EXPRESSION OF SUPPOSITION IN SPOKEN ENGLISH
The paper presents a comparative analysis of means expressing the modal meaning of supposition in English. Supposition represents epistemic modality, which is one of the most common modal meanings in world languages, including the English language, where it is realized through different means: modal verbs (modal auxiliaries), modal adverbs, reporting verbs and expressions, modal parenthetical expressions and lexical expressions of supposition. Modality is understood as a broad linguistic category which reflects complex interactions between the communicants, the propositional content which is conveyed in the utterance and reality. Three major types of modal meanings are generally described in linguistic literature: epistemic, deontic and dynamic, although approaches to modality as well as classifications of modal meanings differ a lot. There is much controversy as to which means are commonly used to express supposition. Recent research into the issue has yielded controversial results due to lack of statistics on regional and discourse-type variability observed in the use of means expressing supposition. The paper provides statistics on the frequency of the five above-mentioned means used in spoken language in the two varieties of English – British and American.
Lebedeva, I.S. (2019). Expression of supposition in spoken English. Issues of Applied Linguistics, 3(35), 24-42. doi: 10.25076/vpl.35.02