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. The meaning of a sign






2. The branch of pragmatics that studies deictic words






3. The meaning of a sign






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






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






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






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






8. Affix in the middle of a word






9. Blending two existing words (motel - brunch)






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






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






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






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






14. The meaning derived from flouting






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






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






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






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






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






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






21. The overall meaning of a text






22. A sentence in which no transformation has been applied






23. The principle of cooperation that requires relevance






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






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






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






27. The situation in which a sentence is uttered






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






29. Actually saying a word - what you can do






30. The fact that saying something commits you to it (vow - promise - swearing) (speech act)






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






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






33. The science that studies language






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






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






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






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






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






39. Mental representation of a word






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






41. The connection between shape and meaning is arbitrary






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






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






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






45. Affix before the root






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






47. One who knows many languages






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






49. The science that studies language






50. A sentence in which no transformation has been applied