Collocational Errors in EFL Learners' Interlanguage

Abstract

This research study is aimed at examining Thai EFL learners' errors in their acquisition of English collocations. The data, drawn from essays written by two groups of participants differing in L2 proficiency, indicate actual problems with which the learners are really faced. As regards the origins of these collocational errors, first language transfer seems to be the most outstanding strategy which they adopted. Where the collocations in Thai and English appear incongruent, deviations often arise. The L1-based errors, evidenced by the data, deal with preposition addition, preposition omission, incorrect word choice, and collocate redundancy. It comes as a surprise to discover the high-proficiency learners' heavy reliance on the native language, to which those with low proficiency are expected to resort. In addition L1 transfer, the learners also apply synonymy and overgeneralization, both of which contribute to collocational deviations in the target language.