An Overview of Pragmatic Markers: Definitions and Characteristics

Pragmatic Markers (PMs) are short words which do not contribute to the propositional meaning of an utterance. The research on Pragmatic Markers strives to find definitions, directions and theories that can be broadly extended. However, research shows that there is no consensus with regard to definitions or their descriptions. The current study delves into a literature review to examine the range of definitions and to understand the reasons for the difficulty in agreeing on a unifying definition. As definitions are broadly based on the characteristics of a phenomenon, literature is additionally surveyed to recognise the characteristics of the PMs. The analysis shows that the main reason for the lack of consensus on a definition is the wide range of approaches that have been employed to study the PMs and the complexity of the relationship between the form and function of PMs. The definitions are closely linked to the functions of PMs. The studies show several characteristics of PMs, such as them mostly present in spoken language; in fact, they occur approximately ten times more in spoken discourse than in the written genre and their positional flexibility. They occur at interactional, interpersonal and textual levels. They perform a multitude of functions, and they are co-constructed by the interlocutors. PMs also co-occur, which extends the functions. For example, co-occurrence can lead to more emphatic or multifunctional utterances. An example of a combined function would be a PM appealing to the interlocutor for agreement while simultaneously functioning as an exemplifier. Literature reveals that there is an underlying systematicity to these combinations and their order of combinations.