Key Terms

Question 1

Morphology

Answer 1

Study of the internal structure of words. The basic part of any word is the root. You can add a prefix at the beginning and/or a suffix at the end to change the meaning.

Question 2

Syntax

Answer 2

It is the way words are put together in a language to form phrases, clauses, or sentences. The syntax of a language can be divided into 2 parts: syntactic classes such as noun, verb, and adjective, and syntactic functions such as subject and object.

Question 3

Lexicon

Answer 3

The lexicon is a list of all the words in a language. If it includes definitions, it is a dictionary.
The knowledge that a native speaker has about a language. This includes information about:

• the form and meanings of words and phrases
• lexical categorization
• the appropriate usage of words and phrases
• relationships between words and phrases, and
• categories of words and phrases.
  Phonological and grammatical rules are NOT considered part of the lexicon.

Question 4

Semantics

Answer 4

1. Semantics, generally defined, the study of meaning of linguistic expressions.
2. Semantics, more narrowly defined, the study of the meaning of linguistic expressions apart from consideration of the effect that pragmatic factors, such as the following, have on the meaning of language in use:
   * Features of the context
   * Conventions of language use
   * The goals of the speaker

Question 5

Discourse

Answer 5

It is a continuous stretch of speech or written text, going beyond a sentence to express thought. For example, style in writing or rules of conversation.

Question 6

Pragmatics

Answer 6

Pragmatics is the study of the aspects of meaning and language use that are dependent on the speaker, the addressee and other features of the context of utterance, such as the following:

The effect that the following have on the speaker’s choice of expression and the addressee’s interpretation of an utterance:

• Context of utterance
• Generally observed principles of communication
• The goals of the speaker

Question 7

Language Registers

Answer 7

Situational context is influenced by what is being talked/written about and the relationship between those speakers. This situational context of language use is referred to as a language register.
The use of the appropriate register depends on the audience, the topic, and the purpose for the communication.
*Frozen Register: Pledge of Allegiance, Lord’s Prayer, Preamble to
Constitution (language that remains fixed/unchanged)
*Formal/Academic Register: Interviews, academic language in classroom (lectures, instruction—mini-lessons), public speaking
*Consultative Register: Talking to a boss/supervisor/teacher, lawyer, doctor, Counselor (asking for assistance)
*Casual (Informal) Register: Talking with friends, slang (writing drafts should
allow casual before the formal draft because it “gets the information out” on the paper)
*Intimate Register: Language of lovers, sexual harassment (not for public
information)

Question 8

Lexical Ambiguity

Answer 8

Some words have two or more meanings. Ex. pen - a writing instrument or pen - a places where pigs live/ Fall - season of the year or to tumble down, plunge

Question 9

Cognates

Answer 9

Words which have a common origin.
True Cognate- The word is spelled the same, meaning the same, but pronunciation will be different according to language structure of the words such as an accent mark. Example.. English-rodeo, Spanish- rodeo
Partial Cognate- The word in other languages has the same origin but the spelling will differ. The meaning will be the same but the pronunciation due to the language structure will be different. Example…English-fragrance, Spanish- fragancia
False Cognate- The word in another language may have the same origin but will have different spelling and different meaning. Pronunciation will be different. Example..English-exit, Spanish- exito (means ‘false friend’ not exit)