A notion in cognitive grammar.

Relates to the way in which attention is differentially focused on a particular aspect of a given scene. This is achieved in language by a range of focal adjustments which 'adjust the focus' on a particular aspect of any given scene by using different linguistic expressions or different grammatical constructions to describe that scene. The visual metaphor that the expression 'focal adjustment' rests upon emphasises the fact that visual perception is central to how we focus attention upon aspects of experience. By choosing a particular focal adjustment and thus linguistically 'organizing' a scene in a specific way, the speaker imposes a unique construal upon that scene. There are three parameters of focal adjustment which provide different ways of focusing attention upon and thus construing a scene.