Methods of language analysis for Paper 2 Key Terms

Sociolinguistics

The study of how language varies and changes in social groups.

Code-switching

The practice of alternating between two or more languages or dialects in conversation.

Language Change

The evolution of language over time, including shifts in vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation.

Language Diversity

The variety of languages and dialects spoken in a particular area or by a particular group.

Code-Switching

The practice of alternating between two or more languages or varieties of language in conversation.

Pidgin

A simplified form of speech that develops as a means of communication between speakers of different languages.

Lexical Variation

Differences in word choice and usage across different dialects or social groups.

Pragmatics

The study of how context influences the interpretation of meaning in communication.

Prosody

The patterns of rhythm and sound used in poetry and language, including intonation, stress, and timing.

Phoneme

The smallest unit of sound in a language that can distinguish one word from another.

Visual Rhetoric

The use of visual elements to communicate messages and persuade audiences.

Semiotics

The study of signs and symbols and their use or interpretation.

Sociolect

A variety of language used by a particular social group.

Neologism

A newly coined word or expression.

Morpheme

The smallest grammatical unit in a language, which can be a word or a part of a word.

Affix

A morpheme that is attached to a word to modify its meaning, including prefixes and suffixes.

Discourse

Written or spoken communication that extends beyond a single sentence, encompassing larger units of meaning.

Semantic Shift

The process by which a word's meaning changes over time, often influenced by cultural or social factors.

Pragmatics

The study of how context influences the interpretation of meaning in language.

Lexis

The vocabulary of a language, including its words and expressions.