The Phenomenon of Expletive Infixation in Vietnamese Language From the Perspective of Pragmatics

Abstract

—Vietnamese has to date been considered to be a language without infixation. This study is an attempt to change that notion. Infixation does exist in the Vietnamese language, but in restricted discoursal and social contexts. Our analysis shows that infixes have pragmatic functions and convey one of three implications. They can be used to (1) to express a complaint, (2) to express disagreement, or (3) to enhance a compliment. For each pragmatic purpose, the social context must be considered so that offensiveness and impoliteness can be avoided. Our results reveal that the majority of the Vietnamese words containing the infix với chả express complaints and that với chả is most often inserted into nouns. This study provides Vietnamese language teachers, learners, and translators with an in-depth understanding of the Vietnamese infix với chả, as added into base words in certain styles of language play.