A CORPUS-BASED ANALYSIS OF LEXICAL BUNDLES IN ACADEMIC WRITING OF EFL LEARNERS

Abstrak

This study investigates the use of lexical bundles in academic writing produced by English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners using a corpus-based approach. The main aim of the research is to identify frequency patterns, structural forms, and functional categories of lexical bundles in learner academic essays and compare them with native speaker academic writing. A learner corpus consisting of 120 essays was compiled from undergraduate students’ written assignments and analyzed using corpus analysis software. The study applies both frequency-based and functional classification frameworks to examine formulaic language use in academic discourse. The findings reveal that EFL learners tend to overuse basic and general-purpose lexical bundles while underusing more advanced academic structures, which negatively affects coherence, cohesion, and academic style quality. The study highlights the importance of formulaic language instruction and suggests integrating corpus-informed pedagogical strategies into EFL writing instruction to improve academic writing competence and discourse awareness