Translating Idiomatic Expressions: A Systematic Review

Idiomatic expressions represent a profound challenge in translation due to their non-literal meanings, cultural embeddedness, and fixed linguistic forms. Drawing on information from significant theoretical frameworks and empirical research, this study systematically reviewed the most commonly used models and the primary translation strategies employed to translate idioms across various language pairs. The study aimed to provide a comprehensive overview of the current state of knowledge in this complex field. The review highlighted the complex nature of idioms and the primary difficulties they present, including semantic opacity and cultural specificity. The review revealed that while perfect equivalence is rare, paraphrasing (28.26%) is the core strategy used across different language pairs, followed by omission (19.56%) and translating an idiom of similar meaning but different form (17.39%). In addition, Mona Baker’s (1992) framework is the most commonly used model for analyzing idiom translation. The review also discussed factors that affect strategy selection across various language pairs, including linguistic and cultural distance, context, text type, target audience, and translation purpose. It also proposed avenues for future research, particularly concerning less-resourced languages and the impact of evolving translation technologies. Finally, it highlighted areas that require further investigation, including the need for studies in languages with limited resources and the evaluation of Neural Machine Translation's (NMT) idiomatic performance.