Language Features of Advertising English 广告英语的语言特点.doc

广告英语的语言特点language features of advertising english abstractthis essay is about the language features of advertising english. through analyzing advertising english in terms of its lexical features, syntactical features and rhetorical devices, customers will further know about advertising and advertising english, and copywriters can more appropriately use language as a carrier to design and make successful advertisement. the issue of whether advertisement language is attractive and persuasive or not has become the point of attention. so thorough and syntactic studies on language features of english advertisements help to improve both the understanding and designing of successful advertising. the study on language features of advertising english will provide readers with some enlightenment and reference.key words: advertising; advertising english; linguistic features摘要本文是关于广告英语的语言特点的一篇介绍性论文。通过对广告英语的词汇、句法和修辞特征的分析，顾客可以进一步了解广告和广告英语，编写广告的人可以更恰当的把英语当作一种工具来设计并创造出成功的广告。广告语言能否具有诱惑力和说服力已成为关注的焦点。因此对英语广告语言全面地、系统地研究，可以提高对对广告的理解，构想出成功的英语广告。研究广告英语语言特点能为读者在理解广告英语和从事广告英语创造等方面提供一些启示和参考。关键词：广告；广告英语；语言特征contents1. introduction12. language features of advertising english.32.1 lexical features32.1.1 coinage.32.1.2 verbs.32.1.3 adjectives.42.1.4 personal pronouns52.2 syntactical features.62.2.1 simple sentences.72.2.2 elliptical sentences.7 2.2.3 imperative sentences8 2.2.4 interrogative sentences.9 2.2.5 disjunctive sentences10 2.3 rhetorical features10 2.3.1 simile.11 2.3.2 metaphor11 2.3.3 personification12 2.3.4 pun.12 2.3.5 repetition13 2.3.6 rhyme.133. conclusion14acknowledgement15reference161. introduction adverting english, a style of immediate impact and persuasion, has an effect on people today. it is an unavoidable and omnipresent part of everyones life. generally speaking, adverting language has become an essential way of exchanging a few words. in order to regard advertising english, some books and papers have been published home and abroad. geoffrey n. leechs english in advertising , a traditional study on advertising english, offer us, with a view of rigorous linguistic features, a meticulous analysis of the linguistic devices used by advertisers. in place of merely giving his impression, leech uses a quantitative method to explore the characteristic s of advertising language. despite the painstaking analysis of the linguistic features of advertising english, leech has scarcely inspected the cultural and social background behind the linguistic devices used by advertisers . vestergaard and schroders the language of advertising does some research on language use in advertising by taking a sociolinguistic approach. the book discusses both linguistic form and their contents in printed advertising. they make further exploration on the concealed social motivations implied in advertising. vestergaard and schroder hold another thoughtful viewpoint that the promise in advertising is usually better than the circumstances in the real world. the advertising english should be understood by the target customer as the fundamental aim of advertisement, which is to persuade them to purchase products and service to promote sales and profits. that is where persuasion lies. thus, the preference of language to put into specific words with the purpose of influencing people is crucially important. with the expansion of global economy, many foreign products are driving into the chinese market, competing with homemade products, while chinese products are flowing abroad. on this condition, the linguistic study of advertising english becomes valuable in that the obvious and full understanding of advertising language has a great significance. so in the thesis, i will analyze the lexical, syntactical, rhetorical features of english advertising separately so as to get a reasonably comprehensive idea of the specialty of english advertising. this paper will particularly make an analytical study of the linguistic features of advertising english at different linguistic levels. the first part is an introduction, which generally introduces the background and purpose of this research and makes a simple description of the structure of this paper. then, it mainly investigates the main wording features, concentrating on simple verbs, adjectives, compounds. furthermore, it probes into the grammatical characteristics, focusing on the tenses and frequently employed sentences and constructions of english advertising. finally the thesis explores the most frequently employed rhetorical devices in english advertising texts, such as simile, metaphor, personification, pun, etc. to sum up, advertising english is an impersonal language of communication of information about products or ideas by an identified sponsor through mass media in an effort to persuade or influence people. 2.language features of advertising englishadvertisement must be brief, vivid, imaginative effective and evocative in order to persuade readers to buy the advertised products or services. advertisers manage different kinds of ways as their disposals to make people purchase the products or services which are advertised. advertisement has become a special variety of the english language with its own characteristics in lexicon, syntax and rhetoric. thus, it is worthwhile to analyze advertising in the linguistic view.1.1 lexical featuresthe lexicon choices have close connections with the style of the text. just as jonathna swift said, “proper words in proper places make the true definition of a style”. the lexical features of advertisement english include: using new form of the spelling of a word to attract the consumers attention; using some verbs, adjectives frequently to express the information and enhance the effect of language expression; using pronouns for purpose of concision.1.1.1 coinagethe use of coinage is one of the most important features in advertising english. coinage is a method to create new words by means of free compounding, imitation, misspelling or by abbreviation. in some cases, the advertising copywriter misspells some words on purpose or adds some suffix or prefix to the common words.for example:(1) the orangemostest drink in the world.