Multiple agendas? A corpus-based analysis of if-conditionals in medical research editorials

Shirley Carter-Thomas (1, 2) , Elizabeth Rowley-Jolivet (3)

1 IMT-BS - LSH - Département Langues et Sciences Humaines
2 Lattice - Lattice - Langues, Textes, Traitements informatiques, Cognition - UMR 8094
3 LLL - Laboratoire Ligérien de Linguistique

Our approach is a bottom-up one. We begin by examining the verb forms employed in the if P, Q conditionals, comparing the use made of the canonical verb sequences and identifying the preferred verbal combinations. We then focus on a number of variations observed in the basic if P, Q constructional pattern, involving the addition of specific lexemes or specific punctuation: [If P, then Q], [Q only if P], [if P, Q?], [even if P, Q] /[ Q even if P].

Mots clés: If-conditionals; Editorials; Formal variants

Domaines: Linguistique

Shirley Carter-Thomas, Elizabeth Rowley-Jolivet. Multiple agendas? A corpus-based analysis of if-conditionals in medical research editorials. 2008. ⟨halshs-00293572⟩