Module 1: Introduction to Linguistics

Nature of Language
1) Charles Fries
-Language is speech. Speech is language.

2) Joseph Greenberg
-Language is a system of signals conforming to the rules which constitutes its grammar;
set of culturally transmitted behavior shared with groups or individuals

3) Roger T. Bell
-Language is a code; set of elements… composed of sounds, letters, their combinations
into words, sentences, etc.

4) Searle and Austin

-When we use language, we are not just saying something, but we are doing something
as well like promising, asking, etc.

5) Noam Chomsky
-It is a system which related meanings to substance; a mental phenomenon that is
innate. All children acquire a mother language.

6) John Oller
- It has 2 elements: Cognitive and Emotive (Affective)

7) Bronislaw Malinowski
-Meaning does not reside in the words per se, but in the context of situation.
8) Henry Widdowson
-Sender and receiver of the message should have shared presuppositions for
communication to take place.
Nature and Characteristics of Language
1) Language as a system – rule governed (grammar, prepositions, etc.)
2) Language as arbitrary – based on personal choice (agreement, choice of words)
3) Language as verbal – speech, verbal communication, written
4) Language as symbol – characters, texts, IPA, transcription
5) Language as human – Man is the talking animal (Francis, 2958); man is capable of
learning at least one language.
6) Language as social phenomenon – dialects, language from different groups of
society.
7) Language as communication – delivering and receiving messages (cyclical
messages)
8) Language as cultural phenomenon – culture influenced languages (jejewords,
salvage sa pinas and salvage sa ibang bansa)
9) Language is dynamic – changing or evolving languages, slang, neologisms, World
Englishes (Braj Kachru)

Language: A Preview
“The gift of language is the single human trait that marks us all genetically, setting us
apart from the rest of life.” – Lewis Thomas, The Lives of a Cell
LANGUAGE is at the heart of all things human. We use it when we’re talking,
listening, reading, writing—and thinking. It underpins social relationships and
communities; it forges the emotional bond between parent and child; it’s the
vehicle for literature and poetry. Language is not just a part of us; language
defines us (O’Grady, 2016).

Linguistics is the study of how language works—how it is used, how it is

acquired, how it changes over time, how it is represented in the brain, and so
on. It is concerned not only with the properties of the world’s more than 7000
living languages but also with the abilities and adaptations that have made it
possible for our species to create and use language in the first place (O’Grady,
2016)
Definitions of Language
-It is a system of arbitrary vocal symbols by means of which a social group cooperates
(Trager and Block, 1942).

-A language is an arbitrary system of articulated sounds made us of by a group of

humans as a means of carrying on the affairs of society (Francis, 1958).

Language is a system of arbitrary vocal symbols used for human communication

(Wardaugh, 1982).

Functions of Language

-Homo Sapiens made its appearance 100,000 to 200,000 years ago

-Early humans were anatomically like us- they had large brains and vocal tracts capable
of producing speech

-Archaeological evidence (tools, carvings, and cave paintings) suggests that they also
had the type of intellect that could accompany language.

Dual Functions of the Speech Organs (Survival and Speech

function)
1) Lungs – exchange gas in body; to supply air for speech
2) Vocal Cords – create seal over passage to lungs: produce vibrations for speech
sounds
3) Tongue – move food to teeth and back into throat; articulate vowels and consonants
4) Teeth – break up food; provide place of articulation for consonants
5) Lips – to seal oral cavity; articulate vowels and consonants
6) Nose – breathing and smelling; provide nasal resonance during speech

Grammar and Linguistic Competence

-Speakers of a language are able to produce and understand an unlimited number of

utterances, including many that are novel and unfamiliar.

-At the same time, they are able to recognize that certain utterances are not acceptable
and do not belong in their language. Knowledge of this type, which is often called
linguistic competence.

Components of Grammar
1) Phonetics – articulation and perception of speech sounds
2) Phonology – patterning of speech sound, study of speech sounds
3) Morphology – study of word formation
4) Syntax – study of sentence formation
5) Semantics – the interpretation of words and sentences

Other Fundamental Claims about Language

1) Generality: All languages have a grammar – if language is spoken, it must have a
phonetic and phonological system; since it has words and sentences, it must also have
a morphology and a syntax; and since these words and sentences have systematic
meaning, there must be semantic principles as well.
2) Equality: All Grammars are equal – Grammar tells speakers to form and interpret
the words and sentences of their language. The form and meaning of those words and
sentences vary from language to another and even from community to another, but
each language works for its speakers.

