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 目 录
第 1 章 导 言........................................................................................................................................................... 6
1.1 复习笔记...................................................................................................................................................... 6
1.2 课后习题详解 ............................................................................................................................................ 11
1.3 考研真题与典型题详解 ............................................................................................................................ 14
第 2 章 音位学......................................................................................................................................................... 24
2.1 复习笔记.................................................................................................................................................... 24
2.2 课后习题详解 ............................................................................................................................................ 29
2.3 考研真题与典型题详解 ............................................................................................................................ 32
第 3 章 形态学......................................................................................................................................................... 40
3.1 复习笔记.................................................................................................................................................... 40
3.2 课后习题详解 ............................................................................................................................................ 43
3.3 考研真题与典型题详解 ............................................................................................................................ 45
第 4 章 句法学......................................................................................................................................................... 51
4.1 复习笔记.................................................................................................................................................... 51
4.2 课后习题详解 ............................................................................................................................................ 55
4.3 考研真题与典型题详解 ............................................................................................................................ 64
第 5 章 语义学......................................................................................................................................................... 73
5.1 复习笔记.................................................................................................................................................... 73
5.2 课后习题详解 ............................................................................................................................................ 79
5.3 考研真题与典型题详解 ............................................................................................................................ 81
第 6 章 语用学......................................................................................................................................................... 91
6.1 复习笔记.................................................................................................................................................... 91
6.2 课后习题详解 ............................................................................................................................................ 96
6.3 考研真题与典型题详解 ............................................................................................................................ 99
第 7 章 语言变化................................................................................................................................................... 109
7.1 复习笔记.................................................................................................................................................. 109
7.2 课后习题详解 .......................................................................................................................................... 114
7.3 考研真题与典型题详解 .......................................................................................................................... 116
第 8 章 语言与社会............................................................................................................................................... 120
8.1 复习笔记.................................................................................................................................................. 120
8.2 课后习题详解 .......................................................................................................................................... 126
8.3 考研真题与典型题详解 .......................................................................................................................... 128
第 9 章 语言与文化............................................................................................................................................... 135
9.1 复习笔记.................................................................................................................................................. 135
9.2 课后习题详解 .......................................................................................................................................... 139
9.3 考研真题与典型题详解 .......................................................................................................................... 141
第 10 章 语言习得................................................................................................................................................. 145
10.1 复习笔记................................................................................................................................................ 145
10.2 课后习题详解 ........................................................................................................................................ 149
10.3 考研真题与典型题详解 ........................................................................................................................ 151
第 11 章 第二语言习得 ......................................................................................................................................... 154
11.1 复习笔记 ................................................................................................................................................ 154
11.2 课后习题详解 ........................................................................................................................................ 159
11.3 考研真题与典型题详解 ........................................................................................................................ 161
第 12 章 语言与大脑 ............................................................................................................................................. 172
12.1 复习笔记................................................................................................................................................ 172
12.2 课后习题详解 ........................................................................................................................................ 177
12.3 考研真题与典型题详解 ........................................................................................................................ 179
 第1章 导 言

1.1 复习笔记

本章要点：
1. The definition and main branches of linguistics study
语言学的定义和研究的范围
2. Important distinctions in Linguistics
语言学的一些重要区分
3. The definition and the design features of language
语言的定义与识别特征
4. Functions of language
语言的功能

本章考点：
1. 有关语言学的常考考点
语言学的定义; 语言学中几组重要区别，每组两个概念的含义、区分及其意义; 普通语言学的主要分支学科及
各自的研究范畴；宏观语言学及应用语言学的主要分支及各自的研究范畴。
2. 有关语言的常考考点
语言的定义；语言的识别特征(任意性、能产性、二重性、移位性、文化传递)；语言的功能。

本章内容索引：
I. The definition of linguistics
II. The scope of linguistics
1. Micro-linguistics
2. Macro-linguistics
III. Some important distinctions in linguistics
1. Descriptive vs. Prescriptive
2. Synchronic vs. Diachronic
3. Speech vs. Writing
4. Langue vs. Parole
5. Competence vs. Performance
6. Traditional Grammar vs. Modern Linguistics
IV. The definition of language
V. The design features of language
1. Arbitrariness
2. Productivity
3. Duality
4. Displacement
5. Cultural Transmission
6. Interchangeability
VI. Functions of language
1. Main functions
2. Basic functions
3. Macrofuntions
I. The definition of linguistics I. 语言学的定义
(考点：名词解释) 语言学通常被定义为对语言进行科学
Linguistics is generally defined as the scientific study of 性研究的学科。
language. 它之所以是一种科学研究，是因为它是
It is a scientific study because it is based on the 以对语言学数据的系统调研为基础，以语言
systematic investigation of linguistic data, conducted with 结构的某种普遍理论为参照展开研究的。
reference to some general theory of language structure.
II. The scope of linguistics II. 语言学的研究范畴
The study of language as a whole is often called general 作为整体而言的语言研究通常被称为
linguistics. 普通语言学。
1. Micro-linguistics (from the core of linguistics) 1. 微观语言学
Phonetics: the study of sounds used in linguistic 语音学：对语言交际中所使用的语音的
communication. 研究。
Phonology: the study of how sounds are put together and 音系学：对在交际中语音是如何被组合
used to convey meaning in communication. 在一起、如何用来传递意义等问题的研究。
Morphology: the study of the way in which the symbols 形态学：对于语言符号的排列方式和构
are arranged and combined to form words. 词的组合方式的研究。
Syntax: the study of the rules in the combination of words 句法学：对支配构成语法所允许的句子
to form grammatically permissible sentences in languages. 的单词的组合的规则的研究。
Semantics: the study of meaning. 语义学：对于意义的研究。
Pragmatics: the study of meaning in the context of 语用学：对具体语境中语言的意义的研
language use. 究。
2. Macro-linguistics (from the relation with other fields) 2. 宏观语言学
Sociolinguistics: the study of all social aspects of 社会语言学：对语言的所有社会层面以
language and its relation with society form the core of the 及它与社会的关系的研究。
branch.
Psycholinguistics: the study of language and its relation 心理语言学：对语言及它与心理的关系
with psychology. 的研究。
Applied linguistics: The study of the applications of 应用语言学：对应用语言解决实际问题
language to the solution of practical problems. Narrowly, it is 的研究，如用于恢复言语等。从狭义上来讲，
the application of linguistic theories and principles to language 应用语言学指的是将语言学理论和原则应
teaching, especially the teaching of foreign and second 用于语言教学中，尤其是外语和第二语言教
languages. 学。
III. Some important distinctions in linguistics III. 语言学中一些重要的区分
(重点，考点：名词解释)
1. Descriptive vs. Prescriptive 1. 描写式与规定式
If a linguistic study aims to describe and analyze the 如果一种语言学研究旨在对人们实际
language people actually use, it is said to be descriptive. 使用的语言进行描写和分析的话，它就是描
写性的;
If the linguistic study aims to lay down rules for ―correct 如果语言学研究的目的是为语言运用
and standard!‖ behavior in using language, i. e. to tell people 中的"正确的和标准的"言语行为确立规则
what they should say and what they should not say, it is said to 的话，如告诉人们应该说什么、不应该说什
be prescriptive. 么，那么它就是规定性的。
2. Synchronic vs. Diachronic 2. 共时性与历时性
The description of a language at some point of time in 对语言在历史上的某一时间点进行的
history is a synchronic study. 描写就是共时性研究;
The description of a language as it changes through time 对语言随时间变化而变化进行的描写
is a diachronic study. 就是历时性研究。
A diachronic study of language is a historical study; it
studies the historical development of language over a period of 语言的历时性研究是一种历史性研究;
time. 它研究语言在某一个时间段的历史演变。
3. Speech vs. Writing 3. 言语与文字
Speech and writing are the two major media of linguistic 言语和文字是语言交际的两个主要媒
communication. Modern linguistics regards the spoken 介。现代语言学把口头语看作是人类语言的
language as the natural or the primary medium of human 自然的或基本的媒体。
language.
4. Langue vs. Parole 4. 语言与言语
Saussurei distinguished the linguistic competence of the 索绪尔用语言和言语来区分说话者的
speaker and the actual phenomena or data of linguistics 语言能力和言语上(表达的)的实际表现或语
(utterances) as langue and parole. Langue refers to the abstract 料。语言是指一个语言群体的所有成员所共
linguistic system shared by all the members of a speech 有的抽象的语言系统。言语是指语言的具体
community and parole refers to the realization of langue in 实现和运用。
actual use.
5. Competence vs. Performance 5. 语言能力与语言应用
(1) Chomskyii made the fundamental difference between (1) 乔姆斯基提出了语言能力和语言应
competence and performance. 用的根本区别。
(2) A language user‘s underlying knowledge about the (2) 一名语言使用者对于语言规则系统
system of rules is called his linguistic competence. 的潜在认识称为他的语言能力。
(3) Performance refers to the actual use of language in (3) 语言运用指在具体场景中语言的实
concrete situations. 际运用。
(4) Contrast between Saussure‘s and Chomsky‘s (4) 索绪尔与乔姆斯基的区分的异同
distinction
(考点：比较 Saussure 和 Chomsky 的两对概念的异同)
① Saussure‘s distinction and Chomsky‘s are very ① 索绪尔的区分与乔姆斯基的非常
similar. 相似。
② They differ at least in that Saussure took a ② 他们从根本上还是有区别的，因为
sociological view of language and his notion of langue is a 索绪尔对语言采取的是社会学的观点，他的
matter of social conventions, and Chomsky looks at language 语言观念是社会惯例性的，而乔姆斯基则是
from a psychological point of view and to him competence is a 从心理学的角度来看待语言的，对他而言，
property of the mind of each individual. 语言能力是每个个体的大脑特征。

6. Traditional Grammar vs. Modern Linguistics 6. 传统语法与现代语言学

Saussure‘s book Course in General Linguistics 索绪尔《普通语言学》一书的出版标志
symbolizes the beginning of Modern Linguistics. The 着现代语言学的开端。传统语法与现代语言
differences between Traditional Grammar and. Modern 学的不同表现在：
Linguistics are:
(1) Linguistics is descriptive while traditional grammar is (1) 语言学是描写性的，而传统语法是
prescriptive. 规定性的。
(2) Modern linguistics regards the spoken language as (2) 现代语言学认为口头语是基本的，
primary, not the written. 而不是书面语。
(3) Modern linguistics differs from traditional grammar (3) 现代语言学与传统语言学的区别
also in that it does not force languages into a Latin-based 还在于，它并不强迫语言进入一个以拉丁语
framework. 为基础的框架。

IV. The definition of language IV. 语言的定义

(考点：名词解释) 语言是人类用于口头交流的任意的符
Language is a system of arbitrary vocal symbols used for 号系统。
human communication. 该定义揭示了语言的五个要素：系统，
This definition has revealed five essential factors of 任意，口头，符号，人类特有。
language: systematic, arbitrary, vocal, symbolic and most
importantly human-specific.
V. The design features of language (重点) V. 语言的识别特征
Design features refer to the defining properties of human 语言的识别特征是人类语言区别于其
language that distinguish it from any animal system of 他动物交流系统的特点。
communication.
1. Arbitrariness 1. 任意性
(1)Language is arbitrary. This means that there is no (1)语言是任意的。这意味着在意义与语
logical connection between meanings and sounds. A good 音之间不存在逻辑联系。一个很好的例子就
example is the fact that different sounds are used to refer to the 是在不同的语言中，指称同一物体有不同的
same object in different languages. 语音这样的一个事实。
(2)但它并不是完全任意的;有些词的形
(2)But it is not entirely arbitrary at all levels. Some 成与事物本身是有联系的。象声词就是最好
words, such as the ones created in the imitation of sounds by 的例子。
sounds are motivated in a certain degree.
2. Productivity 2. 能产性(又叫创造性)
Language is productive or creative in that it makes 语言是能产的或具有创造性的，因为它
possible the construction and interpretation of new signals by 使得其使用者对新符号的构建和解释成为
its users. This is why they can produce and understand an 可能。这就是为什么他们能够造出和理解无
infinitely large number of sentences, including sentences they 限数量的句子—包括那些他们以前从未听
have never heard before. 说过的句子—的原因所在。

3. Duality 3. 二重性
Language is a system, which consists of two sets of 语言是一个系统，它是由两套结构，或
structures, or two levels. At the lower or the basic level there 者两个层面构成的。在较低的或者基础的层
is a structure of sounds, which are meaningless by themselves. 面上，存在着一个语音结构，它们自身没有
But the sounds of language can be grouped and regrouped into 意义。但是，语言的语音系统可以组合和再
a large number of units of meaning, which are found at the 组合成大量的有意义的单位，这些单位存在
higher level of the system. 于语言系统的较高层面。

