Is a saint a sorcerer?

Metaphorical competence and conceptual fluency

Abstract

The feeling that native language speakers often resort to expressions that are difficult to understand literally is common among foreign language learners. Indeed, different languages ??organize the world differently. Metaphorical competence and conceptual fluency are generally not explicitly addressed in Portuguese as a Non-Native Language (PLNM) or Portuguese as a Foreign Language (PFL) classes, although metaphorical language is present in everyday life and is not exclusive to literary texts. In this sense, it is important to consider its implications for the language teaching and learning process in order to increase the communicative competence of PLNM/PFL speakers by developing not only lexical competence but also the ability to understand and produce culturally appropriate metaphors. This article considers that knowledge of a language implies, among other things, knowing its metaphors, as well as metaphorizing within them.