英语语言学第章课后练习题

《新编简洁英语语言学教程》第二版第1-3章练习题参照答案Chapter1IntroductionP131.Howdoyouinterpretthefollowingdefinitionoflinguistics:Linguisticsisthescientificstudyoflanguage？答：Linguisticsisbasedonthesystematicinvestigationoflinguisticdata,conductedwithreferencetosomegeneraltheoryoflanguagestructure.Inordertodiscoverthenatureandrulesoftheunderlyinglanguagesystem,thelinguistshastocollectandobservelanguagefactsfirst,whicharefoundtodisplaysomesimilarities,andgeneralizationsaremadeaboutthem;thenheformulatessomehypothesesaboutthelanguagestructure.Thehypothesesthusformedhavetobecheckedrepeatedlyagainsttheobservedfactstofullyprovetheirvalidity.Inlinguistics,asinanyotherdiscipline,dataandtheorystandinadialecticalcomplementation,thatis,atheorywithoutthesupportofdatacanhardlyclaimvalidity,anddatawithoutbeingexplainedbysometheoryremainamuddledmassofthings.2.Whatarethemajorbranchesoflinguistics?Whatdoeseachofthemstudy?答：Themajorbranchesoflinguisticsare:phonetics:itstudiesthesoundsusedinlinguisticcommunication;phonology:itstudieshowsoundsareputtogetherandusedtoconveymeaningincommunication;morphology:itstudiesthewayinwhichlinguisticsymbolsrepresentingsoundsarearrangedandcombinedtoformwords;syntax:itstudiestheruleswhichgovernhowwordsarecombinedtoformgrammaticallypermissiblesentencesinlanguages;semantics:itstudiesmeaningconveyedbylanguage;pragmatics:itstudiesthemeaninginthecontextoflanguageuse.Inwhatbasicwaysdoesmodernlinguisticsdifferfromtraditionalgrammar?答：Thegeneralapproachthustraditionallyformedtothestudyoflanguageovertheyearsisroughlyreferredtoas“traditionalgrammar.”Modernlinguisticsdiffersfromtraditionalgrammarinseveralbasicways.Firstly,linguisticsisdescriptivewhiletraditionalgrammarisprescriptive.Second,modemlinguisticsregardsthespokenlanguageasprimary,notthewritten.Traditionalgrammarians,ontheotherhand,tendedtoemphasize,maybeover-emphasize,theimportanceofthewrittenword,partlybecauseofitspermanence.Then,modemlinguisticsdiffersfromtraditionalgrammaralsointhatitdoesnotforcelanguagesintoaLatin-basedframework.4.Ismodernlinguisticsmainlysynchronicordiachronic?Why?答：Inmodemlinguistics,asynchronicapproachseemstoenjoypriorityoveradiachronicone.Becausepeoplebelievedthatunlessthevariousstatesofalanguageindifferenthistoricalperiodsaresuccessfullystudied,itwouldbedifficulttodescribethechangesthathavetakenplaceinitshistoricaldevelopment.5.Forwhatreasonsdoesmodernlinguisticsgiveprioritytospeechratherthantowriting?答：Speechandwritingarethetwomajormediaoflinguisticcommunication.Modemlinguisticsregardsthespokenlanguageasthenaturalortheprimarymediumofhumanlanguageforsomeobviousreasons.Fromthepointofviewoflinguisticevolution,speechispriortowriting.Thewritingsystemofanylanguageisalways“invented”byitsusersecordtospeechrwhentheneedarises.Evenintoday'sworldtherearestillmanylanguagesthatcanonlybespokenbutnotwritten.Thenineverydaycommunication,speechplaysagreaterrolethanwritingintermsoftheamountofinformationconveyed.Andalso,speechisalwaysthewayinwhicheverynativespeakeracquireshismothertongue,andwritingislearnedandtaughtlaterwhenhegoestoschool.Formodernlinguists,spokenlanguagerevealsmanytruefeaturesofhumanspeechwhilewrittenlanguageisonlythe“revised”recordofechspe.Thustheirdataforinvestigationandanalysisaremostlydrawnfromeverydayspeech,whichtheyregardasauthentic.6.HowisSaussure'sdistinctionbetweenlangueandparolesimilartoChomsky'sdistinctionbetweencompetenceandperformance?