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Evidentiality Revisited: Cognitive grammar, functional and discourse-pragmatic perspectives
Edited by Juana I. Marín-Arrese, Gerda Haßler and Marta Carretero
[Pragmatics & Beyond New Series 271] 2017
► pp. 195–223

Chapter 8
Multifunctionality of evidential expressions in discourse domains and genres

Evidence from cross-linguistic case studies

| Universidad Complutense de Madrid

This paper examines the phenomenon of multifunctionality of evidential expressions in unscripted oral discourse and in journalistic discourse in English and Spanish. The paper examines the distribution of evidential expressions in relation to discourse-domain, genre-related or language-related distinctions, as well as the similarities or differences in multifunctionality of evidential expressions in the two languages, and the degree to which certain evidential values are associated with particular constructions. Results point to significant similarities across languages in both genre-related preferred types of evidential expressions, and to certain cross-linguistic differences in the degree to which there are correlations between evidential values and evidential constructions.

Keywords: evidentiality, multifunctionality, inferential, reportative, constructions
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Evidentiality in discourse
    • 2.1Epistemicity and evidentiality
    • 2.2Functions of evidentiality
    • 2.3Semantic extensions in TAM systems
    • 2.4Multifunctionality of evidential expressions
    • 2.5Evidential functional values and constructions with ‘seem/appear’ and ‘parecer’
  • 3.The case studies
    • 3.1The texts
    • 3.2Case studies: Research questions and hypothesis
    • 3.3Research objectives and procedure
  • 4.Results and discussion
    • 4.1Case Study 1: Results in genres of Journalistic Discourse
    • 4.2Multifunctionality and constructions with ‘seem’ and ‘parecer’
  • 5.Conclusion
  • Acknowledgements
  • Notes
  • References
  • Appendix
Published online: 21 March 2017
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/pbns.271.09mar
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