Modal Verb Usage in Pakistani and American English: A Corpus-Based Comparative Study

Abstract

This paper explores the use of modal verbs applied in Pakistani and American English as a corpus- based study based on the Global Web-Based English (GloWbE) corpus. The study aims at the five modal verbs must, should, may, might, and would, by comparing the semantic, pragmatic, and collocational patterns of the modal verbs in two varieties of English. Research questions that are used in the study are to investigate the semantic and pragmatic difference in the use of these modals in Pakistani and American English as well as the collocational pattern of these modals in the two varieties. Based on the frequency counts, concordance lines and collocational analysis, the study demonstrates that Pakistani English is more likely to be used in formal situations whereas American English is more conversational. There are also differences in collocational patterns that bear the cultural and practical impacts in both types. The results offer empirical data of modal usage regional variation, which adds to the area of World English’s and corpus linguistics. Moreover, the paper provides pedagogical implications in teaching English language based on the findings of the research, emphasizing the role of contextual and regional sensitivity in teaching and learning modal verbs. This study highlights the importance of corpus-based analysis in the study of authentic use of the English language in varieties of English.

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