Linguistics Overview

These flashcards cover key concepts related to the features, components, and branches of linguistics, as well as important terminology and theories in the field.

Displacement

A feature of language that allows communication about things not present in the immediate environment.

Arbitrariness

The principle that there is no inherent connection between the words of a language and their meanings.

Recursiveness

A property of language that allows for the embedding of phrases within phrases.

Productivity

The ability to create and understand an infinite number of sentences based on a finite set of elements.

Phonology

The study of the sound systems of languages.

Syntax

The rules and principles that govern the structure of sentences.

Morphology

The study of the structure and formation of words.

Semantics

The study of meaning in language.

Lexicon

The vocabulary inventory of a language.

Pragmatics

The study of how context influences the interpretation of meaning in language.

Behaviorism

A school of thought focusing on observable behaviors as the basis for language learning.

Cognitivism

The school of thought that emphasizes mental processes in understanding how language is acquired and used.

Functionalism

A perspective that sees language as a tool for communication shaped by social needs.

Interactionism

A view that considers language development as a result of interaction between social and cognitive factors.

Creole

A stable, fully developed natural language that has developed from a mixture of different languages.

Pidgin

A simplified language that develops as a means of communication between speakers of different languages.

Aphasia

A language disorder that affects a person's ability to communicate.

Phonotactics

The rules governing the allowable combinations of sounds in a particular language.

Manner of articulation

How the airflow is restricted in the vocal tract to produce consonant sounds.

Place of articulation

Where in the vocal tract airflow is constricted to produce consonant sounds.

Voicing

Whether the vocal cords vibrate during the production of a consonant sound.

Homophones

Words that sound the same but have different meanings.

Homographs

Words that are spelled the same but have different meanings.

Homonyms

Words that share the same spelling and pronunciation but have different meanings.

Standard Language

The form of a language that is accepted as the norm or model.

Vernacular

The everyday language spoken by ordinary people in a particular region.

Descriptive rules

Rules that describe how language is actually used by speakers.

Prescriptive rules

Rules that dictate how language should be used according to a particular standard.

Jean Piaget

Scholar associated with the theory of Cognitive Development, emphasizing mental processes in language acquisition.

Benjamin Lee Whorf

Scholar known for the Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis, which proposes that language influences thought.

Noam Chomsky

Scholar associated with Nativism and Generative Grammar, suggesting an innate human capacity for language.

William Labov

Scholar considered the founder of sociolinguistics, studying language in its social context.

B.F. Skinner

Scholar associated with Behaviorism, proposing that language is learned through reinforcement.

language

A complex system of communication using symbols, sounds, and gestures, allowing humans to convey thoughts, emotions, and ideas.

aspiration

A phonetic phenomenon where a burst of breath follows the release of certain consonants, often marking distinction in sound production, such as in the English 'p' in 'pat'.

phones

Individual units of sound in a language, representing the basic building blocks of speech that may or may not convey meaning. They include vowels and consonants that are distinguished by their articulation and acoustic properties.

phonemes

The smallest units of sound in a language that can distinguish meaning between words, such as the difference between 'bat' and 'pat'.

allophones

Variations of a phoneme that are pronounced differently but do not change the meaning of a word, such as the different pronunciations of 't' in 'top' and 'stone.'

human vocal band

The complex arrangement of muscles and tissues in the larynx that produces sound during speech, allowing for the articulation of phonemes and the modulation of tone and volume.

first words

The initial words produced by infants, often emerging around the age of 12 months, typically consisting of simple nouns or familiar names, which indicate their developing language skills.

whats the subject of the sentence: Mary’s cute cat played furtively in the yard.

Mary

whats the adjective of the sentence: Mary’s cute cat played furtively in the yard.

cute

whats the adverb of the sentence: Mary’s cute cat played furtively in the yard.

furtively

whats the preposition of the sentence: Mary’s cute cat played furtively in the yard.

in the yard

adjective

a word that describes a noun, providing more information about it.

adverb

a word that modifies a verb, an adjective, or another adverb, often indicating manner, place, time, or degree.

preposition

a word that shows the relationship between a noun (or pronoun) and other words in a sentence, often indicating direction, location, or time.