Cambridge Grammar of English Hardback with cd-rom a comprehensive Guide

Joking, banter

118f

The vocative frequently co-occurs with light-hearted joking talk and supports the

friendship and intimacy normal on such occasions:

[three female students share a house; one has a new kitchen whisk]

A: Seen my new whisk?

B: Oo.

C: Oo.

A: Nice, isn’t it?

B: Is that to make your omelettes with?

C: Very domesticated, Tracy.

The = sign indicates an utterance which is cut short

A: Are you not studying today or whatever? 

B: I don’t know. 

C: No. I mean we study yeah. We study ghost stories. 

D: Yeah. [laughs] We study how to frighten ourselves. 

A: Social hi= social history is it? 

D: I’ll tell you something, mum. Social scary. Social scary. 

B: Social mystery. Not social history. Social mystery. 

In such instances vocatives are commonly in end position. 

234 | From discourse to social contexts

Cambridge Grammar of English

---