Words as Social Currency

We do not merely speak, we navigate, negotiate, and signal. Our words act as tools of alignment, resistance, performance, and protection. Language is not neutral. It is deeply social and symbolically powerful.

Code-switching, in particular, is more than just shifting from one language to another. It is an act of identity. It is a moment-to-moment construction of self.

Whether intentional or subconscious, code-switching is a communicative strategy that reflects our relationship with context, community, and culture. It is in the pauses, the slips, and the switches that our linguistic identities are most vividly performed.

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What is Code‑Switching?

Code‑switching, also known as language alternation, describes the linguistic phenomenon in which speakers switch between two or more languages or language varieties within a stretch of discourse.

The Cambridge Dictionary defines it as “the act of changing between two or more languages, or between dialects of the same language, especially during a single conversation.” (see definition on Cambridge)

The Cambridge Handbook of Linguistic Code-switching (2017) explains that switching may occur between sentences or even within clauses, provided grammatical constraints are maintained.

Wikipedia notes that code‑switching occurs when speakers shift between languages, dialects, or registers during a single conversation, often to navigate identity or social dynamics. (see definition on Wikipedia)

According to Shana Poplack (1980), code-switching is not random but tends to follow syntactic rules in both languages. She introduced the equivalence constraint, which suggests switches typically occur at points where the grammatical structures align.

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Types of Code‑Switching

Linguists generally distinguish between structural and functional types of switching. Below, all examples reflect code-switching from Polish into English. It is indeed a common practice among Polish bilinguals, particularly in urban, academic, or online environments.

Structural Types (Poplack 1980; Romaine 1995)

Inter-sentential switching – between sentences
🇵🇱 Jutro mamy kolokwium. It’s giving real stress.

🇵🇱 Na koniec zajęć wszyscy byli zmęczeni. Totally understandable.

Intra-sentential switching – within a sentence
🇵🇱 Zamówiłam iced coffee, ale oczywiście przyszło coś zupełnie innego.

🇵🇱 Zaspałam na wykład, totalnie missed it.

Tag switching – e.g. “you know”, “right?” inserted into a sentence in another language
🇵🇱 To był taki dzień, że tylko leżeć i scrollować TikToka, you know what I mean?
🇵🇱 Starałam się być miła, but still – zero reakcji, you feel me?

Sociolinguistic Functions (Gumperz 1982)

Situational switching – prompted by a change in topic, setting, or audience
🇵🇱 Dobra, pogadaliśmy o weekendzie. A teraz tell me what really happened na tej imprezie.

🇵🇱 Plotkowaliśmy o sąsiadach. Now let’s get to the real tea.

Metaphorical switching – used for rhetorical, emotional, or social meaning shifts
🇵🇱 Zrobiła z tego dramę na maxa – total drama queen.
🇵🇱 Nagle wszyscy tacy friendly, jakby nie było awkward silence wcześniej.

Why It Matters

Code-switching is not a linguistic flaw. It is a skillful strategy driven by social and linguistic awareness. Poplack showed that fluent bilinguals often code-switch in grammatically consistent and meaningful ways.
Cambridge resources also affirm that code-switching reflects language flexibility, not deficiency. It’s a vital tool for navigating identity, solidarity, humor, or authority in multilingual environments.

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Code-Switching and Identity Performance

According to sociolinguists like Gumperz (1982) and Bucholtz & Hall (2005), language is a form of performance. We use it to build or contest identity. Code-switching is part of this identity work.

Switching codes may:

Signal ingroup solidarity

🇵🇱 Gadaliśmy sobie, i wiesz co? Totalnie randomowo…
🇵🇱 Wszyscy śmiali się z tego TikToka, total inside joke.

English is used playfully or casually to show shared cultural references.

Express distance or irony

🇵🇱 Ooo teraz jej zależy, seriously?
🇵🇱 Udaje, że nic się nie stało – sure, Janek.

The switch into English adds sarcasm or skeptical detachment.

Reflect cultural duality

🇵🇱 Wigilia jak zawsze u babci, ale potem Christmas dinner z rodziną mamy z UK.
🇵🇱 Lubię schabowego, ale też jestem fanem proper Sunday roast.

Each language indexes a different cultural space — one local, one global. Each switch is a linguistic mirror. It reflects our layered identity and lived experience.

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Cultural Capital and Language Choice

Language is more than a tool. It is a form of symbolic capital (Bourdieu, 1991). The language we use can reflect education, authority, or insider status.

🇵🇱 Pytał mnie o curriculum, ale nie wiedział, co to znaczy.

