• Asia Pacific Journal of Corpus Research
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.23-34
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• 2021

This research examines Japanese non-native speakers' (JNNS) modal auxiliary verb use from two different perspectives: frequency of use and preferences for modalities. Additionally, error analysis is carried out to identify errors in modal use common among JNNSs. Their modal use is compared to that of English native speakers within a spoken dialogue corpus which is part of the International Corpus Network of Asian Learners' English. Research findings show at a statistically significant level that when compared to native speakers, JNNSs underuse past forms of modals and infrequently convey epistemic modality, indicating the possibility that JNNSs fail to express their opinions or thoughts indirectly when needed or to convey politeness appropriately. Error analysis identifies the following three types of common errors: (1) the use of incorrect tenses of modal verb phrases, (2) the use of inflected verb forms after modals, and (3) the non-use of main verbs after modals. The first type of error is largely because JNNSs do not master how to express past meanings of modals. The second and third types of errors seem to be due to first language transfer into second language acquisition and JNNSs' overgeneralization of the subject-verb agreement rules to modals respectively.

• English Language & Literature Teaching
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• v.12 no.3
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• pp.99-122
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• 2006

The purpose of this paper is to explain the meanings and uses of the English auxiliaries SHALL/WILL. The complexity of modern usage of SHALL/WILL has been one of the most disputable themes of traditional English grammar. The paper purported to address the study and analysis of diachronic and synchronic approach to the two auxiliaries. A general view of the figures of Fries'(1925) survey was added for further investigation. The results of the study showed that these auxiliaries express some of various modal meanings associated with the volitional or emotional attitude of the speaker without implying futurity. The findings also suggested that the use of SHALL in present-day English is restricted to non-volitional future with the first person but the practice of this use is also diminished by the expansion of the use of WILL, and the original meaning of WILL, 'to desire or wish', has generally been replaced by other verbs or modal forms. But sentences which seem to indicate futurity are often tinged with modal senses. Therefore, WILL/SHALL should be considered to act either as tense auxiliary or as modal auxiliary depending on situational contexts in which it occurs.

• Language and Information
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.33-52
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• 2014

This paper proposes a unified structural account of some instances of the English Modals and Semi-auxiliaries. The classification and the syntactic/structural description of the English Modal auxiliary verbs and verb-related elements have long been the center for many proposals in the history of generative syntax. According to van Gelderen (1993) and Lightfoot (2002), it was sometime around 1380 that the Tense-node (T) appeared in the phrasal structures of the English language, and the T-node is under which the English Modal auxiliaries occupy. Closely related is the existing evidence that English Modals were used as main verbs up to the early sixteenth century (Lightfoot 1991, Han 2000). This paper argues for a bi-clausal approach to English Modal auxiliaries with the infinitival particle 'to' such as 'ought to' 'used to' and 'dare (to)' 'need (to)', etc. and Semi-auxiliaries including 'be to' and 'have to'. More specifically, 'ought' in 'ought to' constructions, for instance, undergoes V-to-T movement within the matrix clause, just like 'HAVEAux' and all instances of 'BE', whereas 'to' occupies the T position of the embedded complement clause. By proposing the bi-clausal account, Radford's (2004, 2009) problems can be solved. Further, the historical motivation for the account takes a stance along with Norde (2009) and Brinton & Traugott (2005) in that Radford's (2004, 2009) syncretization of the two positions of the infinitival particle 'to' is no different from the 'boundary loss' in the process of Grammariticalization. This line of argument supports Krug's (2011), and in turn Bolinger's(1980) generalization on Auxiliaryhood, while providing a novel insight into Head movement of V-to-T in Present Day English.

• Korean Linguistics
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• v.74
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• pp.1-24
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• 2017

This paper investigated -eullanjira sentence as a kind of construction of the Southwestern dialect in Korea. Five informants were selected to form the main corpus of -eullanjira. Through analyzing the corpus, its semantic, syntactic and morphological characteristics were figured out. Firstly, a view of construction grammar was adopted to capture the semantic and syntactic characteristics of -eullanjira. The construction of -eullanjira was established as "Xdo Yeullanjira Z". Syntactically, -do was found to be a common auxiliary particle, which allowed nouns, adverbs, verbs and adjectives to appear at the position of X, while only verbs and adjectives could appear at the position of Y. Subject-honorific, causative and passive prefinal endings could coexist with Y, while tense and modal prefinal endings could not. Z was an embedded clause, which had the semantic feature of [-DOUBT], meaning 'it should be done undoubtedly'. The formation of -eullanjira was next examined both diachronically and synchronically. It was found there was a conjuntive ending of Middle Korean, corresponding -eullanjira, namely, -landai. Finally, -eullanjira was newly analyzed as [[-eulla-]+[-n-ji-ra]].