English Linguistics and Grammar Deck

For now chapter1

Named the 4 characteristics of language

• Sonic and vocal  

• Functional and meaningful  

• Symbolic, arbitrary and conventionalised  

• Structured  

What is Speech?

Speech consists of sound waves produced by the vocal organs of the speaker which are transmitted through the air until they hit the ear of a hearer.

When do vision-based languages get used/created ?

when the development of speech is somehow impaired or deficient.

What is written language?

a conventional way of recording oral language in a visual form for the purpose of storing it for future reference.

Is speech or written language a natural skill ?

Speech

What is the most used function for language ?

communicating information (facts, opinions and ideas).  

What is another word for signalling social meaning

phatic communication

What are Ouch and Wow ?

Interjections that express emotion (semi-linguistic sound strings.

Language serves as an identifying function of what exactly ?

signalling our geographical, social, ethnic, political, religious and cultural identity. 

Poems or nursery rhymes serve what purpose

An aesthetic function to arouse an aesthetic sensation by exploiting the sonic, rhythmic and melodic potential of language.

What does the cognitive function of the language do?

To organise our thoughts and facilitate thinking. (verbalizing your thoughts when planning something) 

what does De Saussure mean by “ L’arbitre du Signe” ?

The idea that the signifier and signified relationship is arbitrary, emphasizing that meaning is constructed socially rather than being inherent.

Is Orthography considered for linguistic analysis ?

No it is not considered a core aspect of linguistic analysis, as it mainly concerns the conventional spelling system of a language rather than its spoken or structural elements.

What branch is English part of

Germanic branch of the Indo-European language family.

Give the definition for phonetics

study and classification of speech sounds, including their production, transmission and reception 

Give the definition for phonology

study of the system of the meaningful sound segments (phonemes) of a given language and the prosodic phenomena which extend over more than one sound segment (pitch, stress, intonation) 

Give the definition for Morphology

Study of the smallest meaning-bearing units of language (morphemes) and their formation into words.