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OKAY across Languages
Toward a comparative approach to its use in talk-in-interaction
OKAY has been termed ‘a spectacular expression’ and ‘America’s greatest invention.’ This volume offers an in-depth empirical study of the uses that have resulted from its global spread. Focusing on actions and interactional practices, it investigates OKAY in a variety of settings in 13 languages. The collected work showcases the importance of a holistic analysis: prosodic realization and the placement of OKAY in its larger sequential and multimodal context emerge as constitutive for distinct uses in individual languages. An inductive approach makes it possible to identify practices not previously documented, for example OKAY used for ‘qualified acceptance’ or as a ‘continuer’, and to document a core of recurrent, similar uses across languages. This work also outlines new research directions for comparative analysis by offering first insights into the diachronic development of OKAY’s uses and the relationship of OKAY to other particles in specific languages.
[Studies in Language and Social Interaction, 34] 2021. vii, 440 pp.
Publishing status: Available
Published online on 1 March 2021
Published online on 1 March 2021
© John Benjamins
Table of Contents
- Acknowledgements | pp. vii–viii
- Chapter 1. Introduction: OKAY emerging as a cross-linguistic object of study in prior researchEmma Betz and Marja-Leena Sorjonen | pp. 2–28
- Chapter 2. Data and methods used in the study of OKAY across languagesArnulf Deppermann and Lorenza Mondada | pp. 30–51
- Generic sequential uses of OKAY across languages
- Chapter 3. OKAY in responding and claiming understandingEmma Betz and Arnulf Deppermann | pp. 56–92
- Chapter 4. OKAY in closings and transitionsLorenza Mondada and Marja-Leena Sorjonen | pp. 94–127
- OKAY in specific languages
- Chapter 5. The prosody and phonetics of OKAY in American EnglishElizabeth Couper-Kuhlen | pp. 132–173
- Chapter 6. Rising OKAY in third position in Danish talk-in-interactionSøren Sandager Sørensen and Jakob Steensig | pp. 176–204
- Chapter 7. OKAY as a response to informings in FinnishAino Koivisto and Marja-Leena Sorjonen | pp. 206–233
- Chapter 8. When OKAY is repeated: Closing the talk so far in Korean and Japanese conversationsSatomi Kuroshima, Stephanie Hyeri Kim, Kaoru Hayano, Mary Shin Kim and Seung-Hee Lee | pp. 236–265
- OKAY in specific activities and settings
- Chapter 9. OKAY in health helpline calls in Brazil: Managing alignment and progressivityAna Cristina Ostermann and Katariina Harjunpää | pp. 270–299
- Chapter 10. A resource for action transition: OKAY and its embodied and material habitatElwys De Stefani and Lorenza Mondada | pp. 302–336
- Chapter 11. OKAY projecting embodied compliance to directivesLeelo Keevallik and Matylda Weidner | pp. 338–362
- Chapter 12. Coordination of OKAY, nods, and gaze in claiming understanding and closing topicsHenrike Helmer, Emma Betz and Arnulf Deppermann | pp. 363–393
- Transcription conventions and glossing symbols
- Appendix. Transcription conventions and glossing symbols | pp. 395–400
- Bibliography | pp. 401–432
- Name index | pp. 433–436
- Subject index | pp. 437–440
“This edited volume directs our attention to the kind of herculean steps necessary to achieve deeper and more pragmatic understandings of OKAYs-in-interaction across languages and cultures — an exemplary contribution examining ordinary moments in extraordinary ways.”
Wayne A. Beach, San Diego State University, in Journal of Pragmatics 190 (2022).
“The volume under review is a most welcome contribution to the study of interaction. It includes meticulous and substantial analyses of the use of one particular linguistic item across several languages, and employs solid methodology within a unified theoretical frame; it will be most appreciated by people who already have some experience with the analysis of similar phenomena. In addition, the book is an excellent example of academic cooperation, evidenced not only in the multiple authorships of the individual chapters and the participation of all authors in the empirical grounding of the cross-linguistic chapters, but also in the extensive cross-referencing among the studies. [...] The four editors have put together an exciting volume that sets new standards for future work, not only on OKAY but also on other particles. The work may well serve as a model for holistic analyses of interaction.”
Theodossia-Soula Pavlidou, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, in Pragmatics and Society 13:4 (2022)
“This volume stands out for its innovative approach, empirical rigor, and comprehensive examination of OKAY in diverse languages and settings. It confirms once again that small words can make a big difference. The editors have successfully brought together a diverse set of studies that speak to the universality and specificity of OKAY as no-small interactional resource. The book’s detailed analyses, interdisciplinary methodology, and theoretical contributions make it a substantial and impactful work in the study of language and interaction.”
Bingyun Li, Zhejiang International Studies University, in Internet Pragmatics 7:2 (2024).
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This list is based on CrossRef data as of 8 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.