4. Displacement 4. 移位性
Language can be used to refer to things which are present 语言可以用来指存在或不存在的东西，
or not present, real or imagined matters in the past, present, or 可以用来指过去、现在或将来的真实或想像
future, or in far-away places. This property provides speakers 的事物，或者用来指在遥远地方的东西。这
with an opportunity to talk about a wide range of things, free 种特性为说话人谈论范围广泛的事物提供
from barriers caused by separation in time and place. 了机会，而不受时空分隔的阻碍的影响。
5. Cultural Transmission 5. 文化传递
Language is culturally transmitted. It cannot be 语言不是靠遗传，而是通过文化传递
transmitted through heredity. 的。
▼6. Interchangeability 6. 互换性
Interchangeability refers to the fact that man can both 互换性是指人可以是信息的发出者，也
produce and receive messages, and his roles as a speaker and a 可以是信息的接受者，即人作为说话者和听
hearer can be exchanged at ease. 话者的角色是可以随意更换的。
VI. Functions of Language VI. 语言的功能
1. Main Functions 语言的三个最主要的功能是描述性功
The three main functions of language are the descriptive 能，表现功能，以及社会功功能。
function, the expressive function, and the social function. 1. 描述功能
(1). Descriptive Function 描述功能用来表达被肯定或否定的信
It is the function to convey factual information, which 息，或已被证实的信息。
can be asserted or denied, and in some cases even verified.
(2). Expressive Function 2. 表达功能
 It is also called the emotive or attitudinal function, 这种功能或被称为感情或态度功能，用
supplies information about the user's feelings, preferences, 来表达说话人的情绪，喜好，偏爱或态度。
prejudice and values.
(3). Social Function 3. 社会功能
It is also referred to as the interpersonal function, serves 又被称做人际功能，用来建立或保持人
to establish and maintain social relations between people. 与人之间的社会关系。
2. Basic Functions 杰克森将语言功能划分为六大类，分别
Jakobson identifies six functions of language, namely, 是，情感，意动，指向，娱乐，寒暄，以及
emotive, conative, referential, poetic, phatic communication, 元语言。
matalingustic. 语言的宏观功能有三类：概念功能，人
3. Macrofunctions 际功能和语篇功能。
The macrofuntions of language are the ideational
function, the interpersonal function and the textual function. 1. 概念功能
(1). Ideational 用来表达说话人或作者的实际或臆想
It is to organize the speaker or the writer's experience of 经历。与描述功能相似，但要比描述功能广
the real or imaginary world. It corresponds closely to the 泛，因为它还包含了说话人的态度，评判和
descriptive function, but it is broader because it also includes 情感。
the speaker's attitude, evaluation, his feelings and emotions.
(2). Interpersonal 2. 人际功能
It is to indicate, establish, or maintain social relationships 用来表达建立和保持人际关系。
between people.
(3) Textual 3. 语篇功能
It is to organize written or spoken texts in such a manner 用来保证口头或书面表达在语篇内连
that they are coherent within themselves and fit the particular 贯畅通，适用于表达的特殊场合。
situation in which they are used.
 1.2 课后习题详解

1. How do you interpret the following definition of linguistics: Linguistics is the scientific study of language.
2. What are the major branches of linguistics? What does each of them study?
3. In what basic ways does modern linguistics differ from traditional grammar?
4. Is modern linguistics mainly synchronic or diachronic? Why?
5. For what reasons does modern linguistics give priority to speech rather than to writing?
6. How is Saussure‘s distinction between langue and parole similar to Chomsky‘s distinction between competence and
performance?
7. What characteristics of language do you think should be included in a good, comprehensive definition of language?
8. What are the main features of human language that have been specified by C. Hockett to show that it is essentially
different from animal communication system?
9. What are the major functions of language? Think of your own examples for illustration.

参考答案
1. Linguistics is a scientific study of language because it follows the methodology of other scientific study:
First of all, it is based on full and systematic collection and investigation of linguistic data, which display some
similarities, and generalizations are made about them.
Then linguists formulate some hypotheses about the language structure. The hypotheses thus formed have to be
checked repeatedly against the observed facts to fully prove their validity. In linguistics, as in any other discipline,
data and theory stand in a dialectical complementation, that is, a theory without the support of data can hardly claim
validity, and data without being explained by some theory remain a muddled mass of things.

2. Linguistics includes Micro-Linguistics and Macro-Linguistics.

1. Branches of Micro-Linguistics:
(1) Phonetics: it studies the sounds used in linguistic communication;
(2) Phonology: it studies how sounds are put together and used to convey meaning in communication;
(3) Morphology: it studies the way in which linguistic symbols representing sounds are arranged and combined to
form words;
(4) Syntax: it studies the rules which govern how words are combined to form grammatically permissible sentences in
languages;
(5) Semantics: it studies meaning conveyed by language;
(6) Pragmatics: it studies the meaning in the context of language use.
2. Branches of Macro-Linguistics:
(1) Psycholinguistics: it studies language and its relation with psychology.
(2) Sociolinguistics: it studies all social aspects of language and its relation with society form the core of the branch.
(3) Applied linguistics: it studies the applications of language to the solution of practical problems. Narrowly, it is the
application of linguistic theories and principles to language teaching, especially the teaching of foreign and second
languages.
(4) Other branches，such as computational linguistics, neurolinguistics.

3. Modern linguistics differs from traditional grammar in several basic ways.

(1) Modern linguistics is descriptive while traditional grammar is prescriptive.
(2) Modern linguistics regards the spoken language as primary, not the written. Traditional grammarians, on the other
hand, tended to emphasize, or over-emphasize, the importance of the written documents especially the Greek or
Roman Classical works, partly because of its permanence.
(3) Modern linguistics differs from traditional grammar also in that it does not force languages into a Latin-based
grammar framework.

4. In modern linguistics, a synchronic approach seems to enjoy priority over a diachronic one. Because people believe
 that unless the various states of a language in different historical periods are successfully studied, it would be difficult
to describe the changes that have taken place in its historical development.

5. Speech and writing are the two major media of linguistic communication. Modern linguistics regards the spoken
language as the natural or the primary medium of human language.
Modern linguistics gives the spoken language priority for some obvious reasons:
(1) From the point of view of linguistic evolution, speech is prior to writing. The writing system of any language is
always ―invented‖ by its users to record speech. Even in today's world there are still many languages that can only
be spoken but not written.
(2) In everyday communication, speech plays a greater role than writing in terms of the amount of information
conveyed. People use much more oral language in daily life than using written language.
(3) Speech is always the way in which every native speaker acquires his or her mother tongue, while writing is learned
and taught later, when he or she goes to school.
(4) For modern linguists, spoken language reveals many true features of human speech while written language is only
the ―revised‖ record of speech. Thus their data, for investigation and analysis are mostly drawn from everyday
speech, which they regard as authentic.

6. ① In Saussure‘s definition, langue refers to the abstract linguistic system shared by all the members of a speech
community, and parole refers to the realization of langue in actual use.
② Similar to Saussure‘s distinction, Chomsky‘s definition about competence is the ideal user‘s knowledge of the
rules of his language, and performance is the actual realization of this knowledge in linguistic communication.
③ Both the notion of langue and competence refer to the abstract and ideal nature of language within a human being,
and parole and performance point to the actual language use. Similar to Saussure, Chomsky thinks that what
linguists should study is the ideal speaker‘s competence, not his performance.

7. Language is a system of arbitrary vocal symbols used for human communication. The definition of language should
include five essential factors of language: systematic, arbitrary, vocal, symbolic and most importantly human-specific.
First of all, language is a system, i. e. , linguistic elements are arranged systematically rather than randomly.
Second, language is arbitrary in the sense that there is no intrinsic connection between a linguistic symbol and
what the symbol stands for.
Third, language is vocal because the primary medium for all languages is sound or speech.
Fourth, words are just symbols; they are associated with objects, actions, ideas, etc. by convention.
Fifth, language is human-specific, i. e. , it is very different from the communication systems other forms of life
possess.

8. (1) Arbitrariness
This means that there is no logical connection between meanings and sounds. A good example is the fact that
different sounds are used to refer to the same object in different languages. But it is not entirely arbitrary at all
levels. Some words, such as the ones created in the imitation of sounds by sounds are motivated in a certain
degree.
(2) Productivity
Language is productive or creative in that it makes possible the construction and interpretation of new signals by
its users. This is why they can produce and understand an infinitely large number of sentences, including
sentences they have never heard before.
(3) Duality
Language is a system, which consists of two sets of structures, or two levels. At the lower or the basic level
there is a structure of sounds, which are meaningless by themselves. But the sounds of language can be grouped
and regrouped into a large number of units of meaning, which are found at the higher level of the system.
(4) Displacement
Language can be used to refer to things which are present or not present, real or imagined matters in the past,
 present, or future, or in far-away places. This property provides speakers with an opportunity to talk about a
wide range of things, free from barriers caused by separation in time and place.
(5) Cultural Transmission
Language is culturally transmitted. It cannot be transmitted through heredity.
(6) Interchangeability
Interchangeability refers to the fact that man can both produce and receive messages, and his roles as a speaker
and a hearer can be exchanged at ease.

9. The three major functions of language are the descriptive function, the expressive function and the social function.
The descriptive function is also referred to as the cognitive, or referential function. It is assumed to be the
primary function of language. It is the function to convey factual information which can be asserted or denied, and in
some cases even verified. E. g. ―The disaster is the most serious one the country has ever seen. "
The expressive function is also called the emotive or attitudinal function. It supplied information about the user's
feelings, preferences, prejudices and values. The example is "I will never go there for the rest of my life. "
The social function is also referred to as the interpersonal function. It serves to establish and maintain social
relations between people, e. g. "How are you doing recently?"
 1.3 考研真题与典型题详解

I. Fill in the blanks.

1. The features that define our human languages can be called ______ features. (北二外 2006 研)
2. Linguistics is usually defined as the ______study of language. (北二外 2003 研)
3. Language, broadly speaking, is a means of______ communication.
4. In any language words can be used in new ways to mean new things and can be combined into innumerable sentences
based on limited rules. This feature is usually termed______
5. Linguistics is the scientific study of______.
6. Modern linguistic is______ in the sense that the linguist tries to discover what language is rather than lay down some
rules for people to observe.
7. One general principle of linguistic analysis is the primacy of ______ over writing.
8. The branch of linguistics which studies the sound patterns of a language is called ______. (北二外 2003 研)
9. The branch of grammar which studies the internal structure of words is called______. (北二外 2004 研)
10. ______mainly studies the characteristics of speech sounds and provides methods for their description, classification
and transcription. (北二外 2005 研)
11. Semantics and ______investigate different aspects of linguistic meaning. (北二外 2007 研)
12. In linguistics, ______ refers to the study of the rules governing the way words are combined to form sentences in a
language, or simply, the study of the formation as sentence. (中山大学 2008 研)
13. ______can be defined as the study of language in use. Sociolinguistics, on the other hand, attempts to show the
relationship between language and society.
14. The branch of grammar which studies the internal structure of sentence is called _______. (北二外 2008 研)
15. Saussure distinguished the linguistic competence of the speaker and the actual phenomena or data of linguistics
(utterances) as and . The former refers to the abstract linguistic system shared by all the members
of a speech community, and the latter is the concrete manifestation of language either through speech or through
writing. (人大 2006 研)
16. The description of a language as it changes through time is a ______ study.
17. Linguistic potential is similar to Saussure‘s langue and Chomsky‘s______.
18. One of the important distinctions in linguistics is ______ and parole. The former is the French word for ―language‖,
which is the abstract knowledge necessary for speaking，listening，writing and reading. The latter is concerned about
the actual use of language by people in speech or writing. Parole is more variable and may change according to
contextual factors.
19. One of the important distinctions in linguistics is and performance. (人大 2006 研)
20. Chomsky initiated the distinction between ______ and performances. (北二外 2007 研)

