A Native‐Like Ability to Circumlocute

Abstract

The ability to circumlocute successfully is of utmost importance in compensating for gaps in lexical knowledge. Although all studies indicate that one’s ability to circumlocute increases with increasing proficiency, it is interesting that little attention has been paid to those learners who have the greatest ability to circumlocute, native‐like speakers. This study addresses the norms of native and native‐like circumlocution. It expands the discussion of strategies involved in this skill to include the means by which speakers frame their message and thereby set the linguistic context for their listeners. Participants in this study, both native and native‐like speakers, were found to employ similar strategies while circumlocuting, including the use of synonyms, analogies, and descriptions. These participants also consistently framed their speech to facilitate listener comprehension, and they frequently included in their discourse some reference to their status as a nonexpert in the field. Similarities in native and native‐like circumlocution found in this study help to provide some empirical validation to the notion of “native‐like.”

Avoidance behavior in US university Spanish‐language instruction

“…Dagut and Laufer 1985;Bley-Vroman and Houng 1988;Hulstijn and Marchena 1989;Seliger 1989;Zhao 1989;Kamimoto, Shimura, and Kellerman 1992;Laufer and Eliasson 1993;Li 1996;Liao and Fukuya 2004), a much more a limited amount of research is available that directly describes the development of avoidance behavior among L2 learners. For example, Jourdain (2000) analyzed CS use among six female French US university instructors, three native speakers of French possessing advanced levels of English-language proficiency, and three native English-speakers possessing advanced levels of French language proficiency. This study asked the participants to describe a number of lesscommon objects (i.e.…”

On the importance of circumlocution in the Spanish language classroom

“…Many previous works have stressed the importance of "communication strategies" or the linguistic tools at the disposal of an L2 to successfully interact with an L1 speaker for the development of "communicative competence" (see inter alia Tarone, 1977;Canale and Swain, 1980;Savignon, 1983;Paribakht, 1985;Dörneyi andThurrell, 1991, andJourdain, 2000). It is one skill that students can use when linguistic repair is needed.…”

“…We define circumlocution broadly, namely as the ability to explain a lexical concept for which the L2 speaker has no word (or can retrieve none) in his/her lexicon (cf. Jourdain, 1985;2000).…”

“…Several scholars (inter alia Berry-Bravo, 1994;Liskin-Gasparo, 1996;Salomone and Marsal, 1996;Jourdain, 2000) have pointed out that circumlocution is spelled out in the ACTFL guidelines. In the latest version of the proficiency guideline on speaking, circumlocution, as an effective communicative strategy, is one of the defining characteristics of Advanced High, and Intermediate-High, speaking levels:…”

L2 Learners' Communication Strategies: A Data Convergence Analysis

“…Supporting these roles of CSs in language learning, Nakatani [8] stated that the use of specific CSs can play a role in improving learners' oral proficiency. As learners become more proficient in the target language, their ability to use CSs becomes more native-like [9].…”