definitions

Question 1

Language functions: conative function

Answer 1

The conative function typically involves directions, questions and commands.

examples:
Could you please pass the salt?
Get out!

Question 2

Language functions: poetic function

Answer 2

The poetic function focuses on the formation of the message itself, rather than
on the addresser or addressee. It is sometimes referred to as the aesthetic
function because it concerns the beauty or wit of the text’s composition.

Examples:
Oh what a tangled web we weave when first we practise to deceive.- Sir Walter Scott

Question 3

Language functions: phatic function

Answer 3

Texts that have a phatic function are designed to create and maintain social
connections between the addresser and the addressee. These messages tend
to be somewhat meaningless outside a social context and the focus is
on the way the message is delivered and received.
For example:
when an acquaintance asks how your day has been, or if you’ve had a nice
weekend, an honest answer is rarely expected; usually a polite, general, positive
response is required.

Question 4

Language functions: metalinguistic function

Answer 4

A text that has a metalinguistic function describes language itself, such as using
the metalanguage ‘nouns’ and ‘vowels’.

examples:
Examples
A potato cake? Is that the same as a potato scallop?
Do you understand what I’m saying?
This sentence is short.
Always capitalise proper nouns.

Question 5

Language functions: referential function

Answer 5

the referential function is the sharing of
information with an intended audience. This information may or may not be true,
but the language user presents the message as factual and objective, commonly using declarative sentences (sentences that function as a statement rather than as a question or command).

Examples:
The sky is not blue.
Summer is when the weather is very hot.
His heart is broken

Question 6

Language functions: emotive function

Answer 6

The emotive function allows users to express emotions and desires. It’s
sometimes referred to as the expressive function. This function usually relates to
the addresser and their presentation of emotion - real or not.

Examples:
Argh, you stepped on my toe!
That was a fantastic movie.

Question 7

register

Answer 7

Register describes the way in which an addresser intentionally alters their
language to better suit the situation . It can involve all features of language and levels of formality
examples:
frozen, formal, consultative, casual, and intimate.

Question 8

Adverbial

Answer 8

Gives additional information about place, time, etc…
Falls outside of the predicate
Can be removed completely from a sentence without affecting the syntactic integrity

Question 9

Noun

Answer 9

Usually begins with a determiner (this, the, that, a, my)
The beautiful sky (subject noun phrase; head word ‘sky’) rose above the glimmering sea of green (object noun phrase; head word ‘sea).

Question 10

Authorial intent

Answer 10

why an author chooses to write and will communicate their message.

Question 11

pronoun

Answer 11

A pronoun is a word that can replace a noun in a sentence. I love my dog because he is a good boy, the word he is a pronoun that replaces the noun dog.

Question 12

verb

Answer 12

A verb is a word that indicates a physical action (e.g., “drive”), a mental action (e.g., “think”), or a state of being (e.g., “exist”).

Question 13

auxiliary (helping) verbs

Answer 13

Verbs that support (help) main verbs. Often enable tense.

1. Primary auxiliary verbs:Had/has, is/was, etc.
2. Modal verbs:
   Indicate likelihood of verb happening.

Question 14

preposition

Answer 14

A preposition is a word or group of words used before a noun, pronoun, or noun phrase to show direction, time, place, location, spatial relationships, or to introduce an object.

Question 15

adverb

Answer 15

Manner
Place
Time
Frequency

Question 16

determiners

Answer 16

a word placed before a noun to provide info. such as quantity ownership specificity

Question 17

Affixes

Answer 17

Prefixes
Go before the root
Eg: Disinterested

Suffixes
Go after the root
Eg: Walking

Infixes
Inserted inside the root(middle)
Not found in English (except for non-Standard words)
Often expletives or intensifiers in English.

Question 18

SEMANTIC PROPERTIES

Answer 18

Generally words with similar meanings have the same properties, however, not ALL of these properties will be the same – thus, the existence of synonyms.

–E.g. ‘punch’ has +hit, +closed fist
–E.g. ‘slap’ has +hit, +open fist

Question 19

Denotation

Answer 19

Denotation refers to the general meaning of a word. For example, the denotation of mother is a female parent.