Switching into minority or regional languages can also signal resistance or pride:
🇵🇱 Prezentacja była po angielsku, ale zaczęłam od kaszubskiego “Witómë wszëtczich”.

Language choice always indexes something deeper. Emotion, affiliation, worldview.

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Examples in Real Life

All examples below reflect Polish-language utterances that include English elements, demonstrating how bilingual speakers toggle between codes in everyday contexts.

A. School Setting

🇵🇱 Mieliśmy oddać dziś wypracowanie, right? Bo ja totalnie zapomniałam.
🇵🇱 Ej, była ta lektura na dziś? I totally forgot.

B. Professional Environment

🇵🇱 Przełóżmy to spotkanie, bo szef ma dziś total Monday mood.
🇵🇱 Dostałam brief, ale it makes zero sense.

C. Romantic Context

🇵🇱 Napisał „ dobranoc 😘”, a potem mnie zghostował.
🇵🇱 Nazywał mnie “his person”, a potem zachowywał się full toxic.

D. Online Interaction

🇵🇱 Mam dość tego tygodnia. Thursday’s killing me.
🇵🇱 Ten dzień to total chaos energy, literally.

E. Social Signalling

🇵🇱 Typowe “let’s catch up soon”, czyli wiadomo, że nigdy.
🇵🇱 Napisała “już wychodzę” – I guess that means że dopiero wybiera fit.

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Language Ideologies and Social Meaning

Our beliefs about language, what’s “correct,” prestigious, or beautiful, stem from language ideologies.

In Poland, using English may signal education, aspiration, or cosmopolitanism. But code-switchers can also face criticism. Some may say they’re “pretending”, “trying too hard”, or “not authentic enough.” These critiques are not about grammar. They are about social belonging, image, and expectation. Our beliefs about language—what’s “correct,” prestigious, or beautiful—stem from language ideologies.

These critiques are not really about grammar. They are about social belonging, image, and expectation.

Linguist G.A. Kleparski (2010) emphasises that language is not a neutral medium. It doesn’t just mirror our culture. It also acts as a lens that shapes how we assign value, create hierarchies, and make sense of the social world. Through everyday speech, including code-switching, we participate in systems of meaning-making that reflect both historical influence and contemporary identity politics. In other words, switching between Polish and English isn’t just about vocabulary. It’s a way of navigating power, style, and belonging.

Examples
🇵🇱 On był taki “corporate hustle”, wiesz o co chodzi.
🇵🇱 Zaczęła mówić o self-care i boundaries jakby to było coś nowego.

Here, the English phrases “corporate hustle”, “self-care”, “boundaries” carry connotations shaped by global discourse, often seen as aspirational or modern. Their use may be admired in some circles and mocked in others.

Why It Matters

Code-switching is never just about words. It’s about positioning, about how we present ourselves, how we want to be seen, and how others interpret us. Language ideologies shape these dynamics, reinforcing or challenging hierarchies of taste, status, and belonging.

Recognising this helps us move past surface judgments and toward a more nuanced understanding of how people use language not just to communicate, but to navigate identity.

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Language Ideologies and Social Meaning

To switch codes is to shift tone, persona, and position. It is not a flaw, as it is a linguistic feature. It reveals how we think, relate, and move between cultural spaces.

In teaching, therapy, business, or daily life, code-switching helps us mediate realities. It is shaped by power, emotion, play, and connection.

To be EngSighted is to notice the switch. It is to hear the rhythm between languages and see the meanings beyond words.

Are you EngSighted?

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References

1. Blommaert, J., & Backus, A. (2011). Repertoires revisited: ‘Knowing language’ in superdiversity. Working Papers in Urban Language & Literacies, 67.
2. Bourdieu, P. (1991). Language and symbolic power. Harvard University Press.
3. Bucholtz, M., & Hall, K. (2005). Identity and interaction: A sociocultural linguistic approach. Discourse Studies, 7(4–5), 585–614.
4. Gumperz, J. J. (1982). Discourse strategies. Cambridge University Press.
5. Kleparski, G. A. (2010). Metaphor, culture, and the evolution of lexical meaning: A cross-linguistic perspective. Rzeszów: Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Rzeszowskiego.
6. Myers-Scotton, C. (1993). Social motivations for code-switching: Evidence from Africa. Oxford University Press.
7. Poplack, S. (1980). Sometimes i’ll start a sentence in spanish y termino en espanol: toward a typology of code-switching.
8. Romaine, S. (1995). Bilingualism (2nd ed.). Blackwell.
9. The Cambridge Handbook of Linguistic Code-switching. (2017). Edited by Barbara E. Bullock and Almeida Jacqueline Toribio. Cambridge University Press.