseini and Pourmandnia,
2013) and thus hinder the learning process.
8
3.2. Overview of research on attitudes towards the English language
Since English has maintained its status as a lingua franca for several decades now, it does not
surprise that it is still worldwide the first choice second and foreign language. Accordingly, a
multitude of research has been conducted to investigate the language learners’ attitudes towards the
English language (Al-Tamimi and Shuib, 2009; Ahmed 2015) and whether or not a relationship
existed between these attitudes and language success in English (Gardner, 1985; Bachman, 1990;
Malallah, 2000).
Ahmed (2015) conducted a study on undergraduate EFL students in Malaysia in order to find out
their attitudes towards learning English but also some causes that might have obstructed their
learning process. His findings show an extremely positive attitude towards English and identify
classroom instruction as being problematic for some students, in addition to not having interesting,
versatile lessons and practical textbooks.
Another study that was interested in students’ motivation and attitudes towards learning English was
carried out by Al-Tamimi and Shuib (2009) on Petroleum Engineering students of the Hadhramout
University in Yemeni. The results revealed highly positive attitudes towards not only the social
relevance and educational status of the English language in Yemeni society but also the English
culture. Their research also evaluated the participants’ motives behind English learning, with
instrumental and personal motivation proving to be more important to them than integrative reasons.
Similarly, Malallah (2000) investigated the attitudes and motivations of Kuwait University
undergraduate students towards learning English and found that they appeared to have strong
positive attitudes towards the English language. Additionally, the students who exhibited a more
favorable attitude towards English were also the ones with a higher proficiency level in English.
3.2.1. Overview of research on attitudes towards the English language in Croatia
As already mentioned, English is the most common foreign language and usually the first
means of communication people tend to reach for when finding themselves in a different language
community. Moreover, it is still the primary language in both the business and the academic world,
which makes it appealing to a wide range of potential language learners. English also dominates the
9
language learning world in Croatian primary and secondary schools as well as foreign language
schools. Thus, it should not come as a surprise that there are a few studies about Croatian students’
attitudes towards learning English.
Mihaljević Djigunović (2007) was one of the first in Croatia to conduct this kind of study. Her
research was on a larger scale, as it included as many as 2 137 participants from both primary and
secondary schools, and it focused on affective learner traits, such as attitudes towards the English
language, attitudes to learning and teaching of English, language learning motivation and many
more. The aim was, among others, to determine whether learners’ affective traits could be used to
predict their achievement in English. The study showed that both primary and secondary students
have a positive affective profile towards learning English, and the secondary school learners even
more so. The results also confirmed an important relationship between the learners’ attitudes and
success in language learning. Primary school learners exhibited a more significant correlation
regarding their productive skills.
Badžoka (2017) also looked into the attitudes of Croatian primary and secondary students towards
learning English as a second language and came to at a similar conclusion – Croatian students do
have an overall positive attitude towards English, regardless of their education level.
How ESL and EFL learners’ in Croatian vocational schools feel about English was the mail goal of
Batur’s study (2016). Her results disproved her initial hypothesis about vocational school students
having mostly negative attitudes towards English. On the contrary, they recognize English as an
important factor of their education, probably due to work-related reasons.
Overall, research into Croatian ESL and EFL learners is not as extensive as in other parts of the
world, which merely suggests that this field is in need of further investigation.
3.3. Overview of research on attitudes towards learning idioms in English
As already noted, extensive studies have been conducted to examine the influence of
attitudes on learning English, as well as on language proficiency (Hosseini and Pourmandnia, 2013).
However, the body of research about leaners’ attitudes towards English idioms is still in its early
stages.
10
Tadayyon and Ketabi (2014), for example, conducted a study on the attitudes Iranian EFL learners’
have towards learning and producing idiomatic expressions in English. Their participants were 40
university students whose major was English literature and translation, who reported to have a very
high positive attitude towards both learning and producing English idioms.
Ababneh (2016) carried out a field study also with the purpose of identifying EFL students’ attitudes
towards idioms. His participants were, interestingly, also university students majoring in Translation
and English language and literature. His findings are very much in line with that of Tadayyon and
Ketabi (2014) - the majority Jordanian EFL students’ have positive beliefs towards learning English
idioms. Moreover, the participants are well aware of the fact that idiomatic competence is important
for achieving a native-like command of English.
Be that as it may, to the best of our knowledge, no study on language learners’ attitudes towards
English idioms has yet been published in Croatia. Jelčić (2014) has concerned herself with idioms
among Croatian EFL learners but with an emphasis on the factors influencing their idiom
comprehension. The study reported in this paper will attempt to fill this gap.
4. Strategies of learning idioms in English
The second major point of interest of the present study are idiom learning strategies applied
by EFL and ESL learners. These strategies belong to the field of language learning strategies, which
have been extensively researched over the past few decades, as the focus of language teaching has
shifted to a more learner-centered approach. Language learning strategies have, much like idiomatic
expressions, various definitions. Oxford’s (1990: 8) definition of language learning strategies has, to
this day, remained one of the most widely used, as she established them as “specific actions taken by
the learner to make learning easier, faster, more enjoyable, more self-directed, more effective, and
more transferrable to new situations”. A similar position has also been advocated by Pavičić Takač
(2008: 52), who summarized the diverse definitions into the following one: “specific actions,
behaviours, steps or techniques that learners use (often deliberately) to improve their progress in
development of their competence in the target language”.
According to Oxford (1990), they can be divided into direct and indirect learning strategies. Direct
learning strategies include cognitive, memory-related and compensatory strategies, whereas indirect
11
ones are metacognitive, affective and social strategies. Idiom learning strategies, however, cannot
be so clearly categorized, as all of these types of learning strategies could be used to acquire new
idiomatic expressions.
4.1. Overview of research into L1 idiom comprehension strategies
When children learn their native language (L1), they consider idioms “simply [as] instances
of ordinary language” (Glucksberg, 2001), which is why Vasiljević (2015) believes that native
speakers usually acquire figurative langue through exposure. This process usually starts in early
childhood and is never-ending, as “there is no clear point when it can be said that idioms have been
mastered” (Nippold, 1991: 101, as cited in Cooper, 1999).
There are numerous theories of L1 idiom comprehension, but four of them remain the most
prevailing. The first is the idiom-list hypothesis by Bobrow and Bell (1973) which indicates that
native speakers, when encountering a new idiom, will always first interpret it literally. If this literal
meaning does not match the given context, then speakers will search their mental lexicon (like they
would do with a vocabulary list) and only then choose the figurative meaning. The second
hypothesis was introduced by Swinney and Cutler (1979) and is called the lexical representation
model. The authors refuted the idiom-list hypothesis by arguing that, although idioms as long words
are retrieved from a person’s mental lexicon, the figurative meaning will be processed alongside the
literal one, with context determining the more fitting interpretation. The next model is that by Gibbs
(1980) and Schweigert (1986), which is referred to as the direct access hypothesis and is often
deemed as an extension of the previous hypothesis. Again, the mental lexicon is the starting point,
but the literal meaning is almost never considered, meaning that native speakers will process an
idiom by directly retrieving its figurative meaning. The fourth L1 idiom-processing hypothesis is the
idiom decomposition model (Gibbs et al., 1989). This hypothesis states that idioms are processed as
any other language phrase – the literal meanings of the individual words generally assist in
deciphering the overall figurative interpretation. Thus, decomposable idioms (whose figurative and
literal meanings are very close) will be understood much faster than non-decomposable idioms.
12
4.1.2. Relationship between L1 and L2 idiom comprehension strategies
In the past, research on L2 idiom comprehension primarily used theoretical models of L1