II. Multiple Choice

1. Which of the following is NOT a frequently discussed design feature? (大连外国语学院 2008 研)
A. Arbitrariness
B. Convention
C. Duality
2. Which of the following words is entirely arbitrary? (西安交大 2008 研)
A. tree
B. crash
C. typewriter
D. bang
3. A linguist regards the changes in language and languages use as______.
A. unnatural
B. something to be feared
C. natural
D. abnormal
4. Which of the following property of language enables language users to overcome the barriers caused by time and
place, due to this feature of language, speakers of a language are free to talk about anything in any situation?
A. Transferability.
B. Duality.
C. Displacement.
D. Arbitrariness:
5. The study of physical properties of the sounds produced in speech is closely connected with______. (大连外国语学院
2008 研)
A. articulatory phonetics
B. acoustic phonetics
C. auditory phonetics
6. Which of the following statements is true of Jacobson‘s framework of language functions?
A. The referential function is to indulge in language for its own sake.
B. The emotive function is to convey message and information.
C. The conative function is to clear up intentions, words and meanings.
D. The phatic function is to establish communion with others.
7. Which of the following is a main branch of linguistics? (大连外国语学院 2008 研)
A. Macrolinguistics
B. Psycholinguistics
C. Sociolinguistics
8. ______ refers to the system of a language, i. e. the arrangement of sounds and words which speakers of a language
have a shared knowledge of. (西安外国语学院 2006 研)
A. Langue
B. Competence
C. Communicative competence
D. Linguistic potential
9. The study of language at one point in time is a _______ study. (北二外 2010 研)
A. historical
B. synchronic
C. descriptive
D. diachronic
10. ―An refer to Confucius even though he was dead 2,000 years ago. ‖ This shows that language has the design feature
of _____.
A. arbitrariness
B. creativity
C. duality
D. displacement
11. The function of the sentence ―Water boils at 100 degree Centigrade‖ is .
A. interrogative
B. directive
C. informative
D. performative
12. Saussure is closely connected with______. (大连外国语学院 2008 研)
A. Langue
B. Competence
C. Etic

III. True or False

1. Onomatopoeic words can show the arbitrary nature of language. (清华 2000 研)
2. Competence and performance refer respectively to a language user‘s underlying knowledge about the system of rules
 and the actual use of language in concrete situations.
3. Language is a means of verbal communication. Therefore, the communication way used by the deaf-mute is not
language.
4. Arbitrariness of language makes it potentially creative, and conventionality of language makes a language be passed
from generation to generation. As a foreign language learner, the latter is mere important for us.
5. The features that define our human languages can be called DESIGN FEATURES. (大连外国语学院 2008 研)
6. By diachronic study we mean to study the changes and development of language.
7. Langue is relatively stable and systematic while parole is subject to personal and situational constraints.
8. Language change is universal, ongoing and arbitrary.
9. In language classrooms nowadays the grammar taught to students is basically descriptive, and more attention is paid to
the developing learners‘ communicative skills.
10. Language is a system of arbitrary, written signs which permit all the people in a given culture, or other people who
have learned the system of that culture, to communicate or interact.
11. Saussure‘s exposition of synchronic analysis led to the school of historical linguistics.
12. Applied linguistics is the application of linguistic principles and theories to language teaching and learning.
13. Wherever humans exist, language exists. (对外经贸 2006 研)
14. Historical linguistics equals to the study of synchronic study.
15. Duality is one of the characteristics of human language. It refers to the fact that language has two levels of structures:
the system of sounds and the system of meanings.
16. Prescriptive linguistics is more popular than descriptive linguistics, because it can tell us how to speak correct
language.

IV. Explain the following terms.

1. Duality (北二外 2010 研；南开大学 2010 研)
2. Design features
3. Competence
4. Displacement (南开大学 2010 研；清华 2001 研)
5. Diachronic linguistics
6. Descriptive linguistics
7. Arbitrariness(四川大学 2006 研)

V. Short answer questions

1. Briefly explain what phonetics and phonology are concerned with and what kind of relationships hold between the two.
(北外 2002 研)
2. What‘s your understanding of language?
3. Why is competence and performance an important distinction in linguistics?
4. What makes language unique to human beings? (北航 2010 研)
5. Explain the characteristic of arbitrariness. What are the relationships between arbitrariness & onomatopoeic words and
arbitrariness convention?
6. What distinguishes prescriptive studies of language from descriptive studies of language?
7. Why do we say language is primarily vocal? (厦门大学 2009 研)
8. A wolf is able to express subtle gradations of emotion by different positions of the ears, the lips, and the tail. There are
eleven postures of the tail that express such emotions as self-confidence, confident threat, lack of tension, uncertain
threat, depression, defensiveness, active submission, and complete submission. This system seems to be complex.
Suppose there were a thousand different emotions that the wolf could express in this way. Would you then say a wolf
had a language similar to man's? If not, why not?
9. If language is partially defined as communication, can we call the noises that dogs make language? Why or why not?
10. Why do people take duality as one of the important design features of human language? Can you tell us what
language will be if it has no such design feature? (南开大学 2004 研)
11. Distinguish between synchronic and diachronic linguistics.
12. What kind of evidence supports the idea that language is culturally transmitted?
13. Point out three major differences between linguistics and traditional grammar.
14. What is the difference between a prescriptive and a descriptive approach to language?
15. What are the major differences between phonology and phonetics? (西安交大 2008 研)

VI. Essay questions

1. Displacement, arbitrariness, productivity, cultural transmission and duality are sometimes listed as the 5 core features
of human language. Choose 3 out of the 5 and explain with examples what they mean. (北外 2002 研)
2. Examine the following two statements about language，and discuss the similarities and differences between them. Do
you agree with the two statements? Explain your answer.
(1) Sapir (1921:Language): ―Language is a purely human and non-instinctive method of communicating ideas，
emotions and desires by means of voluntarily produced symbols. ‖
(2) Bloch and Trager (1942: Outline of Linguistic Analysis): ―A language is a system of arbitrary vocal symbols by
means of which a social group co-operates. ‖ (北外 2005 研)
3. Saussure puts forward the concept of langue and parole, and Chomsky puts forward the concept of competence and
performance. Please dwell upon the differences and similarities, if any, of the two pairs: langue and parole vs.
competence and performance. (北京交通大学 2007 研)
4. How do you compare the traffic light system with a human linguistic system?
5. Why do we say linguistics is a science?(北外 2011 研)
6. What are the three metafunctions of Systemic Functional Grammar? Illustrate each of them with specific examples.
(武汉大学 2011 研)

