VCE English Language Metalanguage

Accent

A characteristic way of pronoungcing a language or a variety that is identified with national, regional, social or ethnic background.

-> This is sometimes confused with 'dialect', but it is possible to speak Standard English with an Australian, Queensland, older generation, or working class accent.

Acronyms

Words formed from the initials of other words.

-> a type of abbreviation.

-> VCAA, ATAR, NASA, RAM, LOL etc.

Alphabetisms

Words formed from the intials of other words, in which each letter is pronounced.

-> LMAO, VCE etc.

Affixation

A morphological process that involves the addition of bound morphemes (or affixes) to a word stem.

-> email, e-commerce etc (word class unchanged).

-> see also derivation versus inflection.

Affixes

Morphemes that can be added to a root/stem to form a more complex word.

-> Prefixes = in-, un-, non-, etc.

-> Infixes = -bloody-.

-> Suffixes = -ed, -s, -ing, etc.

Archaism

Words and construction no longer employed or transferred from earlier phases of a language.

-> Hitherto, manifold, prithee.

Assimilation

A term in phonetics to describe the process whereby sounds become similar or even identical to neighbouring sounds.

-> Handbag = Hambag.

----> [b] is bilabial, and the tongue anticipates the bilabial by making the [d] bilabial also.

-> Latter = Ladder

---->[t] to [d] = flap as we are 'flapping' the tongue against the alveolar ridge.

Dissimilation

A term in phonetics to describe the process whereby sounds become dissimilar to their neighbours in a word.

-> Latin purpur = English purple.

Backformation

A word formation process whereby an affix (real or imagined) is removed from another words, on the basis iof an existing word which speakers assume derives from it.

-> Versus sounds similar to curses, therefore 'to verse' is similar to 'to curse'.

Blending

A word formation process resulting from the fusion/contraction of two or more existing words. The new word then encorporates meaningful characteristics from both.

-> Blog, netiquette, brunch etc.

Borrowing

Where words (and other aspects of linguistic structure) are incorporated from one language into another.

-> Usually vocabulary borrowing.

-> Borrowed items are known as loan words.

-> Pizza, a la mode, a la carte etc.

Broadening

A type of semantic change whereby the contexts in which a word can appear are expanded.

-> mob = group of animals/humans, -> now means "any quantity/number"

Code-switching

Where speakers use more than one language or dialect in a conversation.

Cognates

Words historically derived from the same source.

-> English 'father' and German 'vater'.

Compounding

A way of forming new words by combining two or more free morphemes. The resulting compound is a word that contains a stem that is made up of mroe than one root.

-> World music, thrash metal music, speed metal, techno-pop etc.

Connotations

The emotional implications and associations that a word may carry. They arise from the personalities, beliefs, experiences of people and will differ from person to person.

Content words

Words that have independent, real world meanings, as might occur in a dictionary.

Conversion

A way of forming new words simply by changing the function and word class of a word.

-> noun to verb = to google, to impact, to beverage, to network, to trash, to leaflet etc.

-> verb to noun is nominalisation.

Creole

A pidgin that has become the first langauge of a speech community.

-> Kriol.

Derivational morphemes

Derivational affixes change the category/meaning of the word to which they are added.

-> to run -> runner (different word class)

-> un + happy = unhappy (antonymic meaning)

Deterioration

A type of semantic shift whereby words change their emotive overtones negatively/perjoratively.

Diphthong

A long vowel consisting of two sounds.

Discourse

Sequences of language that are larger than a sentence.

EFL speakers

The growing numbers of people speaking English as a foreign language.

-> In countries where English has no special status, such as China, Egypt, Saudi Arabia etc.

Elevation

A semantic shift process whereby words change their emotive overtones, becoming more positive and having favourable associations.

Ellipsis

The deletion of items in a sentence because their either appear elsewhere or can be reconstructed from the context.

-> Wanna go for lunch?

ENL speakers

Includes speakers ***** are traditionally associated with English; the language is their first language.

ESL speakers

Speakers of New Englishes that belong to the 'outer circle' of countries where English has a special status, often as one of the official languages.

-> Singapore, Malaysia, India, Nigeria, Hong Kong, etc.

Ethnolect

A variety that identifies speakers by their identity; usually influenced by their L1 langague or t hat of their families.

Etymology

The study of the history of words (their forms and meanings) and word origins.

Expletive

Exclamation or oath, especially one that is profane, vulgar or obscene.

-> ****!

Flap

A consonant produced by the rapid contact between two organs of articulation.

-> latter -> ladder.

Hedges

Mitigating devices that speakers use to lessen the impact of an utterance. Typically, they are adverbs or discourse particles.

-> Like, I mean, sort of, you know, etc.

Insertion

The addition of sounds where they previously didn't exist.

-> Film = fillum.

Intonation contour

The patterns of changes in pitch in speech.

Jargon

Language shared by those who belong to a profession, trade or other occupational group.

-> Can be distinguished by lexical, phonological, grammatical and discourse features, and often characterised by its distinctive vocabulary.

-> Used to serve as a technical or specialist language for precise communication.

-> Used to promote in-group solidarity.

Lexicology

The study of words and vocabulary.

Metaphors

Non-literal use of language.

-> Ruby lips, raven hair, emerald eyes, teeth of pearl, etc.

Metathesis

Switching/re-ordering of the sequence of sounds in a word.

-> aks = ask.

-> psketti = spaghetti.

Morphemes

The smallest meaningful units in the grammar of a language.

