Meaning and the English Verb by Geoffrey N Leech

Meaning and the English Verb by Geoffrey N Leech

Every language has its peculiar problems of meaning for the foreign learner. In the English language, some of the biggest yet most fascinating problems are concentrated in the area of the finite verb phrase: in particular, tense, aspect, mood and modality.

Meaning and the English Verb describes these fields in detail for teachers and advanced students of English as a foreign or second language. This new third edition uses up-to-date examples to show differences and similarities between American and British english, reflecting a great deal of recent research in this area. It also takes account of the subtle changes which are taking place in the language today.

In print for over 30 years, Meaning and the English Verb has established itself as a recognised authority on the meaning and use of verb constructions in English. This updated third edition will ensure that it remains an invaluable text for teachers and students of English worldwide.

Professor Leech is Lancaster University's Emeritus Professor of English Linguistics. In the fields of linguistics and English language, he has written, co-edited, and co-authored over 25 books and over 100 articles, specializing in stylistics, English grammar, semantics, pragmatics, and corpus linguistics. He co-authored the mammoth and authoritative A Complete Grammar of the English Language (Longman 1985) with Randolph Quirk, Sidney Greenbaum, and Jan Svartvik. His Elements of Pragmatics (Longman 1983) was a seminal work in pragmatics as well. He is a member of Academia Europaea and a Fellow of the British Academy.