3) Changeability: Grammars changes over time – The features of languages that are
not universal and fixed are subject to change over time.

4) Universality – Grammars are alike in basic ways such as linguistics elements

(phone, morphs, etc.), grammatical categories, and semantic properties.

5) Tacitness – Grammatical knowledge (linguistic competence is subconscious.

Theories/Views of Language
1) Structuralist View – there is a system, pattern, and structure of elements (e.g.,
grammar)

2) Transformationalist View – (a) Language is innate, an inborn capacity, genetically

endowed (LAD). (b) Language is universal. (c) Language is creative

3) Functionalist View – Language is a means or vehicle for communications. It fulfills

certain functions or purposes.
4) Interactionist View – Language is used for interpersonal relations and for social
transactions.

Linguistics
1) “The branch of learning which studies the language of any and all human societies:
how such a language is constructed; how it varies through space and changes through
time; how it is related to other languages; how it is used by its speakers.” – William g.
Moulton

2) It is the scientific study of language that focuses on the systematic investigation of

the properties of particular languages and characteristics of it in general.

3) It also encompasses the history of language families, how it is acquired by children

and adults, and it is processed in the mind and connected to race and gender.

4) Linguistics is a scientific study of language that involves the analysis of the many
different aspects such as the meaning, form and context of language.

Branches of Linguistics
1) Psycholinguistics – psychological aspects of language and linguistics
2) Sociolinguistics – study of impact of society on language and linguistics
3) Applied Linguistics – study of real-life application of linguistics
4) Computational Linguistics – study of spoken and written language in
communication and programming
5) Comparative Linguistics – study of similar and dissimilar aspects of common-origin
languages
6) historical Linguistics – study of evolution and origins of languages
7) Stylistics – study and interpretation of style and tones in languages.

Theoretical vs. Applied Linguistics

1) Theoretical Linguistics (nature and components of language)
-nature and components of language

2) Applied Linguistics (how language is taught and learned)

Prescriptive vs. Descriptive Approach to Language

1) Descriptive Approach – impose rules and describes how language is used
(teaching, demonstrating, describing)
2) Prescriptive Approach – tells you someone’s idea is good or bad (correcting,
criticizing, providing feedback)

----End of Module 1----

Module 2A: Phonetics (Sounds of Language)

Phonetics
-Speech remains the primary way in which humans express themselves through
language.
-Speech production is a vehicle for carrying language.
-Language is generally thought to consist of four sets of rule: pragmatics,
semantics, syntax, and phonology
-Phonology is the study of linguistic rules governing the sound system of the language,
including speech sounds, speech sound production, and the combination of sounds in
meaningful utterances.
-Phonetics is the specific branch that deals with individual speech sounds, their
production and their representation by written symbols.
-Articulation refers to the actions of the organs of speech in producing the sounds of
speech.
-The study of language begins by examining the inventory and structure of the sounds
of speech. This branch of linguistics is called phonetics.
-Human languages display a wide variety of sounds, called phones or speech sound.

Study of Phonetics in 3 ways:

1) Articulatory Phonetics – study of the production of speech sounds; involves
analyzing the physiological mechanisms
2) Acoustic Phonetics – study of the transmission and physical properties of the
speech sounds (sound waves) we produce when we speak.
3) Auditory Phonetics – study of perception of speech sounds; description of the
effects produced by speech sounds upon ear and its associated structures comprises
auditory phonetics.
Phonetic Transcription
-International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) has been evolving since 1888
-These symbols are enclosed in brackets [ ] to indicate that the transcription is phonetic
and does not represent the spelling system of a particular language. For example, the
sound spelled th in English th is transcribed as [ð] (the symbol is called eth, as in wea th
er).
-The IPA represents speech in the form of segments—individual phones like [p], [s], or
[m]. Segments are produced by coordinating a number of individual articulatory
gestures including jaw movement, lip shape, and tongue placement. Segment iss an
individual speech sound (phone).

