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






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






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






4. A word that has died out






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






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






7. Aspects of meaning evoked by cultural or literary codes






8. Deals with how sentences are formed






9. Deals with how the sounds are organized






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






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






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






13. The connection between shape and meaning is arbitrary






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






15. The ability to produce language - what you know






16. One who knows many languages






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






18. The vocabulary of a speaker/language






19. Aspects of meaning evoked by cultural or literary codes






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






21. Actually saying a word - what you can do






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






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






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






25. The connection between shape and meaning is arbitrary






26. The word that connects the meaning and the referent






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






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






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






30. The object which you can see - touch - hear - or smell






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






32. Blending two existing words (motel - brunch)






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






34. A new word






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






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






37. A transformation in which you shift the object of a sentence (Mary gave a book to John --> Mary gave John a book)






38. Meaning components






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






40. Affix before the root






41. Deals with how the sounds are organized






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






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






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






45. The rise and fall of sentences






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






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






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






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






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