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 shift the object of a sentence (Mary gave a book to John --> Mary gave John a book)






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






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






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






5. The meaning derived from flouting






6. The meaning of a sign






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






8. 1. Airstream 2. Phonation 3. Nasalization 4. Articulation






9. Affix after the root






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






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






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






13. Deals with how sounds are put together to form words






14. Affix before the root






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






16. Deals with how the sounds are organized






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






18. All aspects of meaning that go beyond the sense of the word - or the literal meaning






19. The vocabulary of a speaker/language






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






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






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






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






24. Deals with how sounds are put together to form words






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






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






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






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






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






30. Meaning components






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






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






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






34. The overall meaning of a text






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






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






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






38. The connection between shape and meaning is arbitrary






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






40. The branch of pragmatics that studies deictic words






41. The situation in which a sentence is uttered






42. Deals with the sounds of a language






43. The situation in which a sentence is uttered






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






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






46. The connection between shape and meaning is arbitrary






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






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






49. The branch of pragmatics that studies deictic words






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