Subdecks (3)

Cards (196)

  • Key Frameworks

    • Grammar (LV and LVOT)
    • Lexis & Semantics (LV and LVOT)
    • Discourse (LV and LVOT)
    • Graphology (LV and LVOT)
    • Orthography (LVOT)
    • Phonology (LV and LVOT – but probably more LVOT focusing on changes to spelling etc.)
  • Covert prestige
    The status speakers get from a social group when they choose not to adopt a standard dialect
  • Overt prestige

    The status speakers get from using the most official and standardized form of language. E.g. using RP and standard English.
  • Mixed mode
    Features of printed text mixed with features of spoken language
  • Political correctness

    Words or phrases used to replace those that are deemed offensive
  • Obsolete
    No longer having any use
  • Emoticons
    The online means of showing facial expressions and gestures
  • Omission
    The leaving out of a phoneme in a group of phonemes clustered together. This might mean the clipping of the final consonant in hangin'.
  • Eye-dialect
    A way of spelling words that suggests a regional or social way of talking
  • Borrowing/loan words

    Introduction of words from one language to another (can be Anglicised or remain similar to original spelling + pronunciation)
  • Clipping
    A new word made from shortening an existing one
  • Initialism
    A word made from initial letters each being pronounced
  • Acronym
    A lexicalised word made up from the initial letters of a phrase sounded as a word
  • Eponym
    Name of a person after whom something is named
  • Archaism
    An old word or phrase no longer in general spoken or written language
  • Latinate lexis

    Often polysyllabic and complex-sounding. Often begin with prefixes like 'in-', 'im-', 'ex-', 'de-', 'ad-', 'ab-', 'ob-' and often end with suffixes like '-ate', '-ous', '-or', '-us', '-um', '-ude', '-ia', '-ic', '-ile'
  • Amelioration
    Changing the word's definition from negative to positive
  • Pejoration
    Changing the word's meaning from positive to negative
  • Weakening
    When words lose some of their original force or strength (e.g. 'soon' now means in the near future but used to mean immediately)
  • Narrowing
    The word becomes more specific in its meaning (e.g. 'meat' originally meant food in general, but now applies to animal flesh)
  • Broadening
    When the meaning of a word broadens, so that it retains its old meaning but takes on added meaning as well (e.g. 'holiday' meant 'holy day' a day of religious importance, but now means a day where one does not have to work)
  • Metaphor
    Words often acquire new meanings because they begin to be used metaphorically (e.g. 'onion bag' refers to the net of a goal in football as well as a bag of onions)
  • Euphemism
    A mild or inoffensive way of describing something distasteful or unpleasant (e.g. 'civilian casualties' are 'collateral damage')
  • Idiom
    Sayings that don't make sense if you literally interpret them (e.g. 'it's raining cats and dogs')
  • Suffixes
    Addition of bound morphemes to the end of the root word
  • Prefixes
    The addition of a bound morpheme to the beginning of a root word
  • Affixation
    The addition of bound morphemes to an existing word
  • Estuary English

    • Mixing ordinary London and south-eastern accents with RP seen as RP possible successor as the Standard English pronunciation
    • Conforms to Standard English grammatically and lexically but has distinct phonology
    • Includes glottal stops, l-vocalisation, and yod coalescence
    • Unlike Cockney, does not include h-dropping or th-fronting
  • Reasons for phonological change (Jean Aitchison)

    • Ease of Articulation: Saying words easier via abbreviation and Omission
    • Social Prestige + changes in Society: People move around more + mass communication= less regional variation
    • Infectious Disease
  • Convergence (Howard Giles Accommodation Theory)
    • Centres on pragmatics and how speakers adjust their speech behaviours to accommodate others showing need of approval
    • Divergence= opposite! When people diverge from others= make their accent stronger or to adopt exaggerated speech behaviours in order to distance themselves from other speaker= REINFORCE THEIR IDENTITY
  • Conversationalisation (Norman Fairclough)

    • Believes that there have been 'shifting boundaries' between written and spoken discourse practices
    • Rising prestige and status for spoken language
    • Many linguists see this informalisation and personalisation of language in today's language use and credit spoken language with driving changes in written mode
  • Varieties of English (Dennis Freeborn)

    • Incorrectness view: all accents are incorrect compared to Standard English and accent of RP
    • Ugliness view: some accents don't sound nice linked to stereotypes and negative social connotations
    • Impreciseness view: some accents are lazy and sloppy such as Estuary English where sounds are omitted and changed
  • Prescriptivism
    The judgement based view that there is a right and wrong way to use the English language and anyone not conforming to the correct usage is 'wrong'
  • Descriptivism
    An acceptance that language is always changing and evolving. Descriptivists seek to describe those changes, rather than applying value judgements to them.
  • Grice's Maxims

    • Quantity: Use an appropriate amount of detail
    • Quality: Speak the truth and do not knowingly mislead
    • Relevance: Keep what is being discussed relevant to the topic
    • Manner: Avoid vagueness and ambiguity
  • Power in Advertising

    • Synthetic personalisation: the creation of an artificial relationship between the producer and consumer
    • Members' resources: creating understanding through shared knowledge or the background of the reader
  • Language and Gender (Robin Lakoff)

    • Hedge: using phrases like "sort of", "kind of", "it seems like", and so on
  • Face Theory (Brown and Levinson)

    • Face: the public self-image that adults try to project to others
    • Positive Face: the need to feel liked and appreciated
    • Negative Face: the need not to feel imposed upon
    • Face Threatening Act (FTA): an act which challenges the face needs of a participant
    • Bald On-Record: "Your essay was rubbish"
    • Off-record: "It's a shame your essay wasn't better..."
    • Positive Politeness: "I really appreciate that you've put a lot of effort into this essay..."
    • Negative Politeness: "I'm sorry to have to ask you to do this essay again."
  • Types of Power

    • Instrumental Power: power used to maintain and enforce authority
    • Influential Power: the power used to influence people
    • Political Power: the power held by a politician or government
    • Personal Power: the power held by an individual due to their position
    • Social Group Power: the power held by people due to social variables, such as class, race etc.
  • Ideology
    A set of belief systems, attitudes