Corpus and pragmatic contrast of interjections. Methodological limitations in the study of "o" (Polish) and "oh" (Spanish)

Abstract

This article examines the pragmatic behavior of the interjections o in Polish and oh in Spanish, based on data from oral and written corpora, with a special focus on their expressive and discursive functions in real communicative contexts. From a contrastive perspective, both shared and divergent values were identified, particularly in the way how these interjections are integrated into spontaneous interaction. The analysis draws on data from L2-corpora of Spanish (CAES and Corpus oral de ELE) and from the Polish oral corpus Spokes, revealing a marked asymmetry in the frequency, distribution and annotation of these forms. Based on these findings, the article discusses the methodological limitations of current corpora for the study of context-sensitive pragmatic phenomena, such as interjections, and highlights the need for representative, annotated and functionally oriented corpora for contrastive research and language teaching.