A corpus-based evaluation of metaphors in a business English textbook

This study aims to evaluate the selection of metaphors in a published business English textbook using findings from a specialised corpus of written business English. While most scholars agree that metaphors should be included in English for Specific Purposes (ESP) syllabuses as a potentially problematic area in successful language learning, it is still not entirely clear which metaphors should be taught. In this study, metaphorical words and phrases from the aforementioned business English textbook were contrasted with the metaphors identified in a sample of the corpus of business periodical and journal articles. The results obtained from this analysis reveal only a slight overlap between the textbook metaphors and the metaphors from the corpus sample, ranging from two to three items depending on the source domain examined. The frequency analysis of the textbook metaphors in the whole of the corpus indicated that nearly a third of them were never used, while others registered varying frequency values. Similar frequency ranges were noted for the corpus sample metaphors. These findings suggest that the corpus evidence, including frequency data, should be considered when selecting teachable metaphorical material for business English instruction. Other corpus data related to metaphor collocational patterns and to the preference in the choice of metaphorical synonyms further confirm the need to base the selection of metaphors for classroom instruction on real language use. (C) 2009 The American University. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.