Proverbs tend to have meanings that are true both literally and figuratively (i.e., Lightning really doesn't strike the same place twice). Consequently, discourse contexts that invite a literal reading of a proverb should provide more conceptual overlap with the proverb, resulting in more rapid processing, than will contexts biased towards a…

Understanding ambiguous words, phrases, and sentences is an important part of reading well, communicating skillfully, and enjoying humor based on word play. With this seven-unit activity book--filled with creative, ready-to-use activities based on jokes and puns--students will learn how to decipher the language ambiguities they encounter inside…

The thrust of the paper is the contention that, in their general application, proverbs are to be understood as a communal property. In specific terms, however, and as Isidore Okpewho, in African Oral Literature... (1992) affirms, "every proverb must have started its life as the product of the genius of an individual oral artist. But it…

The development of mental imagery in relation to the comprehension of concrete proverbs (e.g., "one rotten apple spoils the barrel") was examined in children, adolescents, and adults who were ages 11 to 29 years old (n = 210). The findings indicated that age-related changes occurred in mental imagery and in proverb comprehension during the years…

We often speak about developing students' cultural and intercultural awareness as part of the language learning process. However, these elements are often dealt with superficially and the methods used are somewhat unclear to many practitioners and to learners themselves. As a result, we very often hear that learners do not learn a language at the…

Preparing today's children to be tomorrow's global citizens will require social educators who have knowledge of the histories, experiences, and cultural practices of the children they teach. This article offers culturally responsive pedagogy and the African proverb as frames for teaching African American students to become engaged local and global…

The proverbs and expressions listed in this supplementary Japanese language text are grouped as follows: (1) 161 general proverbs and expressions; (2) 42 slang expressions; and (3) 73 expressions concerning the body. Each entry appears in transliteration as well as in Japanese orthography, with its English gloss. (AMM)

Presents definitions, sources, forms, early uses, and present uses of proverbs, emphasizing the rhetorical value of proverbs in presenting and preserving ethical values. (DD)

This paper suggests the use of Chinese proverbs in the teaching of finance to Chinese-speaking students. Familiar proverbs facilitate teaching to Chinese students by appealing to students' prior knowledge, improving retention of new material, and creating a friendlier classroom environment. Using Chinese proverbs in finance instruction also…

Conventionality can be defined as discourse used in its dominant or most familiar sense. In nonliteral language, the intended message is different from the overt message. It has been demonstrated that nonliteral language can be comprehended as rapidly as literal language if both are placed in linguistic context. A study examined whether this held…

A multiple-baseline, across-skills design demonstrated the effectiveness of a training program in increasing recognition of proverbal idioms by five hearing-impaired adolescents. The training program increased students' ability to correctly pair proverbs and trained descriptive passages. Generalization to untrained passages was also noted.…

The 19-item bibliography surveys the compilations of Mexican-American proverbs published to date and describes each entry (categorized by region--California, New Mexico, Texas, Mexico) in terms of type and quantity of material included, presence or absence of interpretive comments or translations, sources, organization, and accuracy of…

Argues that public management researchers should emulate the scientific approaches of physicists and other scientists. Shows that the creative use of language and stories underlies many of the great advances in physics and engineering and that adoption of certain concepts is related to their practicality. (Author/JOW)

Discusses the derivation and use of several Spanish figures of speech featuring animals--the ox, the cow, the calf and the bull. (Text is in Spanish.) (CHK)

This listing of unusual Spanish proverbs contains words of wisdom on money, doctors, agriculture, students, procrastination, pessimism, war, good and evil, religion, God, and a host of other topics. The topic of each proverb is given in English. (CHK)