摘要

商务英语函电作为国际贸易间的桥梁，对各方贸易合作关系的建立和维护起着重要的连接作用。其中，委婉语作为一种重要的社会交际语言现象和跨文化现象，因其具有较强的亲和力与说服力，且具有良好的修饰效果，故在商务英语函电写作中备受青睐。本文以维索尔伦的语言顺应论为指导，在分析了商务英语函电中的委婉语的语用功能的基础上，探讨了商务英语函电委婉语的交际语境顺应和结构对象顺应，这对个人商务交际中更好地理解和运用委婉语具有重要作用。

关键词：委婉语；商务英语函电；顺应论；交际语境；结构对象

Contents

Abstract I

摘要 II

Introduction 1

1. Introduction to adaptation theory 2

1.1The basic concept of adaptation theory 2

1.2 Adaptability 3

1.2.1 Contextual correlates of adaptability 4

1.2.1.1 The social world 5

1.2.1.2 The mental world 6

1.2.1.3 The physical world 6

1.2.2 Structural objects of adaptability 7

2 Business English correspondence and euphemism 7

2.1 Business English correspondence 8

2.1.1 Forms and writing principles of business English correspondence 8

2.1.2 The main contents and functions of business English correspondence 10

2.2 Euphemism 11

2.2.1 The definition of euphemism 11

2.2.2 The main functions of euphemism 11

2.2.3 Euphemism and politeness 12

3 Adaptation of euphemism in business English correspondence 12

3.1 Adaptation to communicative context 13

3.1.1 Adaptation to the social world 13

3.1.2 Adaptation to the mental world 14

3.2 Adaptation to structural objects 15

3.2.1 At lexical level 15

3.2.2 At sentence pattern level 17

Conclusion 18

References 20