idiom acquisition as a starting point (Cooper, 1999). But, as already noted, native speakers generally
process idiomatic expressions instantaneously and without giving it much thought. L2 speakers, on
the other hand, are at a distinct disadvantage as the acquisition and subsequent use of idioms is
much more deliberate and, for the most part, slower. Thus, simply transferring learning strategies of
L1 into L2 idiom acquisition does not suffice as the L2 learning process is much more complex.
Although the body of research into L2 idiom learning strategies is still growing, the results so far
reveal a quite diffused repertoire of strategies (Irujo, 1986; Cooper, 1999; Al-Khawaldeh et al.,
2016; Alhaysony, 2017), probably due to the individuality of each and every learner. No two
learners will approach the learning task the same way and apply the exact number and type of
learning strategies with the same successful outcome (Škrbić, 2011). Consequently, teachers should
be aware of the abundance of learning strategies in order to offer their learners guidance and
assistance. Pavičić Takač (2008) further adds that learners would greatly benefit from learning new
as well as developing the existing strategies they frequently apply, as it will enable them to become
a self-regulated and self-sufficient language learner. Unfortunately, a generally accepted
categorization of L2 idiom learning strategies has yet to be formulated, probably because
researchers have usually taken it upon themselves to individually name the different categories they
came across, often in a quite descriptive manner.
The first studies into the field of L2 idiom comprehension mainly focused on the phenomenon of
language transfer. In the field of language learning transfer is defines as a process in which “the
forms and patterns of the L1 are imposed on the L2” (Gass, 1979, as cited in Irujo, 1986: 288).
Positive transfer happens when the L1 can be used to produce lexical items in the L2 because the
forms and patterns from the L1 are identical to the ones in the L2, which results in a correct L2
lexical item. Negative transfer, however, can occur if the forms and patterns do not correspond in
both languages but the learner nonetheless uses the L1 to produce phrases in the L2. The result are
errors in L2 language production and usage and are often referred to as interference errors (Irujo,
1986).
13
A study conducted by Irujo (1986) aimed to examine if L1 idioms that are very similar to their L2
equivalents could potentially cause more interference than idioms that are completely different. The
results showed that the production of similar idioms exhibited more interference from the L1 than
different idioms, probably because the learners assumed that transfer would be a successful method
with similar idioms just as it usually is with identical ones. The next section introduces idiom
learning strategies that were observed to be used primarily by L2 English learners.
4.2. Overview of research into L2 idiom comprehension strategies
Since the actual act of processing an unknown idiom is quite complex, as the L2 learner has
to go through a number of possible meanings and select the most plausible one, this thought process
takes time and is not as instantaneous as with native speakers. This allows a researcher, in a way, to
follow the thought process by using the think-aloud methodology and thus gain a better insight into
how L2 learners arrive at a possible meaning of the unknown idiom in question. Cooper (1999) used
the think-aloud protocol to investigate the comprehension strategies of L2 learners when they were
exposed to new idioms in a two-sentence context. The results were quite interesting as they revealed
that the majority of students applies more than one learning strategy. The most frequently used
strategies (71% of the time) were guessing from context, discussing and analyzing the idiom, and
using the literal meaning of the idiom. Aside from them, the participants also applied the following
strategies: requesting information (e.g. of unknown words), repeating or paraphrasing the idiom,
using background knowledge, referring to an L1 idiom, imagining an actual situation in which the
expression could be used, and a meta-analysis about the nature of idioms.
These results are comparable to those reported by Al-Khawaldeh et al. (2016). The research in
question also explored the strategies utilized by L2 learners to understand idioms but with the help
of a knowledge test, to give a better overview of the participants’ idiomatic competency, as well as a
questionnaire. Inferring from context (69%) was reported to be the most used strategy, as was the
case in Cooper’s study (1999). Although the categories’ names somewhat differ, Al-Khawaldeh et
al.’s (2016) results also name literal translation, using an L1 equivalent (as opposed to ‘referring to
an L’), group discussion, retelling and rephrasing (instead of ‘repeating and paraphrasing’), and
figuring out the meaning of individual words in order to guess the meaning as a whole (instead of
14
‘request information about individual words’) as the idiom comprehension strategies the L2 learners
applied. One additional strategy that was not mentioned in the previous study is reading different
kinds of texts and using various media. That is why teachers should encourage their students to
explore authentic L2 language materials by themselves, if no additional time can be appointed in
class for this type of instruction, because some language learners could greatly benefit from this
kind of exposure.
Alhaysony (2017) conducted a similar type of study by employing a questionnaire and a semi-
structured interview. The findings confirm the importance of context as it was, again, the most
prevailing learning strategy. Apart from literal translation, figuring out the meaning from an L1
equivalent, and predicting the meaning, the participants in this study additionally reported that
verbal information together with visualization help them immensely to acquire new idiomatic
expressions. It is also worth mentioning that idioms with rich illustrative individual words were said
to be learnt much quicker.
Turning now to the research part of the present study, it is important to note that self-reported
strategies have mostly been categorized on the basis of the classifications provided by Cooper
(1999) and Alhaysony (2017).
5. Attitudes towards idioms and idiom learning strategies: research report
5.1. Aim and research questions
The main aim of this research is to investigate the EFL learners’ attitudes towards idioms
and explore the role their gender, academic success and experience in English might have in their
attitudes. Additionally, the research will focus on the types of strategies the learners apply while
acquiring new idiomatic expressions.
The research questions for this study are as follows:

