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. Deals with how sounds are put together to form words






2. The overall meaning of a text






3. Deals with the sounds of a language






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






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






6. The science that studies language






7. The ability to produce language - what you know






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






9. Adding derivational morphemes to create new words (to fax)






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






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






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






13. The principle of cooperation that requires relevance






14. The word that connects the meaning and the referent






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






16. A sentence in context






17. The connection between shape and meaning is arbitrary






18. The Principle of cooperation that states that one does not say what is false or what you lack evidence for






19. Blending two existing words (motel - brunch)






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






21. Meaning components






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






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






24. One who knows many languages






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






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






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






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






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






30. Aspects of meaning evoked by cultural or literary codes






31. The overall meaning of a text






32. Morphemes that can appear alone (cat)






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






34. Shift in meaning (drink a glass of water)






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






36. Aspects of meaning evoked by cultural or literary codes






37. The branch of pragmatics that studies deictic words






38. Core meaning - corresponds to a sign's sense or intension - the literal meaning of a word






39. A sentence in context






40. Change the meaning of a word - or part of speech (ex. child -> childhood)






41. The branch of pragmatics that studies deictic words






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






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






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






45. The connection between shape and meaning is arbitrary






46. Affix after the root






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






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






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






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