Cover not available

In:New Approaches to English Linguistics: Building bridges
Edited by Olga Timofeeva, Anne-Christine Gardner, Alpo Honkapohja and Sarah Chevalier
[Studies in Language Companion Series 177] 2016
► pp. 213–249

Get fulltext from our e-platform
JBE logo with link
PDF logo with download linkDownload Book PDF
authorization required

Discourse markers in L2 English

From classroom to naturalistic input

 | Université catholique de Louvain / FNRS
Published online: 1 November 2016
DOI logo with link
https://doi.org/10.1075/slcs.177.09gil
This chapter investigates how the context of acquisition, and more precisely the amount of naturalistic input received, may influence non-native speakers’ knowledge of English discourse markers. It considers three levels of analysis, from the more individual (foreign language learners having spent different periods of time in a target language country) to the more general (foreign language setting vs. official language setting), over an intermediate level of analysis comparing populations of foreign language learners from different countries. The corpus study carried out suggests that a higher degree of exposure to naturalistic language tends to have a positive impact on learners’ knowledge of discourse markers, resulting in more frequent use, better approximation of native speaker frequencies and, possibly, more fluent usage.
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Second language acquisition of discourse markers
  • 3.Research questions
  • 4.Data and methodology
  • 5.The use of discourse markers by learners with varying degrees of naturalistic input
    • 5.1Overall results
    • 5.2Length of stay in a target-language country
    • 5.3EFL-like vs. ESL-like environment
    • 5.4Foreign vs. institutionalised second-language varieties of English
    • 5.5A more qualitative peek
  • 6.Discussion and conclusion
  • Notes
  • References
References (43)
References
Aijmer, Karin. 2004. Pragmatic markers in spoken interlanguage. Nordic Journal of English Studies 3(1): 173–190.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 2011. Well I’m not sure I think… The use of well by non-native speakers. International Journal of Corpus Linguistics 16: 231–254. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Andersen, Gisle. 2011. Corpus-based pragmatics I: Qualitative studies. In Foundations of Pragmatics, Wolfram Bublitz & Neal R. Norrick (eds), 587–627. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Aşik, Asuman & Cephe, Paşa Tevfik. 2013. Discourse markers and spoken English: Nonnative use in the Turkish EFL setting. English Language Teaching 6(12): 144–155. <[URL]>
Brinton, Laurel J. 1996. Pragmatic Markers in English. Grammaticalization and Discourse Functions. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
De Cock, Sylvie. 2004. Preferred sequences of words in NS and NNS speech. Belgian Journal of English Language and Literature (BELL) 2: 225–246.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Edwards, Alison. 2016. English in the Netherlands. Functions, Forms and Attitudes [Varieties of English around the World G56]. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Fuller, Janet M. 2003. The influence of speaker roles on discourse marker use. Journal of Pragmatics 35: 23–45. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Fung, Loretta & Carter, Ronald. 2007. Discourse markers and spoken English: Native and learner use in pedagogic settings. Applied Linguistics 28(3): 410–439. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Gilquin, Gaëtanelle. 2008. Hesitation markers among EFL learners: Pragmatic deficiency or difference? In Pragmatics and Corpus Linguistics. A Mutualistic Entente, Jesús Romero-Trillo (ed.), 119–149. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 2015b. From design to collection of learner corpora. In The Cambridge Handbook of Learner Corpus Research, Sylviane Granger, Gaëtanelle Gilquin & Fanny Meunier (eds), 9–34. Cambridge: CUP. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Gilquin, Gaëtanelle, De Cock, Sylvie & Granger, Sylviane. 2010. The Louvain International Database of Spoken English Interlanguage. Handbook and CD-ROM. Louvain-la-Neuve: Presses universitaires de Louvain.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Gilquin, Gaëtanelle & Granger, Sylviane. 2011. From EFL to ESL: Evidence from the International Corpus of Learner English. In Mukherjee & Hundt (eds), 55–78.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 2015. Learner language. In The Cambridge Handbook of English Corpus Linguistics, Douglas Biber & Randi Reppen (eds), 418–435. Cambridge: CUP. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Gilquin, Gaëtanelle & Paquot, Magali. 2008. Too chatty: Learner academic writing and register variation. English Text Construction 1(1): 41–61. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Goddard, Cliff. 1994. The meaning of lah: Understanding “emphasis” in Malay (Bahasa Melayu). Oceanic Linguistics 33(1): 145–165. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Greenbaum, Sidney (ed.). 1996. Comparing English Worldwide. The International Corpus of English. Oxford: Clarendon Press.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Gut, Ulrike. 