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






2. Aspects of meaning having to do with different levels of formality






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






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






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






6. An utterance produced by a speaker






7. The rise and fall of sentences






8. Provides information about the group to which individuals belong






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






10. Meaning components






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






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






13. The vocabulary of a speaker/language






14. Provides information about the group to which individuals belong






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






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






17. The connection between shape and meaning is arbitrary






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






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






20. The word that connects the meaning and the referent






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






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






23. Blending two existing words (motel - brunch)






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






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






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






27. One who knows many languages






28. The overall meaning of a text






29. The science that studies language






30. The principle of cooperation that requires relevance






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






32. The rise and fall of sentences






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






34. The ability to produce language - what you know






35. Affix in the middle of a word






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






37. Deals with how sentences are formed






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






39. Deals with the sounds of a language






40. Mental representation of a word






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






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






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






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






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






46. The situation in which a sentence is uttered






47. Affixes - need to attach to another morpheme






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






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






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