The use of foreign language elements in advertisements is quite a common practice. Therefore, a large number of publications on this topic comes as no surprise. However, for the study purposes the researchers apply different perspectives and points of reference when it comes to defining what actually constitutes the use of foreign-language elements. The present paper offers a short review of those approaches, showing the discrepancies between various standpoints. It also addresses the methodological difficulties related to the application of clear-cut definitions. Given the variability of standpoints, it is suggested that the issues outlined in the paper need to be taken into consideration before any attempts are made at comparing the results of different studies of the problem.