Ling Final Gpt

Syntax

"The branch of linguistics that studies the rules and principles that govern the structure of sentences in a language

Noun Phrase (NP)

"A phrase that has a noun (or pronoun) as its head and may include modifiers like adjectives

Verb Phrase (VP)

"A phrase that consists of a main verb and its auxiliaries (if any)

Prepositional Phrase (PP)

"A phrase that starts with a preposition and ends with a noun phrase

Head

"The central word of a phrase that determines the phrase's category (e.g.

Dependent

"Words that modify or complement the head within a phrase. Example: In 'the big dog

Recursion

"The ability to embed phrases within phrases indefinitely

Constituent

"A word or group of words that function as a single unit within a hierarchical structure. Example: 'The cat' is a constituent in 'The cat sat on the mat.'"

Clause

"A group of words that contains a subject and a predicate. Clauses can be independent or dependent. Example: 'She danced' is independent; 'because she was happy' is dependent."

Semantic Case Roles

"The roles that participants play in the action or state described by a verb

Agent

"The entity that performs an action. Example: 'The chef' in 'The chef cooked dinner.'"

Patient

"The entity that is affected by the action. Example: 'Dinner' in 'The chef cooked dinner.'"

Recipient

"The entity that receives something. Example: 'Her friend' in 'She sent her friend a letter.'"

Theme

"The entity involved in the action without necessarily undergoing a change. Example: 'The book' in 'He read the book.'"

Beneficiary

"The entity that benefits from the action. Example: 'Him' in 'She baked him a cake.'"

Experiencer

"The entity that experiences a feeling or perception. Example: 'She' in 'She feels happy.'"

Location

"The place where the action occurs. Example: 'The park' in 'They met at the park.'"

Source

"The starting point of a movement. Example: 'The store' in 'She walked from the store.'"

Goal

"The endpoint of a movement. Example: 'The store' in 'She walked to the store.'"

Core Argument

"Essential participants in the action of a verb

Oblique (Argument)

"Non-essential participants in the action

Intransitive

"Verbs that do not take a direct object. Example: 'Sleep' in 'She sleeps.'"

Transitive

"Verbs that take a direct object. Example: 'Eat' in 'She eats an apple.'"

Ditransitive

"Verbs that take both a direct and an indirect object. Example: 'Give' in 'She gave him a book.'"

Grammatical Relations

"The relationships between words in a sentence

Subject

"The noun or noun phrase that performs the action of the verb. Example: 'The dog' in 'The dog chased the cat.'"

Direct Object

"The noun or noun phrase that receives the action of the verb directly. Example: 'The book' in 'She read the book.'"

Indirect Object

"The noun or noun phrase that receives the direct object or benefits from the action. Example: 'Her friend' in 'He gave his friend a gift.'"

Double Object Construction

"A sentence structure where a verb takes both a direct and an indirect object without a preposition. Example: 'She sent her brother a postcard.'"

Passive

"A sentence structure where the object of an active sentence becomes the subject of the passive sentence

Cognate

"Words in different languages that have a common historical origin and often similar meanings and forms. Example: English 'mother

Borrowing

"The process by which one language adopts words from another language. Example: English 'sushi' from Japanese."

Proto-language

"An ancestral language from which a group of related languages is derived. Example: Proto-Indo-European."

Comparative Method

"A technique used to reconstruct proto-languages by systematically comparing related languages to identify regular sound correspondences. Example: Comparing 'father' (English)

Sound Correspondence

"Systematic relationships between sounds in different languages that descend from a common ancestor. Example: Latin 'p' corresponds to English 'f.'"

Diachronic

"Pertaining to the study of how languages change over time. Example: Studying the evolution of English from Old English to Modern English."

Synchronic

"Pertaining to the study of a language at a specific point in time

Typology

"The classification of languages based on their structural features. Example: Classifying languages as SVO or SOV."

Sound Change

"A systematic alteration in the pronunciation of sounds within a language over time. Example: The Great Vowel Shift in English."

Mother Language

"The original language spoken by an individual’s parents

Daughter Language

"A language that has evolved from a proto-language. Example: Spanish is a daughter language of Proto-Indo-European."

Family Tree Model

"A representation of languages branching out from a common ancestor

Swadesh List

"A compilation of basic vocabulary terms used in the study of language relationships and historical linguistics. Example: Words like 'water

Proto-form

"A reconstructed ancestral form of a word in a proto-language. Example: *pəter for 'father.'"

Language Contact

"The interaction between speakers of different languages

Loanwords

"Words adopted from one language into another without translation. Example: English 'pizza' from Italian."

Bilingualism

"The ability to speak and understand two languages fluently. Example: A person who speaks both English and Spanish."