1) What are the EFL learners’ attitudes towards learning idioms?
2) How do EFL learners’ attitudes on learning idioms affect their academic performance in this
field?
3) What learning strategies do EFL learners employ in learning idioms?
15
5.2. Participants
The study was purposefully conducted among students of the BA program at the Department
of English at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Osijek. Their L1 was
Croatian and had been studying English as a FL for at least 5 years. Although there was a wide
range of the amount of years the participants had been learning English, the average was 13 years
(M=12.5, SD=1.48) for the 1st year and 13 (M=12.6, SD=2.43) for the 2nd year students. A small
difference is also present in the average grade in the CEL course the students were asked to self-
report on – the 2nd year participants have a slightly better average grade (M=3.23, SD=.95) than the
1st year students (M=3.15, SD=.92). The sample included first (1st) and second (2nd) year students
registered in the courses Contemporary English Language (CEL) I and III, respectively. The total
number of participants was 96, 40 of which were in their 1st year and 56 were in their 2nd year.
Among the 1st year there were 23 female (57.5%) and 17 male (42.5%) participants, while the 2nd
year consisted of 38 female (68%) and 18 male (32%) participants. The average age was 19
(SD=1.29) for the 1st year and 20 (SD=1.02) for the 2nd year students.
5.3. Instrument
The present study was carried out using a questionnaire and an idiom quiz, both of which
were created for the purposes of this research. The questionnaire (see Appendix A) was designed by
combining two already existing ones: 16 items regarding the participants’ attitude towards idioms
were adopted from Liontas (2002) while 14 items concerning idiom learning strategies were adopted
from Ababneh (2016). The questionnaire format was deemed as a suitable instrument for this type of
research, because it allowed the researcher to gather a large amount of information in a relatively
short time period which could later be easily computed and analyzed (Al-Khawaldeh et al., 2016).
The questionnaire applied in this study was comprised of two parts, both of which were translated
into Croatian: the first consisted of demographic information (gender, age, year of university, age at
which students started learning English and grade in CEL), while the second and main part
contained the above mentioned 30 statements. The statements regarding attitudes and those
regarding learning strategies were not grouped together but scattered across the questionnaire. The
participants were asked to indicate the degree of their agreement with a statement on a four-point
Likert scale: 1 – I strongly disagree, 2 – I disagree, 3 – I agree, 4 – I strongly agree. The reliability
16
of the scale was measured by Cronbach’s Alpha to be .844, which suggests a high level of internal
consistency. The second instrument was a short idiom quiz (see Appendix B) in which the students
were given 8 sentences with underlined phrases that they had to substitute with an appropriate color
idiom. If the answer consisted of an idiomatic expression which could be directly embedded instead
of the underlined expression, then the students were given a maximum of 2 points. If it was a
partially written idiomatic expression or not appropriate to the example sentence, then they were
given only 1 point.
The color idioms were chosen by the researcher from a list supplied by the CEL instructor for the 1st
year BA program, because both the first and second year students had been exposed to the same
idioms. The researcher’s intention was to investigate the students’ idiomatic competence at their
respective academic levels and compare it to the one they self-reported on in the questionnaire.
5.4. Procedure
The data was gathered over a period of a few months. Fist, the questionnaire was
administered on the 16th and 19th of December 2016. It was administered in printed form at the
beginning of the regular classes of the CEL course. The learners were given the necessary
information about the research and then they filled in the questionnaires. The whole procedure lasted
for approximately 10 minutes. The second instrument, the idiom quiz, was conducted on the 30th of
May and the 1st of June 2017, also during the CEL courses. The students were already aware of the
purpose of the study because of the prior visit and completed the quizzes in roughly 5 to 7 minutes.
The data was analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS), in which
descriptive statistics, t-test and Pearson correlation were the statistical methods employed. A t-test
was administered to determine if there were differences between male and female as well as
between 1st and 2nd year participants in regards to their attitude towards idioms and the idiom
learning strategies they use. Pearson correlation was used to investigate the relationships between
the attitudes, strategies, years of learning English, the participants’ grade in CEL and their scores on
the idiom quiz.
17
5.5. Results
5.5.1. Descriptive statistical analysis of attitudes
The findings of the independent t-test reveal that the participants have a positive attitude
towards learning new idiomatic expressions in English (M=3.29, SD=.36). There was no statistically
significant difference between female (M=3.31, SD=.37) and male (M=3.25, SD=.34) participants,
which means that the gender of the students does not influence their opinion on idiom learning.
Also, 1st year participants’ attitude (M=3.28, SD=.35) did not differ significantly from that of those
in their 2nd year (M=3.30, SD=.36).
Table 1: Descriptive statistics for five most common attitudes among 1st year BA students
Attitude Mean SD Min. Max.
1. Idiom study should progress from the most frequent ones. 3.69 .47 3 4
2. It is necessary to incorporate idioms in English course
3.63 .54 2 4
books.
3. Idioms are an important part of English. 3.58 .59 2 4
4. I’d like to expand my knowledge of English idioms. 3.47 .64 2 4

5. I think it is important to encourage EFL learners to learn
3.45 .68 1 4
idioms for effective communication.
As the table reveals, the 1st year participants are aware of the importance of idiomatic expressions
and would like to first learn the ones most used in everyday communication. Every participant stated
to either agree or strongly agree with this statement. This is surprising because the firth most
common attitude I think it is important to encourage EFL learners to learn idioms for effective
communication, as well the sixth one I think it is important to teach idioms in English classrooms,
were both strongly disagreed with by one participant each, i.e. not the same participant.
18
Table 2: Descriptive statistics for five most common attitudes among 2nd year BA students
1. Idiom study should progress from the most frequent ones. 3.71 .49 2 4
2. It is necessary to incorporate idioms in English course
3.57 .53 2 4
books.
3. Idioms are an important part of English. 3.55 .50 3 4
4. Idioms should be current, interesting, and useful in real-life
3.54 .60 2 4
situations.
5. I think it is important to teach idioms in English
3.48 .50 3 4
classrooms.
Similarly, 2nd year students also put the most emphasis on idioms that are found in daily life the
most. They agree with their colleagues with regards to the second and third most common attitudes,
but differ henceforth. This is evident in the rank of the statement I think it is important to teach
idioms in English classrooms with which every 2nd year participant either agreed or strongly agreed
with. They focused more on the actual type of idioms they would like to learn first – namely the
ones that are not only easier to learn but can also enrich their verbal skills.
Table 3: Descriptive statistics for five attitudes with lowest mean value among 1st year BA students

1. Overall, I'm satisfied with my present knowledge of
2.60 .71 1 4
English idioms.
2. I tend to use idioms in oral communication. 2.60 .78 1 4
3. Learning idioms is important for me to better express

