Pragma-linguistic and Socio-pragmatic Transfer among Iraqi Female EFL Learners in Refusing Marriage Proposals

In the framework of this study, phenomenon transfer is probed pragma-linguistically and socio-linguistically concerning marriage situations among Iraqi EFL learners. The study also strives to look at refusal strategies most commonly employed by female English as a foreign Language (EFL) learners compared their counterparts, American native speakers English. involved 70 participants who answered Discourse Completion Task (DCT), which contained ten proposals be refused. Each situation entailed person from higher, an equal, lower status. researchers adapted Beebe, Takahashi, Uliss Weltz’s (1990) taxonomy for analyzing data comprehensively. study’s findings indicated that followed similar patterns refusing speakers. prevalent used two groups were “reasons/ excuses explanations,” “statements regrets,” then “non-performative statements” with slight variation in frequency. However, learners’ language culture affected how they formulated refusal; hence manifested pragma-linguistic socio-pragmatic particular areas. areas included literal translation words, expressions, structures into As areas, occurred certain Arabic features like elaboration, exaggeration, repetition, endearing terms, many others expressing target language,