Structures of Language

All languages are comprised of the same phonemes.

F

Researchers have identified precisely 4,500 languages in the world.

F

The only modes of communication are through the spoken and written word.

F

There are 26 phonemes in the English language, one for each letter of the alphabet.

F

Roxanne's Italian teacher was talking about how adjectives are placed after the noun, unlike in English. The teacher is instructing the students in the __________ of Italian.

Syntax

Humans are able to recognize about 100 basic phonemes.

T

Language enabled philosophers in the Middle Ages to pass their ideas on to future generations.

T

One of the major advantages of language is its flexibility.

T

The English language has about 40 distinct phonemes.

T

Which of the following statements about language is true?

a. Languages have a set of rules that determine how sentences can be written.

How many phonemes are there in the word "dogs"?

a. four

How could semantics be defined?

b. as a set of rules that is concerned with understanding the meaning of words

The smallest distinctive sound units in a language that an individual can distinguish are __________.

b. phonemes

Erica and Ryan are both taking a linguistics class in which their professor was discussing how the words "spinach" or "heart" could have been used to represent the idea of "love." They are most likely discussing the __________ property of language in their class.

b. symbolic

Semantics deals with understanding the meaning of __________ and __________.

b. words . . . word combinations

Phonology is the study of __________.

c. sounds

How many morphemes are there in the word "bats"?

two