Organs of Speech
-speech sounds can be described in terms of bodily motions, called articulation.
-Only a restricted region of the body is involved in articulation (the so-called organs of
speech) which consist of all the movable parts in the oral cavity (mouth), the nasal
cavity, the pharynx (throat), and the lungs, together with the muscles that move these
parts.
-collectively, this region is the speech tract.
The sound-producing system
-The sound source is in the larynx, where a set of muscles called the vocal folds (or
vocal cords—not chords) is located.
-The filters are the passages above the larynx, collectively known as the vocal tract: the
tube of the throat between the larynx and the oral cavity, which is called the pharynx;
the oral cavity; and the nasal cavity

The Organs of Speech

1) Lungs – energy source for the airflow. The amount of air accumulated inside our
lungs controls the pressure of the
airflow.
2) Larynx and Vocal Folds –
colloquially known as voice box and
Adam’s Apple. It protects as well as
houses the trachea (also known as
windpipe, esophagus) and the vocal
folds (formerly they were called vocal
cords). the opening between them is
called the glottis that looks like a pair of
lips placed horizontally from front to
back.
a) Wide Apart/ Voiceless – breathed or
voiceless like /p/f/θ/s/
b) Narrow Glottis/Whisper – audible
friction and voiceless. For example, in
English /h/ is a voiceless glottal fricative
sound.
c) Tightly Closed/Murmur - Such a
position produces a glottal stop / ʔ / (also
known as glottal catch, glottal plosive).
d) Touched or Nearly Touched/Voiced -
Two are touching each other or nearly
touching. The pressure of the air coming
from the lungs makes them vibrate. This
vibration of the folds produces a musical
note called the voice. And sounds produced
in such manner are called voiced sounds.
In English all the vowel sounds and the
consonants /v/z/m/n/are voiced.
3) Articulators - Articulators
transform the sound into intelligible
speech. They can be either active
or passive.

a) Pharynx – between the mouth

and the food passage just above
the larynx. 7cm long in the case of
women and 8cm long for men.
b) Roof of the Mouth – has three
parts:
i) Alveolar Ridge/Teeth
Ridge – after the upper front teeth
and produces alveolar sounds (/t/d/)
ii) The Hard Palate – concave part of the roof of the mouth and situated on the
middle part of the roof.
iii) Velum or Soft Palate – lower part of the roof of the mouth and could be
lowered or raised. When lowered, air stream from the lungs has access to the nasal
cavity. When raised, passage to the nasal cavity is blocked. Sounds which are produced
touching this area the back of the tongue are called velar sounds ( /k/g/ )

c) Lips – can be pressed together or brought into contact with the teeth. Consonant
sounds – articulated by touching two lips each other are called bilabial sounds ( /p/b/
). Labiodental sounds are produced with the lip to teeth contact ( /f/v/ ).
-Lips can take different shapes and positions. Therefore, lip-rounding is considered as
a major criterion for describing vowel sounds and it may have following positions:
i) Rounded – corners of the lips are brought toward each other and pushed
forwards resulting vowel from this position is a rounded one ( /ə ʊ/ ).
ii) Spread – lips are moved away from each other just like when we smile (in
English, /i: /is a long vowel with slightly spread lips.)
iii) Neutral - in English /ɑ: / is a long vowel with neutral lips
d) Teeth – sound produced with the tongue touching the teeth are called dental
sounds ( θ/ð/. )
e) Tongue – divided into 4 parts:
i) Tip – extreme end of the tongue
ii) Blade – lies opposite to the alveolar ridge
iii) Front – opposite to the hard palate
iv) Back – opposite to the soft palate or velum
-The shape and the position of the tongue are especially crucial for the production of
vowel sounds. Thus, when we describe the vowel sounds in the context of the function
of the tongue, we generally consider the following criteria:
>Tongue Height – distance between upper surface of the tongue and the hard palate.
Vowels can be described as close and open. For instance, because of the different
distance between the surface of the tongue and the roof of the mouth, the vowel /i: /has
to be described as a relatively close vowel, whereas ( /æ / ) has to be described as a
relatively open vowel.
>Tongue Frontness/Backness – vowels
can be classified as front and back vowels.
By changing the shape of the tongue, we can
produce vowels in which a different part of
the tongue is the highest point. That means a
vowel having the back of the tongue as the
highest point is a back vowel, whereas the
one having the front of the tongue as the
highest point is called a front vowel. For
example: during the articulation of the vowel /
u: / the back of the tongue is raised high, so
it’s a back vowel. On the other hand, during
the articulation of the vowel / æ / the front of
the tongue is raised high, therefore, it’s a
front vowel.

