<i>Xiaosi</i> ‘die laughing’ as a discourse marker

Abstract This study investigates the usage of 笑死 ( xiaosi hereafter, ‘laugh-die; die laughing’) in Facebook posts retrieved during Taiwan’s level-3 COVID-19 alert period (5/15/2021–7/26/2021). The analysis of xiaosi revealed that it serves two major functions: (a) as its literal meaning, ‘to laugh to death’ (die laughing), and (b) as a discourse marker. The use of this discourse-marker function demonstrates that it has acquired a new pragmatic function in social media contexts beyond its literal meaning. Specifically, xiaosi can express a speaker’s stance or provide an evaluative comment on the situation, thus introducing a new conversational function distinct from its original meaning.