VCE English Language Metalanguage

Topic Management

strategies used for controlling conversation including discourse particle used to introduce new topics

ex. now, well, guess what?, by the way

Dominant Speaker

the participant in the discourse speaking more often

Topic Manager

the participant in the discourse who dictates the focal points and controls the topics of discussion

Prosodic Features

the features if speech that appear as a result of sounds being connected in speech (VTIPS)

- Volume

- Tempo

- Intonation

- Pitch

- Stress

Phatic Function

establishes a social connection

Emotive Function

interprets feelings

Referential Function

conveys information

Conative Function

engages the addressee

Poetic Function

provide aesthetic dimension to language

Metalinguistic Function

describes language itself

Truncated Speech

speech that is shortened or left incomplete

Monologue

a long speech made by a single speaker

Dialogue

a conversation or exchange of spoken lexemes between two or more participants

Elision

the process by which a speaker drops a sound segment to allow for a more natural rhythm (phonological spelling)

Ellipsis

the omission of one or more lexemes from a sentence or phrase typically because thy are understood or implies by the context

Contraction

the removal of certain letters from a lexeme and marking the missing letters with an apostrophe

Reduction

the process of simplifying or shortening language is spoken Or written communication such as certain lexemes or syllables to make the text more efficient or often informal

ex. contraction - don't

elison - dunno

clipping/shortening/reduction - info, gym

Clippings/Shotenings

a word formation process where a new word is created by shortening an existing word, often by removing syllables or parts of syllables, while retaining the original meaning

ex info, gym, phone

Phrase Reduction

the simplification or shortening of phrases in spoken language, often involving the omission of sounds or syllables, or the use of contractions, to enhance the flow and pace of speech

Vowel Reduction

a process that converts a full vowel sounds to a typically unstressed sounds known as a schwa

ex.

- in the word "about", the vowel in the second syllable is reduced to a schwa sound

- in the word "America", the vowel in the second syllable is reduced to a schwa sound.

- in the word "because", the vowel in the second syllable is reduced to a schwa sound.

Non Fluency Features

a natural part of spontaneous or not well rehearsed speech

- filled pause/voice hesitation - um, er, ah

- false start - I mean ah , I mean that...

- repair - I, sorry we...

- repetition- I, I, I, think...

Social Rapport

the relationship or connection between people that is characterised by mutual understanding, respect and trust

Negative Face

the need to be independent to have freedom of action and to not be imposed on by others (to be autonomous (freedom to govern itself))

Positive Face

the need for one to be liked, respected and feel as though they are apart of a group and belong

Polteness Strategies

the language choices that show consideration, respect and sensitivity towards others and an awareness off social communication expectations and norms

5 Key Positive Politeness Strategies

- emphasising similarity

- showing interest

- using humour

- offering compliments

- using inclusive language

Inclusive Communication

effective communication which is respectful, enabling of al participants to feel a sense of belonging and contribute diverse perspectives

Social Satus

the relative social/professional position of each participant

Intimacy

a sense of closeness and connection between participants

Solidarity

a feeling of unity between participants, based on shared experience and/or purpose

Equality

a sense that individuals in a particular exchange are of equal status and are deserving of mutual respect

Face Needs

describes the aspect of the listeners identity/values being acknowledged through the use of politeness strategies

Conversational Strategies

technique uRsed by speakers to engage in effective communication which shape dialogue, influence topic and ensure text purpose is met

Cohesion

the way grammatical and lexical techniques are used to link lexemes, phrases and sentences together to ensure a text is easily followable - SEALR

- Substitution, synonymy, antonymy and hyponymy

- Ellipses & information flow structures

- Anaphora, cataphora & dexis

- Linking adverbs & conjunctions

- Repetition & collocation

Collocation

Two or more words that co-occur together more in a language than what would be expected by chance

ex. terms & conditions, like & subscribe

Dexis

the use of lexemes or phrases to refer to a particular time, place or person relative to the context of the utterance

ex 'I', 'you', 'here', 'then', 'now' ect

Cataphoric Referencing

when a pronoun refers forward to a not yet mentioned noun

Anaphoric Referencing

when a pronoun refers backward to an already mentioned noun

Substitution

a process where one linguistic element such as a word, phrase, or clause, is replaced by another, often to avoid repetition or maintain cohesion and coherence in language, without altering the overall meaning or grammatical structure

Information Flow

how speakers and writers organise language to reflect the content and purpose of their utterances, using elements like word order, intonation, and stress to convey new, given, or old information

Front Flow Focus Example

potato cake, I like

End Flow Focus Example

the time to leave has come

Clefting

a syntactic transformation where a single clause is split into two to emphasise a particular element or constituent, often the subject or object

'It' Cleft Example

it is potato cake i like eating

'Wh' Cleft Example

what i like eating is potato cakes

Coherence

the arranging of information, idea and elements within a text in a way in which the sentences, paragraphs and sections create a clear message with smooth transitions between - FLICC

- Formulaic

- Logical ordering

- Inference

- Consistent connections

- Cohesion (cohesion contributes to coherence)

Cohesive Ties

linguistic devices used to create cohesion in a text

- reference

- substitution

- ellipsis

- conjunctions

- lexical cohesion

- adverbia cohesion

Conjunction

a lexeme used to join two phrases or sentences

Coordinating Conjunction

a conjunction placed between two utterances of equal importance

ex they rushed to the hospital BUT it was to late

Subordinating Clauses

joins a dependent clause to an indipedent one

ex I am told THAT you hate oranges

Lexical Cohesion

using related lexemes or phrases to connect parts of a text (synnyms, antonyms, hyponyms)