f) Jaws – some phoneticians consider it as articulators since we move our lower jaw a
lot for speaking, but it should be noted that is not articulator in the same way as the
others because it is incapable of making contact with other articulators by themselves.
g) Nose and Nasal Cavity – may also be considered as speech organs. The sounds
which are produced with the nose are called nasal sounds ( /m/n/ŋ/ng/ )

----End of Module 2A----

Module 2B: Sound Classes
-Sounds of language can be grouped into classes based on the phonetic properties that
they share.

Vowels and Consonants

-can be distinguished on the basis of differences in articulation or by their acoustic
properties. Can also be distinguish among these elements with respect to whether they
function as syllabic or non-syllabic elements. Vowels (and other syllabic elements)
are produced with relatively little obstruction in the vocal tract and more sonorous.
Consonants (and non-syllabic elements) are produced with a complete closure or
narrowing of vocal tract and less sonorous.

Glides
-Type of sound that shows properties of both consonants
and vowels.
-It may be thought of as rapidly articulated vowels-this is
the auditory impression they produce.
-Glides are produced with an articulation like that of a
vowel, but they move quickly to another articulation.

Consonant Articulation
-airflow is modified in the vocal tract by the placement of the tongue and the positioning
of the lips. These modifications occur at specific places of articulation.

Tongue
-primary articulating organ and can be move to shape sounds.
-Phonetic description refers to five areas of the tongue:
i) The tip is the narrow area at the front.
ii) Just behind the tip lies the blade.
iii) The main mass of the tongue is called the body,
iv)The hindmost part of the tongue that lies in the mouth (versus the throat) is
called the back.
v) The body and back of the tongue can also be referred to jointly as the dorsum.
The root of the tongue is contained in the upper part of the throat (pharynx)
Places of Articulation
-each point at which the airstream can be modified to produce different sound
-fond at the lips, within the oral cavity in the pharynx, and at the glottis.

1) Labial
-sound made with closure or near-closure of the lips. Sound involving both lips are
called bilabials while sounds involving lower lip and upper teeth are called
labiodentals.

2) Dental
-produced with tongue placed against or near the teeth. If tongue is placed between the
teeth, it is said to be interdental (English has two interdentals)

3) Alveolar
-behind the upper front teeth. Tongue may touch or be brought near this bridge.

4) Alveopalatal and Palatal

-Just behind the alveolar ridge, the roof of the mouth rises sharpy. The highest part of
the roof of the mouth is called palate, and sound produced with the tongue on or near
this area are called palatals.

5) Velar
-The soft area toward the rear of the roof of the mouth. Sounds made with tongue
touching or near this position are called velars.
6) Uvular
-Small fleshy flap of tissue known as the uvula hangs down from the velum. Sounds
made with the tongue near or touching this area are called uvulars.

7) Pharyngeal
-The area of the throat between the uvula and the larynx. It is the sounds made through
the modification of airflow in this region by retracting the tongue or constricting the
pharynx.

8) Glottal
-Sounds produced using the vocal colds as primary articulators. The sound at the
beginning of the English words (h)eave and (h)og is made at the glottis.

Manners of Articulation
-The lips, tongue, velum, and glottis can be position in different ways to produce
different ways to produce different sound types. There various configuration is called
manners of articulation.

1) Stop – complete oral and velic

closure. The air passage is
completely blocked.

2) Fricatives – consonants
produced with a continuous airflow
through the mouth. The air escapes
through a relatively narrow passage
between an articulator and a point of
articulation.

3) Affricates – Passage is
completely blocked, then the block
is slowly released and the air
escapes through a relatively narrow
passage between an articulator and
a point of articulation.

4) Nasal – air escapes through the nose.

