The aim of my paper is to shed more light on the values of BE ABLE TO. To do so, first I first provide a theoretical framework within which to situate my study; secondly, I carry out an empirical analysis of BE ABLE TO; data drawn from the Lancaster-Oslo/Bergen corpus (henceforth LOB corpus) and from the British National Corpus (henceforth BNC) are compared in order to discuss the difference in quantitative distribution of the modal idiom over the last 30 years. Finally, to study the semantics of the occurrences, I focus on a sub-section of the BNC and of the LOB corpus, in order to contribute to further qualifying the overall picture of BE ABLE TO in Present-day English, with respect to thirty years of its development.
Be able to in Present-day British English
FACCHINETTI, Roberta
2000-01-01
Abstract
The aim of my paper is to shed more light on the values of BE ABLE TO. To do so, first I first provide a theoretical framework within which to situate my study; secondly, I carry out an empirical analysis of BE ABLE TO; data drawn from the Lancaster-Oslo/Bergen corpus (henceforth LOB corpus) and from the British National Corpus (henceforth BNC) are compared in order to discuss the difference in quantitative distribution of the modal idiom over the last 30 years. Finally, to study the semantics of the occurrences, I focus on a sub-section of the BNC and of the LOB corpus, in order to contribute to further qualifying the overall picture of BE ABLE TO in Present-day English, with respect to thirty years of its development.
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