答：Saussure'sdistinctionandChomsky'sareverysimilar,theydifferatleastinthatSaussuretookasociologicalviewoflanguageandhisnotionoflangueisamatterofsocialconventions,andChomskylooksatlanguagefromapsychologicalpointofviewandtohimcompetenceisapropertyofthemindofeachindividual.7.Whatcharacteristicsoflanguagedoyouthinkshouldbeincludedinagood,comprehensivedefinitionoflanguage?答：Firstofall,languageisasystem,i.e.,elementsoflanguagearecombinedaccordingtorules.Second,languageisarbitraryinthesensethatthereisnointrinsicconnectionbetweenalinguisticsymbolandwhatthesymbolstandsfor.Third,languageisvocalbecausetheprimarymediumforalllanguagesissound.Fourth,languageishuman-specific,i.e.,itisverydifferentfromthecommunicationsystemsotherformsoflifepossess.WhatarethemainfeaturesofhumanlanguagethathavebeenspecifiedbyC.Hocketttoshowthatitisessentiallydifferentfromanimalcommunicationsystem?（2．2语言的辨别性特点）美国语言学家C.Hockett提出了人类语言的12种辨别性特点，此中最重要的辨别性特种有5种：即语言的随意性、创建性、二重性、移位性和文化传达性。这些特点是全部人类语言所共有的。人类语言的辨别性特点是动物“语言”所不拥有的。1）随意性：它指音与义之间没有逻辑联系。比方说，不一样的语言使用不一样的音指同样的事物。2）创建性：语言的创建性主要表此刻语言使用者能够以有限的语言规则为基础说出和理解无穷的句子，包含他们从前从没有听闻过的句子。3）二重性：它指语言在构造上存在两个层次：低层次和高层次。在低层次是一个个没存心义的音，如/p/,/g/,/i/等，可是这些处在低层次的没存心义的音能够依据必定的语言规则联合在一同形成语言系统的高层次，即：存心义的单位，如词素，单词等。4）移位性：移位性指人类能够使用语言来讨论过去的事情，此刻的事情或未来的事情；以用来讨论我们客观世界中的事情，或设想世界中的事情。总之，语言的使用能够离开社交的直接情形语境，进而不受语言时空距离的影响。

语言也可5）文化传达性：文化的传达性是指，固然人类习得语言的能力有遗传要素的原由，详细内容的习得不是经过遗传来传达的，而是要通事后天的学习来获取。

可是语言系统答：Themainfeaturesofhumanlanguagearetermeddesignfeatures.Theyinclude:1)ArbitrarinessLanguageisarbitrary.Thismeansthatthereisnologicalconnectionbetweenmeaningsandsounds.Agoodexampleisthefactthatdifferentsoundsareusedtorefertothesameobjectindifferentlanguages.2)ProductivityLanguageisproductiveorcreativeinthatitmakespossibletheconstructionandinterpretationofnewsignalsbyitsusers.Thisiswhytheycanproduceandunderstandaninfinitelylargenumberofsentences,includingsentencestheyhaveneverheardbefore.3)DualityLanguageconsistsoftwosetsofstructures,ortwolevels.Atthelowerorthebasiclevelthereisastructureofsounds,whicharemeaninglessbythemselves.Butthesoundsoflanguagecanbegroupedandregroupedintoalargenumberofunitsofmeaning,whicharefoundatthehigherlevelofthesystem.4)DisplacementLanguagecanbeusedtorefertothingswhicharepresentornotpresent,realorimaginedmattersinthepast,present,orfuture,orinfar-awayplaces.Inotherwords,languagecanbeusedtorefertocontextsremovedfromtheimmediatesituationsofthespeaker.Thisiswhat“displacement”means.5)CulturaltransmissionWhilehumancapacityforlanguagehasageneticbasis,i.e.,wewereallbornwiththeabilitytoacquirelanguage,thedetailsofanylanguagesystemarenotgeneticallytransmitted,butinsteadhavetobetaughtandlearned.9.Whatarethemajorfunctionsoflanguage?Thinkofyourownexamplesforillustration.