What is this workshop about?
The workshop focuses on the formal and functional diversity of intensification, e.g. which strategies and constructions are used in linguistic expressions, in which contexts do they occur, as well as which semiotic elements can be intensified. Intensification is far more diverse than just lexicogrammatical phenomena, with phenomena occurring on on all communicative levels, for example, typographical and phonetic strategies, gestures or facial expressions (Napoli/Ravetto 2017).
Particularly of interest for the workshop is the apparent dialectic between recurring patterns and innovation within intensification strategies. While certain processes can be described as conventionalised patterns, others can be highly creative and combined with one another (Cotgrove 2025). This raises theoretical and empirical questions about the relationship between convention and variation: To what extent do intensifications follow recurring form-function patterns (Politt/Willich 2024)? What forms of variation (social, stylistic, medial) can be observed and how can these be described?
We look forward to discussions on a phenomenon that lies at the crossroads of lexis, phonetics/phonology, grammar, pragmatics and semantics. We welcome recent work that deals with empirical studies on specific intensification strategies and the role of intensification in different discourses, genres, modalities or varieties. Papers that address how theoretical models of linguistic intensification can be developed on the basis of empirical analysis and conversely, how theoretical concepts can guide empirical analysis, are also welcomed.