language
primary means of human communication, spoken and written
call systems
communication systems of nonhuman primates
cultural transmission
transmission through learning, basic to language
productivity
creating new expressions that are comprehensible to other speakers
achieved status
social status based on choices or accomplishments
displacement
describing things and events that are not present; basic to language
kinesics
study of communication through body movements and facial expressions
phonology
study of a language's phonemics and phonetics
morphology
(linguistic) study of morphemes and word construction
lexicon
vocabulary; all the morphemes in a language and their meanings
syntax
arrangement of words in phrases and sentences
phoneme
smallest sound contrast that distinguishes meaning
phonetics
study of speech sounds- what people actually say
phonemics
study of sound contrasts (phonemes) in a language
Sapir-Whorf hypothesis
Idea that different languages produce different patterns of thought
focal vocabulary
set of words describing particular domains (foci) of experience
semantics
a language's meaning system
ethnosemantics
study of lexical (vocabulary) categories and contrasts
style shifts
varying one's speech in different social contexts
diglossia
language with "high" (formal) and "low" (informal, familiar) dialects
honorifics
terms of respect; used to honor people
Black English Vernacular (BEV)
Rule-governed dialect spoken by some African Americans
historical linguistics
study of languages over time
daughter languages
languages sharing a common parent language (Latin)
protolanguage
language ancestral to several daughter languages
subgroups
(linguistic) closely related languages
Research on communication skills of nonhuman primates reveals that...
a: they, too, possess a universal grammar
b: they can't combine the calls for food and danger into a single utterance
c: female nonhuman primates are more sensitive to different shades
b: they can't combine the calls for food and danger into a single utterance
When Washoe and Lucy tried to teach sign language to other chimpanzees, this was an example of
a: displacement
b: call systems
c: productivity
d: cultural transmission
e: estrus
d: cultural transmission
Recent research on the origin of language suggests that
a: the capacity to remember and combine linguistic symbols in latent in all mammals
b: a mutation in humans (which occurred about 150,000 years ago) may have conferred selective advantages (linguisti
b: a mutation in humans (which occurred about 150,000 years ago) may have conferred selective advantages (linguistic and cultural abilities)
What is the study of communication through body movements, stances, gestures, and facial expressions?
a: ethnosemantics
b: kinesics
c: biosemantics
d: protolinguistics
e: diglossia
b: kinesics
The scientific study of a spoken language involves several interrelated areas of analysis. Which area refers to all of a language's morphemes and their meanings?
a: syntax
b: ethnosemantics
c: ethnoscience
d: phonology
e: lexicon
e: lexicon
What does the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis state?
a: The degree of cultural complexity is associated with the effectiveness of languages as systems of communication
b: The Hopi do not use three verb tenses; they have no concept of time
c: Different languages pr
c: Different languages produce different ways of thinking
Studies on the differences between female and male americans in regard to the color terms they use suggest that
a: in opposition to the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis, it might be more reasonable to say that changes in culture produce changes in language and thou
a: in opposition to the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis, it might be more reasonable to say that changes in culture produce changes in language and thought rather than the reverse
Which of the following statements about sociolinguists is not true?
a: they are concerned more with performance than with competence
b: they look at society and at language
c: they are concerned with linguistic change
d: they quantify what people say
e: t
e: they investigate the diffusion of genes between populations
Honorifics are terms used with people, often being added to their names, to "honor" them. Why would sociolinguists be interested in studying the use of honorifics?
a: they enable sociolinguists to study language and culture outside of its context because
c: they may convey or imply a status difference between the speaker and the person being referred to or addressed
Which of the following statements about Black English Vernacular (BEV) is false?
a: It lacks the required linguistic depth to fully express thoughts
b: many aspects of BEV also are present in southern white speech
c: BEV effectively conveys meaning
d: lin
a: It lacks the required linguistic depth to fully express thoughts
_____ refers to the ability to create new expressions by combining other expressions, while _____ is the ability to describe things and events that are not present
Productivity, displacement
Variation in speech in different contexts or situations is known as _______.
style shifting
________ refers to the existence of "high" and "low" dialects within a single language
diglossia
in a stratified society, even people who do not speak the prestige dialect tend to accept it as "standard" or superior. In Pierre Bourdieu's term, this is an instance of ________.
symbolic domination
The world's linguistic diversity has been cut in half in the past _____ years, and half of the remaining ______ languages are predicted to disappear during this century.
500, 700