Resumen de Avoidance of idioms in a second language: The effect of L1-L2 degree of similarity

Batia Laufer

• The study investigates whether avoidance of L2 (English) idioms is determined by the degree of similarity to their L1 (Hebrew) counterparts. Four degrees of similarity were established through a three-dimensional framework for L1-L2 comparison. 56 university English majors were tested on 20 idioms (5 per each type), elicited by a fill-in translation test. The totals of idiomatic and non-idiomatic responses were compared for each student, for each idiom type. Results showed that idioms as a category were not avoided, that L2 proficiency was a factor in idiom avoidance and that avoidance of specific idiom types was related to L1-L2 degrees of similarity.