Question 20

Connotation

Answer 20

Connotation refers to the social meaning or emotional associations triggered by a word

For example, rats:
denotation → small rodent
connotation → sneaky person

Question 21

elevation

Answer 21

When a lexeme takes on a more positive meaning than it once had. This occurs due to it acquiring positive connotations, or because its negative connotations subside.

For example, in the 16th Century, sophisticated meant ‘not natural, altered by a foreign substance’, but in Modern English, it is now used to describe someone who is refined through education and experience.

Question 22

DETERIORATION

Answer 22

When a lexeme takes on a more negative meaning. This happens more frequently than elevation. When this happens the unpleasant meaning kills the positive one.

For example, in the 13th Century, a villain was a peasant or someone who inhabits farms. In Modern English, it refers to a wicked person or scoundrel.

Question 23

shift

Answer 23

When a lexeme takes on a meaning and loses its original one.
slang

Question 24

how to know if a text is formal

Answer 24

Whether you use formal or informal style in writing will depend on the assignment itself, its subject, purpose, and audience. Formal language is characterized by the use of standard English, more complex sentence structures, infrequent use of personal pronouns, and lack of colloquial or slang terms.

Question 25

concrete nouns

Answer 25

1. Common nouns:
   General name for item. E.g. table.
2. Proper nouns: Specific name for item. E.g. Woolies.

—Concrete nouns help create a more vivid picture in the reader’s mind, making the writing more engaging and easier to remember.

Question 26

abstract nouns

Answer 26

Intangible items.
a noun that refers to something non-physical—something conceptual that you can’t perceive directly with your senses. Examples include “sadness,” “analysis,” “government,” and “adulthood.”
E.g.: love, freedom, wealth, honour, anticipation.

Question 27

social purpose

Answer 27

social purpose has a much broader application and tends to go deeper into the text and why it was said or written. For example, a recipe may have the function of instructing someone as to how to make a particular dish, however there may be a social purpose of establish rapport and trust with readers, or helping to establish, ‘branding,’ for the purposes of marketing and promotion.

Question 28

copula verbs

Answer 28

Connects the subject of the sentence to a noun or adjective. Links distinct elements in a sentence together.

E.g. The sky became cloudy, she seems tired.

Question 29

collective nouns

Answer 29

Refers to groups of people, animals, or things.

E.g. school, colony, parliament, punnet, murder

Question 30

mass/ count nouns

Answer 30

1. Count nouns:
   Able to be counted; have a plural form. E.g. dogs, shops.
2. Mass nouns:
   Cannot be counted. E,g. love.

Question 31

lexical(main)verb

Answer 31

The primary verb in a sentence that shows the action or state of being of the subject.

E.g.: run, eat, laugh, jump

Question 32

Semantic field

Answer 32

Semantic field refers to a set of lexemes that are semantically related.

For example, lexemes in the semantic field of “talents” might include:
Singing, dancing, tight-rope walking, juggling, speed-reading

Question 33

Hockett’s Design Features
- Mode of communication
- Broadcast is directional
- Semanticity
-Arbitrary
-Displacement

Answer 33

Mode of communication: For humans this is either vocal-auditory (spoken) or tactile visual (signed). For animals we add chemical-olfactory to the list (e.g. animal pheromones).

Broadcast is directional: A message of human language is directed towards someone. Whereas animal communication is usually radiant (e.g. bird cries, territorial markings).

Semanticity: The units of human language are symbolic in that they stand for something other than themselves (e.g. tree = an actual tree). Animals use non-symbolic animal communication (e.g. barking).

Arbitrary: there is no real relation between the signifier (word) and signified (what it refers to). Rather we as humans assign this meaning. E.g. we have decided that this particular set of symbols ‘tree’ represents a well … tree.

Displacement: Human language is used to communicate things that are not about the here and now. Animal communication is typically restricted to the here and now (e.g. baboons showing their behind during mating periods).

Question 34

signifier and signified

Answer 34

The signifier is the physical form of the sign, such as a word, image, or sound, while the signifier refers to the concept or meaning associated with the signifier. For example, the word “tree” (signifier) represents the concept of a large, woody plant (signified).

Question 35

preposition

Answer 35

A preposition expresses a relationship between a noun and another
word, phrase or element in a sentence

There are many prepositions in English. Here’s a list of some common ones.
of
by
with
at
between after
from
towards
into
under
for
out
during
before
on
in