The prosodic marking of discourse functions: German <i>genau</i> ‘exactly’ between confirming propositions and resuming actions

Abstract This article describes conversational functions of the turn-constructional-unit-initial (TCU-initial) German genau ‘exactly’ in relation to its prosodic realization. Prior research has shown that genau is prominently used as a confirming response particle or marker of recipiency. In its confirmatory function, it may also occur as a sequence-structuring device in that it closes disaligned sequences in order to foster the transition to the main line of talk. Based on an interactional study of 113 instances of genau in a range of mundane and institutional contexts taken from the Research and Teaching Corpus of Spoken German (FOLK), this contribution shows that the confirmatory function of genau in contexts of sequential disruption may be shifted to using it as an initial discourse marker. In this use, genau does not confirm a proposition in question but connects a suspended sequential path to the upcoming line of talk. We show that this resumptive function of genau is transferred to sequential contexts where no side sequences occur, leading to a connective use of the element. This process of integration from a response particle to a TCU-initial discourse marker is linked to prosodic changes in the realization of genau : It will be shown that differences in the perceived prosodic (dis)integration reflect the speakers’ practices of signalling if genau should be understood as either confirming a prior turn or rather projecting the upcoming turn to be complementing an established path of action. Perceptual ambiguity and variation are discussed to be an integral part of participant-focused conceptions of prosodic units.