ABSTRACT
Intensification according to Quirk et.al (1985) is “a linguistic signal that heightens or strengthens the meaning conveyed by a particular utterance”. Therefore this study seeks to give an insight into how intensification is derived.
The aim of this study was to investigate the “strategies of intensification in the Esan language” through identifying the processes in the realization of the features of intensification, highlighting features that serves as intensifiers in the Esan language and it also identified linguistic processes employed in the realization of the features of intensification, highlighting features that serves as intensifiers in the Esan language and it also identified linguistic processes employed in the realization of intensification in Esan language. The method of data collection was the qualitative method of data collection and data analysis have been carried out.
The researchuses the descriptive theory which describes these strategies exactly as used in the Esan community/Esan metropolis which happens to be our case study, which simply explains how the Esan people presents it.
The following findings were arrived at based on the data examined and analyzed; the Esan language employs reduplication of adverbs, hyperbole, symbolic forms, onomatopoetic forms, exclamation and qualifiers as strategies for intensification.
