Teaching Idiomatic Expressions in Context through Focus on Form Techniques

Abstract

A great deal of attention has been paid to the role of idiomatic language in learning a second language. It has been recently recognized by some second language researchers (e.g. Danesi, 2003) that second language speakers may sound unnatural if their speech is devoid of idiomatic language. This article is an attempt to see how the acquisition of idioms can be achieved on the part of EFL students through focus of form techniques. At the end, a number of exercises are provided that are thought to expedite the process of the acquisition of this ubiquitous part of language.