Jul 2026· Journal of English Linguistics· Vol 54, pp. 266 - 288· 2 citations· 32 references
Abstract
The aim of this study is to analyze the changes in the frequency and use of obviously over a short period of time in present-day English using comparable spoken corpora. Obviously has both an evidential inferential meaning and intersubjective or engagement meaning where it presents information as shared by the speaker and the hearer. The analysis of the occurrences of obviously shows that it is increasing in frequency as an engagement marker particularly when the use of the first and second person subject suggests a high degree of speaker and hearer presence. The people using obviously as an engagement marker are young, mostly female speakers who use obviously because it is fashionable and new. Specifically, obviously is used instead of of course to express that something is assumed or expected. The rapid rise in frequency of obviously has a parallel in American English which suggests that globalization plays a role for its spread.
With empirical research on Standard Scottish English showing a bias towards phonology, the aim of the current
study is to contribute to the morpho-syntactic documentation of this variety. Relying on Standard Southern British English for
comparison, we concentrate on four eWAVE features on which the varieties have...
Ole Schützler, Lukas Sönning, Fabian Vetter et al.· English World-Wide. A Journa...· 0 citations
The Japanese adverb chotto is commonly introduced as a scalar expression meaning ‘a little’, ‘slightly’, or ‘for a short while’. In actual use, however, it also performs a range of pragmatic functions. Speakers may use it to attract attention, maintain a conversational turn, reduce the directness of a request, signal h...
N. Anh, N. Anh· INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF SOC...· 0 citations
Abstract Colloquial Sinhala is unusual among Indo-Aryan languages in having an evidential system. By means of the hearsay particle lu, the system opposes reportative to evidentially unmarked utterances. Drawing on attested utterances from corpora and grammaticality/acceptability judgments, we describe the distribution...
K. Anandakiththi, T. McGarry· Journal of South Asian langu...· 0 citations
A sentence consists of a deep and surface structure that each structure could contain different propositions in which it is used to transfer meanings to the addressee. This study examines the syntactic structure of a song lyric entitled Not Like Us, which was sung by Kendrick Lamar, to analyse the meanings conveyed in...
Kalla (كَلَّا) is a highly marked particle in Qur’anic Arabic whose semantic and pragmatic force—often associated with deterrence, rebuke, and emphatic warning—has no straightforward equivalent in English. Occurring thirty‑three times, all in the second half of the Holy Qur’an, this particle has long been a point of di...
Omar Abu Rumman· Jordan Journal of Applied Sc...· 0 citations
People from the East have a completely different perception of time compared with Europeans. One of the best ways to understand the mentality of people and the grammar of time in each culture is through the study of languages, where abstract ideas and notions are expressed in concrete terms. Therefore, three languages...
Agita Baltgalve· Culture Crossroads· 0 citations
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