参考答案及解析
I. Fill in the blanks.
1. Design
(人类语言区别于其他动物交流系统的特点是语言的区别特征，是人类语言特有的特征。)
2. scientific
(语言学通常被定义为研究科学的语言，或对语言的科学研究。)
3. verbal
(语言是一种口头交流的手段。)
4. productivity
(用有限表现无限就是能产性。)
5. language
(语言学是对语言的科学研究。)
6. descriptive
(发现语言的规律而不是规定就是描述性。)
7. speech
(语言学研究是以口头为基础而不是书面。)
8. Phonology
(音系学研究支配语音分布和排列的规则以及音节的形式。)
9. Morphology
(形态学研究词语的内部结构组织。)
10. Phonetics
(语音学研究语音，以及语音的描写和分类。)
11. pragmatics
(语义学研究词作为词的意义，语用学是在语境中研究意义。)
12. Syntax
(句法学研究形成正确句子的规则。)
13. Pragmatics
 (语用学是在语境中研究意义。)
14. Syntax
(句法学研究语言中组合成句子的支配规则，或简单地说，研究句子的构造。)
15. langue；parole
(语言指一个语言集团的所有成员共享的抽象语言系统，言语是指语言在实际使用中的实现。)
16. Diachronic linguistic
(历时语言学集中研究几十年或几百年的时期内两个或比两个更多的语言状况的差异。)
17. Competence
(索绪尔的语言与乔姆斯基的语言能力相似，因为二者都指抽象的语言知识，不是实际使用中的语言。)
18. langue
(索绪尔用语言和言语来区分说话者的语言能力和言语上(表达的)的实际表现或语料。)
19. Competence
(语言能力指理想的语言使用者关于语言规则的语言知识，语言应用指语言交际中关于语言规则知识的实际使
用。)
20. Competence
(乔姆斯基提出了语言能力和语言应用的根本区别。)
II. Multiple Choice
1. B (语言的区别性特征主要是指任意性，双重性，创造性和移位性。)
2. A (crash 是一个缩略语，typewriter 是复合词，bang 是拟声词，所以只有 tree 的形成比较任意。)
3. C (语言学家认为语言和语言使用中的变化是自然的。)
4. C (移位性指的是语言可以描述不是此时此地的事。)
5. B (声学语音学研究语音的物质特征。)
6. D (所指功能是指用语言来传达信息，情感功能是表达一种态度，感受；意动功能是通过命令和恳求说服影响
他人。)
7. A (语言学主要分为宏观语言学和微观语言学，宏观语言学又包括社会语言学，心理语言学和人类语言学。)
8. A (语言指一个言语社团所有成员共享的抽象语言系统。)
9. B (在某一时间点上对语言的描写是一种共时研究。)
10. D (移位性是指人类语言可以让使用者在交际时用语言符号代表时间和空间上不可及的物体、事件和观点。)
11. C (语言的信息功能是指语言用来陈述某件事情，提供信息或用作推理。)
12. A (索绪尔提出了言语与语言，乔姆斯基提出了语言能力与语言应用。)
III. True or False.
1. F (拟声词表明语言并不是完全任意的，一些拟声词的发音与其意义还是有一定联系的。)
2. T (语言能力与语言应用的概念。)
3. F (聋哑人所用的也是语言。)
4. T (任意性使得语言具有创新性。)
5. T (能定义人类语言的特点就是语言的基本特征。)
6. T (历时研究是指研究语言的变化和发展。)
7. T (言语是相对稳定和系统的，而语言是主观和受环境所限的。)
8. F (语言的改变并不是任意的，而是遵循社会规律的。)
9. T (在现代语言教学中，教授给学生的语法是描述性的，且更加注重学生的交流技能的培养。)
10. F (应该是口头而不是书面。)
11. F (应该是描述性语言学。)
12. T (应用语言学是把语言学原则和理论运用到语言教学中)
13. F (语言是在人类出现相当一段时间之后才出现的。)
14. F (历史语言学相当于历时研究。)
15. T (二重性是人类语言的一个基本特征，因为语言有两层结构：声音系统和意义系统。)
16. F (描写式和规定式的语言学是分析语言的两种不同的方法，不能简单的说谁好谁坏之说。)
IV. Explain the following terms.
1. Duality refers to the fact that in all languages so far investigated there are two levels of structure or patterning. At the
first, higher level, language is analyzed in terms of combinations of meaningful units (such as morphemes, words etc. );
 at the second, lower level, it is seen as a sequence of segments which lack any meaning in themselves, but which
combine to form units of meaning. For example, a syllable is the smallest unit that is normally spoken by itself, and
scores of syllables become the carriers of hundreds of meaningful segments of words that are called morphemes.
2. Design features: It refers to the defining properties of human language that tell the difference between human
language and any system of animal communication.
3. Competence: It refers to a language user‘s underlying knowledge about the system of rules. Competence enables a
speaker to produce and understand an indefinite number of sentences and to recognize grammatical mistakes and
ambiguities.
4. Displacement: Language can be used to refer to what is present, what is absent, what happens at present, what
happened in the past, what will happen in the future or what happens in a far-away place. This property of language
enables language users to overcome the barriers caused by time and place. For example, we can talk about Sapir, who
is already dead; we can even talk about next week, which is in the future.
5. Diachronic linguistics: It is the study of a language through the course of its history; therefore, it is also called
historical linguistics.
6. Descriptive linguistics: If a linguistic study aims to describe and analyze the language people actually use, rather than
lay down rules for correct and standard behaviour in using language, it is said to be descriptive linguistics.
7. Arbitrariness: Arbitrariness refers to the fact that the forms of linguistic signs have no natural relationship to their
meaning. Arbitrariness of language makes it potentially creative, a conventionality of language makes a language be
passed from generation to generation. For example, it is unable to explain why a book is called a /buk/ and a pen a
/pen/.
V. Short answer questions
1. By definition, phonetics is the study of speech sounds, including the production of speech, while phonology is the
study of the rules governing the structure, distribution, and sequencing of speech sounds and the shape of syllables.
Both phonetics and phonology are concerned with speech. Phonetics is the study of the production, perception, and
physical properties of speech sounds; phonology attempts to account for how they are combined, organized, and
convey meaning in particular languages. Phonetics is the study of actual sounds, that is, the analysis and modeling the
speech signal; phonology is concerned with a more abstract description of speech sounds and tries to describe the
regularities of sound patterns in different languages or within a language. In this sense, phonetics is concrete, while
phonology is abstract. What phonetics studies is the speech sound, namely phone, what phonology studies is phoneme.
2. Language is a system of vocal symbols used for human communication. Language must be a system, since elements in
it are arranged according to certain rules, they cannot be combined at will. Language is arbitrary in the sense that there
is no logic connection between the word and the thing it refers to. Language has symbolic nature: words are associated
with objects, actions, ideas by convention. For all languages, the primary medium is sound, no matter how well
developed are their writing system. Language is human-specific, it is very different from the communication system
other forms of life possess.
3. Noting the distinction between competence and performance is useful primarily because it
allows those studying a language to differentiate between a speech error and not knowing To understand this
distinction, it is helpful to think about a time when you‘ve made some sort of error in your speech. For example, let's
say you are a native speaker of English and utter the following:
We swimmed in the ocean this weekend
Linguists use the distinction between competence and performance to illustrate the intuitive difference between
accidentally saying swimmed and the fact that a child or non-proficient speaker of English may not know that the past
tense of swim is swam and say swimmed consistently.
4. The design features of language which refer to the defining properties of human language tell the difference between
human language and any system of animal communication.
Arbitrariness is a core feature of language, which means that there is no logical connection between meanings
and sounds. Duality, which means the property of having two levels of structures, such that units of the primary level
are composed of elements of the secondary level and each of the two levels has its own principles of organization.
Creativity means language is resourceful because of its duality and its recursiveness. Because of duality the speaker is
able to combine the basic linguistic unites to form an infinite set of sentences, most of which are never heard before.
 Displacement means that language can be used to refer to things which are present or not present, real or imagined
matters, in the past, present, or future, or in far-away places. So all these features make language unique to human
beings.
5. Arbitrariness refers to the fact that the forms of linguistic signs bear no natural relationship to their meaning.
Onomatopoeic words are the words that sound like the sounds they describe. Only when people know the meaning can
they infer that the linguistic sign is appropriate for the exact sound. Arbitrariness of language makes it potentially
creative, and conventionality of language makes a language be passed from generation to generation.
6. The distinction lies in prescribing how things ought to be and describing how things are. To say that linguistics is a
descriptive science is to say that the linguist tries to discover and record the roles to which the members of a
language-community actually conform and does not seek to impose upon them other rules, or norms, of correctness,
which are in the scope of prescriptive linguistics.
7. Language is a system of arbitrary vocal symbols used for human communication. Language is primarily vocal,
because sound or speech is the primary medium for all human languages, developed or ―new‖. Writing systems came
much later than the spoken forms. The fact that small children learn and can only learn to speak (and listen) before
they write (and read) also indicates that language is primarily vocal, rather than written. The term ―human‖ in the
definition is meant to specify that language is human specific.
8. No, we can not say a wolf has a language similar to that of men even though there were a thousand different emotions
that the wolf could express with his positions of body parts. There are two reasons for that:
First, language is a system of arbitrary vocal symbols used only for human communication. The primary medium
for human communication is sound, so the kind of communication system composed by positions of body parts are
different from human language fundamentally.
Second, language has design features which are lack in animals‘ communication systems. For example, language
has two levels of structures: at one level are elements which have no meaning in themselves but which combine to
form units at another level which do have meaning. But in wolf‘s communication system, one position stands for one
certain meaning, and cannot be further analyzed into smaller units. And on the other hand, human linguistic units can
be grouped and regrouped, arranged and rearranged according to certain rules but those positions owned by wolf have
no such features. Therefore, wolf‘s this system is not so productive as human languages.
9. No, we can not call the noises that dogs make as language even though language is partially defined as communication.
There are two reasons for that: first, language is human-specific, it is a system of arbitrary vocal symbols used only for
human communication. Second, language has design features which are totally lack in animal communication systems.
For example, language has two levels of structures: at one level are elements which have no meaning in themselves
but which combine to form units at another level which do have meaning. Noises made by dogs represent certain
meaning but can not be further analyzed into smaller units. Language can be used to refer to things removed from the
present time and context. We can talk about things happened in the past and future and in distant places, which dogs
can never tell things they did the day before.
10. Duality makes our language productive. A large number of different units can be formed out of a small number of
elements—for instance, tens of thousands of words out of a small set of sounds. And out of the huge number of words,
there can be astronomical number of possible sentences and phrases, which in turn can combine to form unlimited
number of texts. Most animal communication systems do not have this design feature of human language.
If language had no such design feature, then it would be like animal communicational system which consists of
only a number of basic sounds and this would be highly limited. Then we would not be able to produce a very large
number of sound combinations (e. g. words), which are distinct in meaning. In other words, the number of messages
one can send would be restricted to the number of basic sounds.
11. Language can be studied at a given point in time or over time. When we study language at one particular time, it is
called synchronic linguistics. When we study language developments through time, it is called diachronic linguistics.
Synchronic linguistics focuses on the state of language at any point on history while diachronic linguistics focuses on
the differences in two or more than two states of language over decades or centuries.
12. Language is culturally transmitted and it cannot be transmitted through heredity. Evidences are as follows: A human
being brought up in isolations simply doesn‘t acquire language, as is demonstrated by the studies of children brought
up by animals without human contact. Animals transmit their cries simply from parent to child, while human baby
 doesn‘t speak any language at birth. What language a baby is going to speak is determined by the culture he is born
into. A Chinese baby born and brought up in London by an English family will speak English, while an English kid
brought up in a Chinese community will speak Chinese.
13. Linguistics differs from traditional grammar at least in three basic ways:
First, linguistics is descriptive while traditional grammar is prescriptive. Linguistics describes languages and
doesn‘t lay down rules of correctness . Linguistics are interested in what is said, not what they think ought to be said.
While tradition grammar emphasize such matters as correctness, literary excellence and try to impose on languages
certain regulations.
Second, linguists regard the spoken language as primary, not the written one, which is another important point
that differ linguistics from traditional grammar. It is believed by linguists that speech came into being first for any
human language and the writing system came along much later.
Third, traditional grammar is based on Latin and it tries to impose the Latin categories and structures on other
languages while linguistics describes each language on its own merits.
14. Descriptive approach to language attempt to tell what is in the language, while prescriptive approach to language tells
people what should be in the language. Most contemporary linguists believe that whatever occurs naturally in the
language should be described. Certain forms are used more regularly than others and by different people. Though
some forms occur less frequently, they should not be ignored. They can all be recorded and explained as aspects of
the languages since they are actually used.
15. Phonetics studies speech sounds, including the production of speech, that is how speech sounds are actually made,
transmitted and received, the sounds of speech, the description and classification of speech sounds, words and
connected speech, etc. Phonology studies the rules governing the structure, distribution, and sequencing of speech
sounds and the shape of syllables. Put it simply, phonetics simply describes the articulatory and acoustic properties of
phones (speech sounds) while phonology studies how sounds interact as a system in a particular language.
VI. Essay questions
1. 参见“1. 2 课后习题详解题 8” 。
2. Similarities:
(1) Both definitions stick to the fact that language is primarily a matter of speech because the primary medium of
language is sound. Sapir illustrates this idea by implying that the produced symbols are auditory and Bloch and Trager
by explicitly using the word ―vocal‖.
(2) Both definitions allude to the fact that the association between the words and the things that they denoted is
rarely inherent, Sapir by using the word ―symbols‖ and Bloch and Trager by placing emphasis on ―arbitrary‖ and
―symbols‖.
Differences:
(1) Sapir‘s definition emphasizes that language relates to communication between human beings. It is very
different from the communication systems of other creatures, such as bird songs and bee dances. Bloch and Trager do
not clearly indicate this property, only saying that it is possessed by a social group.
(2) Sapir also considers that language is ―non-instinctive‖ and ―voluntarily produced‖. Thus for him language
does not include such instinctive forms of communication as smiling and cries of pain, etc. However, Bloch and
Trager‘s definition do not include this feature.
(3) The element ―system‖ in Bloch and Trager‘s definition reflects the fact that language provides us with the
framework for generating appropriate utterances rather than providing us with an infinite store of ready-made
utterances. Still elements of lacunae are combined according to rules.
(4) The function of language is indicated differently in two definitions. Sapir sees language as for communicating
ideas, emotions and desires, while Bloch and Trager considers it for a social group‘s co-operation. Sapir‘s definition
proposes ―communication‖ as the principal function of language and specifies what is communicated; Bloch and
Trager only vaguely points out that language can be used for co-operation.
Each of the two definitions has its own special emphasis and it does not totally free from limitations. We think the
two definitions grasp some defining properties of language that distinguish it from any animal system of
communication, for example, ―vocal‖, ―arbitrary‖, ―symbol‖, ―purely human‖, ―a system‖. But either has some
limitation. As for Sapir‘s definition, whether one considers language to be instinctive or not is an issue. Language is
 instinctive in so far as we are all born with a predisposition to speak, we all acquire a language without tuition and
when we speak we do not consciously convert our thoughts into speech. Language is, however, non-instinctive in that
we can choose what to say or whether to say anything at all. Both the definition‘s description of language‘s function is
not precise. Sapir‘s definition confines language only to communicating ideas, emotions and desires, and Bloch and
Trager‘s definition does not point it out at all.
3. 参见“1. 2 课后习题详解题 6” 。
4. Both the traffic light system and human linguistic system can symbolize some information in communication whereas
the linguistic system is more complicated. However, the linguistic system has several distinctive features that no other
systems have, including the traffic light system.
(1)Language is arbitrary which means that there is no logical connection between meanings and sounds. But in traffic
light system, there are direct logical connections between the light signals and their meanings.
(2)Language is hierarchical, that‘s to say linguistic system has two levels of structures, such that units of the primary
level are composed of elements of the secondary level and each of the two levels has its own principles of
organization. However, the traffic light system has no hierarchical system and the structure is composed by a
single level.
(3)Language is productive. By creativity we mean language is resourceful because of its duality and its excursiveness.
Because of duality, speaker is able to combine the basic linguistic units to form an infinite set of sentences, most of
which are never before produced or heard. But there is no recursive nature in traffic light system which means that
it can not produce new meaning.
5. 参见“1. 2 课后习题详解题 1” 。
6. According to Halliday, the adult‘s language becomes much more complex and it has to serve many more functions,
and the original functional is gradually reduced to a set of highly coded and abstract functions, which are three
metafunctions: the ideational, the interpersonal, and the textual functions.
First, the ideational function (―experiential‖ and ―logical‖) is to convey new information, to communicate a
content that is unknown to the hearer. Present in all language uses, the ideational function is a meaning potential,
because whatever specific use one is making of language he has to refer to categories of his experience of the world.
The ideational function mainly consists of ―transitivity‖ and ―voice‖. This function not only specifies the
available options in meaning but also determines the nature of their structural realisations. For example, John built a
new house can be analysed as a configuration of the function roles:
Actor: John
Process: Material: creation: built
Goal: affected: a new house
Second, the interpersonal function embodies all uses of language to express social and personal relations. This
includes the various ways the speaker enters a speech situation and performs a speech act. Because the clause is not
confined to the expression of transitivity, there are non-ideational elements in the adult language system.
Interpersonal function is realised by mood and modality. Mood shows what role the speaker selects in the speech
situation and what role he assigns to the addressee. If the speaker selects the imperative mood, he assumes the role of
one giving commands and puts the addressee in the role of one expected to obey orders. Modality specifies if the
speaker is expressing his judgement or making a prediction. For example, ―Give me that teapot!‖
Mood is made up of two parts: the ―Subject‖ and the ―Finite‖ element. The subject can be a noun, a noun phrase,
or a clause.
Third, the textual function refers to the fact that language has mechanisms to make any stretch of spoken or
written discourse into a coherent and unified text and make a living passage different from a random list of sentences.
Although two sentences may have exactly the same ideational and interpersonal functions, they may be different in
terms of textual coherence.
The textual function fulfils the requirement that language should be operationally relevant, having texture in a
real context of situation that distinguishes a living passage from a mere entry in a grammar or a dictionary. It provides
the remaining strands of meaning potential to be woven into the fabric of linguistic structure.
For example, analyze the sentence ―John likes linguistics. ‖ on three levels of metafunctions.
Ideational John likes linguistics
Mental Process Reaction Senser Mental reaction Mental reaction
Interpersonal Mood Residue
Declarative Subject Predicator Adjunct
Textual Theme Rheme
Unmarked Theme Given New
(考查韩礼德功能语法中三项元功能，并举例说明。)
 第 2 章 音位学

2.1 复习笔记
本章要点：
1. Speech Organs
发音器官
2. Distinction, Classification and the Criteria of Description between Constants and Vowels
辅音和元音的区别、分类及描写规则
3. Phonemes and Allophones
音位和音位变体
4. Phonological Rules and Distinctive Features
音系规则和区别特征
5. Syllable Structure, Stress and Intonation
音节结构、重音和语调

本章考点：
1. 语音学
语音学的定义；发音器官的英文名称；英语辅音的定义、发音部位、发音方法和分类；英语元音的定义和分
类、基本元音；发音语音学；听觉语音学；声学语音学；语音标记，国际音标；严式与宽式标音法。
2. 音系学
音系学的定义；音系学与语音学的联系和区别；音素、音位、音位变体、最小对立体、自由变体的定义；自
由变体；音位的对立分布与互补分布；区别性特征；超语段音位学；音节；重音(词重音、句子重音)；音高和
语调。

