English language and linguistics definitions

linguistic features — features of language such as the sound, morphology, and syntax of a language

denotation - the literal referential definition of a word

connotation - the association a sound creates, emotional meaning. connotations are often individual or cultural

logical semantics - concerned with the semantics of word meaning

semantic field - words that have the same kind of connotation

euphemisms - words/phrases used to take the place of ones that are taboo or offensive by virtue of carrying very negative connotations to avoid direct reference to something considered impolite

homonyms - two or more words with different/unrelated meanings that are pronounced (homophones words with the same sound but possible unrelated meanings eg need/knead) or spelled (homographs— words written the same way but with different meanings eg bark like a dog barking and bark like the tree trunk) the same way or both

semantic ambiguity — a word/phrase/sentence being interpreted to have more than one meaning. must be supported with explanation of why it is semantically ambiguous

hypernyms — words that have a classification function are known as hypernyms (eg vehicle as that includes car, bus, bicycle + car as that includes sports car, family car)

meronyms — words/phrases which refer to parts of a thing (eg branches, roots and trunk)

lexis - total stock of words in a language, the level of language consisting of vocabulary as opposed to grammar or syntax, all the words of a language

lexeme - a basic lexical unit of a language consisting of one word or several words, the elements of which do not separately convey the meaning of the whole

systemic - The view of language as a “network of systems, or interrelated sets of options for making meaning”. Language users hence make choices based on the options that are available to them.

specialist lexis - refers to technical or field-specific vocabulary that is used within particular professions, academic disciplines, or specialised areas. It includes terminology that might be unfamiliar to people outside that field.

everyday lexis - refers to common, frequently used words that are familiar to most speakers of a language and used in daily communication.

form - tells you what a word/sentence looks like, that it ends with or begins with or what it can change into, a way to figure out the word class of the word

function - typically related to where it occurs and what it does in that context

ideational function - to express and connect ideas

interpersonal function - to interact with others

textual function - to organise our ideas and interactions in texts so that they are coherent and take into account the needs of our readers or those to whom we speak