A corpus-based analysis of patterned structures and semantic types used by learners of English

OpenAlex English

The use of patterned structures by language learners of different native language backgrounds needs to be investigated to better understand the degree of formulaicity. This mixed-method study investigates how EFL learners with Turkish, Japanese, and Norwegian L1s use verb-noun patterns in argumentation compared to native speakers of English. Data was obtained from the International Corpus of Learner English (version 3), which include essays written by university students with diverse L1 backgrounds and the LOCNESS, a native corpus. The research was conducted between Fall 2022 and Spring 2023 as part of a Master’s thesis. Using Contrastive Interlanguage Analysis (CIA) and Corpus Pattern Analysis (CPA), the study reveals that accept and allow are statistically significant for further qualitative examination. The qualitative findings indicate inconsistent usage patterns for Turkish and Norwegian learners, while Turkish and Japanese learners showed more consistency. These results highlight the importance of raising learners’ awareness of verb-noun patterns. One pedagogical implication is that teaching materials could integrate verb-noun collocations to enhance formulaic competence in academic writing.