Metalanguage Discourse

Question 1

A word that joins phrases, clauses or words.

Answer 1

Conjunction

Question 2

Placing at the start (front) of a sentence information that would normally occur later in the sentence, to give it extra prominence.

Answer 2

front focus

Question 3

A cohesive device whereby a word is substituted for another.

Answer 3

substitution

Question 4

Conjunctions such as ‘however’, ‘although’ and ‘because’

Answer 4

subordinating conjunctions

Question 5

Terms which refer to the personal, temporal or locational characteristics of a situation, and whose meanings only make sense in that context or situation. For example, ‘here’ and ‘there, this and ‘that only make sense when taken in context.

Answer 5

deixis/deictic expressions

Question 6

Logical development and integration within speech or writing. i.e. makes a text understandable.

Answer 6

Coherence

Question 7

The technique of handing over one’s turn to another interlocutor.

Answer 7

passing the floor

Question 8

Social ‘chit-chat’ such as talking about the weather or enquiring about someone’s health; the sort of language used to maintain social relationships.

Answer 8

phatic communication

Question 9

Features of speech that are typical in spontaneous discourse: hesitations, pauses, false starts, repairs, repetition and filled pauses (e.g. ‘um’, ‘er’).

Answer 9

non-fluency features

Question 10

The cooperative responses or back-channelling made by speakers to encourage their interlocutors to keep talking.

Answer 10

minimal responses

Question 11

Splitting a single clause into two clauses, each with its own verb, e.g. ‘Jenny ate the ice-cream’ becomes ‘It was Jenny who ate the ice-cream.

Answer 11

Clefting

Question 12

Adjacent turns in spoken discourse which relate to each other, such as questions and answers or greetings and responses

Answer 12

adjacency pairs

Question 13

Two or more speakers talking simultaneously.

Answer 13

overlapping speech

Question 14

Techniques used by speakers to maintain their turn in conversation.

Answer 14

floor-holding strategies

Question 15

The use of a high-rising or questioning intonation at the end of a statement. Typical in young speakers, it has a range of discourse functions, such as seeking empathy or keeping the other interlocutor involved in the conversation.

Answer 15

HRT (high-rising terminal)

Question 16

The language variety of a regional or social group.

Answer 16

Dialect

Question 17

Little expressions, such as ‘isn’t it?’ and ‘will she?’, which turn statements into questions.

Answer 17

interrogative tag

Question 18

The use of words that are opposite in meaning, e.g. hot & cold

Answer 18

antonymy

Question 19

Something that has been deduced by using implicit information (such as cultural knowledge).

Answer 19

Inference

Question 20

Given or familiar information followed by new information. This gives prominence to the final part of the sentence and can enable suspense to build. Also, end weight.

Answer 20

end focus

Question 21

In spoken discourse this refers to words being repeated due to hesitancy or a false start. In writing it refers to a stylistic device that uses reiteration to emphasize an idea.

Answer 21

repetition

Question 22

Strategies for presenting information within a sentence, such as front focus, end focus and clefting.

Answer 22

information flow

Question 23

Conversational strategies for controlling the topic.

Answer 23

topic management

Question 24

The practice of alternating between two or more languages or dialects in a conversation.

Answer 24

Code-switching

Question 25

Conjunctions such as ‘and’, ‘or’ and ‘but’ are ?__? conjunctions

Answer 25

Coordinating conjunctions

Question 26

The beginnings and endings of dialogues, which often contain formulaic expressions.

Answer 26

openings and closings

Question 27

This indicates support, encouragement or acknowledgement in conversation, e.g. ‘Mm’, yes’, ‘right’.

Answer 27

Back-channelling or minimal responses

Question 28

A form of correction, typical in spontaneous speech.

Answer 28

repair

Question 29

A pairing or group of words that frequently go together, e.g. ‘tropical paradise’.

Answer 29

Collocation

Question 30

A participant in a conversation or dialogue.

Answer 30

Interlocutor

Question 31

The use of pronouns to refer back to something already mentioned in a sentence, e.g. ‘it’ in ‘The cake was delicious and everybody ate it’

Answer 31

anaphoric reference

Question 32

A hesitation or change of mind once a speaker starts talking, very common in spontaneous discourse.

Answer 32

false start

Question 33

Strategies for holding or passing the floor to another speaker during a conversation/ dialogue.

Answer 33

turn-taking strategies

Question 34

The overall patterns and structures of a spoken or written text, which enable it to communicate meaning.

Answer 34

Discourse

Question 35

Short expressions or words that have an important function in speech, such as packaging information, structuring turn taking, expressing attitudes/opinions and orienting topics, e.g. ‘anyway, well’, yeah-no’, ok’, ‘like’, ‘OMG’

Answer 35

discourse particles

Question 36

A pronoun that refers to something yet to be mentioned, e.g. ‘It was beautiful - a holiday to remember’.

Answer 36

Cataphoric reference

Question 37

Grammatical and lexical linking within a text or sentence. i.e. holds a text together and gives it meaning. Related to the broader concept of coherence.

Answer 37

Cohesion