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






2. The principle of cooperation that requires relevance






3. Aspects of meaning having to do with the linguistic environment in which the expression occurs (cease and desist)






4. Mental representation of a word






5. Affixes - need to attach to another morpheme






6. A transformation in which you add an auxiliary verb and switching to question format






7. Multiword units - the meaning of which is not the sum of its parts






8. A single sound. K - d - t - e






9. Aspects of meaning having to do with different levels of formality






10. Purposefully violating one of the principles/maxims of cooperation






11. The branch of pragmatics that studies deictic words






12. A transformation in which you change the voice of the sentence (Mary stoop up John --> John was stood up by Mary)






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






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






15. The sequence of sounds that make up a word






16. Aspects of meaning evoked by cultural or literary codes






17. 1. Representations 2. Directives 3. Expressives 4. Commissives 5. Declaratives






18. Using the initial letters of a set of words (NFL - NASA)






19. Meanings of the same word that are unrelated (bank)






20. The ability to produce language - what you know






21. Occurs when words have been disambigued and a sentence has a clear meaning






22. The sequence of sounds that make up a word






23. Figurative use of meaning (Bob is a pig)






24. Noam Chomsky's idea that the principles that govern grammar are genetically programmed in human beings






25. A transformation in which you change the voice of the sentence (Mary stoop up John --> John was stood up by Mary)






26. Breaking a word down by the way it looks and adding morphemes (workaholic - veggieburger)






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






28. A sentence in which no transformation has been applied






29. Invent new words from scratch (Xerox - Kleenex)






30. Deals with how the sounds are organized






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






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






33. Breaking a word down by the way it looks and adding morphemes (workaholic - veggieburger)






34. A new word






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






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






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






38. A new word






39. Deals with how sentences are formed






40. The science that studies language






41. A black and white - right and wrong approach to language - traditional - seeks to impose outside arbitrary rules






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






43. A black and white - right and wrong approach to language - traditional - seeks to impose outside arbitrary rules






44. Mental representation of a word






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






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






47. Affix after the root






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






49. 1. Representations 2. Directives 3. Expressives 4. Commissives 5. Declaratives






50. The branch of pragmatics that studies deictic words