5) Liquids - Among the sounds commonly found in the world’s languages are l and r
and their numerous variants. They form a special class of consonants known as liquids .

6) English Laterals - The most commonly used lateral liquid in English, transcribed as
[l], is articulated with the tip of the tongue touching the alveolar ridge while air escapes
through the mouth along the lowered sides of the tongue.
7) English rs - The r of English as it is spoken in Canada and the United States is
made by curling the tongue tip back and bunching the tongue upward and back in the
mouth. This r, which is known as a retroflex r, is heard in r ide and ca r . IPA transcription
favors [ɹ] for this sound, though it also offers the symbol [r], which we use in this book.

8) Glides – tongue moves or glides from one position to another. The 2 glides of
Canadian English are [j] of (y)es and bo(y) and [w] of wet and now.
-The glide [w] is made with the tongue raised and pulled back near the velum and with
the lips protruding or rounded.
-The [w] corresponds closely in articulation to the vowel [u] of wh o . This can be verified
by extending the pronunciation of [w].
-Some speakers of English also have a voiceless (labio)velar glide, transcribed [ʍ], in
the words wh en, wh ere, and wh ich (but not in witch).

Transcribing English Consonants

English Consonants: Places and Manners of Articulation

----End of Module 2B----

 Module 2C: VOWELS

Characteristics of Vowels

● Vowels are sonorous, syllabic sounds made with the vocal tract more open than it is for
consonant and glide articulations.
● Different vowel sounds (also called vowel qualities) are produced by varying the placement of
the body of the tongue (remember that for vowels your tongue tip is behind your lower front
teeth) and shaping the lips.
● The shape of the vocal tract can be further altered by protruding the lips to produce rounded
vowels or by lowering the velum to produce a nasal vowel.
● Finally, vowels may be tense or lax, depending on the degree of vocal tract constriction during
their articulation.

Simple Vowels and Diphthongs

● English vowels are divided into two major types, simple vowels and diphthongs.
● Simple vowels do not show a noticeable change in quality during their articulation. The vowels
of p i t, s e t, c a t, d o g, b u t, p u t, and the first vowel of s u ppose are all simple vowels.
● Diphthongs are vowels that exhibit a change in quality within a single syllable.
● English diphthongs show changes in quality that are due to tongue movement away from the
initial vowel articulation toward a glide position.
● Short vowels in the IPA are:
○ /ɪ/-pit
○ /e/-pet
○ /æ/-pat
○ /ʌ/-cut
○ /ʊ/-put
○ /ɒ/-dog
○ /ə/-about
● Long vowels in the IPA are
○ /i:/-week
○ /ɑ:/-hard
○ /ɔ:/-fork
○ /ɜ:/-heard
○ /u:/-boot
● Diphthong vowels in the IPA are /eɪ/-place, /oʊ/-home, /aʊ/-mouse, /ɪə/-clear, /eə/-care, /ɔɪ/-
boy, /aɪ/-find, /ʊə/-tour.
● There are 12 vowels and 8 diphthongs
● There are 24 consonants
Tense and Lax Vowels

● Tense vowels = More tightness on your tongue and lips.

● Lax vowels = More relaxed tongue and lips. Avoid using “short” and “long” terminology. [eɪ] for
table vs /æ/ for apple
----End of Module 2C----
 Module 3: SUPRASEGMENTALS OR PROSODIC FEATURES OF A LANGUAGE

Suprasegmentals

● All phones have certain inherent suprasegmental or prosodic properties that form part of their
makeup no matter what their place or manner of articulation. These properties are pitch,
loudness, and length.

Pitch and Tone

● Speakers of any language have the ability to control the level of pitch in their speech. This is
accomplished by controlling the tension of the vocal folds and the amount of air that passes
through the glottis.
● The combination of tensed vocal folds and greater air pressure results in higher pitch on vowels
and sonorant consonants, whereas less tense vocal folds and lower air pressure result in lower
pitch.
● Two kinds of controlled pitch movement found in human language are called tone and
intonation.

Intonation

● This refers to the tone or pitch of the voice.