本章内容索引：
I. The phonic medium of language
II. Phonetics
1. The definition of phonetics
2. Three research fields
3. Organs of speech
▼4. Voiceless sounds
▼5. Voiced sounds
6. Orthographic representations of speech sounds—broad and narrow transcriptions
7. Classification of English speech sounds
(1) Definition
(2) Classification of English consonants
(3) Classification of English vowels
III. Phonology
1. Relationship between Phonology and phonetics
2. Phone, phoneme
3. Allophone
4. Some rules in phonology
(1) Sequential rules
(2) Assimilation rule
(3) Deletion rule
5. Supra-segmental features—stress, tone, intonation
(1) Stress
(2) Tone
(3) Intonation
I. The phonic medium of language I. 语言的语音媒介

II. Phonetics II. 语音学

1. The definition of phonetics 1. 语音学的定义
Phonetics is defined as the study of the phonic medium of 语音学被定义为对语言的语音媒
language; it is concerned with all the sounds that occur in the 介的研究；它涉及所有出现在世界语言
world‘s languages. 中的声音。
2. Three research fields 2. 三大研究领域
【考点：名词解释，区分三大领域】 (1) 发音语言学研究语音的发生。
(1) Articulatory Phonetics is the study of the production (2) 声学语音学研究语音的物理特
of speech sounds. 征。
(2) Acoustic Phonetics is the study of physical properties
of speech sounds. (3) 感知语音学(或听觉语音学)研究
(3) Perceptual (Auditory) Phonetics is concerned with the 语音的感知。
perception of speech sounds.
3. Organs of speech 3. 发音器官
【考点：根据图指出发音器官名称】
Also known as Vocal Organs, are those parts of human 是人体参与语音发生的部分，包括
body involved in the production of speech, including lungs, 肺、气管、喉、鼻和口。
the trachea (or windpipe), the throat, the nose, and the mouth.
▼4. Voiceless sounds 4. 清音
The sounds produced without causing vibration of the 在发音过程中，发音时声带不振
vocal cords. 动，这样所发出的音叫做清音。
▼5. Voiced sounds 5. 浊音
The sounds produced with causing vibration of the vocal 在发音过程中，发音时声带振动，
cords. 这样所发出的音叫做浊音 。
6. Orthographic representations of speech sounds—broad and 6．语音的正字表征——宽式和严式标
narrow transcriptions 音
The International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA)iii came into 十九世纪末期，国际音标( IPA )应
being at the end of 19 century. It provides two ways to 运而生。它提供了两种标音方式。
transcribe speech sounds are now available:
(1) Broad transcription: the transcription with letter (1) 宽式标音: 只用字母符号来标
symbols only, which is normally used in dictionaries and 音. 这种标音法通常用于一般性目的的
teaching textbooks for general purposes. 字典和教材之中.
(2) Narrow transcription: the transcription with (2) 严式标音: 用字母符号和变音
letter-symbols together with the diacritics, which is needed 符一起来标音, 是语音学家们在其语音
and used by the phoneticians in their study of speech sounds. 研究中需要并使用的标音法。

7. Classification of English speech sounds 7. 英语语音的分类

【考点：描述给定元音，或者根据描述指出元音或辅音名 英语中的语音可以初步划分为两
称】 大类:元音和辅音。
An initial classification will divide the speech sounds in
English into two broad categories vowelsand consonants.
▼(1) Definition (1)定义
①Consonants are sounds produced by constricting or ①发音时，声道的某些部位受到压
obstructing the vocal tract at some places to divert, impede or 缩或阻碍，使得气流在口腔里转向、受
completely shut off the flow of air in the oral cavity. 阻或完全被阻塞，由此产生的音叫做辅
音。
②Vowels are sounds produced without obstruction, so no ②发音时，声道不受任何压缩或阻
turbulence or a total stopping of the air can be perceived. 碍，因此不会有气流的紊乱或停滞，由
 此产生的音叫做元音。
(2) Classification of English consonants (2) 英语辅音的分类
① In terms of manners of articulation, consonants can be ① 按发音方式分类，辅音可分为
grouped into： 爆破音、擦音、擦塞音、流音、鼻音及
stops: [p, b, t, ,d, k, g] 滑音。
fricatives: [f, v, θ, ð, s, z, ʃ, ʒ, h] 爆破音: [p, b, t, d, k, g]
affricates: [tʃ, dʒ] 擦音: [f, v, θ, ð, s, z, ʃ, ʒ, h]
liquids: [l，r] 塞擦音：[tʃ, dʒ]
nasals: [m, n, ŋ] 流音：[l，r]
glides：[w，j] 鼻音: [m, n, ŋ]
滑音：[w，j]
② In terms of place of articulation, consonants can be ② 按发音部位分类，辅音可分为
grouped into bilabials, labiodentals, dentals, alveolars, 双唇音、唇齿音、齿音、齿龈音、腭音、
palatals, velars, and glottal. 软腭音和喉音。
bilabials: [p, b, m，w] 双唇音: [p, b, m，w]
labiodentals :[f, v] 唇齿音:[f, v]
dentals: [θ, ð] 齿 音: [θ, ð]
alveolars: [t, d, n, s, z, r, l ] 齿龈音: [t, d, n, s, z, n，r, l ]
palatal: [j，ʃ, ʒ，t∫，d] 腭音: [j，ʃ, ʒ，t∫，d]
velars: [k, g, ŋ] 软腭音: [k, g, ŋ]
glottal: [h] 喉音: [h]
(3) Classification of English vowels (3) 英语中元音的分类
Vowel sounds are differentiated by a number of factors: 元音可以通过许多因素来加以区
分:
① The position of the tongue in the mouth: front, ① 舌在口腔中的位置: 前元音、中
central, back 元音和后元音
② The openness of the mouth: close vowels, semi-close ② 口腔张开的程度: 闭元音、半闭
vowels, semi-open vowels, and open vowels 元音、半开元音和开元音
③ The shape of the lips: rounded vs. unrounded ③ 嘴唇的形状: 圆唇元音、非圆唇
④ The length of the vowels: tense vs. lax or long vs. 元音
short ④ 元音的发音长度: 长元音、短元
音或紧元音、松元音

III. Phonology III. 音位学

1. Relationship between phonology and phonetics 1. 音位学与语音学的关系
Similarity: Both phonology and phonetics are concerned 相似点：音位学与语音学都涉及到
with the same aspect of language——the speech sounds. 语言的同一个方面——语音。
Differences: They differ in their approach and focus. 不同点：它们在观念和着重点上存
Phonetics is of a general nature; it is interested in all the 在着差异。语音学是有其一般性本质的;
speech sounds used in all human languages. Phonology, on the 它对所有人类语言中的所有语音都感
other hand, aims to discover how speech sounds in a language 兴趣:而音位学的目的是去发现一门语
form patterns and how these sounds are used to convey 言中的语音是如何形成模式的，这些语
meaning in linguistic communication. 音是如何在语言交际中用来传达意义
的。
2. Phone, phoneme 2. 音素，音位
【考点：区分 phone, phoneme, allophone】 音素：是语音学研究的一个基本单
Phone: It is a basic unit of phonetic study, and it is a 位，是人类的发音器官所能发出的最小
minimal sound segment that human speech organ can produce. 语音片段。但是，一个音素并不必然区
But a phone does not necessarily distinguish meaning; Some 别意义;有些可以，有些则不能。
do, some don‘t. 音位：是音系学研究的一个基本单
Phoneme is a basic unit of phonological study, and it is 位，是一组语音特征的抽象集合体，具
an abstract collection of phonetic features which can 有区别意义的作用。
distinguish meaning. 3. 音位变体
3. Allophone 同一个音位在不同语音环境中的实
The different realizations of the same phoneme in 现方式被称为该音位的音位变体。
different phonetic environments are called allophones. (1) 当同一个音位的两个或两个以
(1) Complementary distribution: When two or more than 上的音位变体不区别意义，并且出现在
two allophones of the same phoneme do not distinguish 不同的语音环境中，那么它们被称作处
meaning and occur in different phonetic environments, then 于互补分布。
the allophones are said to be in complementary distribution. (2) 如果两个音素出现在一个相同
(2) Free variation: If two sounds occurring in the same 的语音环境中，并不区别意义，即用一
environment do not contrast; that‘s to say, if the substitution of 个音素替换另一个音素不产生一个新
one for the other does not generate a new word form but 词，仅仅产生同一个词的不同读音，那
merely a different pronunciation of the same word, the two 么这两个音素就可被视为自由变体。
sounds then can be seen as in free variation. (3) 语音相似的音可能以两种方式
(3) Phonemic contrast: If the phonetically similar sounds 相互关联。如果它们是两个区别性音
are two distinctive phonemes, e. g. [p] and [b] in ―pit‖ and 位，那么就可以说它们形成了一个音位
―bit‖, they are said to form a phonemic contrast. 对立。

4. Some rules in phonology 4. 音位学的一些规则

(1) Sequential rules (1) 序列规则
There are rules that govern the combination of sounds in 某一特定语言的语言模式是受规
a particular language, and these rules are called sequential 则支配的。这就叫做序列规则。
rules.
(2) 同化规则
(2) Assimilation rule
The assimilation rule assimilates one sound to another by 同化规则通过"拷贝"序列音位的一
―copying‖ a feature of a sequential phoneme, thus making the 个特征来将一个音同化为另一个，从而
two phones similar. Assimilation of neighboring sounds is, for 使两个音素相似。相邻近音的同化多半
the most part, caused by articulatory or physiological
是由发音或生理过程所引起的。我们说
processes. When we speak, we tend to increase the case of
articulation. This ―sloppy‖ tendency may become regularized 话时，倾向于增加发音的舒适度。这种
as rules of language. "懒惰的"倾向可能会被规律化，作为语
言的规则。
(3) Deletion rule (3) 省略规则
It tells us when a sound is to be deleted although it is 省略规则告诉我们在什么时候省
orthographically represented. 去一个语音，虽然这个音在正字法上仍
(examples：sign, signature; resign, resignation; phlegm, 有表现。
phlegmatic; paradigm, paradigmatic)
5. Supra-segmental features—stress, tone and intonation 5. 超切分特征——重音、音调、语调
The phonemic features that occur above the level of the 出现在音段层面之上的音位特征
segments are called supra-segmental features; these are the 称为超切分特征；是诸如音节、单词和
phonological proper-ties of such units as the syllable, the 句子这些单位这样的音位学特征。主要
word, and the sentence. The main supra-segmental features 的超切分特征包括重音、语调和音调。
include stress, intonation, and tone. (1) 重音
(1) Stress 包括单词重音和句子重音。
 There are two kinds of stress: word stress and sentence 英语中重音的位置可以区别意义。
stress.
The location of stress in English distinguishes meaning.
('import n. —im'port v. , 'increase n. —In'crease v. )
(2) 音调
(2) Tone
音调是由声带的不同振动频率引
Tones are caused by the differing rates of vibration of the
起的。
vocal cords.
(3) 语调
(3) Intonation
语调涉及重复出现的升降模式，每
Intonation involves the occurrence of recurring fall-rise
个模式都应用于一套相对一致的意义，
patterns, each of which is used with a set of relatively
要么以词为单位，要么以各种长度的词
consistent meanings, either on single words or on groups of
群为单位。
words of varying length.
 2.2 课后习题详解

1. What are the two major media of linguistic communication? Of the two, which one is primary and why?
2. What is voicing and how is it caused?
3. Explain with examples how broad transcription and narrow transcription differ?
4. How are the English consonants classified?
5. What criteria are used to classify the English vowels?
6. Give the phonetic symbol for each of the following sound description:
1) voiced palatal affricate
2) voiceless labiodental fricative
3) voiced alveolar stop
4) front, close, short
5) back, semi—open, long
6) voiceless bilabial stop
Give the phonetic features of each of the following sounds:
1)[d] 2)[1] 3)[tʃ] 4)[w] 5)[] 6)[œ]
7. How do phonetics and phonology differ in their focus of study? Who do you think will be more interested in the
difference between, say, [I]and[ɫ], [ph]and[p], a phonetician or a phonologist? Why?
8. What is a phone? How is it different from a phoneme? How are allophones related to a phoneme?
9. Explain with examples the sequential rule, the assimilation rule, and the deletion rule.
10. What are suprasegmental features? How do the major suprasegmental features of English function in conveying
meaning?

