The Linguistic Features of “Clickbait” in Chinese Websites

Abstract

This article examines the word and sentence characteristics of "clickbait" in Chinese websites. In terms of words, celebrity names, suspenseful words, violent or pornographic words, and exaggerated words are commonly used types in "clickbait." The widely used sentence patterns of "clickbait" include exclamation sentences, omission sentences, interrogative sentences, and rhetorical question sentences. Through the principle of cooperation, these types of words and sentence patterns are to attract readers and increase click-through rates, which is not a good thing for the credibility of the media.