(2) give a timex to all and to all a good time.in example(1), orangemostest is equal to orange + most + est. it is an advertisement of drink. “most” and “est” both stand for superlative. the newly coined word arouses peoples attention by its novelty form. in example (2), timeex =time +excellent. in english, some prefixes and suffixes like super-, -er, -est, etc, all stress that a product has a high quality. another advertisement for the sales of eggs:(3) we know eggactly how to sell eggs.1the pronunciation of “eggactly” is similar to “exactly”, and “eggactly” is related to the last words “eggs” in this sentence, therefore it gives people a deep impression. the above examples also use coinage by misspelling some common word, which not only draws customers attention to the advertisement, but also gives beauty and rhythm to the language of advertisement.it is easy to learn from the examples mentioned above that creating new word s brightly state the desirable features, qualities, or functions of the product or services which will be advertised.1.1.2 verbsadvertisement should be easy in order to make readers understand them very quickly. so the predicate verbs in advertising english should be uncomplicated and precise to make its language concise and easily understood.as what leech discovered, there are twenty most commonly used in advertising english: make, get, give, have, see, buy, come, go, know, keep, look, need, love, use, feel, like, choose, take, start, taste. for instance:(4) you can feel the feature in philips design. (family applicance)2(5) try new rich crisps.3(6) use it wherever you think best. (ibm computer)4(7) no matter how far you stay from your home, you can still enjoy fine food and wine in front of your own television set.(airlines)5(8) we can give you a better view of investment opportunities from both sides of the pacific .(city bank)in advertising english, the word “buy” is hardly chosen. “buy” means getting something by paying money, which make consumers feel unhappy. thus, “buy” is not used and often replaced by “serve”, “afford”, “give somebody something”, etc.according to the above example, we can know that the verbs in advertising english are all easy and informal, making the readers feel memorable and intimate, thus stimulating the readers interest.1.1.3 adjectivesadjectives refer to the key point of items which specify the attributes of nouns. the use of advertising language is required to be vivid. thus, adjectives, in particular pleasant adjectives, are often put to use. as the most important part of the language of advertisement, adjectives can express and redecorate the product, describe mood and emotion and stimulate the desire of buying. the excellent description of the product is impossible without using colorful adjectives. a rich quantity of adjectives makes the advertising copy more eye-catching. they are effective tools to extend the brand. the brand and product display extra values by making use of adjectives such as: young, fun, soft, strong, warm, traditional, modern, etc.according to g.n. leech, the twenty most frequent adjectives are: new, good, free, fresh, delicious, full, sure, clean, wonderful, special, crisp, fine, big, great, real, easy, bright, extra, safe, rich. see the following examples:(9) washable, safe, easy to use, clear. (glue)it uses four oral adjectives, which describe the function and characteristic of products completely. the language is simple, helping to build a pleasant picture in consumers mind: this kind of glue is easy to use, easy to wash and the quality is ensured. four simple words describe the high quality of the glue. in addition, comparatives and superlatives occur to highlight the advantage of a certain product or service. “good/better/best”, “wonderful”, “fine” and “great” can also be used to describe any product or service, especially when other adjectives cannot give a specific description.(10) in just a few drops, this mans skin is going to feel better.(11) what a good time for a good taste of a kent?customers always are inclined to know the difference by comparing sensitively. an advertised product is always compared with other products of the same kind. so one can meet many comparative and superlative adjectives in english advertising.(12) a complete line of the skin care products using the highest quality, natural ingredient. (clinique)(13) the self-made women. she is living better all the time. (self magazine)(14) tastes richermellower more satisfying. (real cigarette)6according to the above, we may make out that the use of comparative and superlative adjectives focuses on the difference of the product or the service, at the same time enhances persuasion.1.1.4 personal pronounswe may be addressed by advertisement personally. so, it is very common to use personal pronouns, particularly you and me. we are always tricky, because it can be used in both exclusive and inclusive senses, that is, either including or not including the person who is spoken to. let us see some examples:(15) the moment of truth;7plates are clened.the chairs pushed back.coffees comes.do you have the desert?or do you stay on your diet?in a word: both.