| Abstract | 第1-4页 |
| 摘要 | 第4-8页 |
| Chapter One: Introduction | 第8-13页 |
| ·Rationale for the Study | 第8-9页 |
| ·Research Problem Statement | 第9-10页 |
| ·Significance of the Study | 第10页 |
| ·Objectives of the Present Study | 第10-11页 |
| ·Layout of the Thesis | 第11-13页 |
| Chapter Two: Literature Review | 第13-34页 |
| ·Overview of Previous Research on Vague Language | 第13-15页 |
| ·Previous Research Abroad | 第13-14页 |
| ·Previous Research at Home | 第14-15页 |
| ·Different Definitions of Vague Language | 第15-17页 |
| ·Reasons for the Existence of Vague Language | 第17-20页 |
| ·The Objective Reason | 第17-18页 |
| ·The Subjective Reason | 第18-19页 |
| ·The Limitations of Languages | 第19-20页 |
| ·Perspectives on Vague Language | 第20-24页 |
| ·Semantic Perspective | 第20-21页 |
| ·Pragmatic Perspective | 第21-22页 |
| ·Semantic Perspective VS. Pragmatic Perspective | 第22-23页 |
| ·Other Perspectives on Vague Language | 第23-24页 |
| ·Relations of Some Related Terms | 第24-30页 |
| ·Fuzziness VS Vagueness | 第24-26页 |
| ·Fuzziness VS Ambiguity | 第26-28页 |
| ·Fuzziness VS Generality | 第28-29页 |
| ·Fuzziness VS Polysemy | 第29-30页 |
| ·Vague Language and Business Communication | 第30-32页 |
| ·Summary | 第32-34页 |
| Chapter Three: Methodology | 第34-41页 |
| ·Collecting the Corpus | 第34-37页 |
| ·Selection of Literatures and Books | 第35-36页 |
| ·Selection of Sample Sentences | 第36-37页 |
| ·A Qualitative Study of Vague Language | 第37-40页 |
| ·Interpretation of the Use of Vague Language Based on Adaptation Theory | 第37-39页 |
| ·The Pragmatic Effects Vague Language may Bring Forth | 第39-40页 |
| ·Summary | 第40-41页 |
| Chapter Four: The Employment of Vague Language in Business English | 第41-47页 |
| ·Definition of Business English | 第41-42页 |
| ·Characteristics of Business English | 第42页 |
| ·Principles of Business Writings | 第42-45页 |
| ·Completeness | 第43页 |
| ·Conciseness | 第43-44页 |
| ·Concreteness | 第44页 |
| ·Correctness | 第44页 |
| ·Clarity | 第44-45页 |
| ·Consideration | 第45页 |
| ·Courtesy | 第45页 |
| ·The Employment of Vague Language in Business English | 第45-47页 |
| Chapter Five: The Pragmatic Use of Vague Language in Business English | 第47-66页 |
| ·Pragmatic Theories Applied in the Use of Vague Language in Business English | 第47-57页 |
| ·Grice's Cooperative Principle | 第47-51页 |
| ·Leech's Politeness Principle | 第51-54页 |
| ·Sperber and Wilson's Relevance Theory | 第54-57页 |
| ·Pragmatic Functions of Vague Language in Business English | 第57-65页 |
| ·Vague Language can Enhance the Power of Expression in Business English | 第58-62页 |
| ·Vague Language can Better Reinforce Politeness in Business English | 第62-65页 |
| ·Summary | 第65-66页 |
| Chapter Six: Conclusion | 第66-69页 |
| ·Major Findings | 第66-67页 |
| ·Vague Language has Strong Pragmatic Functions in Business Context | 第66页 |
| ·The Phenomena of Vague Language are Explicable by Pragmatic Theories | 第66-67页 |
| ·Limitations of the Present Research | 第67-68页 |
| ·Suggestions for Further Study | 第68-69页 |
| References | 第69-72页 |
| Acknowledgement | 第72-73页 |