3.15 .80 1 4
myself by using figurative language in English.
4. Knowing English idioms is necessary to understand the
3.15 .69 2 4
everyday language better.
5. Idioms should be presented in a manner that mirrors real- 3.2 .68 2 4
life language use.
Table 3 shows the other end of the scale and reveals some interesting findings. Approximately half
of the 1st year students find their practical application of idioms in actual oral communication to be
19
deficient and seem to be equally dissatisfied with this situation. For all the other statements the
average is positively rated.
Table 4: Descriptive statistics for five attitudes with lowest mean value among 2nd year BA students
1. I tend to use idioms in oral communication. 2.57 .71 1 4
2. Overall, I'm satisfied with my present knowledge of

2.64 .69 1 4
English idioms.
3. Knowing English idioms is important for me to understand
3.18 .72 1 4
the everyday language better.
4. I think that idioms are useful in everyday communication. 3.25 .74 2 4
5. Learning idioms is important for me to better express 3.25 .61 2 4

myself by using figurative language in English.
The situation among 2nd year students is comparable to that of the 1st year ones, as they appraised
the same two statements with the lowest value. In fact, 2nd year students self-reported on applying
the acquired idiomatic expressions in real life less (M=2.57, SD=.71) than their 1st year colleagues
(M=2.60, SD=.71) while still being more content with their overall idiomatic competence (for 2nd
year M=2.64, S=.69 as opposed to M=2.60, S=.71 for 1st year students). The average values for the
other statements are, much like with 1st year learners, in the positive domain.
5.5.2. Descriptive statistical analysis of strategies
When it comes to idiom learning strategies, the results show that the participants reported
using a variety of them. Gender analysis indicated a statistically significant tendency (p=.01) among
female participants (M=2.99, SD=.35) to use more learning strategies than male students (M=2.77,
SD=.41). An in-depth analysis among 1st and 2nd year students reveals that the statistically
significant difference (p=.019) in strategies used in idiom acquisition is also present with 2nd year
female participants (M=2.99, SD=.36) in comparison to their male colleagues in the same year
(M=2.69, SD=.43). However, there is no statistically significant difference between 1 st year female
(M=2.98, SD=.33) and male participants (M=2.84, SD=.38). Moreover, no statistically significant
20
difference exists between the students in terms of their BA program years: the 1st year participants
have an average of 2.92 (SD=.36), while the second years show an average of 2.90 (SD=.41).
Table 5: Descriptive statistics for five most common strategies among 1st year BA students
Strategy Mean SD Min. Max.
1. I like to be instructed on how idioms come about. 3.47 .81 1 4
2. I can learn a new idiom if I revise it on a regular basis. 3.40 .63 2 4
3. Authentic texts should accompany the study of idioms. 3.32 .65 1 4
4. I learn idioms better when they are accompanied by a

3.17 .63 2 4
variety of activities.
5. I learn a new idiom better when it is found in a text. 3.10 .81 1 4
Table 5 reveals that 1st year students self-reported on applying a variety of idiom learning strategies.
The most common one, I like to be instructed on how idioms come about, can be classified as
relying on background knowledge to facilitate idiom acquisition. The second and fourth most
common strategies could fall under the category of frequent repetition, while inferring the meaning
of a new idiom from contextual cues was reported to be the fifth most common idiom learning
strategy.
Since the results of the t-test pointed out a statistically significant difference between female and
male participants among 2nd year students, this was analyzed in more detail. The following two
tables, namely Table 6a and 6b, show exactly where these differences lie.
Table 6a: Descriptive statistics for five most common strategies among 2nd year female BA students

3.47 .55 2 4
21
5. I learn an idiom better when it has visual support. 3.10 .83 1 4
As is evident from Table 6a, 2nd year female students rely on the accompanying context much more
than their 1st year colleagues, which is suggested by the highest mean value (M=3.52, SD=.68).
Likewise, 2nd year female participants rated frequent repetition as being very important and appear
to be using this strategy a bit more than 1st year participants. Additionally, the female participants
self-reported that visualization was the fifth most often used strategy.
Table 6b: Descriptive statistics for five most common strategies among 2nd year male BA students
4. I learn an idiom better when it has visual support. 2.88 1.02 1 4

2.88 .83 1 4
At first glance Table 6a and 6b seem identical – the same idiom learning strategies are most
frequently applied and are rated almost the same, with context being given the highest value yet
again (M=3.44, SD=.70). However, a closer look at the mean values between the five most common
strategies among 2nd year female and male students shows quite a big difference, suggesting that the
female participants reported on applying the same strategies but much more often than their fellow
male classmates.
The idiom learning strategies that the participants report to use the least are shown in Table 7 and 8.
22
Table 7: Descriptive statistics for five strategies with lowest mean value among 1st year BA students
1. I usually look up an unknown idiom in a dictionary. 2.25 1.00 1 4
2. I try to guess the meaning of an idiom by translating it into

2.30 .72 1 4
Croatian.
3. Authentic audio/video recordings should accompany the
2.40 .81 1 4
study of idioms.
4. I like to observe how idioms are used in texts and what
2.66 .87 1 4
functions they fulfill.
5. Knowing the etymology of idioms helps me to acquire
2.77 .86 1 4
them more quickly.
The results of the descriptive analysis show that 1st year students rarely use dictionaries as a helping
tool while learning idioms. They also seldom rely on their L1 and do not attempt to translate it
word-for-word into their native language. 1st year participants put less emphasis on a combination of
visualization and verbal information, which can be found in authentic materials such as movies,
television programs etc. Additionally, background knowledge, i.e. the etymology of the idiomatic
expressions, as well as a meta-analysis about the functions and nature of idioms appear to be of little
help.
Their 2nd year colleagues seem to agree with them in terms of three idiom learning strategies, as can
be seen in Table 8.
Table 8: Descriptive statistics for five strategies with lowest mean value among 2nd year BA students
1. Knowing the etymology of idioms helps me to acquire