2012. The LeaP corpus. A multilingual corpus of spoken learner German and learner English. In Multilingual Corpora and Multilingual Corpus Analysis [Hamburg Studies on Multilingualism 14], Thomas Schmidt & Kai Wörner (eds), 3–23. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Hellermann, John & Vergun, Andrea. 2007. Language which is not taught: The discourse marker use of beginning adult learners of English. Journal of Pragmatics 39(1): 157–179. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Li, Min & Xiao, Yan. 2012. A comparative study on the use of the discourse marker “well” by Chinese learners of English and native English speakers. International Journal of English Linguistics 2(5): 65–71. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Llanes, Àngels & Muñoz, Carmen. 2009. A short stay abroad: Does it make a difference? System 37: 353–365. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Low, Ee Ling & Deterding, David. 2003. A corpus-based description of particles in spoken Singapore English. In English in Singapore. Research on Grammar, David Deterding, Low Ee Ling & Adam Brown (eds), 58–66. Singapore: McGraw-Hill Education.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
McArthur, Tom. 2003. World English, Euro-English, Nordic English? English Today 19(1): 54–58. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Mukherjee, Joybrato & Hundt, Marianne (eds). 2011. Exploring Second-Language Varieties of English and Learner Englishes. Bridging a Paradigm Gap [Studies in Corpus Linguistics 44]. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Mukherjee, Joybrato & Rohrbach, Jan-Marc. 2006. Rethinking applied corpus linguistics from a language-pedagogical perspective: New departures in learner corpus research. In Planing, Gluing and Painting Corpora: Inside the Applied Corpus Linguist’s Workshop, Bernhard Kettemann & Georg Marko (eds), 205–232. Frankfurt: Peter Lang.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Müller, Simone. 2005. Discourse Markers in Native and Non-native English Discourse [Pragmatics & Beyond New Series 138]. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Nayar, P. Bhaskaran. 1997. ESL/EFL dichotomy today: Language politics or pragmatics? TESOL Quarterly 31: 9–37. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Overstreet, Maryann. 2012. Pragmatic expressions in cross-linguistic perspective. Applied Research in English 1(2): 1–13.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Pahta, Päivi & Taavitsainen, Irma. 2011. English in intranational public discourse. In The Languages and Linguistics of Europe. A Comprehensive Guide, Bernd Kortmann & Johan van der Auwera (eds), 605–619. Berlin: De Gruyter. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Ren, Wei. 2014. A longitudinal investigation into L2 learners’ cognitive processes during study abroad. Applied Linguistics 35(5): 575–594. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Rieger, Caroline L. 2003. Disfluencies and hesitation strategies in oral L2 tests. In Proceedings of Disfluency In Spontaneous Speech (DISS) Workshop, 5–8 September 2003, Göteborg University, 41–44.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Romero Trillo, Jesús. 2002. The pragmatic fossilization of discourse markers in non-native speakers of English. Journal of Pragmatics 34(6): 769–784. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Sankoff, Gillian, Thibault, Pierrette, Nagy, Naomi, Blondeau, Hélène, Fonollosa, Marie-Odile & Gagnon, Lucie. 1997. Variation in the use of discourse markers in a language contact situation. Language Variation and Change 9(2): 191–217. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Schourup, Lawrence C. 1985. Common Discourse Particles in English Conversation. New York, NY: Garland.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Shimada, Kazunari. 2014. Contrastive Interlanguage Analysis of discourse markers used by nonnative and native English speakers. JALT Journal 36(1): 47–67.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Siyanova, Anna & Schmitt, Norbert. 2007. Native and nonnative use of multi-word vs. one-word verbs. International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching (IRAL) 45: 119–139.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Siyanova-Chanturia, Anna. 2015. Collocation in beginner learner writing: A longitudinal study. System 53: 148–160. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Strevens, Peter. 1992. English as an international language: Directions in the 1990s. In The Other Tongue. English Across Cultures, 2nd edn, Braj B. Kachru (ed.), 27–47. Urbana, IL: University of Illinois Press.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Svartvik, Jan. 1980. Well in conversation. In Studies in English Linguistics for Randolph Quirk, Sidney Greenbaum, Geoffrey Leech & Jan Svartvik (eds), 167–177. London: Longman.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Wong, Jock. 2004. The particles of Singapore English: A semantic and cultural interpretation. Journal of Pragmatics 36: 739–793. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Zhao, Hongwei. 2013. A study on the pragmatic fossilization of discourse markers among Chinese English learners. Journal of Language Teaching and Research 4(4): 707–714. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Cited by (26)

