Overview
Background
I'm a Senior Lecturer in Applied Linguistics at the University of Queensland, where I use computational methods and large text and speech corpora to study how English is actually used — in everyday conversation, across social groups, and by learners.
My research focuses on features that traditional grammars overlook but that shape real communication: discourse markers (like, you know), general extenders, terms of address, vulgarity, and adjective amplification. I also work in corpus phonetics, particularly vowel production and voice-onset timing in first- and second-language English speakers.
Alongside my research, I hold several roles focused on language research infrastructure:
- Director of Research, School of Languages and Cultures, UQ
- Director of the Language Technology and Data Analysis Laboratory (LADAL), a free open-access hub for language data science (https://ladal.edu.au/)
- Chief Investigator on the Language Data Commons of Australia (LDaCA), a national research infrastructure project (https://www.ldaca.edu.au/)
I'm also an advocate for reproducibility and open science in the humanities and social sciences, and I develop tools and workflows that make text and speech analysis more transparent and rigorous.
Research areas: applied linguistics, corpus linguistics, computational linguistics, sociolinguistics, language variation and change, learner corpus research, corpus pragmatics, reproducibility, digital humanities.
Availability
- Dr Martin Schweinberger is:
- Available for supervision
- Media expert
Fields of research
Qualifications
- Doctor of Philosophy, Universität Hamburg
Research interests
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Vulgarity and Swearing
I investigate how swear words and taboo language are used in everyday speech and online discourse. Contrary to popular belief, vulgar language follows systematic social and linguistic rules. My research uncovers how such expressions function in communication and what they reveal about speakers’ identities, emotions, and group memberships.
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Discourse Markers and Filler Words
I study words like like, you know, and well—terms often dismissed as meaningless. Using computational analysis, I show how these elements structure conversations and convey nuanced meanings. My work demonstrates that such "filler" words play important roles in signaling attitudes, managing interactions, and guiding listener expectations.
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Open Science and Research Transparency
I actively promote reproducible, open research practices in the humanities and social sciences. I provide practical training and resources to help language researchers adopt transparent workflows. My advocacy supports greater academic rigor and long-term trust in empirical research.
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Text Analytics and Computational Linguistics
I apply computational methods—like machine learning and statistical modelling—to large corpora to uncover hidden linguistic patterns. These tools help quantify language use in a way that supports replicable, empirical research. My work is at the intersection of computer science and linguistics, making it especially relevant in the digital age.
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Digital Infrastructure and Research Tools
As Director of LADAL and a lead in LDaCA, I am building accessible digital platforms that support large-scale language analysis. These initiatives democratize access to language data and computational tools for researchers, students, and educators alike. My infrastructure work enhances the capacity for advanced language research in Australia and beyond.
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Language Variation and Change
I explore how language evolves over time and across different social settings. By analyzing large-scale linguistic datasets, I identify subtle patterns of variation in how people speak, particularly in informal and digital contexts. This research helps reveal how social norms and technology influence the way we communicate.
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Learner Language and Second Language Acquisition
I analyze how learners of English produce sounds, manage fluency, and develop pronunciation over time. This includes examining features like vowel quality, voice-onset time, pauses, and accent intelligibility. By comparing learner and native speaker data, my research informs language teaching and helps improve learner outcomes.
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Corpus Phonetics
I use corpus-based methods to investigate the phonetic characteristics of spoken language, including pronunciation patterns among both native and non-native speakers. I focus on measurable acoustic features such as vowel production and timing cues. This approach allows for the large-scale, data-driven analysis of speech in real-life settings.
Research impacts
Public reach through media
My research on vulgarity and variation in World Englishes has generated over 96 media reports internationally, with an estimated combined reach exceeding 205 million. In 2025, coverage included national television (Channel 10 News, The Project), ABC Radio interviews across Australia, and international press including The Guardian, CNN, Der Spiegel, Deutsche Welle, Popular Science, and Yahoo News. My co-authored article in The Conversation — "201 ways to say 'fuck': what 1.7 billion words of online text shows about how the world swears" (with Kate Burridge) — prompted follow-up coverage across more than 20 outlets in Australia, the UK, Europe, and North America.
Building Australia's language data infrastructure
As Chief Investigator and Steering Committee member on the Language Data Commons of Australia (LDaCA), I contribute to building Australia's first national infrastructure for language data — enabling researchers, cultural institutions, and Indigenous communities to preserve, access, and analyse language collections that would otherwise remain fragmented or inaccessible.
Free global training in language data science
As founder and Director of the Language Technology and Data Analysis Laboratory (LADAL), I have built one of the most widely used open-access hubs for language data science training. Since 2021, LADAL has reached over 500,000 users worldwide, providing free, reproducible resources that lower the barrier to computational methods for students, researchers, and practitioners across the humanities and social sciences.
Shaping the field
I serve as Vice-President Profession of the International Society for the Linguistics of English (ISLE), board member of ICAME, Associate Editor of the Australian Review of Applied Linguistics, and book series editor for Bloomsbury's Language, Data Science and Digital Humanities.
