Pragmatic Functions of the Discourse Marker ʕandʒad “really” in Jordanian Spoken Arabic

Abstract

This study examines the pragmatic functions of the Jordanian Spoken Arabic discourse marker ʕandʒad “really”. A quantitative study used the questionnaire to collect data from 207 native Jordanian Arabic speakers from Amman Arab University. The pragmatic functions analysis is based on Searle's categories (1975) by adopting John Austin's Speech Acts Theory (1962). The study finds that gender is a significant social factor as males tend to use this variant more than females. The participants' responses were analyzed with SPSS. The study concludes that that DM ʕandʒad “really” communicate sixteen functions namely; anger, surprise, apologies, sympathy, commands, requests, challenges, advice, assertions, suggestions, complaints, claims, promises, oaths, threats, and offers. The study recommends that future research focuses on the pragmatic functions of this discourse marker (DM) ʕandʒad “really” in larger social contexts than those investigated in this study. In addition, teachers should emphasize the pragmatic functions of Jordanian discourse markers, like DM ʕandʒad “really”. They should provide multiple oral examples of Arabic discourse markers in different contexts for AFL learners to grasp and apply them in everyday intercultural contexts.