Test your basic knowledge |

Linguistics Basics

Subject : humanities
Instructions:
  • Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
  • If you are not ready to take this test, you can study here.
  • Match each statement with the correct term.
  • Don't refresh. All questions and answers are randomly picked and ordered every time you load a test.

This is a study tool. The 3 wrong answers for each question are randomly chosen from answers to other questions. So, you might find at times the answers obvious, but you will see it re-enforces your understanding as you take the test each time.
1. Mental representation of a word






2. Using a word from another language to create a new word (cafe - deja-vu)






3. Combined phonemes - the smallest unit of language with a distinct meaning






4. The ability to produce language - what you know






5. A transformation in which you shift the object of a sentence (Mary gave a book to John --> Mary gave John a book)






6. 1. Quality or timbre 2. Volume 3. Length 4. Pitch or tone






7. Shortening a longer word (phone - auto) to create new words






8. Aspects of meaning concerning other meanings of an expression that may be activated when irrelevant (cock)






9. Aspects of meaning having to do with feelings or attitudes of speakers (liberal - terrorist)






10. What can be deduced from the sentence's literal meaning






11. Morphemes that can appear alone (cat)






12. A transformation in which you shift the object of a sentence (Mary gave a book to John --> Mary gave John a book)






13. Two linked turns by different speakers which make sense only taken together (How are you? Fine. How about you?)






14. The property of the surface structure of the text to 'hold together'






15. A new word






16. Deals with the sounds of a language






17. Describing the facts - Tries to determine why people use language the way they do - seeks to find the rules that govern spoken language






18. Blending two existing words (motel - brunch)






19. A word that has died out






20. When a public body decides which language will be taught in schools - what languages public employees must know - etc






21. Actually saying a word - what you can do






22. The effect an utterance has on its audience (speech act)






23. Deals with the sounds of a language






24. The rise and fall of sentences






25. Affix in the middle of a word






26. The principle of cooperation that requires you be as informative as required but not more than that






27. Required by syntax - mark grammatical categories (plurality - tense - comparative - etc) suffixes only






28. Putting two old words together to make a new word (railway)






29. The connection between shape and meaning is arbitrary






30. The sequence of sounds that make up a word






31. A transformation in which you divide the phrasal verb (Mary stood up John --> Mary stoop John up)






32. A new word






33. What can be deduced from the sentence's literal meaning






34. A syntactic phenomenon where a given constituent is in a constituent of the same kind






35. What we say in a literal sense (speech act)






36. How sentences and texts are used in the world(context)






37. The principle of cooperation that states to avoid obscurity and ambiguity - be brief and orderly






38. The ability to produce language - what you know






39. Words that depend on the context of a sentence for meaning (I - here - now)






40. Moving parts of a sentence into different positions for emphatic purposes






41. All aspects of meaning that go beyond the sense of the word - or the literal meaning






42. Used by linguists to represent sounds in the languages of the world






43. A transformation in which you add a negation word to the sentence






44. A transformation in which you add a negation word to the sentence






45. The science that studies language






46. Describes how language words today or at any given moment in time - not concerned with origin/history






47. 1. Vowels (no obstruction) 2. Stops (complete obstruction) 3. Fricatives (Partial occlusion)






48. A sentence in which no transformation has been applied






49. Putting two old words together to make a new word (railway)






50. The set of sentences that must be true for the sentence to be true