Works
Search Professor Martin Schweinberger’s works on UQ eSpace
2010
Conference Publication
What's this, LIKE, all about? Analyzing the use of LIKE across varieties of English
Schweinberger, Martin (2010). What's this, LIKE, all about? Analyzing the use of LIKE across varieties of English. ICAME 31 (31st meeting of the International Computer Archive of Modern and Medieval English), Giessen, Germany, 26-30 May 2010.
2010
Conference Publication
Revisiting LIKE. A quantitative analysis of the distribution, position, and function of the discourse marker LIKE in Hiberno-English and other varieties of English
Schweinberger, Martin (2010). Revisiting LIKE. A quantitative analysis of the distribution, position, and function of the discourse marker LIKE in Hiberno-English and other varieties of English. NPIE 1(1st meeting on New Perspectives on Irish English), Dublin, Ireland, 11-13 March 2010.
2010
Conference Publication
New perspectives on the discourse marker LIKE
Schweinberger, Martin (2010). New perspectives on the discourse marker LIKE. IVACS 5 (5th meeting on Inter-Varietal Applied Corpus Studies), Edinburgh, Scotland, 18-19 June 2010.
2010
Conference Publication
Killing metaphors analyzing conceptual metaphors in current political debates on military interventions
Schweinberger, Martin, Dolberg, Florian , Svoboda, Svea Gertrud and Wilken, Anja (2010). Killing metaphors analyzing conceptual metaphors in current political debates on military interventions. Politik und Ästhetik/Politics and Aesthetics, Hamburg, Germany, 20 May 2010.
2010
Conference Publication
Rethinking the classification of high frequency discourse markers. A new approach towards LIKE across Varieties of English
Schweinberger, Martin (2010). Rethinking the classification of high frequency discourse markers. A new approach towards LIKE across Varieties of English. 11. Norddeutsches Linguistisches Kolloquium (11. NLK), Hamburg, Germany, 5-6 March 2010.
2010
Conference Publication
Epistemic modality and discourse markers: A quantitative analysis of the distribution and function of discourse marker LIKE across varieties of English
Schweinberger, Martin (2010). Epistemic modality and discourse markers: A quantitative analysis of the distribution and function of discourse marker LIKE across varieties of English. ModE4 (4th meeting on Modality in English), Madrid, Spain, 9-11 September 2010.
2009
Conference Publication
And he's like, is LIKE like LIKE, like? A quantitative account of the positional and functional distribution of the discourse marker LIKE across varieties of English
Schweinberger, Martin (2009). And he's like, is LIKE like LIKE, like? A quantitative account of the positional and functional distribution of the discourse marker LIKE across varieties of English. 10. Norddeutsches Linguistisches Kolloquium (10. NLK), Greifswald, Germany, 13-14 March 2009.
2009
Book Chapter
Towards a more fine-grained analysis of the areal distributions of nonstandard features of English
Siemund, Peter, Maier, Georg and Schweinberger, Martin (2009). Towards a more fine-grained analysis of the areal distributions of nonstandard features of English. Language contacts meet English dialects: studies in honour of Markku Filppula. (pp. 19-45) edited by Esa Pentitilä and Heli Paulasto. Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom: Cambridge Scholars Publishing.
2008
Other Outputs
Sprache und Raum im Lichte der Raumkonzeption Kants - Untersuchung der Beziehbarkeit von Kants Überlegungen zum Raum auf Thematisierungen des Raums in der neueren Linguistik
Schweinberger, Martin (2008). Sprache und Raum im Lichte der Raumkonzeption Kants - Untersuchung der Beziehbarkeit von Kants Überlegungen zum Raum auf Thematisierungen des Raums in der neueren Linguistik. M.A. Thesis, Institut für Anglistik/Amerikanistik, Universität Kassel.
Supervision
Availability
- Dr Martin Schweinberger is:
- Available for supervision
Looking for a supervisor? Read our advice on how to choose a supervisor.
Supervision history
Current supervision
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Doctor Philosophy
A multifactorial study of morpho-syntactic errors across different L1 backgrounds and language proficiency levels
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Associate Professor Peter Crosthwaite
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Doctor Philosophy
A complex dynamic approach to learner engagement with GenAI-assisted written corrective feedback
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Associate Professor Peter Crosthwaite
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Doctor Philosophy
Integrating Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning in TESOL: A Study on Personalised Learning and Impact on Student Engagement and Motivation in A Rural Indonesian University
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Associate Professor Peter Crosthwaite
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Doctor Philosophy
Enhancing Lexical Resources for Argumentative Essay Writing through Corpus Integration
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Associate Professor Peter Crosthwaite
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Doctor Philosophy
Corpus-based investigation of three-minute thesis presentations: Register perspective
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Associate Professor Peter Crosthwaite
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Doctor Philosophy
The Relationship Between Writing Tasks and Second Language Writers¿ Use of Metadiscourse
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Associate Professor Peter Crosthwaite
Completed supervision
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2025
Doctor Philosophy
A corpus-based analysis of conspiracy theory discourse on Reddit: Understanding conspiracy-fuelled anomie and moral panics during COVID-19
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Ryan Ko
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2023
Doctor Philosophy
The acquisition of number marking: The case of Indonesian as a second language
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Associate Professor Peter Crosthwaite
Media
Enquiries
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