2.25 .93 1 4
them more quickly.
2. I try to guess the meaning of an idiom by translating it into
2.37 .86 1 4
Croatian.
3. I like to learn idioms on my own. 2.71 .94 1 4
4. I like to be instructed on how idioms come about. 2.71 1.05 1 4
23
5. I like to observe how idioms are used in texts and what
2.73 .86 1 4
functions they fulfill.
Background knowledge, namely etymology, was reported to be least helpful in acquiring new
idiomatic expressions. 2nd year participants, much alike their 1st year colleagues, also do not rely so
much on literal translation into their native language. Similarly, a meta-analysis appears to be of
little help to a majority of 2nd year participants.
To summarize, it appears that 1st year students mostly rely on context and the cues it can
provide about the meaning of an unknown idiom, as well as on frequent repetition. On the other
hand, they self-report dictionary usage, literal translation into L1, background knowledge, and
authentic materials to be strategies which are not often successfully applied in idiom learning. 2nd
year students also recognize literal translation from L1 into L2 and background knowledge as not so
significant idiom learning strategies. Context, repetition, authentic materials, and visualization were
indicated by them to be the strategies they most frequently utilize.
5.5.3. Correlation analysis
A Pearson-product-moment correlation was used to explore whether there was a relationship

between the participants’ opinion on idioms, strategies they apply, years they have been learning
English, their grade in CEL and the score they achieved on the idiom quiz.
As previously stated, the participants of the study self-reported their CEL grades at the time of
filling out the questionnaire. However, since the quiz they solved a few months later actually
targeted only idioms as particular vocabulary items, a statistical analysis was conducted to assess the
degree to which the participants’ CEL grades correspond to their scores on the idiom quiz. It appears
that there is a statistically significant medium positive correlation between these two variables
(r=.370, p<.001); that is, the participants who reported having a higher grade in CEL also scored
higher on the idiom quiz.
The correlation analysis revealed that the participants’ CEL grade also seems to exhibit a small but
statistically significant positive correlation (r=.291, p=.004) with regards to their attitudes towards
learning idioms, which can be seen in Table 9.
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Table 9: Pearson Correlation between Attitude towards Learning Idioms, Years of Learning
English, Grade in CEL and Idiom Quiz
Attitude towards Learning Idioms

Years of Learning English .032
Grade in CEL .291**
Idiom Quiz .079
**. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).
This indicates that the higher the grade of a student in the course, the more positive the attitude the
student will have towards learning new idiomatic expressions. The other correlations, namely those
between attitudes and gender, years of learning English and the idiom quiz score, were of no
statistical significance. Evidently the participants overall experience in learning English does not
impact their attitudes towards learning idiomatic expressions.
The Pearson correlation analysis also showed interesting results regarding idiom learning strategies
and are presented in Table 10.
Table 10: Pearson Correlation between Idiom Learning Strategies, Gender, Years of Learning
English, Grade in CEL, Idiom Quiz and Attitude towards Learning Idioms
Idiom Learning Strategies