答：Threemainfunctionsareoftenrecognizedoflanguage:thedescriptivefunction,theexpressivefunction,andthesocialfunction.Thedescriptivefunctionisthefunctiontoconveyfactualinformation,whichcanbeassertedordenied,andinsomecasesevenverified.Forexample:“Chinaisalargecountrywithalonghistory.”Theexpressivefunctionsuppliesinformationabouttheuser’sfeelings,preferences,prejudices,andvalues.Forexample:“Iwillnevergowindow-shoppingwithher.”Thesocialfunctionservestoestablishandmaintainsocialrelationsbetweenpeople..Forexample:“Weareyourfirmsupporters.”Chapter2PhonologyP301.Whatarethetwomajormediaoflinguisticcommunication?Ofthetwo,whichoneisprimaryandwhy?答：Speechandwritingarethetwomajormediaoflinguisticcommunication.Ofthetwomediaoflanguage,speechismoreprimarythanwriting,forreasons,pleaserefertotheanswertothefifthprobleminthelastchapter.2.Whatisvoicingandhowisitcaused?答：VoicingisaqualityofspeechsoundsandafeatureofallvowelsandsomeconsonantsinEnglish.Itiscausedbythevibrationofthevocalcords.3.Explainwithexampleshowbroadtranscriptionandnarrowtranscriptiondiffer?答：sounds.Withthehelpofthediacriticstheycanfaithfullyrepresentasmuchofthefinedetailsasitisnecessaryfortheirpurpose.Inbroadtranscription,thesymbol[l]isusedforthesounds[l]inthefourwordsleaf[li:f],feel[fi:l],build[bild],andhealth[helθ].Asamatteroffact,thesound[l]inallthesefoursoundcombinationsdiffersslightly.The[l]in[li:f],occurringbeforeavowel,iscalledadear[l],andnodiacriticisneededtoindicateit;the[1]in[fi:l]and[bild],occurringattheendofawordorbeforeanotherconsonant,ispronounceddifferentlyfromtheclear[1]asin“leaf”.Itiscalled?]anddarkin[narrowtranscriptionthediacritic[?]isusedtoindicateit.Theninthesoundcombination[helθl],isthefollsoweund[bytheEnglishdentalsound[θ],itspronunciationissomewhataffectedbythedentalsoundthatfollowsit.Itisthuscalledadental[l],andinnarrowtranscriptionthediacritic[、]isusedtoindicateit.Itistranscribedas[helθ].Anotherexampleistheconsonant[p].Weallknowthat[p]ispronounceddifferentlyinthetwowordspitandspit.Inthewordpit,thesound[p]ispronouncedwithastrongpuffofair,butinspitthepuffofairiswithheldtosomeextent.Inthecaseofpit,the[p]soundissaidtobeaspiratedandinthecaseofspit,the[p]soundisunaspirated.Thisdifferenceisnotshowninbroadtranscription,butinnarrowtranscription,asmallraised“h”isusedtoshowaspiration,pitistranthuscribedas[ph?t]andspitistranscribedas[sp?t].4.HowaretheEnglishconsonantsclassified?答：Englishconsonantscanbeclassifiedintwoways:oneisintermsofmannerofarticulationandtheotherisintermsofplaceofarticulation.IntermsofmannerofarticulationtheEnglishconsonantscanbeclassifiedintothefollowingtypes:stops,fricatives,affricates,liquids,nasalsandglides.Intermsofplaceofarticulation,itcanbeclassifiedintofollowingtypes:bilabial,labiodental,dental,alveolar,palatal,velarandglottal.5.WhatcriteriaareusedtoclassifytheEnglishvowels?