参考答案
1. Speech and writing are the two media used by natural languages as vehicles for communication. Many languages in
the world today are both written and spoken. Of the two, speech is more basic than writing.
Modern linguistics regards the spoken language as the natural or the primary medium of human language for
some obvious reasons. From the point of view of linguistic evolution, speech is prior to writing. The writing system
of any language is always ―invented‖ by its users to record speech when the need arises. Even in today‘s world there
are still many languages that can only be spoken but not written? Then in everyday communication, speech plays a
greater role than writing in terms of the amount of information conveyed.
And also, speech is always the way in which every native speaker acquires his mother tongue, and writing is
learned and taught later when he goes to school. For modern linguists, spoken language reveals many true features of
human speech while written language only the ―revised‖ record of speech. Thus their data for investigation and
analysis are mostly drawn from everyday speech, which they regard as authentic.

2. Voicing is a quality of speech sounds and a feature of all vowels and some consonants in English. It is caused by the
vibration of the vocal cords. If the vocal cord vibrates, then the sound is said to be voiced, as /d/, /b/ and /g/; while if
the vocal cord does not vibrate, then the sound is said to be voiceless, such as /t/, /p/ and /k/.

3. The transcription with letter-symbols only called broad transcription. This is the transcription normally used in
dictionaries and teaching textbooks for general purposes.
The latter, i. e. the transcription with letter-symbols together with the diacritics is called narrow transcription.
This is the transcription needed and used by the phoneticians in their study of speech sounds. With the help of the
diacritics they can faithfully represent as much of the fine details as it is necessary for their purpose
In broad transcription, the symbol [l] is used for the sounds [1] in the four words leaf [ Ii:f] , feel [fi:l] , build
[bild ], and health [helθ]. As a matter of fact, the sound [1] in all these four sound combinations differs slightly. The
[l] in [li:f] , occurring before a vowel, is called a clear [1], and no diacritic is needed to indicate it; the [l] in [fi:l] and
[bild]， occurring at the end of a word or before another consonant , is pronounced differently from the clear [l] as in
"leaf". It is called dark [l] and in narrow transcription the diacritic [~ ] is used to indicate it. Then in the sound
combination [helθ], the sound [1] is followed by the English dental sound [θ], its pronunciation is somewhat affected
by the dental sound that follows it. It is thus called a dental [1], and in narrow transcription the diacritic [1] is used to
 indicate it. It is transcribed as [helθ].
4. English consonants can be classified in two ways: one is in terms of manner of articulation and the other is in terms of
place of articulation.
In terms of manner of articulation the English consonants can be classified into the following types: stops: [p, b, t,
d, k, g]; fricatives: [f, v, θ, ð, s, z, ʃ, ʒ, h]; affricates: [tʃ, dʒ]; liquids: [l，r]; nasals: [m, n, ŋ]; glides：[w，j].
In terms of place of articulation, it can be classified into following types: bilabials: [p, b, m，w]; labiodentals :[f, v];
dentals: [θ, ð]; alveolars: [t, d, n, s, z, r, l ]; palatal: [j，ʃ, ʒ，t∫，d]; velars: [k, g, ŋ]; glottal: [h].
5. Vowel sounds are differentiated by a number of factors:
① According to the position of the tongue in the mouth: front, central, back
② According to the openness of the mouth: close vowels, semi-close vowels, semi-open vowels, and open vowels
③ According to the shape of the lips: rounded vs. unrounded
④ According to the length of the vowels: tense vs. lax or long vs. short
6. (1) [dʒ] (2) [f] (3) [d] (4) [i] (5) [ɒ:] (6) [p]
(1) voiced alveolar stop (2) voiced alveolar liquid (3) voiceless palatal affricate
(4) voiced bilabial glide (5) back, close, short (6) front, open
(本题考查音标的特征，要会根据特征写出音标，也要根据音标写出特征，可利用笔记上的总结记忆。)
7. (1) Phonology and phonetics differ in their approach and focus. Phonetics is of a general nature; it is interested in all
the speech sounds used in all human languages: how they are produced, how they differ from each, other, what
phonetic features they possess, how they can be classified, etc. Phonology, on the other hand, aims to discover
how speech sounds in a language form patterns and how these sounds are used to convey meaning in linguistic
communication.
(2) A phonologist will be more interested in it. Because one of the tasks of the phonologists is to find out rule that
governs the distribution between [l]and[ɫ], [ph]and[p].
8. A phone is a phonetic unit or segment. The speech sounds we hear and produce during linguistic communication are
all phones.
A phoneme is not any particular sound, but rather it is represented or realized by a certain phone in a certain
phonetic context.
The different phones which can represent a phoneme in different phonetic environments are called the
allophones of that phoneme. For example, the phoneme [l] in English can be realized as dark[ɫ], clear [l], which are
allophones of the phoneme[l].
9. (1) Rules that govern the combination of sounds in a particular language are called sequential rules. There are many
such sequential rules in English. For example, if a word begins with a [l] or a [r], then the next sound must be a
vowel. That is why [lbik] [lkbi] are impossible combinations in English. They have violated the restrictions on the
sequencing of phonemes.
(2) The assimilation rule assimilates one sound to another by ―copying‖ a feature of a sequential phoneme，thus
making the two phones similar. Assimilation of neighboring sounds is, for the most part, caused by articulatory or
physiological processes. For example, the [i:] is nasalized in words like bean, green, team, and scream. This is
because in all these sound combinations the [i:] sound is followed by a nasal [n] or [m].
The assimilation rule also accounts for the varying pronunciation of the alveolar nasal [n] in some sound
combinations. The rule is that within a word, the nasal [n] assumes the same place of articulation as the consonant
that follows it. We know that in English the prefix in- can be added to an adjective to make the meaning of the
word negative, e. g. discreet indiscreet, correct incorrect. But the [n] sound in the prefix in- is not always
pronounced as an alveolar nasal. It is so in the word indiscreet because the consonant that follows it, i. e. [d], is an
alveolar stop, but the [n] sound in the word incorrect is actually pronounced as a velar nasal, i. e. [ŋ]; this is
because the consonant that follows it is [k], which is a velar stop. So we can see that while pronouncing the sound
[n], we are "copying" a feature of the consonant that follows it.
(3) Deletion rule tells us when a sound is to be deleted although it is orthographically represented. We have noticed
that in the pronunciation of such words as sign, design, and paradigm, there is no [g] sound although it is
represented in spelling by the letter g. But in there corresponding forms signature, designation and paradigmatic,
the [g] represented by the letter g is pronounced. The rule can be stated as: delete a [g] when it occurs before a
 final nasal consonant. Given the rule, the phonemic representation of the stems in sign—signature,
resign—resignation, phlegm—phlegmatic, paradigm—paradigmatic will include the phoneme /g/, which will be
deleted according to the regular rule if no suffix is added.
10. Suprasegmental features refer to the phonemic features that occur above the level of the segments. The main
suprasegmental features include stress, intonation, and tone.
The location of stress in English distinguishes meaning. There are two kinds of stress: word stress and sentence
stress. For example, a shift of word stress may change the part of speech of a word from a noun, to a verb although
its spelling remains unchanged. The word desert is an excellent example.
Tones are pitch variations which can distinguish meaning just like phonemes. They are caused by the differing
rates of vibration of the vocal cords.
Intonation plays an important role in the conveyance of meaning in almost every language, especially in a
language like English. Spoken in different tones, the same sequence of words may have different meanings.
 2.3 考研真题与典型题详解

I. Fill in the blanks

1. Consonant articulations are relatively easy to feel. And as a result are most conveniently described in terms of
and manner of articulation. (北二外 2004 研)
2. The present system of the _______ derives mainly from one developed in the 1920s by the British phonetician, Daniel
Jones (1881-1967), and his colleagues at University of London. (中山大学 2008 研)
3. The sound /p/can be described with ―_______, bilabial, stop‖. (北二外 2007 研)
4. are produced by constricting or obstructing the vocal tract at some place to divert, impede, or completely shut off the
flow of air in the oral cavity. (中山大学 2006 研)
5. The sound /b/can be described with ―_______, bilabial, stop‖. (北二外 2004 研)
6. ______ refers to the change of a sound as a result of the influence of an adjacent sound. (中山大学 2005 研)
7. The sound /k/ can be described with ―voiceless, _______, stop‖. (北二外 2003 研)
8. transcription should transcribe all the possible speech sounds, including the minute shades. (北二外 2004 研)
9. Consonant articulations are relatively easy to feel, and as a result are most conveniently described in terms of place
and _______of articulation. (北二外 2008 研)
10. Stress refers to the degree of used in producing a syllable. (中山大学 2006 研)
11. The different members of a phoneme, sounds which are phonetically different but do not make one word different
from another in meaning, are _______. (北二外 2009 研)
12. In English, the two words cut and gut differ only in their initial sounds and the two sounds are two different _______
and the two words are a _______ pair. (北二外 2010 研)
13. Consonants differ from vowels in that the latter are produced without_______.
14. In English there are a number of _______, which are produced by moving from one vowel position to another
through intervening positions.
15. In phonological analysis the words fail-veil are distinguishable simply because of the two phonemes/f/-/v/. This is an
example for illustrating_______.
16. Phonetic similarity means that the _______ of a phoneme must bear some phonetic resemblance. (中山大学 2011 研)

II. Multiple Choice

1. The vowel ______ is a low back vowel. (西安外国语学院 2006 研)
A. /i: /
B. /u/
C. /e/
D. / a: /
2. Of the consonants /p/, /t/, /k/,/f/,/m/,/z/ and /g/, which has the features of voiceless and velar? (对外经贸 2005 研)
A. /k/
B. /p/
C. /g/
D. /t/
3. The consonant /s/ in the word ―smile‖ can be described as: (对外经贸 2006 研)
A voiceless oral alveolar fricative
B voiceless nasal bilabial liquid
C voiced oral alveolar plosive
D voiced oral bilabial fricative
4. Of the three cavities. _______ is the most variable and active in amplifying and modifying speech sounds. (北二外
2004 研)
A. nasal cavity
B. pharynx cavity
C. oral cavity
5. Which of the following is true of an allophone? (对外经贸 2005 研)
 A. A phone can be the allophone of all English vowel phonemes.
B. There are no restrictions on the distribution of an allophone.
C. There is no possibility of an allophone becoming a phoneme.
D. An allophone changes the meaning of the word.
6. Which of the following CANNOT be considered as minimal pair? (大连外国语学院 2008 研)
A. /ai/-/oi/
B. /p/-/b/
C. /s/-/θ/
7. Point out which item does not fall under the same category as the rest, and explain the reason in ONE sentence. (南京
大学 2007 研)
A. resolution
B. resident
C. restart
D. resignation
8. _______ is one of the suprasegmental features.
A. Voicing
B. Stop
C. Deletion
D. Tone
9. Classification of English speech sounds in terms of manner of articulation involves the following EXCEPT
A. fricatives
B. lateral
C. affricates
D. bilabial
10. An aspirated p, an unaspirated p and an unreleased p are _______ of the p phoneme.
A. analogues
B. Tagmemes
C. morphemes
D. allophones
11. Which branch of phonetics concerns the production of speech sounds?
A. Acoustic phonetics
B. Articulatory phonetics
C. Auditory phonetics
D. Neither of them.
12. The most recognizable differences between American English and British English are in _______ and vocabulary.
A. usage
B. grammar
C. pronunciation
D. structure
13. Which of the following is the correct description of [v]？
A. voiceless labiodental fricative
B. voiced labiodental fricative
C. voiceless labiodental stop
D. voiced labiodental stop
14. Which of the following is not a minimal pair? (对外经贸 2006 研)
A . /li:f/ /fi:l/
B. /sip/ zip/
C. /sai/ sei/
D. /keit/ /feit/
15. A sound which is capable of distinguishing one word or one shape of word from another in a given language is
 a_______. (北二外 2003 研)
A. allophone
B. phone
C. phoneme
16. Which one is different from the others according to manners of articulation?
A. [f]
B. [v]
C. [z]
D. [w]
17. Which one is different from the others according to places of articulation?
A. [n]
B. [m]
C. [b]
D. [p]
18. What kind of sounds can we make when the vocal cords are vibrating?
A. Voiceless
B. Voiced
C. Glottal stop
D. Consonant

