Lesson 4: Language

True or false: Profanity is language that harms a person's reputation.

False

True or false: Whether a culture is individualistic or collectivistic is unlikely to be evident in verbal messages.

False

Which of the following statements are true about the negative effects of humor?

It can qualify as harassment. It can cause embarrassment or distress when used at another's expense. It can be demeaning to individuals and social or cultural groups.

Which of the following are functions of language?

It connects us to others. It expresses who we are. It motivates action.

Which of the following are true about language?

It has layers of meaning. It is symbolic. It is usually arbitrary. It is governed by rules.

Which of the following are true about language?

It is governed by rules. It is sometimes unclear. It is bound by context.

Language is which of the following?

It is used to communicate meaning. It is a system of symbols. It uses symbols called words.

Which of the following statements are true about language?

Language is symbolic. Words represent objects.

Which of the following have occurred in language as a result of new technologies?

New words have been generated to help communicate about them. Existing words have developed new meanings.

True or false: Native speakers of a language usually will notice when a speaker violates a rule in the language even if they can't explain the rule

TRUE

That the word "bird" does not look anything like a bird highlights which of the following concepts? Select all that apply.

The word is not the object. Language is symbolic. The word simply represents the object.

Which of the following are examples of language that is used to motivate action?

a slogan persuasion

That a word like "duck" has no characteristics of a duck--the word "duck" cannot fly, does not have a bill or webbed feet, and does not quack--represents the concept that language is usually

arbitrary.

Which of the following describes a word or phrase that was novel at one time but has lost its effect because of overuse?

cliché

The ideas or concepts that a word suggests constitute its ______ meaning.

connotative

Language is intimately tied to issues of

credibility

The Sapir-Whorf hypothesis maintains that language

influences the ways that members of a culture see the world. reflects attitudes and behaviors of a culture's people.

Because many words suggest ideas that are different from what they literally mean,

language has layers of meaning.

Which of the following describes the principle that people see the world differently depending on which language they speak?

linguistic relativity

The ______ meaning of a word is known as its denotative meaning.

literal

Which of the following describes the process of convincing people that they should think or act in a certain way?

persuasion

The language rule that deals with the correct pronunciation of a word is the

phonological rules

When you use a speaker's facial expressions and tone of voice to determine that person's meaning, you are using

pragmatic rules.

Which of the following are concrete words?

puppy dog

By re-claiming profane words, some social groups have been able to ______ the negative effects of certain terms.

reduce

In the semantic triangle, the denotative meaning of a word is called the ______ and the connotative meaning is called the ______.

referent; reference

Rules that specify the meanings of individual words

semantic rules

Even though the meaning of a word is arbitrary, the rules that determine what a particular word means are

semantic rules.

The persuasive strategy of anchor-and-contrast

starts with an unreasonably large request then moves to a smaller request that looks good in comparison.

In the semantic triangle, the word being communicated is called the

symbol.

The language rule that dictates the proper order of words within a phrase or clause is known as the

syntactic rule.

Rules that govern the order of words within phrases and clauses.

syntactic rules

Al calls his friend Kris "sly" after Kris convinces his boss to give him a raise. Kris complains that "sly" has more of a negative than positive meaning. Kris is focusing on

the connotative meaning of the word "sly."

Which of the following describes the expectation that you will help someone who has helped you in the past?

the norm of reciprocity

The semantic triangle helps us understand

the relationship between words and their denotative and connotative meanings.

Because words are only symbols of objects and ideas and can mean whatever we choose them to mean, language is

usually arbitrary.

The basic rules that govern language apply to which of the following?

what words mean how words are pronounced how words are placed in a sentence or phrase