● The rise or fall of pitch of the voice when somebody says a word or syllable.
● Two general patterns that we follow: rising intonation and falling intonation.
● A language is said to have tone or to be a tone language when differences in word meaning are
signaled by differences in pitch.
● In English, there are 4 pitch levels: extra-high, high, mid (or normal) and low.
○ Extra high: surprise, excitement, or intense feeling (exclamations)
○ High: stressed syllable of a word (primary stress)
○ Mid: Normal tone or pitch level
○ Low: the drop or fade out tone at the end of the sentence.
Intonation Patterns

Intonation Pattern Numbers Arrows

Rising intonation 2-3-3 🠕

Non-final rising-falling 2-3-2

⬈⬊
intonation

Final rising-falling 2-3-2

⬈⬊➞

I. Rising Intonation

A. Final

1. At the end of yes or no questions

2. At the end of tag questions seeking information

B. Non-final

1. All the words in a series except the last one which is given a rising-falling intonation

2. In nominatives or address

3. In alternatives except the last option

4. Conditionals in sentence initial position may take a non-final rising or a non. Final rising-falling
intonation

II. Rising-falling Intonation

A. Final

1. At the end of statements

2. At the end of wh questions

3. At the end of tag questions seeking confirmation

B. Non-final
At the end of breath groups except for patterns that require the use of the non-final rising intonation

III. Extra-high intonation

To show intense feeling, surprise, excitement, etc.

General Intonation Patterns in English

● Falling intonation
○ Giving information
■ The serial number is located under the modem
○ Statements
■ The customer asked for another copy of his bills.
○ Imperatives / directives
■ Click the start button.
● Rising intonation
○ Closed questions (questions that are answerable by yes or no)
■ Is your computer switched on right now?
○ Tag questions that show uncertainty
■ You’ve already received your billing statement, haven’t you?

Content words

Words carrying the meaning Example

Main verbs Sell, give, employ

Nouns Car, music, Mary

Adjectives Red, big, interesting

Adverbs Quickly, loudly, never

Negative auxiliaries Don’t aren’t, can’t

Structure words

Words for correct grammar Example

Pronouns He, we, they

Prepositions On, at, into

 Articles A, an, the

Conjunctions And, but, because

Auxiliary verbs Do, be, have, can, must

Stress or Loudness

● It is the distribution of stresses within a polysyllabic word.

● It refers to the process where particular syllables (or parts of word) are stressed within an overall
word.
● It helps create the rhythm of the language.
● Knowing how to recognize the stressed syllables will help with comprehension.
● Syllables in English words don't all have the same level of loudness. Some are loud, some are
short and quiet, some are in between. English has three levels of stress:
○ primary stress- the loudest syllable in the word. In one-syllable words, that one syllable
has the primary stress (except for a handful of short function words like the, which might
not have any stress at all). Primary stress is marked in IPA by putting a raised vertical line
['] at the beginning of the syllable
○ secondary stress- syllables which aren't completely unstressed but aren't as loud as the
primary stress. Secondary stress is marked with a lowered vertical line [.] at the
beginning of the syllable.
○ unstressed syllables- syllables that have no stress at all. In English, almost all of these
have schwa [ə] for their vowel, though [i] will also often be unstressed, like the [i] in
happy ['hæpi]. (Very rarely, another non-schwa vowel might be unstressed, like the [o] of
potato [pə'teto] for most speakers.)
● Schwa sounds are never stressed.

What’s in it for me?

● Knowing how to recognize the stressed syllable will help with comprehension.
● Placing the stress where it should be helps native speakers understand you better.

General Rules on Word Stress

● Compound
○ Adjectives
○ (Adj + PP) on the last part (the verb part)
■ well-MEANT, hard-HEADED, old-FASHIONED
● Verbs
 ○ (Prep + Verb) on the last part (the verb part)
■ underSTAND, overLOOK, outPERFORM

● Compound
○ Nouns
○ (N + N) on the first part
■ DESKtop, PENCIL case
○ (Adj + N) on the first part
■ GRANDmother, GREENhouse

● Words with two syllables

○ Nouns- on the first syllable
■ CENter, OBject, FLOwer
● Verbs- on the last syllable
■ reLEASE, adMIT, arRANGE

● Words with added endings

○ -phy, -gy, -try, -cy, -fy, -al (third from the last syllable)
■ phoTOgraphy, biOlogy, geOmetry, demOcracy, PAcify, meCHAnical

