English Language Edexcel Terminology

Define paralinguistics

Non-verbal aspects of communication to accompany speech e.g. body lang,tone,facial expressions,gestures to add meaning, emphasis or emotion

Define accelerando

Describes speech that is getting faster (marked accel on transcripts)

Define accommodation

Changes people make to their speech,prosodic features (Rhythm,intonation) and gestures to emphasise or minimize difference between themselves

Define adjacency pair

A sequence of two connected utterances(a complete piece of speech by one person limited by pauses) by different speakers e.g. question/answer

Define accent

A distinctive mode of pronunciation of a language,often associated with region or social group

Define assimilation

In phonology,the way sounds of one word can change due to neighbouring words in connected speech

Define back channelling

Interactive features like minimal responses (mm,yeah) to show participant is listening without disrupting speakers turn

Define colloquialism

An informal word,phrase or pronunciation often associated with informal speech

Define comment clause

A commonly occuring clause in speech that adds a remark to another clause (I mean.., I think..)

Define convergence

A process in which two speakers adapt their language and pronunciation to reduce differences between them (Type of accomodation)

Define deixis

An expression that relies on context for understanding (over there,that high)

Define sociolinguistics

the study of the relationship between language and society, examining how social factors like class, gender, age, and ethnicity influence language use and how language varies across different social groups

Define Politeness

the use of verbal and nonverbal strategies to manage social relationships and face by considering others' feelings and social status, aiming to maintain harmony, show respect, and avoid conflict,

What’s the difference between face and politness?

Face is the public self-image or social identity a person wants to project,while Politeness refers to the linguistic strategies people use to protect their own face and the face of others from threats (Face-Threatening Acts)