Years of Learning English .108
Grade in CEL .110
Idiom Quiz .140
Attitude towards Learning Idioms .493**
**. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).
The number of years of learning English and the idiom quiz score exhibit no statistically significant
correlation with the learning strategies. Surprisingly, the CEL grade is also not important when it
comes to the learning strategies. The analysis, however, did reveal a statistically significant and
large positive correlation (r=.493, p<.001) between the participants’ attitudes and the idiom learning
strategies they employ while acquiring new idioms. The more positive the attitude a student has, the
more strategies he or she will use to learn new idiomatic expressions.
25
5.6. Discussion
The first research question in the present study aimed to determine the EFL learners’ opinion
on learning idiomatic expressions, which was directly measured with a questionnaire consisting of
16 statements. The findings indicate that the majority of the participants have a positive attitude
towards acquiring new idioms in English. These results are in line with those obtained by Liontas
(2002), whose analysis also revealed the students’ strong desire for incorporating idioms in their
English studies. Ababneh (2016) arrived at the same conclusion, as the majority of her participants
reported having positive attitudes towards learning idioms because they acknowledge idioms as
being indispensable for attaining effective communication skills in English. The current study also
explored whether the participants’ gender had any influence on their beliefs about English idioms.
No statistically significant relationship was found, meaning that both male and female participants
shared similar if not the same beliefs about idiom learning, which is line with Ababneh (2016).
However, this finding is contrary to some previous studies (Ghazvini and Khajehpour, 2011;
Gardner and Smythe, 1975, as cited in Gardner, 1985) which have suggested that gender actually
affects beliefs about learning idioms in that female learners tend to demonstrate more positive
attitudes towards acquiring new idioms and are overall more successful in learning languages than
male learners. Evidently, further research should be undertaken to investigate this matter more
thoroughly. Surprisingly, the participants’ experience in learning English does not seem to
significantly influence their attitudes towards learning idioms. These results are in agreement with
those obtained by Rifai (2010). However, by taking a closer look at the most and least common
attitudes among the 1st and 2nd year BA participants, one can note some slight differences even
though they are not statistically significant. The answers from the questionnaire suggest that all the
1st and 2nd year participants are aware of the importance and frequency of idiomatic expressions in
everyday communication, although some 1st year participants later on reported not believing idioms
to be important enough to be taught in English classrooms. This may be the case because students in
Croatia usually do not come into direct contact with idioms during their primary and secondary
education. Asl (2013) further comments that English idioms are often neglected or completely
avoided by EFL teachers in order to simplify the vocabulary load for their students. This amplifies
the effort they have to put in at a later point in life, i.e. in university, so as to come close to a native-
like proficiency in English. Nevertheless, the vast majority of the participants does recognize the
importance of idioms in that they could enable a high level of conversational fluency (Liontas,
26
2002), which is what every language learner aspires to achieve. Additionally, both 1st and 2nd year
participants find their practical application of idioms in oral communication to be insufficient and
are dissatisfied with this situation. This finding was also reported by Liontas (2002) and Al-
Khawaldeh et al. (2016). In Liontas’ (2002) research not a single participant reported being
completely satisfied with his or her knowledge of English idioms. Although the results presented in
this study are not as negative, they are, nevertheless, not to be overlooked. The present study found a
statistically significant, albeit small, positive correlation between the participants’ academic success,
namely the grade they self-reported on having in the CEL course, and the attitudes they share
towards learning idioms, meaning that students that have a higher grade in the course also exhibit a
more positive attitude. These results are similar to that of Rifai (2010), who noted that students who
had above average grades also had significantly more positive attitudes and were more motivated to
learn new idiomatic expressions. It’s possible to hypothesize that the good grade probably gives the
learners’ the much needed feedback that their learning efforts do pay off and thus serve as a positive
reinforcer towards the second or foreign language learning process overall and thus also on the
acquisition of new idioms.
The second research question sought to find out whether these attitudes towards learning idioms
would have any effect on the participants’ performance on the idiom quiz and the results and it
appears that they do not. No statistically significant difference was found between these two
variables. A possible explanation for this may be found in the quiz itself. The quiz targeted only
specific idiomatic expressions the students were supposed to acquire in the course CEL I, meaning
that second year participants were at a slight disadvantage as they were questioned on vocabulary
from the previous year. Additionally, the students sometimes provided idiomatic expressions which
were not expected but were to some degree appropriate. In these cases, the researcher rated how
well the new suggested idioms fit in the context of the example sentences and gave the appropriate
number of points. The students were asked to replace the underlined phrases with 8 suitable
idiomatic expressions. For each completely correct idiom the participants could have gotten 2 points
and scored a maximum of 16 points. Even though the quiz served its purpose of giving a rough idea
as to what the participants’ idiomatic competency was, the fact that some students had issues solving
it suggests that the verbal and written instructions could have been more detailed and clear.
27
The third and last research question aimed to identify the idiom learning strategies the participants
self-reported to apply while acquiring new idioms. Consistent with the literature, the present study
found that EFL learners use a wide variety of idiom learning strategies, which are often difficult to
categorize. Perhaps the most interesting finding that arose from the study is the statistically
significant relationship between the participants’ gender and idiom learning strategies. Findings
suggest that female learners tend to use more learning strategies than male learners, which has been
corroborated in other studies. A possible explanation may lie in the aforementioned belief that
female learners have an inclination to be overall more successful in language learning, but further
studies, which would take these variables into account, will need to be undertaken. Another
interesting finding that emerged from the research suggests that there is no significant difference
between the participants’ grade in CEL or their idiom quiz score and the number of idiom learning
strategies they use. Moreover, no statistically significant difference was found to exist between the
participants’ years of English experience and the number of strategies they apply. This is somewhat
unexpected, as there was the assumption that more experienced English learners, who were exposed
to more idiomatic language, would also possess a greater repertoire of idiom learning strategies they
found to be efficient. This outcome is contrary to that of Al-Khawaldeh et al. (2016) who found that
students of higher academic years showed a higher idiomatic knowledge which was achieved
through many different learning strategies. There are two likely causes for this discrepancy, one
being that there the participants simply were not far enough in terms of academic years and that a
comparison between 3rd, 4th or 5th year students with those in their 1st year would have revealed
different results. The other potential reason for these results could lie in the exposure to idiomatic
expressions, meaning that the 2nd year participants may not have been exposed to that much more
idiomatic language and have not had the chance to efficiently promote their idiomatic competency.
When it comes to exactly which types of idiom learning strategies the participants tend to apply, it
must be noted that categorizing them was not a simple task. However, inferring the meaning of an
unknown idiom from the context was rated as the most used and useful learning strategy. These
results are in line with those of previous studies (Irujo, 1986; Rohani et al., 2012; Asl, 2013; Al-
Khawaldeh et al., 2016). Mondria and Wit-De Boer (1991) believe new words are best learnt with
the assistance of context because the EFL learner can frequently infer the meaning of the unknown
figurative expression from the surrounding text. By mentally connecting the context, his or her prior
vocabulary knowledge with the newly acquired idiomatic meaning, the learner creates a stronger
28
basis for a long-term retention of the new idiom (ibid). As Adkins (as cited in Asl, 2013) points out,
instructing EFL learners on how to infer the meaning of an unknown idiom from context will help
them to generalize beyond the idioms at hand and enable them to understand idioms they have never
encountered before. Developing this skill is very important as it allows the students’ to be more
flexible and not immediately give up when they come across an unknown expression, which will
happen more than once in their language learning experience. Another idiom learning strategy,
which was reported to be used in various degrees, is visualization, which can be combined with
verbal information. While 1st year students indicated this learning strategy not to be of much help,
2nd year students reported to heavily rely on it. Alhaysony’s research (2016) corroborates the
importance of visual and verbal stimuli in idiom learning, as these strategies were reported to be
used with high means scores. Vasiljević (2015) is also a supporter of pictorial and verbal clues while
learning idioms, because the new information, namely the unknown idiom, will be transformed into
input which is encoded both verbally and visually, thus helping the learners to better remember
them. However, there is an ongoing debate whether visualization promotes remembering the idiom’s
meaning or its form or both. Boers et al. (2008, as cited in Vasiljević, 2015) found that while
pictorial support contributed to the acquisition of idiom meanings, it had little effect on the
recollection of their linguistic form. Even though there is no conclusive evidence that visual and
verbal cues do, in fact, help learners to both acquire and later on remember new idioms, they were
found to certainly facilitate the learning process (Vasiljević 2015). Because the questionnaire did not
clearly state and exemplify what these all can include, the 1st year participants of this study maybe
thought that “authentic audio/video recordings” refer only to standardized CDs for listening
comprehension, which are traditionally administered in EFL classes, which does not need to be the
case. The other controversial learning strategy scientists cannot agree on is using etymological
information to aid idiom acquisition. Again, the assumption would be that clarifying an idiom’s
origin, which is usually presented in a verbal manner, would induce mental images which could be
helpful in connecting the literal and figurative meaning of an unknown idiomatic expression (ibid).
Szczepaniak and Lew (2011, as cited in Vasiljević, 2015), however, believe pictorial support to be
more influential than etymological instructions, because the latter might only divert the learners’
attention from the idiom’s form and usage in today’s day and age. Contrary to expectations, the
present study actually confirmed these findings, especially among 1st year participants. They
reported to be interested in hearing about the origin of the idiom but found it not particularly useful
29
in acquiring the same expressions. However, Boers et al.’s (2004, as cited in Vasiljević, 2015)
research might have found an acceptable application of etymological information. Teachers should
not just give the learners ready-made etymological clues but rather encourage them to find these out
for themselves or to try and guess them at first. If not, the cognitive effort of simply listening to a
teacher explaining this often very interesting piece of information may not challenge the learners
enough and thus not result in the idiom’s long-term retention. An additional unanticipated finding
was related to dictionary use in the case of an unknown idiom. The findings indicate that the
majority of participants does not take the time to look up an unknown idiom in a dictionary. This is
in line with Liontas’ (2002) research, in which the participants reported finding dictionaries to be
only marginally useful. The learners’ may find dictionaries to be old-fashioned or do not have the
patience or curiosity to find the meaning of an unknown idiom in a reliable source. Thus, they
probably rely a great deal on the contextual clues surrounding the new idiomatic expression or
simply ignore them altogether (Irujo, 1986). Neither solution is advisable because it is important to
pay attention to the exact phrasing of the idiom, otherwise the learner may acquire the new idiom
incorrectly or not at all. As Liontas (2002) points out, such situations create a compelling argument
for teaching idioms directly in English classrooms. The idiom learning strategy with the lowest
mean value reported in this study is an example of literal translation into the L1, which means that
the participants reported not attempting to translate the given idiom word-for-word in their native
language, probably because they are well aware that the product is unlikely to be correct. Findings
of this sort are quite rare in that the majority of researchers found this to be one of the most used
strategies (Irujo, 1986; Al-Khawaldeh et al., 2016). Alhaysony (2016), for example, reported a study
in which participants used literal translation as the fourth most frequently used strategy. However,
Cooper (1999) observed that L2 students were less likely to resort to their L1 knowledge and literal
translation when they are aware that the expression is a figurative one. This was probably the case in
the present study, because the participants, being university students of English and having some
experience with idioms, were most likely aware of the non-compositional nature of a majority of
idioms. Nevertheless, teachers should make use of the learners’ native language while introducing
new idiomatic expressions and invite the students to try and provide a literal meaning of the
presented idiom (Irujo, 1986). By overtly comparing the literal and figurative meaning of the idiom
in question, the students will likely see the absurdity of the literal translation and will probably
disregard it in the future.
30
Lastly, the statistically most significant positive relationship was discovered between the
participants’ attitude towards learning idioms and the strategies they employ while acquiring new
idioms. The students who have a positive attitude towards learning idioms will also use more
strategies while learning them. This results may be explained by the fact that a students’ good grade
is likely to lead to a more positive opinion towards language and idiom learning, which will be seen
in the application of a greater variety of idiom learning strategies. This indicates that a students’
grade in CEL indirectly does affect the number of learning strategies used, though there is no
statistically significant direct relationship between the two. The findings in Alhaysony’s (2017)
research suggest the same – the greater the knowledge of vocabulary, the higher the usage of idiom-
learning strategies.
6. Conclusion
The modern day classroom puts the language learner in the center of the learning process,
which is why learners’ attitudes and the language learning strategies they employ have been heavily
researched. Be that as it may, little is known about the ESL and EFL learners’ attitudes towards
English idioms and idiom learning strategies. The present study set out to contribute to the ever
growing body of research into these fields and had a threefold aim. Firstly, it focused on the
relationship between the participants’ attitudes towards idioms, their gender, academic performance
and experience in English. Secondly, it sought to identify if the learners’ attitudes would influence
their achievement in a vocabulary quiz targeting only certain idiomatic expressions. Lastly, it aimed
to determine the types of strategies the learners utilize to successfully acquire new idioms.
The findings suggest that the majority of the participants have a positive attitude towards learning
new idioms and acknowledge how important this type of figurative expressions is both in spoken
and in written discourse. Furthermore, the results indicate that gender along with the participants’
experience in learning English are irrelevant determinants and do not affect the learners’ attitudes
towards idiom learning. However, there appears to exist a small statistically significant positive
correlation between the participants’ academic achievement, that being their grade in CEL, and the
attitudes towards acquiring new idiomatic expressions. It implies that the learners that have a higher
grade in the course also possess a more positive attitude towards learning idioms. Moreover, the
research did not detect any statistically significant connection between the learners’ attitudes
31
towards idioms and their respective scores on the administered idiom quiz. Additionally, the
findings of the present study revealed that participants reported using a multitude of different idiom
learning strategies, the most important being inferring the meaning from context, frequent repetition
and a combination of visualization and verbal information about the idiom in question. Interestingly,
the results have also shown that gender seems to be a relevant factor influencing the application of
idiom learning strategies, in that female participants tend to use more strategies. Also, the research
did not find the participants’ grade in CEL or their idiom quiz score to be pertinent with regards to
the idiom learning strategies they employ. Finally, the findings indicate that the participants’
attitudes and their self-reported idiom learning strategies seem to be in a statistically significant
positive correlation. This suggests that students with a more positive attitude towards idiom learning
will also attempt to use more idiom learning strategies.
This study has revealed some very interesting findings which offered valuable insights into the
Croatian EFL learners’ opinion on idiom learning and the idiom learning strategies they found to
facilitate the acquisition of new idiomatic expressions. Be that as it may, the present study had some
limitations. The most obvious limitation would be the small number of participants, as the sample
was limited to 1st and 2nd year students of English in their BA program at the Faculty of Humanities
and Social Sciences in Osijek. A larger sample would have made the findings more reliable and thus
also more representative and generalizable. Additionally, the administered idiom quiz targeted only
8 very specific color idioms the students were supposed to learn in the course CEL I, which raises
the question whether the participants would have got different results if they had been tested on
some other idioms. Furthermore, the findings of the present study established a statistically
significant difference between the gender of the participant and the application of idiom learning
strategies, which was, to this researcher’s knowledge, not addressed in any other study. Thus, this
could be a potentially fruitful area for future research. Another point for future studies that could be
derived from this study could consist of think-aloud protocols used to investigate L2 comprehension
strategies so as to complement and authenticate the answers given in the questionnaire.
L2 learners are at a disadvantage in understanding non-literal expressions because they possess a