● -meter (third from the last syllable)

■ paRAmeter, therMOmeter, baROmeter

● Numbers
○ Numbers ending in -ty are stressed on the first syllable
■ THIRty, FIFty, SEVENty
○ Numbers ending in teen are typically stressed on the last syllable when they are said on
their own or at the end of a phrase or sentence.
■ thirTEEN, fifTEEN, sevenTEEN

Juncture or Pausing

● A pause or a slight delay in a continuous flow of speech. Sound transitions characterize the
movement from sound to sound within a word or a phrase.
● Close juncture - is movement from sound to sound which has no intervening pauses or delays.
○ train, blame, merry, bloom
● Open Juncture - is movement which is not continuous. There is a slight stoppage of the last
sound till it blends with the next.
○ A name - - - An Aim
 ○ That stuff - - That's tough

Symbols of Juncture

● Single Bar Juncture (/) - Indicates the need for a slight pause between two thought groups in a
sentence.
○ My teacher said / the doctor is pregnant. (Who is pregnant? A: the doctor)
○ My teacher / said the doctor / is pregnant. (Who is pregnant? A: the teacher)
● Double Bar Juncture (//) - Indicates the need for a longer pause between two thought groups in
a sentence.
○ After eating, // the dogs all appeared satisfied.
● Double Cross Juncture (#) - Indicates a fading away into silence

----End of Module 3----

 Module 4: MORPHOLOGY: THE ANALYSIS OF WORD STRUCTURE

● NOTHING IS more important to language than words.

● Words carry meaning.
● They are arguably the fundamental building blocks of communication.
● Linguists use the term morphology to refer to the part of the grammar that is concerned with
words and word formation.
● Linguists define the word as the smallest free form found in language.
● A free form is simply an element that does not have to occur in a fixed position with respect to
neighboring elements; in many cases, it can even appear in isolation.
○ For example: dinosaurs (dinosaur + s)
● The most important component of word structure is the morpheme, the smallest unit of
language that carries information about meaning or function.
● The word builder, for example, consists of two morphemes: build (with the meaning 'construct')
and - er (which indicates that the entire word functions as a noun with the meaning 'one who
builds").
● Similarly, the word houses is made up of the morphemes house (with the meaning 'dwelling')
and -s (with the meaning 'more than one').
● Some words consist of a single morpheme. For example, the word train cannot be divided into
smaller parts (say, tr and ain or t and rain) that carry information about the word's meaning or
function.

One Two Three More than Three

and

couple couple-s

hunt hunt-er hunt-er-s

act act-ive act-iv-ate re-act-iv-ate

Free and Bound Morphemes

● A morpheme that can be a word by itself is called free.

 ● Free morphemes can stand alone. Most words are free morphemes - some examples include:
house, smile, car, peacock, and book. These words carry meaning on their own and are complete
in themselves. Most words are free morphemes.
● A morpheme that must be attached to another element is bound.
● Bound morphemes cannot stand alone. They have to be bound to another morpheme to carry
any meaning. Bound morphemes include prefixes, like pre, -un, and -dis (e.g. pre-screen,
undone, disapprove), and suffixes, like -er, -ing and -est (e.g. smaller, smiling, widest).
● The morpheme boy, for example, is free because it can be used as a word on its own; plural -s,
however, is bound.

Allomorphs

● The variant pronunciations of a morpheme are called its allomorphs.

● The morpheme used to express indefiniteness in English has two allomorphs:
○ an before a word that begins with a vowel sound
○ a before a word that begins with a consonant sound.
○ Examples: an orange, a dog, a university (We use a for university because we are
following the sound and university starts with a consonant sound.)
● Another example of allomorphic variation is found in the pronunciation of the plural morpheme
-s in the following words - cats dogs judges.
● Whereas the plural is /s/ in cats, it is /z/ in dogs, and /az/ in judges.

