INTERNET NEOLOGISMS FUNCTIONING IN DIGITAL DISCOURSE

Abstract

This article deals with the functional characteristics of internet neologisms in contemporary digital discourse. The relevance of the topic stems from the rapid development of digital technologies, social networks and online communication platforms, which contribute to the intensive renewal of linguistic vocabulary and the emergence of new lexical units to denote phenomena, processes and forms of interaction characteristic of the digital environment. Internet neologisms have become an integral part of modern communication, reflecting changes in communication methods, users’ social behaviour and trends in language development. Their comparative study in English and Ukrainian is of particular significance, as English serves as the primary source of digital innovations, whilst Ukrainian actively adapts these loanwords in accordance with its own phonetic, grammatical and word-formation systems.

The objective of this study is to analyse the functional characteristics of internet neologisms in English and Ukrainian digital discourse, to identify their main functions and features of their use in contemporary speech.

The study demonstrates that internet neologisms fulfil a wide range of functions, the principal of which are nominative, communicative, expressive, evaluative, identificatory and pragmatic. It is established that they ensure linguistic economy, facilitate the rapid exchange of information, convey the emotional attitudes of speakers, shape the group identity of users of the digital environment, and reflect current sociocultural processes. It is determined that the English language is characterised by a high degree of productivity in its word-formation models, whilst Ukrainian actively combines processes of borrowing with intralinguistic adaptation and the creation of its own word-formation variants.