lower degree of linguistic competence in the target language than native speakers (Cooper, 1999).
Moreover, learners have reported not being satisfied with their current idiomatic competence and
they seem to be interested in learning what other types of learning strategies they can use to
32
facilitate the idiom learning process. Thus, language teachers should first familiarize themselves
with the manner in which their learners acquire new idiomatic expressions in order to find the most
efficient way of teaching them and creating teaching materials that would best suit the learners’
desires and needs.
Idioms are part and parcel of every language and are capable of expressing very complex thoughts
through very few words. This makes them indispensable in both written and spoken discourse.
Language teachers have an obligation and responsibility not to ignore idioms simply because they
represent a challenge to the profession. As Irujo (1986) points out, even a complete beginner will be
able to successfully produce idioms on his or her own if the language teacher chose them based on
frequency and simplicity. By doing so, language teachers bring their students one step closer to
becoming a competent second or foreign language user.
33
7. Bibliography
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Alhaysony, M. H. (2017) Strategies and Difficulties of Understanding English Idioms: A Case

Study of Saudi University EFL Students. International Journal of English Linguistics, vol. 7, no. 3,
pp. 70-84.
Al-Khawaldeh, N., Jaradat, A., Al-momani, H., Bani-Khair, B. (2016) Figurative Idiomatic
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Al-Tamimi, A., Shuib, M. (2009) Motivation and Attitudes Towards Learning English: A Study of
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Boers, F., Demecheleer, M. (2001) Measuring the impact of cross-cultural differences on learners’
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37
8. Appendices
8.1. Questionnaire
Name: _________________________________________________
Gender (circle): M F
Age: _________
Year of undergraduate study (circle): 1. 2. 3.
Age at which you started learning English: _________
If you were to be graded now in the course Contemporary English Language, what grade
would you have? ____________
The aim of this study is to investigate your opinion as a student of English on learning English
idioms and what you do to acquire new idiomatic expressions. Please read each statement
carefully and circle the number (1-4) that best indicates to which extent you agree or disagree
with the statement.
Scale:
1 = I strongly disagree 3 = I agree
2 = I disagree 4 = I strongly agree
I believe learning English idioms is an important part of the English

language. 1 2 3 4
Authentic texts should accompany the study of idioms. 1 2 3 4

I believe it is necessary to incorporate English idioms ins English
course books. 1 2 3 4
I try to guess the meaning of an idiom by translating it into
Croatian. 1 2 3 4
I learn a new idiom better when a text supports its use. 1 2 3 4

