This research investigates disciplinary variations using syntactic features in Pakistani academic writing (AW). The corpus of this research is developed from 160 dissertations across four disciplinary divisions and analyzed through AntConc. Results reveal heterogeneous and homogenous use of the said features. Heterogeneity is seen in relation to…

Ambiguities are naturally found in languages and largely categorized into lexical and syntactical ambiguities. They are responsible for ambiguous expressions and may cause confusion in readers; therefore, accurate evaluation of them is critical for clear writing which is one of the prominent prerequisites for academic writing. The literature shows…

Following Swales' (1990) influential study on research article (RA) introductions, some attention has increasingly been paid to other rhetorical units of both expert and learners' writing, including titles. A key and effective discursive means through which titles are constructed and presented is the syntactic configuration. The present study,…

The present study investigates the usage of speech like expressions in written works of Turkish learners of English. It also aims to find out the differences between C1 and B1 level learners in terms of the frequency and types of speech like expressions. The participants in this study were 21 B1 and 33 C1 level students at a state university in…

The present study attempts to identify difficulties that Japanese students encounter with metadiscursive nouns in writing second language (L2) argumentation essays. Metadiscursive nouns are abstract and unspecific nouns which can serve as cohesive markers by retrieving their meanings in the text where they occur. Using a selected number of nouns…

This cross-sectional study compares the written language of Thai EFL students in their first two years of university study. First- and second-year students (N = 170) wrote opinion paragraphs by hand in response to six prompts. Using automated textual analysis tools, clausal (subordination), phrasal (coordinated phrases and complex nominals), and…

The study assesses the extent to which Spanish students of English as a foreign language (EFL) at a B1+ level (CEFR) are able to communicate in English (target language) joy, sadness, fear, and anger emotions. It focuses on perception, by investigating learners' ability to recognise these emotions in a reading task, and production, by examining…

Adjective- noun order errors are a common occurrence throughout all levels of English language students. Based on professional experiences, existing literature and revisiting what some may consider archaic methodologies, this reflective article aims to analyse adjective-noun order errors among Colombian learners of English, understand why it…

Purpose: This study was designed primarily to examine the use of abstract nouns and metacognitive verbs in the narrative writing of school-age children and adolescents. Method: Three groups of typically developing students ages 11, 14, and 17 years (n = 40 per group) were asked to write a story about something funny, sad, or scary that had…

The recent "TESOL Quarterly" article by Biber, Gray, and Poonpon (2011) raises important considerations with respect to the use of syntactic complexity (SC) measures in second language (L2) studies. The article draws the field's attention to one particular measure--complexity of noun phrases (NP) (i.e., noun phrases with modifiers, such as…

The process of writing journal articles is increasingly being seen as a collaborative process, especially where the authors are English as an Additional Language (EAL) academics. This study examines the changes made in terms of register to EAL writers' journal articles by a native-speaker writing centre advisor at a private university in Turkey.…

To study the neural bases of semantic composition in language processing without confounds from syntactic composition, recent magnetoencephalography (MEG) studies have investigated the processing of constructions that exhibit some type of syntax-semantics mismatch. The most studied case of such a mismatch is "complement coercion;" expressions such…

BASED ON A TRADITIONAL APPROACH, THIS REFERENCE GRAMMAR OF LITERARY DHIMOTIKI IS DESIGNED TO BE MOST USEFUL TO ADVANCED UNDERGRADUATES OR BEGINNING GRADUATE STUDENTS OF GREEK. (DHIMOTIKI, OR DEMOTIC, IS THE POPULAR FORM OF MODERN GREEK.) IN PART I THERE IS AN EXTENSIVE DESCRIPTION OF THE PHONOLOGICAL SYSTEM FOLLOWED BY A DISCUSSION OF THE WRITING…

A system for teaching advanced English as second language students how to use "a,""an," and "the" in writing is described. In deciding whether to use a definite or indefinite article, the student is taught to ask three questions about the context and nature of the noun: (1) has it been mentioned before in the composition, (2) is there anything…

This study examined Norwegian seventh graders' English writing, investigating how close their writing in English was to their writing in Norwegian and how levels of performance in second language writing were linked to broader issues (curriculum guidelines, extensive reading, contact time with the target language, and teacher qualifications).…