Multilingualism

"The ability to speak and understand multiple languages fluently. Example: A person who speaks English

Language Shift

"The process by which a community of speakers shifts from using one language to another. Example: Shifting from indigenous languages to English."

Indo-European

"A major language family that includes languages like English

Niger-Congo

"A major language family that includes languages like Swahili

Austronesian

"A major language family that includes languages like Malay

Uto-Aztecan

"A language family that includes languages like Nahuatl and Hopi."

Synonyms

"Words that have similar or identical meanings. Example: 'Big' and 'large.'"

Antonyms

"Words with opposite meanings."

Gradable Antonyms

"Antonyms that represent opposite ends of a scale. Example: 'Hot' vs. 'cold.'"

Complementary Antonyms

"Antonyms where the presence of one implies the absence of the other. Example: 'Dead' vs. 'alive.'"

Relational Antonyms

"Antonyms that express opposite directions or relationships. Example: 'Parent' vs. 'child.'"

Polysemes

"Words that have multiple related meanings. Example: 'Bank' (financial institution) vs. 'bank' (side of a river)."

Homophones

"Words that sound the same but have different meanings and/or spellings. Example: 'To

Hypernyms

"Words that are more general and encompass a broader category. Example: 'Animal' is a hypernym for 'dog' and 'cat.'"

Hyponyms

"Words that are more specific and fall under a broader category. Example: 'Rose' is a hyponym of 'flower.'"

Entailment

"A logical relationship where one statement necessarily follows from another. Example: 'John killed the spider' entails 'John killed something.'"

Denotation

"The literal

Connotation

"The associated or implied meanings of a word beyond its literal definition. Example: 'Snake' connotes deceit or danger."

Reference

"The relationship between a word and the actual object or concept it refers to in the real world. Example: The word 'tree' refers to a type of plant with a trunk and branches."

Sense

"The meaning of a word or phrase within the language system

Prototypes

"The most typical or representative examples of a category. Example: A robin might be a prototype for the category 'bird.'"

Semantic Features

"Basic units of meaning that distinguish one word from another. Example: 'Bachelor' might include [+male]

Inference

"Logical conclusions drawn from available information or premises. Example: From 'She has a pet

Pragmatics

"The study of how context influences the interpretation of meaning in language. Example: 'Can you pass the salt?' is understood as a request."

Underdetermination

"Situations where the available context is insufficient to determine the exact meaning or reference. Example: 'Bank' could mean a financial institution or the side of a river."

Cooperative Principle

"A principle stating that participants in a conversation typically work together to communicate effectively. Example: Providing clear and relevant information."

Gricean Maxims

"Rules that govern conversational interactions to make communication efficient and meaningful: Quantity

Semanticization

"The process by which pragmatic meaning becomes encoded into the lexical meaning of a word. Example: 'Broadcast' originally meant to scatter seeds but now also means to transmit information via media."

Indexicality

"Words or phrases that gain meaning from their context

Arbitrariness

"The concept that there is no inherent connection between the form of a word and its meaning. Example: The word 'dog' has no inherent reason to represent the animal."

Iconicity

"The resemblance or similarity between the form of a word and its meaning. Example: Onomatopoeic words like 'buzz' or 'sizzle.'"

Discourse

"Extended written or spoken communication beyond the sentence level

Genre

"A category of discourse characterized by particular styles

Written vs. Spoken

"Differences in structure and usage: Written language is more formal and structured

Interactional vs. Non-Interactional

"Discourse involving interaction between participants (e.g.

Planned vs. Spontaneous

"Discourse that is prepared in advance (e.g.

Formal vs. Informal

"Structured and adheres to specific rules or conventions (formal) vs. casual and more flexible in structure (informal)."

Given vs. New vs. Accessible Information

"Given information is already known or previously mentioned

Prosody

"The rhythm

Prosodic Hierarchy

"The organization of prosodic units from smallest to largest

Pitch

"Highness or lowness of the voice."

Volume

"Loudness or softness of the voice."

Speech Rate

"Speed of speaking."

Voice Quality

"Timbre or color of the voice."

Intonation Unit (IU)

"A segment of speech with a single intonation pattern

Intonation/Pitch Contour

"The pattern of pitch movement (rising

Final Contour

"Indicates the end of a thought or statement

Continuing Contour

"Indicates that the speaker has more to say or the thought is ongoing

Appeal Contour

"Indicates a request

Truncation

"Cutting off speech before the natural end of an utterance. Example: 'I was going to...'"

Observational Studies

"Research methods that involve watching and recording behavior without manipulating variables. Example: Observing how children interact in a playground."

Experimental Studies

"Research methods that involve manipulating variables to determine cause and effect. Example: Testing if exposure to certain words affects vocabulary acquisition."

Longitudinal Studies

"Studies that follow the same subjects over an extended period. Example: Tracking language development in children from infancy to adolescence."