Cited by 26 other publications

Deng, Delin
2025. The frequency of French discourse markers in L2 speech and the impact of extralinguistic factors. In Applying Corpora in Teaching and Learning Romance Languages [Studies in Corpus Linguistics, 122], ► pp. 206 ff. DOI logo
Gupta, Deepti
2025. 2018–19: Exploring the Territory. In Evolution of English Language Teaching, ► pp. 133 ff. DOI logo
Leimgruber, Jakob R. E. & Sofia Rüdiger
2025. Discourse-pragmatic like in East Asian Englishes. In World Englishes in their Local Multilingual Ecologies [Hamburg Studies on Linguistic Diversity, 9], ► pp. 317 ff. DOI logo
Ahmed, Abdelhamid M., Xiao Zhang, Lameya M. Rezk & Wajdi Zaghouani
2024. Building an Annotated L1 Arabic/L2 English Bilingual Writer Corpus: The Qatari Corpus of Argumentative Writing (QCAW). Corpus-based Studies across Humanities 1:1 ► pp. 183 ff. DOI logo
Sbranna, Simona, Simon Wehrle & Martine Grice
2024. A multi-dimensional analysis of backchannels in L1 German, L1 Italian and L2 German. Language, Interaction and Acquisition 15:2 ► pp. 243 ff. DOI logo
Huang, Lan-fen, Yen-liang Lin & Tomáš Gráf
2023. Development of the use of discourse markers across different fluency levels of CEFR. Pragmatics. Quarterly Publication of the International Pragmatics Association (IPrA) 33:1 ► pp. 49 ff. DOI logo
Huo, Huican
2023. A Corpus-Based Study on Discourse Markers in Native and Non-native Spoken English. In Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on Education, Language and Art (ICELA 2022), ► pp. 167 ff. DOI logo
Lorenz, Eliane
2022. “We Use English But Not Like All the Time Like”—Discourse Marker Like in UAE English. Frontiers in Communication 7 DOI logo
Borreguero Zuloaga, Margarita & Anna De Marco
2021. The Role of Immersion and Non-immersion Contexts in L2 Acquisition: A Study Based on the Analysis of Interactional Discourse Markers. Corpus Pragmatics 5:1 ► pp. 121 ff. DOI logo
Borreguero Zuloaga, Margarita, Kathrin Siebold & Britta Thörle
2021. Methodological Approaches to Studying Discourse Particles in L2. Corpus Pragmatics 5:1 ► pp. 1 ff. DOI logo
Crible, Ludivine, Mathis Wetzel & Sandrine Zufferey
2021. Lexical and Structural Cues to Discourse Processing in First and Second Language. Frontiers in Psychology 12 DOI logo
Le Foll, Elen
2021. Register variation in school EFL textbooks. Register Studies 3:2 ► pp. 207 ff. DOI logo
Rüdiger, Sofia
2021. Likein Korean English speech. World Englishes DOI logo
Wolk, Christoph, Sandra Götz & Katja Jäschke
2021. Possibilities and Drawbacks of Using an Online Application for Semi-automatic Corpus Analysis to Investigate Discourse Markers and Alternative Fluency Variables. Corpus Pragmatics 5:1 ► pp. 7 ff. DOI logo
Öztürk, Yusuf & Gül Durmuşoğlu Köse
2021. “Well (er) You Know …”: Discourse Markers in Native and Non-native Spoken English. Corpus Pragmatics 5:2 ► pp. 223 ff. DOI logo
ŞAHİN KIZIL, Aysel
2021. Discourse Markers in Learner Speech: A Corpus Based Comparative Study. Dil Eğitimi ve Araştırmaları Dergisi 7:1 ► pp. 1 ff. DOI logo
Gilquin, Gaëtanelle
2019. Light verb constructions in spoken L2 English. International Journal of Learner Corpus Research 5:2 ► pp. 181 ff. DOI logo
Gilquin, Gaëtanelle
2020. Learner Corpora. In A Practical Handbook of Corpus Linguistics, ► pp. 283 ff. DOI logo
Rosen, Anna
2019. The use of smallwords in the speech of German learners of English. In Learner Corpora and Language Teaching [Studies in Corpus Linguistics, 92], ► pp. 219 ff. DOI logo
Rosen, Anna
2019. The use of smallwords in the speech of German learners of English. In Learner Corpora and Language Teaching [Studies in Corpus Linguistics, 92], ► pp. 219 ff. DOI logo
Unuabonah, Foluke Olayinka
2019. Frequency and Stylistic Variability of Discourse Markers in Nigerian English. Corpus Pragmatics 3:3 ► pp. 249 ff. DOI logo
Meriläinen, Lea
2018. The progressive form and its functions in spoken learner English. International Journal of Learner Corpus Research 4:2 ► pp. 164 ff. DOI logo
Meriläinen, Lea
2020. The progressive form and its functions in spoken learner English. In Tense and Aspect in Second Language Acquisition and Learner Corpus Research [Benjamins Current Topics, 108], ► pp. 23 ff. DOI logo
Werner, Valentin
2017. Adversative Pragmatic Markers in Learner Language: A Cross-Sectional Perspective. Corpus Pragmatics 1:2 ► pp. 135 ff. DOI logo
[no author supplied]
2018. Discourse Markers and (Dis)fluency [Pragmatics & Beyond New Series, 286], DOI logo
[no author supplied]
2024. Textbook English [Studies in Corpus Linguistics, 116], DOI logo

This list is based on CrossRef data as of 3 december 2025. Please note that it may not be complete. Sources presented here have been supplied by the respective publishers. Any errors therein should be reported to them.

Mobile Menu Logo with link to supplementary files background Layer 1 prag Twitter_Logo_Blue