TEACHING ENGLISH IDIOMS THROUGH UZBEK PROVERBS: A COMPARATIVE APPROACH

Abstract

Learning idioms is challenging for English language learners because their meanings are metaphorical. In Uzbekistan, where learners grow up with a rich tradition of proverbs, leveraging this cultural familiarity can be helpful to learn English idioms easily. In the following article, we will learn the effectiveness of teaching English idioms through comparisons with Uzbek proverbs. Research conducted among 20 students majoring in English shows that comprehension and retention rates of students exposed to idioms via Uzbek equivalents are higher. The findings suggest that adding native proverbs into ESL textbooks can be a powerful pedagogical way to bridge cultural and linguistic gaps.