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






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






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






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






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






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






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






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






9. A sentence in context






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






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






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






13. An utterance produced by a speaker






14. One who knows many languages






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






16. The science that studies language






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






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






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






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






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






22. The sequence of sounds that make up a word






23. The connection between shape and meaning is arbitrary






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






25. Meaning components






26. Morphemes that can appear alone (cat)






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






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






29. Affixes - need to attach to another morpheme






30. The situation in which a sentence is uttered






31. The vocabulary of a speaker/language






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






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






34. Aspects of meaning evoked by cultural or literary codes






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






36. Mental representation of a word






37. A new word






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






39. Two words of different meanings that differ in only one phoneme (bit and pit - dog and dock)






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






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






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






43. The sequence of sounds that make up a word






44. Associations that an individual/small group may develop through everyday experiences (inside joke)






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






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






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






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






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






50. The principle of cooperation that requires relevance