Textual variations and representations

The smallest unit of sound in a language that can distinguish meaning. Phonemes are abstract units that are realised by

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A variant realisation of a phoneme that does not change the meaning of a word. Allophones are the actual sounds we produ

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

Two words that differ by only one phoneme and have different meanings. Minimal pairs demonstrate which sounds are phonem

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

The prestige accent of English traditionally associated with educated speakers and the BBC. RP is a non-regional accent

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

The distinctive way a person pronounces words, determined by their geographical origin, social class, and background. Ac

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

The natural pronunciation of words in sequence, where sounds merge and change due to the influence of surrounding sounds

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

The omission or loss of a sound, syllable, or phoneme in connected speech. Elision is a connected speech process that si

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A connected speech process where a sound becomes more similar to an adjacent sound, changing its phonetic properties. As

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

Suprasegmental aspects of speech including stress, intonation, pitch, pace, and rhythm. Prosodic features add meaning an

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

The prominence given to a syllable or word in speech through increased volume, higher pitch, and longer duration. Stress

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

The pattern of pitch change across an utterance, ranging from high to low tones. Intonation conveys attitudes, emotions,

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

The frequency of vocal cord vibration, perceived as highness or lowness of the voice. Pitch can be fixed (overall speaki

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

The speed at which speech is delivered, measured in syllables or words per minute. Pace affects comprehensibility, emoti

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

The study of how language is represented visually on a page or screen through writing systems, handwriting, and visual d

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

The design and style of printed or displayed text, including font choice, size, weight, and colour. Typography affects r

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

The spatial arrangement of text and visual elements on a page or screen. Layout affects how readers navigate and interpr

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

The arrangement of text and visual elements in physical or digital space, affecting how meaning is conveyed and how read

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

The use of visual elements and design features to create unity and connect different parts of a text. Visual cohesion he

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A word class that names people, places, things, or ideas. Nouns are the head of noun phrases and can be modified by adje

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A noun referring to something that can be perceived through the senses. Concrete nouns denote physical objects that exis

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A noun referring to concepts, emotions, qualities, or ideas that cannot be perceived through the senses. Abstract nouns

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A noun that names a specific person, place, or organisation and is capitalised. Proper nouns have unique referents and f

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A noun that refers to a group of people or things as a single unit. Collective nouns are grammatically singular but sema

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A word class expressing actions, events, or states. Verbs are the head of verb phrases and can be modified by adverbs an

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A verb expressing an action or event that involves change or movement. Dynamic verbs can occur in progressive aspect and

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A verb expressing a state, condition, or relationship rather than an action. Stative verbs typically cannot occur in pro

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A helping verb used with a main verb to form compound verb phrases expressing tense, aspect, mood, and voice. Auxiliary

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

An auxiliary verb expressing possibility, obligation, permission, ability, or future likelihood. Modals include can, cou

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A word class that modifies nouns by adding descriptive information about their qualities, characteristics, or properties

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A word class that modifies verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs by providing information about manner, time, frequency, d

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A word class that replaces or refers to a noun or noun phrase. Pronouns include personal pronouns, possessive pronouns,

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A word class that shows the relationship between a noun and other words, typically indicating location, direction, time,

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A word class that connects words, phrases, or clauses. Conjunctions include coordinating conjunctions (and, but, or) and

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A word class that precedes and modifies nouns by specifying or limiting them. Determiners include articles (a, an, the),

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A group of words related by shared meaning and typically associated with a particular topic, concept, or domain. Words i

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

The habitual or natural combination of words that frequently occur together. Collocations are pairs or groups of words w

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

The literal, dictionary meaning of a word. Denotation is the objective, referential meaning independent of emotional or

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

The emotional, cultural, or associative meanings of a word beyond its literal definition. Connotations can be positive,

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A figure of speech that describes one thing in terms of another by suggesting they are the same, without using 'like' or

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A figure of speech that compares two unlike things using 'like' or 'as'. Similes explicitly acknowledge that the compari

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A figure of speech that substitutes the name of one thing for another thing closely associated with it. Metonymy is base

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A figure of speech in which a part represents the whole or the whole represents a part. Synecdoche is a type of metonymy

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A figure of speech that gives human characteristics, emotions, or actions to non-human things or abstract concepts. Pers

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A figure of speech that uses extreme exaggeration for emphasis or effect. Hyperbole intentionally overstates reality to

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A figure of speech that affirms something by denying its opposite, often using understatement for effect. Litotes create

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A mild or indirect word or expression substituted for one that is considered harsh, blunt, or offensive. Euphemisms soft

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A figure of speech that combines two contradictory or opposite terms in a single phrase. Oxymorons create paradoxical me

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

The property of a word having multiple related meanings. Polysemous words have several connected senses that derive from

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

The relationship between words that have very similar or identical meanings. Synonyms are words that can often be substi

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

The relationship between words with opposite meanings. Antonyms have contrary or contradictory meanings.

