http://hdl.handle.net/11089/24367 Sun, 05 Apr 2026 12:48:41 GMT 2026-04-05T12:48:41Z https://dspace.uni.lodz.pl:443/bitstream/id/c8896eb8-5294-4078-b210-219fab2b91cb/ http://hdl.handle.net/11089/24367 http://hdl.handle.net/11089/24384 Foreign language learners acquire L2 phonetic detail: Goose and Foot fronting in non-native English Šimáčková, Šárka; Podlipský, Václav Jonáš Whether late learners discern fine phonetic detail in second-language (L2) input, form new phonetic categories, and realize them accurately remains a relevant question in L2 phonology, especially for foreign-language (FL) learning characterized by limited exposure to interactional native input. Our study focuses on advanced Czech learners’ production of the L2 English vowels GOOSE and FOOT. While English /u/ and /ʊ/ have been undergoing fronting, their Czech equivalents, /uː/ and /u/, are fully back. We show that although the spectral differentiation of /u/-/ʊ/ is smaller in the learners’ than in native speech, the vowels being contrasted primarily in length, even FL learners can shift their L2 sound categories towards native-like targets, or in this case, produce English /u/-/ʊ/ as fronted. Tue, 06 Feb 2018 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/11089/24384 2018-02-06T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/11089/24386 On the brink of-Noun Vs. On the verge of-noun: a distinctive-collexeme analysis Wiliński, Jarosław This paper uses the terminology of Construction Grammar (Goldberg 1996; 2006) and a corpus-based method to investigate a pair of semantically similar constructions and the lexemes that occur in both of them. The method, referred to as distinctive-collexeme analysis (Gries and Stefanowitsch 2004a), seeks to identify lexemes that exhibit a strong preference for one construction as opposed to another: in other words, to uncover subtle distributional differences between two semantically or functionally near-equivalent constructions. On the basis of the case study dealing with the on the brink of-noun construction versus the on the verge of-noun construction, the paper shows that there are lexemes that prefer one of the investigated patterns over the other. Moreover, the results of the distinctive-collexeme analysis reveal that the frame-constructional semantics is a relevant factor in the choice between these two patterns. Tue, 06 Feb 2018 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/11089/24386 2018-02-06T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/11089/24385 The effect of incidental learning on the comprehension of English affixes by Arabic-speaking EFL learners: acquisition and application Altakhaineh, Abdel Rahman Mitib; Zibin, Aseel This study aims to examine the effect of incidental learning on the comprehension of 30 English affixes by 50 Arabic-speaking EFL learners in an attempt to determine which affixes are more easily comprehended. We adopt the experimental design of a pre- and post-test to measure the participants’ knowledge of English affixes before and after the treatment, which involved taking part in the prediction of the meaning of English affixed words in context for one academic semester. To this end, we divided the 50 participants into two groups: treatment and control. We administered a 30-item multiple choice test as the pre- and post-test to determine whether the treatment helped the participants expand their knowledge of English affixes. Tue, 06 Feb 2018 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/11089/24385 2018-02-06T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/11089/24381 Developing a Pronunciation Computer Program for the Acquisition of English Phonemes and Word Stress Hong, Jhao-nan; Yang, James H. This study devised a pronunciation computer program to examine whether mobile-assisted language learning (MALL) could facilitate college students’ acquisition of English phonemes and word stress. Thirty-eight participants enrolled in the remedial English class offered at the language center of a national technological university in central Taiwan. Before the class, they were asked to read a word list. In the following six weeks, they were taught to distinguish and articulate English phonemes and to predict word stress locations using the designed computer program. They were also instructed to review the learning materials using the smart-phone version of the devised program. After the teaching session, each participant was asked again to read the same word list and fill out an assessment questionnaire. The sound analyses show that their readings of English minimal pairs and word stress placement were more accurate than their performances before the instruction. Their responses to the questionnaire indicate that both the given instruction and the designed computer program were satisfactory. In the open-ended questions, some of them said that they have built up a better understanding of phonemes and word stress, and that they would try to predict polysyllabic word stress when reading English articles. The present findings can be further applied to research on MALL-based English pronunciation acquisition. Tue, 06 Feb 2018 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/11089/24381 2018-02-06T00:00:00Z