Sibilant /iz/ Voiceless /s/ Voiced /z/

C races P sleeps B crabs

S buses K books D words
X boxes T hats G bags
Z prizes F cliff L deals
SS kisses PH graphs M dreams
CH watches TH myths N fans
SH dishes NG sings
GE changes R wears
V gloves
Sibilant sound- a hissing or Y plays
buzzing sound
 Voiced sound- uses the vocal
cords and it produces a vibration
or humming sound in the throat

● Yet another case of allomorphic variation is found in the pronunciation of the prefix in-, with the
meaning 'not'.
● The final consonant is pronounced as /n/ in most cases- indirect, inactive, and so on.
● But it is pronounced as /m/ in front of another labial consonant (impossible, immodest), as /I/ in
front of another /l/ (illegal), and as /r/ in front of another /r/ (irregular).

Inflectional vs. Derivational Inflectional

● Inflectional morphemes change what a word does in terms of grammar but does not create a
new word.
● For example, the word <skip> has many forms: skip (base form), skipping (present progressive),
skipped (past tense).
● The inflectional morphemes -ing and -ed are added to the base word skip, to indicate the tense
of the word.
● If a word has an inflectional morpheme, it is still the same word, with a few suffixes added.

Derivational

● Derivational morpheme is the study of the formation of new words that differ either in syntactic
category or in meaning from their bases. Thus, a derivational morpheme is an affix we add to a
word in order to create a new word or a new form of a word. Moreover, a derivational
morpheme can either change the meaning or the grammatical category of the word.
○ Change in Meaning
■ Leaf - Leaflet
■ Pure - Impure
○ Change in Grammatical Category
■ Help (verb) - Helper (noun)
■ Logic (noun) - Logical (adjective)
Word Formation Processes

● Acronyms- are new words formed from the initial letters of a set of other words. These can be
forms such as CD ("compact disk") or VCR ("video cassette recorder") where the pronunciation
consists of saying each separate letter.
● Blending- the combination of two separate forms to produce a single new term is also present in
the process called blending. However, blending is typically accomplished by taking only the
beginning of one word and joining it to the end of the word.
○ Breakfast + lunch = brunch
○ Motor + hotel = motel
○ Television + broadcast = telecast
● Backformation- A very specialized type of reduction process is known as backformation.
Typically, a word of one type (usually a noun) is reduced to form a word of another type (usually
a verb). A good example of backformation is the process whereby the noun television first came
into use and then the verb televise was created from it.
○ Donate from "donation"
○ Emote from "emotion"
○ Enthuse from "enthusiasm"
○ Liaise from "liaison"
○ Babysit from "babysitter"
 ○ Opt from "option"
○ Lab from "laboratory"
○ Gym from "gymnasium
● Coinage- Coinage is one of the least common processes of word formation in English. Simply, it
means the invention of totally new terms. The most sallent contemporary example of coinage is
the word google.
● Borrowing- One of the most common sources of new words in English is the process simply
labeled borrowing. It is the process where we take over words from other languages or simply,
we borrow words from other languages.
○ Croissant - French
○ Tattoo - Tahitian
○ Tycoon - Japanese
○ Yogurt - Turkish
● Compounding- When we conjoin or join two separate words to produce a single form, it is called
compounding.
○ Book + case = bookcase
○ Door + knob = doorknob
○ Finger + print = fingerprint.
● Reduplication- It is a special kind of compounding. Reduplication is a morphological process in
which the root or stem of a word or part of it is repeated exactly or with a minor change. It is
used to show plurality, distribution, repetition, customary activity, increase of size, added
intensity, continuance etc.
○ byebye (exact reduplication)
○ super-duper (rhyming reduplication) or chitchat, pitter-patter, zigzag, tick-tock, flipflop.
● Clipping- The element of reduction that is noticeable in blending is even more apparent in the
process described as clipping. This occurs when a word of more than one syllable (facsimile) is
reduced to a shorter form (fax), usually beginning in casual speech. The term gasoline is still
used, but most people talk about gas, using the clipped form.
○ Ad- advertisement
○ Fan- fanatic
○ Flu- influenza
○ Pub- public house.
● Conversion- A change in the function of a word, as for example when a noun comes to be used
as a verb (without any reduction), is generally known as conversion. A number of nouns such as
bottle, butter, chair and vacation have come to be used, through conversion, as verbs:
○ We bottled the home-brew last night.
○ Have you buttered the toast?
○ Someone has to chair the meeting.
○ They're vacationing in Florida.

----End of Module 4----