Difficulties and strategies in understanding english idioms

Abstract

This study aims to examine difficulties faced by Algerian kabyle EFL learners and the strategies they employ to comprehend English idioms. The participants in the study were 30 Master One students of English at the university of Bejaia, Algeria. The participants were selected using a convenience sampling technique. A questionnaire and an idiom recognition test were used as instruments to collect the data. The results of the study showed that the Kabyle EFL learners faced several difficulties in comprehending English idioms, including the lack of cultural background, the non-literal nature of idioms, the absence of contextual clues, limited exposure to idiomatic expressions and unfamiliar vocabulary. Moreover, the findings showed that standard idioms were the most difficult for Kabyle EFL learners to understand, followed by informal idioms, while slang idioms were found to be the easiest type. The findings also revealed that Kabyle EFL learners used four strategies to interpret English idioms which are : guessing from the context, referring to an L1 idiom, using background knowledge and using the literal meaning of the idiom. This study is significant as it offers valuable insights for improving idiom instruction and enhancing learners’comprehensionand learning of idioms.