Intelligibility after 1979

Abstract

This article discusses Larry Smith's theoretical and applied approach to the investigation of intelligibility in the teaching of English as a Second Language and in other areas of world Englishes. In particular, Smith's investigation of this topic, which distinguishes between intelligibility, comprehensibility, and interpretability, has provided a framework the analysis of this topic from a range of diverse perspectives in applied linguistics and sociolinguistics. For Larry, the issue of intelligibility also illuminated many other areas of investigation, including cross‐cultural discourse and intercultural communication.