III. True or False

1. A phoneme in one language or one dialect may be an allophone in another language or dialect. (清华 2001 研)
2. Auditory phonetics studies how sounds are perceived by the speaker. (清华 2001 研)
3. Broad Transcription is intended to symbolize all the possible speech sounds, including the minute shades. (北二外
2003 研)
4. The initial sound of ―peak‖ is aspirated while the second sound of ―speak‖ is unaspirated. They are in free variation.
(北二外 2005 研)
5. Two sounds are in free variation when they occur in the same environment and do not contrast, namely, the
substitution of one for the other does not produce a different word, but merely a different pronunciation.
6. [p] is voiced bilabial stop.
7. Phonetic similarity means that the allophones of a phoneme must bear some morphological resemblance. (大连外国语
学院 2008 研)
8. A syllable can be divided into two parts, the NUCLEUS and the CODA. (大连外国语学院 2008 研)
9. All syllables contain three parts: onset, nucleus and coda. (北二外 2003 研)
10. The assimilation rule assimilates one sound to another by copying a feature of a sequential phoneme，thus making the
two phones similar.
11. The airstream provided by the lungs has to undergo a number of modifications to acquire the quality of a speech
sound
12. Sound [p] in the word ―spit‖ is an unaspirated stop.
13. The last sound of ―top‖ can be articulated as an unreleased or released plosive. These different realizations of the
same phoneme are not in complementary distribution. (北二外 2007 研)
14. The speech sounds we hear and produce during linguistic communications are all phonemes. (对外经贸 2006 研)

IV. Explain the following terms

1. Assimilation(南开大学 2010 研；武汉大学 2008 研)
2. Distinctive features of speech sounds (中山大学 2008 研；浙江大学 2007 研)
3. IPA (南开大学 2004 研)
4. Minimal pairs(四川大学 2007 研；上海交大 2006 研)
5. Broad and narrow transcription(中山大学 2006 研)
6. Complementary distribution
V. Short answer questions
1. How are the vowels described usually? (北二外 2009 研)
2. What are the criteria used in phonetic description of vowels? (厦门大学 2010 研)
3. In English, the phoneme /p/ is pronounced differently in pat, spat, and tap, can you form a rule that can generalize this
linguistic phenomenon? (南开大学 2010 研)
4. What are the differences between voiced sounds and voiceless sounds in terms of articulation? (南开大学 2010 研)
5. What are vowels glide about? What differentiates pure or monophthong vowel from vowel glides?
6. What is assimilation? Is it similar to coarticulation? What dose it include?
7. What are suprasegmental features? How do the major suprasegmental features of English function in conveying
meaning?
8. What is free variation?
9. Write the international phonetic alphabet for the following words. (南京大学 2008 研)
(1) hypothesis (2)academician (3)verbatim (4)technique
(5)capacity (6)standardize (7)guarantee (8)paradigm
(9)primarily (10)rhetoric (11)procedure (12)originate
10. How do the three branches of phonetics contribute to the study of speech sounds?
11. The English data below provide examples of stress placement on certain verbs.
A B C
ap'pear a'dapt as'tonish
col'lide col'lapse con'sider
e'rase e'lect i'magine
ca'rouse ob'serve de'termine
cor'rode tor'ment 'promise
(1) Describe in words the stress placement on these verbs. Make sure you refer to syllable structure in your statement.
(2) Provide syllable representations of the words col'lide, e'lect, and con'sider in order to illustrate your conctusion
about stress placement in these forms.

VI. Essay questions

1. Is English a language that uses a phonetic alphabet system? Explain briefly why or why not with examples. (北外
2004 研)
2. What are phonemes，phones and allophones? Explain their relationship with examples from English or Chinese. (北外
2005 研)
3. What are broad transcription and narrow transcription? How are they manifested in IPA?
4. In Chinese tone changes are used in the way that affects the meanings of individual words. (中山大学 2011 研)

参考答案及解析
I. Fill in the blanks
1. place
(辅音根据发音方式和发音部位进行分类。)
2. cardinal vowels
(基本元音是指一系列约定俗成、固定不变的元音特质，目的是为语言中实际存在的元音描述提供一个参照框
架。)
3. voiceless
(/p/是双唇音，爆破音，清音。)
4. Consonants
(发音时，声道的某些部位受到压缩或阻碍后，使得气流在口腔里转向、受阻或完全被阻塞而产生的音叫做辅音。)
5. voiced
(/b/是双唇音，爆破音，浊音。)
6. Assimilation
 (同化指一个音具有了邻近音的一部分或者全部特征的这一过程，包括鼻化、齿化、鄂化。)
7. velar
(/k/是清音，软腭音，爆破音。)
8. Narrow
(当我们用复杂的符号精确地标记语音所有可能的细小变化时，我们称之为“严式转写” 。)
9. manner
(辅音的发音。)
10. force
(重音指在音节发音时所用的力度。)
11. Allophones
(同一个音位在不同语音环境中的实现方式被称为该音位的音位变体。因为变体是互补分布的，而且发音相似。)
12. phonemes; minimal
(/k/、/g/在 cut 和 gut 是两个不同的音位，这两个词，除了出现在同一位置上的一个音外，其余的音都一样，
因此这两个词就构成了一个最小的对立体。)
13. Obstruction
(元音与辅音的区别就在于发音过程中气流是否受阻。)
14. Diphthongs
(如果在发音时通过舌头的一次运动，由第一个单元音滑向第二个单元音，这样产生的音的组合就叫做双元音。)
15. Minimal pairs
(如果有两个词，它们除了出现在同一位置上的一个音外，其余的音都一样，那么这两个词就构成了一个最小
的对立体，所以 fail-veil 是最小对立体。)
16. allophones
(语音的相似性指一个音位的音位变体必须有某种音位上的相似性。)
II. Multiple Choice
1. D (/a/是低元音，后元音，紧音。)
2. A (/k/是清音，软腭音，爆破音；/t/是齿龈音，爆破音，清音；/g/是浊音，软腭音，
爆破音，/p/是双唇音，爆破音，轻音。)
3. A (/s/是清音，摩擦音，齿龈音。)
4. C (在三大发音器官中，气流在口腔中受挤或转向从而产生不同的声音。)
5. C (音素是语音学研究的一个基本单位，是人类的发音器官所能发出的最小语音片段，音位是一组语音特征的
抽象集合体，并不是所有的因素都是音位。音位变体必须互补分布，且不会改变词义。)
6. C (/s/是齿龈音，而/θ/是齿音，所以二者不能构成最小对立体。)
7. C (/s/ 在 restart 中位于清辅音前，所以被轻音化。)
8. D (超音段特征包括音节，重音，声调和语调。)
9. D (bilabial 是根据发音部位划分的。)
10. D (送气的/p/和不送气的/p/是同一个音位/p/在不同语音环境中的实现方式, 所以被称为该音位的音位变体。)
11. B (发音语言学研究语音的发生。)
12. C (英音和美音最大的区别就是发音和词汇，比如发音方面，美音有儿化音。)
13. B ([v]是唇齿音，擦音，浊辅音。)
14. A (根据最小对立体的定义，只有 A 不符合，因为 A 中的音不是在同一个位置上。)
15. C (音位是音系学研究的一个基本单位，是一组语音特征的抽象集合体，具有区别意义的作用。)
16. D (选项 A、B、C 都是摩擦音，/w/是近音。)
17. A ([m],[b], [p]都是双唇音，[n]是齿龈音。)
18. B (声带振动产生浊音。)
III. True or False
1. T (同一个音位在不同语音环境中的实现方式被称为该音位的音位变体。同一个音位在不同的语言中有不同的
实现方式，所以在另一语言中是音位变体。)
2. F (它是研究声音怎样被听者接收的。)
3. F (当我们用一套简单的符号记音，试图把一个词与其他的词区别开时，我们称之为宽式转写，宽式转写不包
括一些细小变化。)
4. F (“peak”和 “speak”中的发音不同的“p”是同一个音位的音位变体，而不是自由对立体。)
5. T (自由变体是指两个音素出现在一个相同的语音环境中，并不区别意义，即用一个音素替换另一个音素不产
生新词，只产生同一个词的不同读音。)
6. F ([p]是双唇爆破音，没有摩擦。)
7. F (语音相似性指一个音位的音位变体必须具有语音相似点。)
8. F (音节中必不可少的就是结核，即元音。节首和节尾可有可无。)
9. F (所有音节必须有结核，但不是所有的音节都有节首和节尾。)
10. F (应该是两个音或两个音位同化。)
11. T (气流从肺部产生，而后穿过声道经过一些变化比如转向，受阻等发出不同的音。)
12. T (/p/在/s/之后是不送气的。)
13. T (如果两个音素出现在一个相同的语音环境中，且不区别意义，这两个音素可被看作自由变体。)
14. F (我们所听见和说出的声音并不总是音位，有可能是音素，只有那些有区别意义的才是音位。)
IV. Explain the following terms
1. It is a process by which one sound takes on some or all the characteristics of a neighboring sound. It is often used
synonymously with coarticulation. Nasalization, dentalization and velarization are all instances of assimilation. There
are two possibilities of assimilation: if a following sound is influencing a preceding sound, it is regressive
assimilation; the converse process, in which a preceding sound is influencing a following sound, is known as
progressive assimilation. For example, in ―mink‖, ―n‖, which is originally pronounced as /n/, will be velarized by the
following ―k‖/k/, and therefore the word will be pronounced as / / .
2. The distinctive feature is a property which distinguishes one phoneme from another. For example, ―voicing‖ is a
distinctive feature, since it plays an important role in distinguishing obstruents in English.
3. IPA: the abbreviation of International Phonetic Alphabet, which is devised by the International Phonetic Association in
1888. IPA is a set of symbols which can be used to represent the phones and phonemes of natural languages.
4. The two words which are identical in every way except for one sound segment that occurs in the same place in the
string. For example, the English words bear and pear constitute a minimal pair as they differ in meaning and in their
initial phonemes /b/ and /p/.
5. Broad and narrow transcription: In broad transcription, one letter symbol is used for one sound. In narrow
transcription, there are diacritics added to the one letter symbols to show the finer differences between sounds.
6. When two sounds never occur in the same environment, they are in complementary distribution. For example, the
aspirated English stops never occur after (s), and the unaspirated ones never occur initially. Allophones of the same
phoneme are usually in complementary distribution. The allophones of /p/, for instance, are also in complementary
distribution. The unaspirated /p/ occurs after /s/, while the aspirated(ph)occurs in all other environments except after
/s/.
V. Short answer questions
1. 参见“2. 2 课后习题详解题五” 。
2. As the vowels can not be described in the same way as the consonants, a system of cardinal vowels has been suggested
to get out of this problem. The cardinal vowels are a set of vowel qualities arbitrarily defined, fixed and unchanging,
intended to provide a frame of reference for the description of the actual vowels of existing languages. The cardinal
vowels are abstract concept. The cardinal vowel diagram is a set of hypothetical positions for vowels used as reference
points.
The description of English vowels needs to fulfill four basic requirements: (1) the height of tongue raising(high,
middle or low); (2) the position of the highest part of the tongue (front, central , back); (3) the length or tenseness of
the vowel(tense vs. lax or long vs. short); (4) lip-rounding(rounded vs. unrounded). For example,
[i:]: high, front, tense, unrounded vowel.
[u]: high, back, lax, rounded vowel.
3. In English, there is a rule that /p/ is unaspirated after /s/ but aspirated in other places. So /p/ in pat, tap is aspirated but
unaspirated in spat since it is after /s/. To bring out the phonetic difference, an aspirated sound is transcribed with a
raised ―h‖ after the symbol of the sound. So a phonetic transcription for peak is [phi:k] and that for speak is [spi:k]. So
[p, ph] are two different phones and are variants of the phoneme /p/. Such variants of a phoneme are called allophones
of the same phoneme. The allophones are said to be in complementary distribution because they never occur in the
 same context: [p] occurs after [s] while [ph ] occurs in other places. We can present this rule as:
/p/ : [p] / [s]____
[ph] elsewhere (note: ____ is the position in which /p/ appears. )
In addition, sometimes a phoneme may also have free variants. The final consonant of
tap may not be released by some speakers so there is no audible sound at the end of this word. Such phenomenon is
called free variation.
4. When the vocal cords are spread apart, the air from the lungs passes between them unimpeded. Sounds produced in
this way are described as voiceless, consonants [p, s, t] are produced in this way; but when the vocal cords are drawn
together, the air from the lungs repeatedly pushes them apart as it passes through, creating a vibration effect. Sounds
produced in this way are described as voiced [b, z, d] are voiced consonants.
5. When pure or monophthongs are pronounced, the quality remains constant throughout the articulation. In contrast,
those where there is an audible change of quality are called vowel glides. Vowel glides are produced by moving from
one vowel position to another through intervening positions. If a single movement of the tongue is involved, the glides
are called diphthongs. A double movement produces triphthongs.
6. Assimilation is a process by which one sound takes on some or all the characteristics of a neighbouring sound. It is
often used synonymously with coarticulation. Nasalization, dentalization and velarization are all instances of
assimilation. There are two possibilities of assimilation: if a following sound is influencing a preceding sound, it is
regressive assimilation; the converse process, in which a preceding sound is influencing a following sound, is known
as progressive assimilation.
7. 参见“2. 2 课后习题详解题 10” 。
8. Free variation is a linguistic term used both in phonology and sociolinguistics. In phonology，if two sounds occurring
in the same environment do not contrast．For example，the substitution of one for the other does not generate a new
word but merely a different pronunciation of the same word，the two sounds are said to be in ―free variation‖．
For instance，both either and direction are pronounced differently in British English and American English
without changing their meaning，which are often caused by the regional differences．
9. (1) [] (2) [] (3) [] (4) []
(5) [] (6) [] (7) [] (8) []
(9) [] (10) [] (11) [] (12) []
10. Phonetics looks at speech sounds from three distinct but related points of view. First, it studies the sounds from the
speaker‘s point of view, i. e. , how a speaker uses his speech organs to articulate the sounds. Then, it looks at the
sounds from the hearer‘s point of view, i. e. , how the sounds are perceived by the hearer. Lastly, it studies the way
sounds travel by looking at the sound waves, the physical means by which sounds are transmitted through the air
from one person to another. These three branches of phonetics are labeled articulatory phonetics, auditory phonetics,
and acoustic phonetics respectively.
11. (1) Stress in languages may be predictable by rules: lexical category, morphological structure and number of
syllables all seem to be relevant factors for the placement of stress in English words.
For two-syllable verbs, the final (ultimate) syllable will receive main stress if it has a long vowel or ends in
at least two consonants. In this case, the first (penultimate) syllable may have secondary stress, contain an
unstressed full vowel, or contain a reduced vowel. For example, a'dapt, e'lect.
If the ultimate syllable does not have a long vowel or end in two or more consonants, the penultimate
syllable is stressed, as in ‘promise. Otherwise, the main stress will be put on the second syllable. For example,
ca'rouse, ob'serve, as'tonish, de'termine.
If there is a double-letter in the word, the main stress should be put between them, or in other words, on the
second one of the two. Such as ap'pear, cor'rode, col'lide, col'lapse.
(2) They are two-syllable words; therefore the final (ultimate) syllable will receive main stress, as col'lide, e'lect and
con'side.
VI. Essay questions
1. The Phonetic Alphabet is a system of letters and symbols that are used to represent the individual sounds of a language.
English is a language that uses a phonetic alphabet system because it is a phonographic language by nature.
There are mainly three types of language concerning its writing system: ideographic language which uses
 symbols (ideograms) to represent whole words or concepts (ideas), with Chinese as an example; syllabic language
which word or concepts are represented by syllable, with Japanese syllabic system as an example; phonographic
language which uses special alphabetic or other typographical characters to express the sounds of an actual spoken
utterance in writing, with many European languages as examples. English uses alphabetic script to represent certain
single type sound. For example, the sound which is written sh in English can be expressed by symbols of [∫] ship;
and the sound that is written in c can be expressed by the symbol of [k] cup.
2. A phoneme is a minimally distinctive set of sounds in a language that can signal a difference in meaning. It is an
abstract phonological unit represented or realized by a certain phone in a certain phonetic context.
A phone is an individual phonetic unit or segment that occurs in speech. The speech sounds we hear and
produce during linguistic communication are all phones. Each of the set of phones which correspond to a single
phoneme of a language is called an allophone.
Phonemes are placed between slant lines (//) and phones are placed between square brackets ([ ]). Allophones
of the same phoneme generally occur in different contexts and never distinguish one word from another.
For example, when we pronounce the two words peak and speak, we are aware that the sound [p] is pronounced
differently, in the word peak, the sound [p] is pronounced with a strong puff of air stream; but the same stop sound is
pronounced slightly differently in the word speak, the puff of air is withheld a little. The [p] sound in peak is called
an aspirated [ph ] and the [p] sound in speak is an unaspirated [p].
There is a slight difference in the way they are pronounced, but such a difference dose not give rise to difference
in meaning. So /p/is a phoneme in the English sound system, and it can be realized differently as aspirated or
unaspirated in different contexts. The phoneme /p/ in English can be realized as aspirated [ph ] and unaspirated [p],
which are allophones of the phoneme /p/.
3. 参见“2. 2 课后习题详解题 3” 。
4. Tones are pitch variations, which are caused by the differing rates of vibration of the vocal cords. Pitch variations can
distinguish meaning just like phonemes; therefore, the tone is a suprasegmental feature. The meaning-distinctive function
of the tone is especially important in what we call tone languages. English is not a tone language. Chinese is a typical
tone language. It has four tones. The first tone is level(阴平), the second rise(阳平), the third fall rise(上声), and the
fourth fall(去声). The role of the tone can be well illustrated by pronouncing the same sound combination such as [pa] in
the four different tones and have different meanings:
bā(八) High level ‗eight‘
bá(拔) High rising ‗pull out‘
bǎ(靶) Low falling rising ‗target‘
bà(坝) High falling ‗dam‘
(考查汉语为声调语言，在解释时一定要举例子说明声调是如何改变意义的。)
 第 3 章 形态学

