VCE English Language Unit 2 AOS1

Semantic Shift

When a lexeme takes on a new meaning and in doing so loses all ties to the original meaning, e.g. Gay

Elevation

When a lexeme becomes more positive in meaning

Deterioration

When a lexeme becomes more negative in meaning.

Broadening

When a lexeme widens its meaning to take on new uses, and builds on the original word, e.g. Virus, Cookie

Narrowing

When the meaning of a lexeme becomes more limited - often more specialized or niche. it occurs when words become associated to a single context

Codification

The Process of creating and recording the rules of a language, this includes spelling, grammar rules, pronunciation and definition.

Cognate

A word in two or more languages that comes from the same original ancestor word.

Standardisation

The process of making a language more uniform. it involves people agreeing on spelling, grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation.

Proto-Indo-European

a Hypothetical, reconstructed, language spoken between 3500-8000 years ago, that is the ancestor of many European and Asian languages

Standard Languages

Varieties of languages that are codified, and used in media, education, government, etc. Is considered to be the "Correct" way of using a language.

Abbreviation

Formed by writing or pronouncing shorter forms of a word/s. Can be shortenings, acronyms, or initialisms, e.g. VCAA.

Initialism

Taking the first letter of a string of words and pronouncing them as letters, e.g. VCE

Acronym

When initialisms create words that can be pronounced, e.g. SAC.

Shortening

Cutting words down to smaller forms, e.g. Exam

Contraction

Removing some letters from words and replacing it with an apostrophe, e.g. Can't

Compounding

The combination of two or more morphemes, e.g. Girlfriend

Blend

A combination of two existing words. these often create puns

Conversion

When a word changes word classes without the word itself being altered

Affixation

The combination of bound morphemes to an existing word, e.g. Subhuman

Backformation

creating a new word by removing an affix, changing a word of one type (usually a noun), to a word of another word class (usually a verb), e.g. Television -> Televise

Elision

When sounds are omitted or left out in connected speech, e.g. library -> libry

Vowel Reduction

Similar to elision but, instead of disappearing completely, vowels in unstressed positions are reduced to schwa

Insertion

Involves the addition of sounds (both consonants and vowels) where they don't originate

Assimilation

When a sound changes to become more like a neighbouring sound, e.g. want to -> wanna.