The Use of Antonymy in Students’ Argumentative Essays

Abstract Book of the 11th International Conference on New Approaches in Education

Year: 2026

[PDF]

The Use of Antonymy in Students’ Argumentative Essays

Ejona Demneri

ABSTRACT:

Writing in English, particularly argumentative essay writing, is considered one of the most challenging skills for English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners. Producing cohesive and meaningful texts is an important aspect of academic writing. This study investigates the use of antonymy as a lexical cohesive device in argumentative essays written by Albanian university students, focusing on the frequency of antonym use and the most common errors students make. Sixty-three first- and second-year students from the Faculty of Foreign Languages, Department of English Language, participated in the study by producing argumentative essays. A qualitative research approach was employed, and the data were analysed through content analysis procedures. The findings reveal that students frequently used antonymic pairs to express contrast and support arguments, contributing to lexical cohesion and the logical development of ideas. However, difficulties in selecting appropriate antonyms were identified, mainly due to limited vocabulary knowledge. In several cases, students used semantically inappropriate lexical items, which affected the clarity and coherence of their arguments. The study also highlights the role of lexical cohesion in improving the overall quality of argumentative writing. These findings suggest that greater emphasis should be placed on vocabulary development and the explicit teaching of lexical cohesive devices in EFL writing courses. The results may help teachers design more effective instructional strategies aimed at enhancing students’ academic writing competence.

Keywords: Writing; English Language; Lexical Cohesion; Content Analysis; Antonyms