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






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






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






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






5. Historical - shows how language has changed through time - traces the etymology of words






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






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






8. The meaning derived from flouting






9. Actually saying a word - what you can do






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






11. Deals with how sentences are formed






12. The ability to produce language - what you know






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






14. The rise and fall of sentences






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






16. A word that has died out






17. A sentence in context






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






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






20. Parts of a word are translated from other languages to create a new word (Fernsprecher)






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






22. A new word






23. Having more than one meaning (polysemy)






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






25. Morphemes that can appear alone (cat)






26. An utterance produced by a speaker






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






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






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






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






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






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






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






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






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






36. The vocabulary of a speaker/language






37. A sentence in which no transformation has been applied






38. A word that has died out






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






40. Morphemes that can appear alone (cat)






41. Blending two existing words (motel - brunch)






42. Deals with how sentences are formed






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






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






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






46. Deals with how the sounds are organized






47. Deals with the meaning of words - sentences - and texts






48. Provides information about the group to which individuals belong






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






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