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

The relationship between a general term (hypernym) and more specific terms (hyponyms) that fall within its category. Hyp

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A grammatical unit consisting of a noun and any modifying words (determiners, adjectives, prepositional phrases). The no

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A grammatical unit consisting of a main verb and any auxiliary verbs that modify it. The verb phrase functions as the pr

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

The clause element that typically expresses the agent performing the action or the entity being described. The subject u

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

The clause element that typically receives the action of the verb or is affected by it. Objects are usually noun phrases

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A clause element that completes the meaning of a linking verb or provides additional information about the subject or ob

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A clause element that provides optional information about when, where, how, or why an action occurs. Adverbials are not

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A sentence containing one independent clause and no subordinate clauses. Simple sentences may have compound subjects or

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A sentence containing two or more independent clauses joined by coordinating conjunctions or semicolons. Compound senten

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A sentence containing one independent clause and one or more subordinate clauses. Complex sentences show unequal, hierar

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A sentence type that makes a statement and ends with a period. Declarative sentences are the most common sentence type.

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A sentence type that asks a question and ends with a question mark. Interrogative sentences change typical word order, o

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A sentence type that gives a command, request, or instruction. Imperative sentences typically have an implied subject (y

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A sentence type that expresses strong emotion or surprise and ends with an exclamation mark. Exclamatory sentences are e

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A voice in which the subject performs the action expressed by the verb. Active voice emphasises the agent performing the

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A voice in which the subject receives the action rather than performing it. The agent (performer) is either absent or ap

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A grammatical category indicating when an action or state occurs: past, present, or future. Tense is marked through verb

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A grammatical category indicating how an action or state is viewed: whether it is ongoing (progressive), completed (perf

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

The use of words or phrases to add descriptive information to nouns or other words. Modifiers provide additional details

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

The grammatical linking of a dependent clause to an independent clause using subordinating conjunctions. Subordination c

Language, the individual and society

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The grammatical linking of equal elements using coordinating conjunctions. Coordination creates parallel relationships b

Language, the individual and society

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A principle suggesting that conversational participants assume each other is being cooperative and following shared rule

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

One of four conversational rules proposed by Grice that guide effective communication: quality, quantity, relevance, and

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

An implied meaning that is not explicitly stated but can be inferred from what is said in context. Implicatures arise wh

Language, the individual and society

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Information assumed to be true as background for understanding an utterance. Presuppositions are not explicitly stated b

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

An action performed through language, such as promising, threatening, requesting, or commanding. Speech acts have a comm

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A theory explaining how speakers manage impressions and relationships through language choices. Politeness involves prot

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A person's desire for approval, inclusion, and positive self-image. Positive face concerns wanting to be liked and to ha

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A person's desire for autonomy and freedom from imposition. Negative face concerns wanting personal space and control ov

Language, the individual and society

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An utterance that damages a person's face (self-image), threatening either positive face (approval) or negative face (au

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

The use of linguistic devices to create connections between different parts of a text, making it hang together as a unif

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

The meaningful connection between ideas in a text that allows readers to understand relationships and follow the argumen

Language, the individual and society

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A word or phrase that signals the relationship between ideas and helps guide readers through a text. Discourse markers i

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

The system governing who speaks when in conversation. Turn-taking mechanisms determine how speakers manage overlaps, sil

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A pair of consecutive utterances where the first utterance obligates a particular type of response. Examples include que

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

The strategies speakers use to introduce, maintain, develop, or change conversational topics. Topic management is a coop

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

The conversational process of fixing misunderstandings, errors, or unclear utterances. Repair can be self-initiated (spe

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

A situation in conversation where two speakers speak simultaneously or nearly simultaneously. Overlaps can indicate enga

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

Verbal utterances like 'mm', 'yeah', 'right' or non-verbal signals (nodding) that show a listener is engaged and followi

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

Words and expressions whose meaning depends on the context of utterance, particularly the speaker, time, and location. D

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

The variety of language used in a particular social context, determined by field, tenor, and mode. Register varies along

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

The topic or subject matter of a text, which influences vocabulary choices and level of technicality. Field is one compo

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

The relationship between participants in a text, including power relationships, familiarity, and social distance. Tenor

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

The medium or channel of communication (spoken or written). Mode affects linguistic choices including vocabulary, gramma

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

The distinctive way an individual person uses language, including their vocabulary preferences, grammatical patterns, an

Language, the individual and society

Textual variations and representations

The language variety used by a particular social group, determined by factors like social class, age, ethnicity, or occu

Language, the individual and society