Vocabulary of Written Business Communication: Matching the Situational Factors with the Linguistic Features

Abstract

Business language is examined to determine how situational factors are expressed by linguistic features, with focus on vocabulary items for application to English as a foreign language classrooms. Written communications were collected from businesses in Singapore & analyzed for field, tenor, mode of discourse, word frequencies, & collocations. It is found that function words occur most frequently, content words least. Heavily used content words are considered a subtechnical group found in the majority of letters; their major uses are listed. References to time occur often as do references to "just rewards," for which relevant words are given. The determination of material & mental processes & circumstances is described. The importance of the relationship between events is reflected in the structure of communications. Lists of most frequent prepositions & adverbials, personal pronouns, markers for politeness, & modal auxiliaries are given. It is concluded that vocabulary with high frequencies in actual use should have high priority in the classroom; collocational patterns can inform the choice of nominal & verbal groups & establish grammatical patterns to be taught; & discourse structure should be considered. C. Stomberg.