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Volume 24, Issue 3
  • ISSN 1384-6655
  • E-ISSN: 1569-9811
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Abstract

Abstract

This article reports initial findings from a study that uses written data from second language (L2) learners of English at different proficiency levels (CEFR A1 to C1) in a large-scale investigation of verb-argument construction (VAC) emergence. The findings provide insights into first VACs in L2 learner production, changes in the learners’ VAC repertoire from low to high proficiency levels, and changes in learners’ dominant verb-VAC associations from low to high proficiency levels. The article also addresses the question what role formulaic sequences play in the L2 acquisition of VACs. Data analyses indicate that, from lowest to highest proficiency levels, the VAC repertoire of L2 English learners shows an increase in VAC types, growth in VAC productivity and complexity, and a development from predominantly fixed sequences to more flexible and productive ones. The findings help to expand our understanding of the processes that underlie construction acquisition in an L2 context.

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2019-08-27
2024-10-05

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A corpus perspective on the development of verb constructions in second language learners
International Journal of Corpus Linguistics 24, 268 (2019); https://doi.org/10.1075/ijcl.00013.roe
/content/journals/10.1075/ijcl.00013.roe
/content/journals/10.1075/ijcl.00013.roe
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  • Article Type: Research Article
Keyword(s): German learners; learner corpus; proficiency development; second language acquisition; verb-argument constructions

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