Conceptualization of Phrasal Verbs with 'Over' by Native and Non-native Speakers: A Cognitive Linguistics Perspective

Authors

  • Mohammad Alsmadi

    Department of General Linguistics and Literature Theory, Faculty of Philosophy and Letters, University of Granada, Granada 18071, Spain
  • Mohammad Rayyan

    Department of European Languages, School of Foreign Languages, The University of Jordan, Amman 11942, Jordan
  • Nimer Abusalim

    Department of European Languages, School of Foreign Languages, The University of Jordan, Amman 11942, Jordan
  • Abdel Rahman Mitib Altakhaineh

    Department of European Languages, School of Foreign Languages, The University of Jordan, Amman 11942, Jordan

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.30564/fls.v7i11.11298
Received: 28 July 2025 | Revised: 11 August 2025 | Accepted: 29 August 2025 | Published Online: 23 October 2025

Abstract

This comparative study investigates how native and non-native English speakers conceptualize phrasal verbs formed with the preposition over. It examines their ability to parse these verbs semantically and syntactically, focusing on metaphor, prototypical meaning, dynamicity, and the spatial relationship between the trajector (TR) and the landmark (LM). In this framework, the TR represents the dynamic action or process metaphorically expressed by the phrasal verb, while the LM refers to the spatial or conceptual location toward which the action is directed. Differences related to language proficiency are also explored. The study employed a test consisting of eight sentences containing phrasal verbs with over, administered to two groups of students (30 native and 30 non-native speakers). Participants were asked to illustrate the situations described by the sentences. A qualitative analysis of the drawings enabled a comparison between the groups. Findings reveal a significant correlation between linguistic proficiency and visual conceptualization skills. Native speakers consistently demonstrated greater awareness of dynamic processes and metaphorical meanings, while non-native learners showed relatively more literal interpretations. Moreover, the disparity between groups increased proportionally with the degree of metaphoricity in the phrasal verb. Pedagogically, the results underscore the value of organizing prepositional meanings into systematic cognitive networks, offering a powerful tool for teaching and learning complex multiword expressions.

Keywords:

Phrasal Verbs; Cognitive Linguistics; Semantics; Spatial Relations; English Language; Language Proficiency

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How to Cite

Alsmadi, M., Rayyan, M., Abusalim, N., & Mitib Altakhaineh, A. R. (2025). Conceptualization of Phrasal Verbs with ’Over’ by Native and Non-native Speakers: A Cognitive Linguistics Perspective. Forum for Linguistic Studies, 7(11), 961–979. https://doi.org/10.30564/fls.v7i11.11298

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Vol. 7 , Iss. 11 (November 2025): In progress

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Article

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Copyright © 2025 Mohammad Alsmadi, Mohammad Rayyan, Nimer Abusalim, Abdel Rahman Mitib Altakhaineh

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This is an open access article under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0) License.