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






2. The branch of pragmatics that studies deictic words






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






4. The connection between shape and meaning is arbitrary






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






6. A sentence in which no transformation has been applied






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






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






9. Aspects of meaning evoked by cultural or literary codes






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






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






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






13. The overall meaning of a text






14. Blending two existing words (motel - brunch)






15. The situation in which a sentence is uttered






16. A new word






17. Morphemes that can appear alone (cat)






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






19. One who knows many languages






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






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






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






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






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






25. Affixes - need to attach to another morpheme






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






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






28. Provides information about the group to which individuals belong






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






30. Mental representation of a word






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






32. Using a word from another language to create a new word (cafe - deja-vu)






33. Mental representation of a word






34. A new word






35. The ability to produce language - what you know






36. A sentence in context






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






38. Deals with the sounds of a language






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






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






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






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






43. The ability to produce language - what you know






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






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






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






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






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






49. Having more than one meaning (polysemy)






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