答：Vowelsmaybedistinguishedasfront,central,andbackaccordingtowhichpartofthetongueisheldhighest.Tofurtherdistinguishmembersofeachgroup,weneedtoapplyanothercriterion,i.e.theopennessofthemouth.Accordingly,weclassifythevowelsintofourgroups:closevowels,semi-closevowels,semi-openvowels,andopenvowels.Athirdcriterionthatisoftenusedintheclassificationofvowelsistheshapeofthelips.InEnglish,allthefrontvowelsandthecentralvowelsareunfoundedvowels,i.e.,withoutroundingthelips,andallthebackvowels,withtheexceptionof[a:],arerounded.Itshouldbenotedthatsomefrontvowelscanbepronouncedwithroundedlips.A.Givethephoneticsymbolforeachofthefollowingsounddescriptions:voicedpalatalaffricatevoicelesslabiodentalfricativevoicedalveolarstopfront,close,shortback,semi-open,longvoicelessbilabialstop1)[t]2)[l]3)[?]4)[w]5)[?]6)[?]答：A.(1)[?](2)[f](3)[d](4)[?](5)[?:](6)[p]B.(1)voicelessalveolarstop(2)voicedalveolarliquid(3)voicelesspalatalaffricate(4)voicedbilabialglide(5)back,close,short(6)front,openHowdophoneticsandphonologydifferintheirfocusofstudy?Whodoyouthinkwillbemoreinterestedinthedifferencebetween,say,[l]and[?],[ph]and[p],aphoneticianoraphonologist?Why?答：(1)Bothphonologyandphoneticsareconcernedwiththesameaspectoflanguage––thespeechsounds.Butwhilebotharerelatedtothestudyofsounds,,theydifferintheirapproachandfocus.Phoneticsisofageneralnature;itisinterestedinallthespeechsoundsusedinallhumanlanguages:howtheyareproduced,howtheydifferfromeachother,whatphoneticfeaturestheypossess,howtheycanbeclassified,etc.Phonology,ontheotherhand,aimstodiscoverhowspeechsoundsinalanguageformpatternsandhowthesesoundsareusedtoconveymeaninginlinguisticcommunication.(2)Aphonologistwillbemoreinterestedinit.Becauseoneofthetasksofthephonologistsistofindoutrulethatgovernsthedistributionof[l]and[?],[ph]and[p].8.Whatisaphone?Howisitdifferentfromaphoneme?Howareallophonesrelatedtoaphoneme?答：Aphoneisaphoneticunitorsegment.Thespeechsoundswehearandproduceduringlinguisticcommunicationareallphones.Aphonemeisnotanyparticularsound,butratheritisrepresentedorrealizedbyacertainphoneinacertainphoneticcontext.Thedifferentphoneswhichcanrepresentaphonemeindifferentphoneticenvironmentsarecalledtheallophonesofthatphoneme.Forexample,thephoneme/l/inEnglishcanberealizedasdark[?],clear[l],etc.whichareallophonesofthephoneme/l/.9.Explainwithexamplesthesequentialrule,theassimilationrule,andthedeletionrule.答：Rulesthatgovernthecombinationofsoundsinaparticularlanguagearecalledsequentialrules.TherearemanysuchsequentialrulesinEnglish.Forexample,ifawordbeginswitha[l]ora[r],thenthenextsoundmustbeavowel.Thatiswhy[lbik][lkbi]areimpossiblecombinationsinEnglish.Theyhaveviolatedtherestrictionsonthesequencingofphonemes.Theassimilationruleassimilatesonesoundtoanotherby“copying”afeatureofasequentialphoneme,thusmakingthetwophonessimilar.Assimilationofneighboringsoundsis,forthemostpart,causedbyarticulatoryorphysiologicalprocesses.Whenwespeak,wetendtoincreasetheeaseofarticulation.This“sloppy”tendencymaybecomeregularizedasrulesoflanguage.WeallknowthatnasalizationisnotaphonologicalfeatureinEnglish,i.e.,itdoesnotdistinguishmeaning.ButthisdoesnotmeanthatvowelsinEnglisharenevernasalizedinactualpronunciation;infacttheyarenasalizedincertainphoneticcontexts.Forexample,the[i:]soundisnasalizedinwordslikebean,green,team,andscream.Thisisbecauseinallthesesoundcombinationsthe[i:]soundisfollowedbyanasal[n]or[m].Theassimilationrulealsoaccountsforthevaryingpronunciationofthealveolarnasal[n]insomesoundcombinations.The–indiscreet,correct–incorrect.Butthe[n]soundintheprefixin-isnotalwayspronouncedasanalveolarnasal.Itissointhewordindiscreetbecausetheconsonantthatfollowsit,i.e.