A contrastive study of English finally/eventually, Dutch eindelijk/uiteindelijk and French finalement/enfin

This paper presents a synchronic study of six adverbial markers — EN finally/eventually, DU eindelijk/uiteindelijk and FR finalement/enfin — all of which can indicate the end of a sequence or the conclusion of a long (thought) process. Using both monolingual and parallel corpora, we developed typologies of their uses and compared the adverbs’ semantico-pragmatic and structural behaviour. Monolingual data clarified the full range of functions in each language, while translation data illuminated intertranslatability and internal variation. Across all three languages, a consistent division of labour emerged: finally, eindelijk, and finalement typically highlight process duration, while eventually, uiteindelijk, and enfin focus on the end result. This contrast was clearly confirmed in the DU/FR translation data, while the DU/EN results showed a more nuanced picture. The study also underscores the unique versatility of French enfin, which presents particular challenges in translation due to its wide range of meanings and uses. By mapping these complex interrelations, the study supports language learners and professionals in navigating superficially equivalent adverbials. More broadly, it shows how a combined translation and contrastive approach can reveal subtle semantic and pragmatic distinctions, offering new insights into cross-linguistic variation in discourse markers.