The Processing of Fixed Expressions during Sentence Comprehension

Understanding language involves recognition and access to not only individual words, but also to a vast array of fixed expressions idioms, collocations, proverbs, common quotations, names, titles, slogans, song lyrics, etc. The purpose of the present paper is to examine the question of how fixed expressions particularly those with non-literal interpretations are understood during on-line sentence comprehension. The work we present examines cases of both truly fixed expressions and those which are deemed somewhat more malleable but still `idiomatic', with a focus on the processing of these expressions in a language that has a highly productive (active) use of word collocation, particularly for compounds German. We begin by outlining some general assumptions and issues underlying our work. To begin with, there is no clear ground upon which to firmly establish definitions of what constitutes a purely 'literal' vs. 'figurative' (non-literal) expression. Such definition ultimately awaits a monolithic (universal and correct) theory of semantics/syntax. Similarly, distinguishing what are truly fixed expressions vs. expressions with some productive