[d],isanalveolarstop,butthe[n]soundinthewordincorrectisactuallypronouncedasavelarnasal,i.e.[?];thisisbecausetheconsonantthatfollowsitis[k],whichisavelarstop.Sowecanseethatwhilepronouncingthesound[n],weare“copying”afeatureoftheconsonantthatfollowsit.Deletionruletellsuswhenasoundistobedeletedalthoughitisorthographicallyrepresented.Wehavenoticedthatinthepronunciationofsuchwordsassign,design,andparadigm,thereisno[g]soundalthoughitisrepresentedinspellingbytheletterg.Butintheircorrespondingformssignature,designation,andparadigmatic,the[g]representedbythelettergispronounced.Therulecanbestatedas:Deletea[g]whenitoccursbeforeafinalnasalconsonant.Giventherule,thephonemicrepresentationofthestemsinsign–signature,resign–resignation,phlegm–phlegmatic,paradigm–paradigmaticwillincludethephoneme/g/,whichwillbedeletedaccordingtotheregularruleifnosuffixisadded.10.Whataresupra-segmentalfeatures?Howdothemajorsupra-segmentalfeaturesofEnglishfunctioninconveyingmeaning?答：Thephonemicfeaturesthatoccurabovethelevelofthesegmentsarecalledsupra-segmentalfeatures.Themainsupra-segmentalfeaturesincludestress,intonation,andtone.ThelocationofstressinEnglishdistinguishesmeaning.Therearetwokindsofstress:wordstressandsentencestress.Forexample,ashiftofstressmaychangethepartofspeechofawordfromanoun,toaverbalthoughitsspellingremainsunchanged.Tonesarepitchvariationswhichcandistinguishmeaningjustlikephonemes.Intonationplaysanimportantroleintheconveyanceofmeaninginalmosteverylanguage,especiallyinalanguagelikeEnglish.Whenspokenindifferenttones,thesamesequenceofwordsmayhavedifferentmeanings.Chapter3MorphologyP401.Dividethefollowingwordsintotheirseparatemorphemesbyplacinga“+”betweeneachmorphemeandthenext:a.microfileb.bedraggledc.announcementd.predigestion答：a.micro+filec.announce+mente.tele+communicate+iong.psycho+physics

e.telecommunicationf.forefatherg.psychophysicsh.mechanistb.be+draggle+edd.pre+digest+ionf.fore+fatherh.mechan+istThinkofthreemorphemesuffixes,givetheirmeaning,andspecifythetypesofstemtheymaybesuffixedto.Giveatleasttwoexamplesofeach.Model:-orsuffix:-ormeaning:thepersonorthingperformingtheactionstemtype:addedtoverbsexamples:actor,“onewhoactsinstageplays,motionpictures,etc.答：(1)suffix:-ablemeaning:somethingcanbedoneorispossiblestemtype:addedtoverbsexamples:acceptable,“canbeaccepted”respectable,“canberespected”(2)suffix:-lymeaning:functionalstemtype:addedtoadjectivesexamples:freely.“adverbialformof‘free’”quickly,“adverbialformof'quick'”.(3)suffix:-eemeaning:thepersonreceivingtheactionstemtype:addedtoverbsexamples:employee,“onewhoworksinacompany”interviewee,“onewhoisinterviewed”

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