World knowledge in interpreting the literal and figurative meaning of idioms

What is it about?

Metaphorical idioms have both a literal and a figurative meaning. The relationship between these two meanings can be clear to varying degrees (i.e. the degree of semantic transparency). This research examines how world knowledge can contribute to the way in which people interpret and understand such literal-figurative relationships.

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Why is it important?

The nature of semantic transparency is a hotly debated issue among scholars. Much of the debate centers around the role of conceptual metaphors for explaining how idioms are understood by native speakers. Yet no studies have empirically investigated the role of world knowledge for a large number of metaphorical idioms. This research builds upon previous research by showing how world knowledge contributes to accounting for the way in which native speakers interpret the relationship between the literal and figurative meanings of metaphorical idioms.