Lexical Bundles across levels of Proficiency in Portuguese as a Second Language: An examination of bundle function

Formulaic sequences are known for being measures of foreign language fluency for learners. Research in language processing suggests that native speakers as well as learners process these sequences as a single word (ELLIS, 1996). Nevertheless, little is known about the use of formulaic sequences in Portuguese and, even fewer studies have examined the use of formulaic sequences in learners of Portuguese. Therefore, in this study, we sought to investigate the textual function of lexical bundles extracted from a corpus of learners of Portuguese as a Second Language (PSL). Lexical bundles are sequences of three or more words that occur with larger than expected frequency in a specific corpus. In this study, we used corpus linguistics tools to extract lexical bundles that occur frequently at two levels of proficiency – beginner and intermediate – in Portuguese. These bundles were, then, classified according to their textual function. Results indicate that beginner level students use more bundles associated with concrete references, while intermediate learners use more bundles associated with textual organization and stance. This study contributes to the description of Portuguese acquisition at these two levels of proficiency. In addition, the results can foster classroom activities where the PSL teachers introduce new functions of lexical bundles to students. Finally, we hope that this study motivates more research describing the language used at different stages of Portuguese acquisition.