Hypocorism

a morphological process in which a word is often clipped down to a monosyllable and then a vowel sound is added to make the lexeme feel more affectionate ad genuine

Diminutive

creates a meaning of 'small' or 'little' and is often used on names or abbreviated names which a person intends to be more informal, or to express affection for someone or something

Hyponyms

semantic relation between a generic term and a more specific term, hyponym is the specific term

ex. spoon is a hyponym of the hypernym cutlery

Assimilation

a phonological process where a sound becomes more similar to a neighbouring sound, affecting its articulation and production

Vocative

a phrase used to identify the addressee of an utterance

Hedging

using linguistic devices to express hesitation, uncertainty, or politeness, softening the impact of a statement and making it less direct or absolute

Nominalisation

Forming a noun or noun phrase from some other word classes, most usually a verb, including the formation of a noun phrase from a whole clause

Agentless Passive

a passive sentence structure that omits the agent, focusing on the action or recipient rather than who performed it

ex. the window was broken

Passive Voice

OVS - object ,verb, subject

Active Voice

SVO - subject, verb, object

Syntactic Patterning - Anthesis

a literary device that places opposite words, ideas, or qualities parallel to each other

ex. "That's one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind"

Syntactic Patterning - Parallelism

using similar grammatical structures for related words, phrases, or clauses to emphasise similar ideas and create a balanced, clear, and concise sentence or paragraph

ex. "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times."

Double Speak

using language to obscure, distort, or disguise the truth, often employing euphemisms and jargon to make negative or unpleasant things sound more palatable or acceptable

Syntactic Paterning - Listing

a series of related items, words, or phrases in a sequence, often to emphasise a particular quality or create a sense of abundance or variety

Rhetoricg

how language is used to persuade, inform, and motivate audiences through linguistic tools, like metaphors, similes, and rhetorical questions designed to maximise impact

Stylistic Feature Examples

figure of speech (metaphor, simile ect), sentence structure lexical choice, nominalisation

Syntactic Patterning

the repetition or parallel structure of syntactic features (like sentence structure, phrase structure, or word order) within a text or discourse

Semantic Patterning

the recurring or patterned use of words and phrases based on their meaning

Semantic Patterning Devices

irony, metaphor, oxymoron, simile, personification, animation, puns, lexical ambiguity

Phonological Patterning Devices

- rhythm (contributes to pace & tempo)

- assonance

- consonance

- cnomatopoeia (imagery, poetic, innovative)

- rhyme (creates rhythm)

- alliteration (emphasises)

RACORA

Phonological Patterning

refers to the patterns and rules governing how sounds are organised and used in words and speech, influencing pronunciation and speech development

Syntactic Patterning Devices

listing, parallelism, anthesis

PAL

Assonance

repetition of a vowel sound within two or more words in close proximity

Consonance

repetition of a consonant sound within two or more words in close proximity.

Oximoron

two words or phrases used together that have, or seem to have, opposite meanings

Lexical Ambiguity

the existence of multiple word meanings

Personification Metaphor

a figure of speech that gives human qualities or traits to a non-human

Animation Metaphor

a figure of speech that gives living qualities to non-living objects

Tenor

describes the social context and interpersonal dynamics of a communicative event

Idiosyncratic

a unique and personal way of using language, characterized by unconventional word choices, neologisms (newly coined words), and unconventional grammar or sentence structures

Jakobson's Functions

- conative

- phatic

- metalinguistic

- poetic

- referential

- emotive

Study Design Purposes

- encouraging intimacy, solidarity & rapport

- strategy of politeness

- promoting linguistic innovation

- promoting social harmony, negating social taboos & building rapport

- supporting in group membership

Adjacency Pair

a sequence of two related utterances by two different speakers, the first utterance leads to a set of expectations about the response

Minimal Response/Back Channelling

short either verbal or non-verbal responses by the audience in a spoken interaction to indicate they are actively listening by offering support, encouragement or acknowledgement.

ex. 'yeah', 'ok', 'right' 'hmm', 'ahh' or 'oh'

Politeness Markers

lexemes or phrases that express concern for others and serve to minimise threats to negative face

ex. 'please' 'thank you' 'your welcome' 'sorry' 'excuse me'

Latched Turns

a participant takes floor and builds on previous speakers contributions)

Portmanteau/Blend

a word created by combining parts of two or more other words, resulting in a new word with a meaning derived from the combined parts

ex. smog, jeggings, brunch, bromance

Acronym

a pronounceable word formed from the first letter of each word in a phrase

ex. QANTAS

Initialisms

an abbreviation consisting of initial letters pronounced separately

ex. MCG, OMG

Compounding

a word-formation process where two or more free morphemes (words or word parts) are combined to create a new word or lexeme

ex. footpath, sunflower

Affixation

process of forming words by adding affixes to morphemes

ex. 'un' + 'happy' = 'unhappy'

Prefix

a syllable or word that comes before a root word to change its meaning

ex. un, dis

Suffix

an affix that is added at the end of the word

ex. ness, ful

Infex

bound morpheme in the middle of a word to create meaning (

(less common in english)

ex. abso-bloody-lutely

Circumfixes

affixes that surround the base word

ex. enlighten, embolden

Eponyms

any word that is derived from a person's name

ex. boycott, fahrenheit

Morphological Patterning

the systematic ways in which words are formed and structured

Morphological Patterning Devices

affixation, abbreviation, shortening, compounding, blending, backformation, conversion of word class, initialism, acronym, contraction

Backformation

a word-formation process where a new word is created by removing a perceived or actual affix from an existing word, often resulting in a verb from a noun

ex. televise, surveil