Year: 1995
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: This paper discusses the figurative meanings to the names of different animals in different cultures, and highlights some of the problems language learners and translators face when dealing with single-word conventional metaphor. Informants from thirty–eight geographical regions responded to a questionaire inviting them to comment on the figurative use made of animal names in their cultures. Many common terms such as ‘cat’, ‘cow’ and ‘mouse’ were found to have a wide range of figurative meanings, and discussions with informants revealed that even advanced learners tend to think in terms of the connotations of thier first culture when they encounter or use these words in a figurative sense in English.
Source: ELT Journal
DOI: 10.1093/elt/49.3.272
Author: H. Nesi
Institution: University of Warwick
Language: English
Subfield: Experimental and Cognitive Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W2016308283