摘要：
Chunks are commonly used in academic written register, and there are quite remarkable differences in chunk features between disciplines. Based on a corpus investigation into 4-word chunks in research articles of engineering discipline, the present study has found that researchers in this field most frequently use the chunks of structures passive followed by prepositional phrase and noun phrase with of-phrase fragment. Besides, due to the empirical and experimental nature of engineering studies, researchers use research-oriented chunks most prevalently, text-oriented chunks the second, participant-oriented chunks the fewest. The findings on the structures and functions of academic chunks in the present study can provide pedagogical implications for academic writing in engineering field.
