Terms: Basic Concepts Flashcards
(48 cards)
the scientific study of language
Linguistics
____________________about language describe how language is used, reporting observations objectively, without any judgements about them → “this is what people say and write”
Descriptive statements
_________________ about language make judgments about language correctness. → “this is what people should say and write. This is good and that is bad.”
Prescriptive statements
description of the structure of (a) language(s).
Grammar
The set of words in a language and our knowledge about these words.
Lexicon
the science dealing with the physical and physiological character of sounds, how sounds are produced, transmitted, and perceived.
Phonetics
the science dealing with the sound system of (a) specific language(s).
Phonology
the smallest building block that can change the meaning of a word.
Phoneme
the science dealing with the structure of words, how words consist of smaller parts – morphemes – each one contributing some specific meaning.
Morphology
the smallest building blocks that carry meaning.
Morpheme
the science dealing with how words are put together into larger chunks: phrases, clauses, sentences, and texts.
Syntax
Morphology + Syntax; it’s often difficult to tell exactly where to draw the borderline between them, and therefore it may be more convenient to treat them together.
Morphosyntax
the science dealing with the meaning of words and utterances.
Semantics
the science dealing with the use of words and utterances in a social context, i.e. IRL situations. (We often don’t say exactly what we mean, e.g., Do you know what time it is?)
Pragmatics
two (or more) sounds that differ slightly, but are used in a specific language as if they were the same sound, with no change in meaning
Allophones
traditionally also called parts of speech, are nouns, adjectives, pronouns, verbs…
Word-classes
A _____ usually constitutes the central part of a clause. (The children made their lunches.). ______ are (usually) accompanied by one or more nouns (SVO). Some are obligatory, and some are optional
Verbs
a verb that forms the past and the past participle by assuming -d or -ed: I acted, I ruled, I loved, I defended.
Regular verb
a verb that does not form the past and the past participle by assuming -d or -ed: see -> saw -> seen; go -> went -> gone; do -> did -> done
Irregular verb
a verb that can use both regular and irregular forms: thrive -> thrived/throve -> thrived/thriven
Redundant verb
- might be inflected for singular/plural, definite/indefinite…
- might belong to a gender class or some other kind of noun class
- generally used as subject or object or adverbial complement
- generally denotes living beings, objects, and abstract ideas
- might be preceded by a determine
Nouns
- tends to appear next to a noun
- might be inflected so that it agrees with the noun (meaning that it has the same gender, number, definiteness)
- tends to express definiteness, possession, uniqueness, quantity…
Determiner
something known
Definite
something new or unknown
Indefinite
