Modals and Quasi-modals in English

Hedging Through the Use of Modal Auxiliaries in English Academic Discourse

“…The predominant use of may is to be expected as previous studies have shown that may is most typically used as a token of epistemic meaning (Coates, 1983;Collins, 2009). Collins (ibid.…”

“…Moreover, modal auxiliaries also belong to the concept of modality which cuts across the concept of hedging (Markkanen & Schrӧder, 1997;Mauranen, 1997). Discussions of modality, in English particularly, have concentrated mostly on modal auxiliaries (e.g., Coates, 1983;1995;Collins, 2009;Depraetere & Reed, 2006;Palmer, 2001). It is therefore the aim of this article to investigate hedging through the use of modal auxiliaries in English academic writing.…”

Epistemisk positionering i dansk talesprog

“…Forståelsen af de kognitive aspekter af epistemicitet er et centralt forskningsområde i den kognitivt orienterede lingvistik (se fx Boye 2006; T. J. Jensen 2009) ligesom den detaljerede beskrivelse af forskellige sprogs måde at strukturere dette kognitivt-semantiske stof på laenge har vaeret et vigtigt forskningsfelt inden for den traditionelle og funktionelle lingvistik, saerligt hvad angår engelsk (se fx Palmer 1990;westney 1995;Collins 2009;Perkins 1983), men også andre sprog, inklusive dansk (se fx Brandt 1999;Boye 2001aBoye , 2001bHansen & Heltoft 2011). Endvidere findes der også en betydelig maengde forskning i disse emner på tvaers af sprogsystemer (se fx Palmer 2001;van der Auwera & Plungian 1998;Chafe & Nichols 1986;willet 1988).…”

Australian English: Its Evolution and Current State

“…Another category of the verb system that has attracted attention is modality. The modal auxiliaries and quasi-modals have been studied by Collins (2009), who cites independent evidence that while the quasi-modals have been on the rise in recent decades, the modals have been in decline. According to Collins, AusE is more advanced in these developments than British and New Zealand English (but less advanced than American English).…”