(16) your weight problem, you want it pampered or solved?we know it is of anxiety to live for several years. your unacceptable weight which makes you feel anxious and tolerable has put great pressure and control on you. you cannot eat that, and you give up many favorite fashions. let us make the end of these worries, let us learn how to be satisfied with eating, and let us pick up again all those favorites. and that is what we do at the structure house.(17) let us never forget, life, even during the best of time, is unreliable. but at volkswagen, we have always found this hard to swallow.let us make things better.however in many cases, advertisers are more likely to use “you” in advertisement, because “we” and “you” usually produce two discriminative atmosphere or ideas in advertising, which are called “me attitude” and “you attitude”. “you attitude” is favored because it builds a close relationship of selling and buying more easily. in addition, “you attitude” expresses the customers needs, desires, and hopes more effectively.using personal pronouns to put relationships together with consumers is a technique in advertising. appropriate application of personal pronouns is one of the main aspects to make na advertisement successful.1.2 syntactical featuresas the purpose of all advertising is to remind consumers of the benefits of particular products in the hope of increasing sales, advertising language must be concise, legible, understandable and memorable. it usually has its own characteristics in syntax. this part will discuss the syntactic features of advertising english in aspects of simple sentences, ellipsis sentences, imperative sentences and interrogative sentences, disjunctive clause.2.2.1 simple sentencessimple sentence are the type of sentences which frequently occur in the advertising materials. people define a simple sentence as a sentence that just has an independent clause. people are inclined to use more simple sentences than complex sentences in spoken language and daily life. it can be seen that business use various advertising slogans in advertising again and again in some period of time so as to impress people with its products and corporation image. for example:(18) oh, i see!this is the slogan of oic spectacles company in america. it not only hilariously stresses the trademark of the spectacles, but also briefly and obviously shows that people will be happy to see the beautiful world again with the spectacles. more examples:(19) coke adds life.(20) things go better with coca-cola.(21) something cooler happens with canada dry. (“canada dry” is a wine.)(22) what its like to be small but good.(23) impossible is nothing. (adidas)2.2.2 elliptical sentencesin addition, elliptical sentences are usually used in advertising, the structure of which is in fact unfinished but the meaning is comprehensive. the use of elliptical sentences can save more print space, and readers spend less time finishing reading. besides, a number of sentence fragments may have a special effect on advertising. see the following examples:(24) intelligence everywhere. (motorola)it is evident that by using ellipsis, the sentence is far more brief, eye-catching and forceful. from the point of syntactical structure, the sentence cuts the important grammar componentthe predictive verb ”is”. in elliptical sentences the minor expressions are omitted so as to give importance to the key words and expressions. more examples are provides below:(25) taste richermellowermore satisfying. (ad for cigarette)(26) special purchase too good to miss. (ad for jewelry)(27) feather weight. light as a feather. (ad for glasses)(28) more than a time piece. an acquisition. (ad for watch)thus, skillful arrangement of elliptical sentences may add color to an advertisement. it is attractive and memorable easily by consumers and the characteristics of products are embodied completely.2.2.3 imperative sentencesit is well-known that persuasion which means to persuade consumers to take action immediately is one of the functions of advertisement, for the reason that the function of direct persuasion and exhortation is displayed in imperative sentences. here are some examples:(29) buy your new suit direct from the uks premier manufacture and save literally hundreds of pound.(30) get more income from your income telephone lines.(31) try our smooth feeder system.it is obvious that functions of the imperative sentences are inflammatory to stimulate the purchase. imperative sentences in advertising english can be able to arouse customers curiosity and as a result their responses to the advertising. here is a convincing example of this type:(32) where do you want to do today?(ad for microsoft)this is an advertisement for a microsoft computer. at the first glance, readers may relate it to some place, and then become bewildered when seeing “microsoft”. to know its real meaning, they have to see the advertisement, more examples are provides below:(33) get ready to encounter the new trend in timepiece. the citizen espreme collection. watches that are indicators of tastes and moods that express you. (citizen watch)8(34) plug it into a phone jack and an electrical outlet and it is ready to go. (electrograph)9it is to be connected that there are few negative imperative sentences in english advertising. people use negative imperative sentences only to convey admonishment or warning.2.2.4 interrogative sentencesstatistics show that in every 30 sentences, there is one interrogative sentence, because interrogative sentences are quick and effective to arouse readers attention. the interrogative sentence often calls for an a