-> unfriendly = un- + friend = -ly.

Morphology

The study of word formation.

Narrowing

A type of semantic change whereby the contexts in which a word can appear are reduced.

-> Liqour = liquid => alcholic beverage.

Neologism

A newly coined word.

New Englishes

New varieties of English that have emerged around the world as official/co-official languages.

-> Singapore English.

Obsolescence

When words drop from our mental lexicon because the objects, idea or institutions no longer exist/are no longer important to us.

-> to frush a chicken, to unlace a rabbit, to barb a lobster etc.

Other Englishes

English-based pidgins and creoles around the world.

-> contact varieties that have their own distinctive linguistic features.

Overgeneralisation

Where children extend word meanings or grammatical rules beyond their normal use.

-> 'boy' to refer specifically to brother.

-> goed, bringed etc.

Paralinguistic features

Refers to those features of speech that are marginal to language.

This includes aspects of body language such as stance, gestures and gaze.

Phonology

The study of sounds in a language.

Pragmatics

Pertaining to the communicative intent and effects of utterances and discourse.

-> The study of language use and the factors that affect a person's choice of language in any social interaction.

Predicate

The part of a sentence that provides the information about the subject. It includes the verb and everything else.

-> He [is a teacher], She [washed the car].

Prosodic features

Pertaining to loudness, pitch, tempo, and speech rhythm.

Register

Any socially defined variety of language; language that is appropriate in a specific situation, occupation or subject matter.

-> a register of scientific or religious English.

Schwa

Unstressed vowel [ə] made in the middle of the mouth.

-> [faðə] = father.

Semantic change

The changes in meaning of words over time through processes such as broadening, narrowing, shift, elevation and deterioration.

Semantics

The study of meaning in language.

Declarative

Sentence type in which you make a statement.

Interrogative

Sentence type in which you pose a question.

Imperative

Sentence type in which you issue a directive/command.

Exclamative

Sentence type in which you make an exclamation.

Shift

A semantic change that entails the total alteration of contexts; a word comes to mean something completely different.

Standard English

An idealised variety of English that constitutes a notional set of norms generally adopted by educated speakers of English.

-> There are many varieties of standar English, according to age, generation, and national origins.

Syntax

The study of how words combine to form sentences.

Variety

A sub-set of people sharing regional origin (regional origin/dialect) or social characteristics (social variety/sociolect).

Word classes

Sets of words showing the same grammatical properties.

Ten in English:

-> Verbs, nouns, adjectives, adverbs, pronouns, prepositions, conjunctions, interjections, determiners and auxiliaries.

Word addition

How words are created.

Word loss

How words are lost.

Interjection

A minor part of speech involving words that have emotional meaning.

-> not really talking to anyone.

-> ****! Wow! D'oh!t

Expletives

Exclamation or oath, particularly one that is profane, vulgar or obscene.

-> ****!

Ellipsis

The deletion of words/parts of sentences because they either appear elsewhere or can be reconstructed from the context.

-> The speaker leaves words out.

Semantic shift

This refers to the complete change in meaning of a word.

-> dags, once meant lumps of matted wool, dirt and dung.

Connotations

The emotional implications and associations that a word may carry.

-> They arise from the personalities, beliefs, experiences of people and will differ from person to person.

Elevation

A type of connotation in which a word takes on a better connotative meaning than its denotative meaning.

-> terribly, horribly, awfully = very.

Deterioration

A type of connotation in which a word takes on a worse connotative meaning than its denotative meaning.

-> artful, crafty, cunning.

Neologism

A newly coined word.

-> LOL

-> pwn

Borrowing

Where words are incorporated into one language from another.

-> exam, futon, moccasin, kangaroo, smorgasbord.

Sound reduction

In rapid speech, sounds are left out/reduced.

-> unstressed vowels often deleted.

-> function words often prone to reduction.

-> words become weak in form:

----> was, to, and, the.

-> desperate, several, interesting.

Sound addition

Sounds are added where they previously didn't exist.

-> Sometimes occurs to align an irregular word with an already existing grammatical pattern.

-> film = fillum

-> umbrella = umberella

Assimilation

Sounds change according to the company they keep, or the sounds they are near.

-> Handbag = hambag.

Dissimilation

Sounds change according to the company they keep, but they become less similar to the words to which they are near.

-> glamour and grammar historically the same word.

Metathesis

A re-ordering of sounds within a word.

-> spaghetti = psketti

-> ask = aks

Schwa

Unstressed vowel made in the middle of the mouth with neutral lips.

Obsolete

Describes words that are also archaic, words no longer used in a language or lexicon.

-> These words are in danger of no longer being used in official languages.

-> "linguistic fossils"

----> codpiece, bustle.

Semantic shift

A word comes to mean something completely different from what it once meant.

-> gay, cool, dag, hot, fit.

Commonisation

When proper names are taken over to replace a general class of phenomena.

-> kleenex, playdough etc.

Broadening

When a word is found in a wider range of contexts than it was previously.

Narrowing

When a word comes to mean only a part of what it originally meant, and can be found in fewer contexts.

Nominative noun case

The subject of the verb (subject performs the verb).

-> THE DOG barked at us.

Accusative noun case

Direct object (someone/something affected by the verb)

->We cleaned THE DOG.

Dative noun case

Indirect object of the verb.

->We gave THE DOG a bone.

Genitive noun case

Possessive (belongs to).

-> THE DOG's bark woke us up.