The Basics Flashcards
Deixis
the use of words or phrases to refer to a particular time (e.g. then), place (e.g. here), or person (e.g. you) relative to the context of the utterance.
Personal Pronoun
refers to a particular person, group, or thing (I, You, He, She, it, etc.)
Possessive Pronoun
takes the place of a noun to show ownership (mine, yours, etc.)
Reflexive pronoun
used when the subject and the object of a sentence are the same (myself, yourself, etc.)
Demonstrative Pronoun
use to talk about something specific (These, Those, This, That)
Relative Pronoun
pronouns used to introduce a relative clause (who, that, which)
Intertextuality
When a text makes reference to another existing text for effect
Determiner
A word that comes before a noun or noun phrase to clarify if the noun is specific or general.
A determiner specifies the kind of reference a noun has. Common determiners are: the, those, my, her, both, all, several and no.
Quantifier
A word to give information about the quantity of a noun
Definite article
The
Indefinite article
A/An
Preposition
Words which show the location of a noun; 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. Some examples of prepositions are words like “in,” “at,” “on,” “of,” and “to.”
co-ordinating conjunction
A linking word which connects independent clauses or phrases, giving equal importance to each section
‘For, and, nor, or, yet, so, still, besides, otherwise, or else, nevertheless.’
subordinating conjunction
A linking word which connects an independent clause with a subordinate clause. This word or phrase indicates that a clause has informative value to add to the sentence’s main idea, signaling a cause-and-effect relationship or a shift in time and place between the two clauses.
‘as long as, because, even if, if, unless, before, since, though, etc.’
abstract noun
The lexis which refers to states, feelings and concepts that do not have a physical existence
concrete noun
The lexis which refers to things with a physical existence
verbal verb
The lexis which is linked to the process of making sounds
material verb
The lexis which refers to a physical action
mental verb
The lexis which shows internal processes e.g. thinking
relational verb
The lexis which describes states of being e.g. be, appear, seem
stative verb
The lexis which describes states/conditions unlikely to change (possession, feeling, perception, mental processes, identity); typically, they do not have a continuous form (Chris is having a car)
Attributive adjective
Adjectives placed before the head noun e.g. the dangerous animal
predicative adjective
Adjectives placed after the head noun e.g. the day was good
superlative adjectives
Adjectives that express the highest quality of something
comparative adjective
An adjective that makes a comparison between two things
amelioration
A process where a word or phrase develops more positive connotations
pejoration
A process where a word or phrase develops more negative connotations
archaic language
Old fashioned language which isn’t typically used any more
broadening
A type of semantic change where the meaning of a word becomes broader or more inclusive
narrowing
A type of semantic change where the meaning of a word becomes narrower or less inclusive
neologism
New words that enter the language
acronym
An abbreviation consisting of initial letters which then create a new word
initialism
An abbreviation consisting of initial letters pronounced separately ‘BBC, LAPD, MSNBC’
eponym
A person after whom a discovery, invention, place, book, etc., is named
compound word
A word which is caused by two or more full words being joined together
blend word
Where two or more words are joined together but parts are omitted E.g. Skort
Truncation
Shortening a polysyllabic word by deleting one or more syllables e.g. Deli (delicatessen)
affixation
When an affix is added to create a new word
denotation
The literal meanings of words
antonym
Words which mean opposite things
synonym
Words which mean the same thing
collocation
Routinely placing words or phrases together (it sounds natural to a native speaker) e.g. Home and Dry, take a risk
idiom
An expression where the meaning is not predictable from the usual meanings of its constituent elements; “beating around the bush”
Euphemism
Using a more socially acceptable word or phrase
Dyphemism
Using a blunt or direct word instead of a more polite or indirect alternative
Anaphora
The deliberate repetition of the first part of a clause/sentence
Epistrophe
The deliberate repetition of the last part of a clause/sentence
Morphology
The smallest unit of language – this could be a root word or a collection of letters
Inflectional Morpheme
A type of suffix which shows either plurality or verb tense
derivational morpheme
A type of affix which changes the meaning of the root word. For example, the word “read” is a verb, but “reader” is a noun.
Noun phrase
A noun with adjectives and/or determiner. For example; The big red ball
Verb Phrase
A verb with an auxiliary or modal verb. for example, They can run a marathon in under three hours
adverbial
A phrase which adds further information to the verb, typically specifying place or time
fronted adverbial
An adverbial phrase which has been moved to the front of the sentence and is usually separated from the main clause with a comma E.g. All night long, we danced.
Auxillary verb
A verb which precedes the main verb to form part of a verb phrase – they can be categorised as primary and modal E.g. Have, Might
Modal auxillary verb
A verb which shows degrees of certainty, desirability obligation – they cannot occur alone
will, can, might
Deontic Modality
Expressions that highlight a sense of obligation or necessity
Epistemic Modality
Expressions that highlight degrees of possibility
Boulomaic Modality
Expressions that highlight wishes and desires
Perfect Aspect
An inflection of a verb which shows the action is completed – shown through have + past participle
Progressive Aspect (continuous)
An inflection of a verb which shows the action is ongoing or habitual – shown through be + -ing
Subordinate clause
A clause which is not complete by itself and as such, cannot form an independent sentence
Conditional clause
A specific type of subordinate clause which express an imagined situation or condition and the possible result of that situation – it is usually introduced with either if or unless
Relative clause
A specific type of subordinate clause which adds more information to the noun and is usually introduced with a relative pronoun
informatives
Pragmatics
Exploring how contextual factors such as background knowledge influence meaning
Tag Question
A short question added at the end of a sentence, often inviting agreement with the speaker. Sometimes seen to be used as seeking reassurance
Hedging
A word or phrase that makes a statement less forceful or assertive.
Schema
The bundle of knowledge about a concept, person or event
Presupposition
Any information which is taken for granted within discourse
