Language Change

Suitable for CIE A Level English Language (9093). Glossary of terms

adjunct

an optional or less important part of a clause or sentence

amelioration

where a word takes on a more positive connotation over time

ampersand

&

archaism

a word which is no longer in everyday use, or has lost a particular meaning in current usage

aspect

a form of the verb which explains its relation to time, particularly indicating whether an action is completed (e.g had walked) or incomplete (e.g was walking/had been walking). Compare with **tense**

backformation

the formation of a word from another one, from which it appears to be derived

blending

forming a new word by combining the beginning of one word with the end of another

borrowing

introducing specific words or forms of words from one language into another

broadening

where the meaning of a word becomes broader or more inclusive than its earlier meaning

clause

part of a sentence, containing (at least) a subject and a verb phrase

clipping

where a word is shortened to form a new variant

codification

the process through which a language is standardised

coinage

the creation of new words in a language

collocation

the habitual juxtaposition of a particular word with another word (or words) with a frequency greater than chance

colloquial

the casual conversation of everyday language

compounding

forming a word from two or more units that are themselves words

connotation

the range of associated meanings brought to mind by a particular word, beyond its essential mening (or **denotation**)

convergence

a form of accomodation whereby speakers begin to adopt the language variety of other speakers around them

conversion

creating a new word using an existing word in a different word class

coordination

connecting two or more independent clauses through the use of coordinating conjunctions

corpus

a large and structured set of texts stored electronically

corpus data

the information stored in a corpus, comprising written texts and/or transcriptions of spoken language

corpus linguistics

the study of language data stored in corpora

cultural transmission

in linguistics, the way language is passed on from one generation to the next

denotation

the primary meaning of a word, not including its connotations

derivation

creating a new word from an existing word, often with the addition of a prefix or suffix

descriptivism

the view that no use of language is incorrect and that variations in language should be acknowledged and recorded rather than corrected

diachronic

refers to language change over time (linguistics). Compare with **synchronic**

dialect

a language variety specific to a particular geographical region, including lexical and grammatical features

diphthong

a combination of two vowel sounds within a single syllable

divergence

where people make their language more distinctively different from other speakers around them

drop cap

a large capital letter used as a decorative element

Early Modern English

the period between approx. 1500 and 1800, marked by a relatively sudden and distinctive change in pronunciation and increased inclusion of vocabulary of continental European and classical origin

etymology

a study of the history of a word and its earlier forms and meaning

grammar

generally relates to rules for the organisation of meaning in a language

graphology

the writing system of a language, as well as other visual elements on a page

Great Vowel Shift

a gradual, widespread, and enduring change in the pronunciation of English vowels, occuring broadly between the period of Middle English and Early Modern English

head word

the main word in a phrase

idiom

phrases generally understood in a language but which do not directly translate

inflection

any form or change of form which distinguishes grammatical forms of the same lexical unift

Late Modern English

the name given to English written and spoken from approx. 1800 until the present day

lemma

the dictionary form of a group of words keyword (linguistics)

lexis

the complete vocabulary of a language

linguistic prestige

the degree of respect and value given to a particular style of language by a speech community

ligature

occurs where two or more graphemes or letters are joined as a single glyph

loanword

a word adopted from one language into another without translation

majuscule

uppercase letters

minuscule

lowercase letters

medial S

(in graphology) looks like an f

Middle English

the spoken and written language, which evolved from the fusion of Norman French and Old English dialects. Prominent in England and other parts of the Biritish Isles between approximately 1100 and 1500

mode

the format through which ideas or content are communicated to an audience

modification

adding words to a head word in order to give more detail, either before or after

morpheme

the smallest grammatical unit, from which larger ones can be formed

morphology

the study of words and the various forms they take

mutual information score

a measure of how frequently words appear together compared to how often they appear separately

*n*-gram graphs

line graphs displaying the changes in usage frequency for particular *n*-grams over a time period. The graphs are based on data from a specific corpus

narrowing

when the meaning of a word becomes narrower or more limited than its earlier meaning

neology

the process through which new words (neologisms) are formed, including acronyms, blends, compounds, and eponyms

non-standard English

forms of English that differ from standard English in some way, and which are often associated with variations in geographical or social context

noun phrase

a word (or group of words) which names a person, place, or thing

object

the thing or person acted upon by the subject

obsolete

relates to words which are no longer in use and often no longer understood

Old English

the earliest form of English language, brought to Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlers in the 5th century and predominant there until approximately 1100

orthography

the part of the language concerned with letters and spelling

pejoration

when a word takes on a more negative connotation over time

phonology

the pronunciation and sound patterns which affect understanding of words

phrase

a group of words that do not constitute a complete sentence

prefix

a group of letters, usually conveying a particular meaning, which are added to the front of a word to give a new meaning

prescriptivism

the view that language should have a strict set of rules that must be obeyed in speech and writing

prestige

the degree of respect accorded to a particular language or dialect in a language community. Standard forms often command overt prestige by reference to notions of ‘correctness‘, while nonstandard forms can gain covert prestige

random fluctuation theory

The idea that language changes because of its essential instability, and in response to effectively random variations in the environments and contexts in which it is used

received pronunciation

The accent most closely associated with Standard English. Unlike other accents of English, RP is seen more as an indicator of status rather than being linked to a geographical area

root

The primary form of a word and word family, without prefixes or suffixes, which bears the major semantic content

semantic change

The process through which words take on different meanings, including amelioration, broadening, narrowing, pejoration, and telescoping

standard English

The dialect of English most widely accepted as the national norm in a given speech community (e.g. British English, Standard Singapore English, General American). Often associated with (sometimes contested) notions of formality and ‘correctness’

status

The perceived position of a person’s authority and influence in relation to those around them

suffix

A group of letters, usually conveying a particular meaning, which are attached to the end of a word to modify its meaning

synchronic

refers to the characteristics of a language at a given point in time. Compare with diachronic.

syntax

The order of words in a sentence

telescoping

The contraction of a phrase, word or part of a word – like a telescope being closed

typography

The visual aspect of written language, including the size, colour and type of font used

word classes

The grammatical groups into which words are divided e.g noun, verb, etc