I think idioms are useful in everyday communication. 1 2 3 4
I can learn a new idiom if I revise it on a regular basis. 1 2 3 4
I like to be instructed on how idioms come about. 1 2 3 4
38
I like to learn and practice idioms in a variety of communicative
contexts. 1 2 3 4
I think it is important to encourage English language learners to

learn idioms for effective communication. 1 2 3 4
I like to work things out on my own when learning idioms. 1 2 3 4

I learn an idiom better when video-graphic information supports its
use. 1 2 3 4
I think it is important to teach English idioms in English

classrooms. 1 2 3 4
I would like to expand my knowledge of English idioms. 1 2 3 4

Idioms should be presented in a manner that mirrors real-life
language use. 1 2 3 4
Authentic audio/video recordings should accompany the study of

idioms. 1 2 3 4
I usually look up an unknown idiom in a dictionary. 1 2 3 4

I tend to use idioms in oral communication. 1 2 3 4
Idiom study should progress from the most frequent ones.
1 2 3 4
Knowing English idioms is important for me to perceive cultural
differences and similarities better. 1 2 3 4
I learn idioms better when they are accompanied by a variety of

activities. 1 2 3 4
Knowing English idioms is important for me to understand the

everyday language better. 1 2 3 4
I like to observe how idioms are used in texts and what functions
they fulfill. 1 2 3 4
Knowing the etymology of idioms helps me to acquire them more

quickly. 1 2 3 4
Idioms should be current, interesting, and useful in real-life

situations. 1 2 3 4
Learning English idioms is important for me to get familiar with

the English figurative expressions. 1 2 3 4
Overall, I'm satisfied with my present knowledge of English

idioms. 1 2 3 4
39
Learning to use English idioms in oral communication is necessary
for developing my speaking skill. 1 2 3 4
When learning a new idiom I like to image situations in real life in

which the idiom could be used. 1 2 3 4
Learning to use English idioms is necessary for achieving effective

communication 1 2 3 4
Thank you for your participation!
8.2. Idiom quiz
Name: _____________________________ Date: ______________
Replace the underlined phrases with the appropriate colour idiom.
1. Being only a janitor, Jeff is the failure of the family, especially since his parents and siblings are
all doctors. _______________________
2. My sister lives in Canada, so I get to see her very rarely. _______________________
3. You would not believe all the paperwork Jane had to cut through to finally open her restaurant.
_______________________
4. I had lost all hope of ever seeing her again, when one day she just showed up on our doorstep
completely unexpectedly. _______________________
5. Mary passed her chemistry test with great success. _______________________
6. The boys were trying to steal a car when the police drove by and caught them in the act.
_______________________
7. Sam’s father-in-law gave him an old Rolls Royce for his birthday, but it’s a really useless
possession, since he can’t afford the gas for it. _______________________
8. Tom’s wife revealed her true nature by leaving him when he lost his well-paid job.
_______________________
40

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J. J. Strossmayer University of Osijek

Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences

Attitudes towards idioms and idiom learning strategies

Supervisor: Dr. Višnja Pavičić Takač, Full Professor

Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences

Attitudes towards idioms and idiom learning strategies

Scientific area: humanities

Scientific field: philology

Scientific branch: English studies

Supervisor: Dr. Višnja Pavičić Takač, Full Professor

Filozofski fakultet Osijek

Dvopredmetni sveučilišni diplomski studij engleskog jezika i književnosti i

Stavovi prema idiomima i strategije učenja idioma

Mentor: prof. dr. sc. Višnja Pavičić Takač

Filozofski fakultet Osijek

Dvopredmetni sveučilišni diplomski studij engleskog jezika i književnosti i

Stavovi prema idiomima i strategije učenja idioma

Znanstveno područje: humanističke znanosti

Znanstveno polje: filologija

Znanstvena grana: anglistika

Mentor: prof. dr. sc. Višnja Pavičić Takač

2.1. Defining an idiom ...................................................................................................................... 3

2.2. Features and classifications of idioms ....................................................................................... 4

2.2.1 The influence of culture on idioms ...................................................................................... 5

2.2.2. The importance of idioms ................................................................................................... 5

2.5. Difficulties connected with idiom learning ............................................................................... 6

3. Attitudes in learning English ............................................................................................................ 8

3.1. The importance of attitudes in language learning ..................................................................... 8

3.2. Overview of research on attitudes towards the English language ............................................. 9

3.3. Overview of research on attitudes towards learning idioms in English .................................. 10

4. Strategies of learning idioms in English ........................................................................................ 11

4.1. Overview of research into L1 idiom comprehension strategies .............................................. 12

4.1.2. Relationship between L1 and L2 idiom comprehension strategies .................................. 13

4.2. Overview of research into L2 idiom comprehension strategies .............................................. 14

5.1. Aim and research questions ..................................................................................................... 15

5.2. Participants .............................................................................................................................. 16

5.3. Instrument ................................................................................................................................ 16

5.4. Procedure ................................................................................................................................. 17

5.5. Results ..................................................................................................................................... 18

5.5.1. Descriptive statistical analysis of attitudes ....................................................................... 18

5.5.2. Descriptive statistical analysis of strategies ...................................................................... 20

5.6. Discussion ................................................................................................................................ 26

8.1. Questionnaire ........................................................................................................................... 38

8.2. Idiom quiz ................................................................................................................................ 40

2.1. Defining an idiom

“A form of expression, grammatical construction, phrase, etc., peculiar to a language; a peculiarity

2.2. Features and classifications of idioms

2.2.1 The influence of culture on idioms

2.2.2. The importance of idioms

2.5. Difficulties connected with idiom learning

The acquisition of idiomatic expressions is one of the most outstanding challenges

3.1. The importance of attitudes in language learning

3.2.1. Overview of research on attitudes towards the English language in Croatia

3.3. Overview of research on attitudes towards learning idioms in English

4. Strategies of learning idioms in English

4.1. Overview of research into L1 idiom comprehension strategies

In the past, research on L2 idiom comprehension primarily used theoretical models of L1