Second language pragmatics: Theory, acquisition and pedagogy
Tracing the historical evolution and current landscape of L2 pragmatics research.
Second language pragmatics: Theory, acquisition and pedagogy
04 Nov 2025, 17:00 – 18:30
Second Language (L2) Pragmatics, also known as interlanguage pragmatics, examines how language learners comprehend and perform speech acts, organise discourse, and interpret implicatures in an additional language.
Situated at the intersection of pragmatics and second language acquisition, the field has grown into a robust area of inquiry encompassing pragmatic development, instruction, and assessment. This talk traces the historical evolution and current landscape of L2 pragmatics research, highlighting key paradigms and methodological shifts that have shaped the field. It will further address enduring challenges in conceptualising and operationalising pragmatic competence across diverse contexts.
Finally, Wei Ren will propose future directions that embrace multilingual, multimodal, and technology-mediated perspectives, aiming to more fully account for the dynamic and complex nature of communication in an increasingly digital and linguistically diverse world.
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Image
Juliana Kozoski via Unsplash.
Professor Wei Ren
Professor of Applied Linguistics
Beihang University, China
He is also a visiting professor at UCL.
His research interests include second language pragmatics and social media pragmatics. His recent publications include a book on Second Language Pragmatics (Cambridge University Press), and special issues in the Journal of Pragmatics and Discourse Context & Media.
He serves as the associate editor of Ampersand (Elsevier) and as an editorial board member for multiple linguistics journals.
Further information
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