3.1 复习笔记

本章要点：
1. Open class and closed class
开放词类与封闭词类
2. Morpheme
语素
3. Analyzing word structure
分析词语结构
4. Derivational and inflectional morphemes
派生和曲折语素
5. Morphological rules of word formation
词语构成的形态规则
6. Derivation
派生
7. Compounds
合成词

本章考点：
词法的定义；封闭词与开放词。曲折词与派生词；构词法(合成与派生)；词素的定义；词素变体；自由词素；
粘着词素。

本章内容索引：
I. Definition of morphology
II. Open class and close class
III. Morphemes
1. Definition
2. Classification
IV. Analyzing word structure
1. Roots
2. Affixes
V. Derivational and inflectional morphemes
VI. Morphological rules of word formation
1. Morphological rule
2. Productive morphological rule
VII. Derivation
VIII. Compounds

I. Definition of morphology I. 形态学定义

【考点：名词解释】 形态学研究词的内部结构以及构词
Morphology studies the internal structure of words, and 规则，包括屈折变化和构词法两个领
the rules by which words are formed, including inflection and 域。
word formation.

II. Open class and closed class II. 开放类和封闭类

1. Open class words: in English，nouns，verbs，adjectives and 1. 开放性词类：在英语中，名词、动词、
adverbs make up the largest part of the vocabulary. They are 形容词和副词占词汇的绝大部分。它们
the content words of a language. 是一门语言中的实义词，经常有新词产
生。
2. Closed class words: The other syntactic categories include 2. 封闭性词类：其他的句法范畴包括
 ―grammatical‖ or ―functional‖ words. Conjunctions ， “语法性的”或者“功能性的”词。连
prepositions，articles and pronouns consist of relatively few 词、介词、冠词和代词相对较少，通常
words and new words are not usually added to them. 不会增加新词。

III. Morphemes III. 词素

【考点：名词解释】 1. 定义
1. Definition 有些词是通过几个不同的意义单
Some words are formed by combining a number of 位组合而构成的。传统上把意义的最基
distinct units of meaning. The most basic element of meaning 本成分称为词素。
is traditionally called morpheme. 在英语中，一个词可以由一个或多
In English a single word may consist of one or more 个词素组成。
morphemes. 如：一个词素 desire
E. g. one morpheme desire 两个词素 desire+able
two morphemes desire+able 三个词素 desire+able+ity
three morphemes desire+able+ity 四个词素 un+desire+able+ity
four morphemes un+desire+able+ity

2．Classification 2. 分类
(1) Some morphemes like desire can constitute words by (1) 有些词素，如 desire 可以独
themselves, which are called free morphemes. 自成词, 叫自由词素。
(2) 其他的如-un 和-able 从来就不
(2) Others like -un and -able are never words but always 是词，只是单词的组成部分，叫粘着词
parts of words which are called bound morphemes 素。

3. Allomorph 3. 语素变体
The variant forms of a morpheme. For example, the 语素的不同变化形式。
morpheme used to express indefiniteness in English has two
forms: ―a‖ before a word that begins with a consonant and
―an‖ before a word that begins with a vowel.
IV. 分析词汇结构
IV. Analyzing Word Structure 1. 词根：词根是构成词语的核心，并承
1. Roots: constitute the core of the word and carries the major 担词语的主要意义。
component of its meaning. 2. 词缀：词缀不属于某种词类，通常是
2. Affixes: They do not belong to a lexical category and are 黏着语素。
always bound morphemes.

V. Derivational and inflectional morphemes V. 派生词素和屈折词素

1. Derivational morphemes: In English there are morphemes 1. 派生词素: 在英语中，有些词素能
which change the category，or grammatical class of words. 改变词的范畴，或词的语法类。例如，
A verb, for example，is formed by adding -en to the 在形容词 black 后加-en 就可以构成
adjective black，—blacken, or by adding -ize to the noun 动词 blacken，或者在名词 computer
computer—computerize. 后 加 -ize 就 可 以 构 成 动 词
computerize。

2. Inflectional morphemes: Some morphemes are attached to 2. 屈 折 词 素 : 有 些 词 素 附 着 于 单 词

words or morphemes，but they never change their syntactic 或词素，但是，它们永远不会改变其
category. E. g. John has noticed the change in his friend. 句法范畴。
 Here the -ed endings are morphemes which do not add any
lexical meaning，but which represent the concept of tense.

VI. Morphological rules of word formation VI. 构词法的词素音位规则

1. Morphological rules：The ways words are formed are called 1. 词素音位规则： 词的构成方式被
morphological rules. These rules determine how 称为词素音位规则。这些规则决定了
morphemes combine to form words. 词素是如何组合而构成单词的。

2. Productive morphological rules：Some of the morphological 2. 能 产 性 词素 音 位规 则： 有些 词 素

rules can be used quite freely to form new words. We call 音位规则能够相当自由地用来构造
them productive morphological rules. E. g. un + accept + 新词，我们称它们为能产性词素音位
able. Morphological rules may thus be productive 规则。词素音位规则可以是能产的
(constantly used to form new words)or less productive(e. g. (能不断地用于构造新词)或不那么能
the fiercity of the lion) 产生的。

VII. Derivation:
It refers to the process to add an affix to an already VII. 派生法
existing form to create a word, which includes prefixation, 指通过在词干上加上词缀而得到
suffixation, and even both. 一个新词的方法，主要包括前缀化、后
缀化或者两者同时发生。
VIII. Compound VIII. 复合词
It refers to those words which have more than one lexical 指那些由一个以上的词汇语素构
morpheme, or the way to join two separate words to produce a 成的词，或者由两个独立的词连接起来
single form. Compounds can be divided into the endocentric 的构成新的形式。复合词可以进一步分
and the exocentric compound. 为向心复合词和离心复合词。
When we form compounds, it is important to note the 当构造复合词时，需要注意以下几
following points: 点：
1. When the two words are in the same grammatical 1. 当 两 个 词 处 于 同 一 个 语 法 范
category，the compound will be in this category： 畴时，复合词将还会处于这个范畴。
noun+noun: post box, landlady 2. 很 多 情 况 下 ， 如 果 两 个 词 分
2. In many cases, the two words that fall into different 属不同的词类，那么第二个获最后一
categories. Then the class of the second or final word will be 个词的词性便决定了复合词的语法
the grammatical category of the compound. This, however，is 范范畴。然而，情况并非总是如此，
not always true，and compounds with a preposition are in the 带有介词的复合词就处于复合词中
category of the non-prepositional part of the compound，as in 非介词部分的范畴之中。
under 'take. 3. 通常情况下，复合词与非复合
3. It is often the case that compounds have different stress 词词序有不同的重音规则。
patterns from the non-compound word sequence. 4. 复 合 词 的 词 义 并 不 是 各 部 分
4. The meaning of a compound is not always the sum 词义的简单相加。
total of the meaning of its parts.
 3.2 课后习题详解

1. Divide the following words into their separate morphemes by placing a ―+‖ between each morpheme and the next：
a．microfile
b．bedraggled
c．announcement
d．predigestion
e．telecommunication
f．forefather
g．psyehophysics
h．mechanist
2. Think of three morpheme suffixes，give their meaning，and specify the types of stem they may be suffixed to. Give at least
two examples of each
Model：- or
suffix：- or
meaning：the person or thing performing the action
stem type：added to verbs
examples：actor，―one who acts in stage plays，motion pictures. etc. ‖translator，―one who translates‖
3. Think of three morpheme prefixes，give their meaning，and specify the types of stem they may be prefixed to. Give at least
two examples of each.
Model：- a
preffix：- a
meaning：―without；not‖
stem type：added to adjectives
examples：asymmetric，―lacking symmetry‖ asexual，―without sex or sex organs‖
4. The italicized part in each of the following sentences is an inflectional morpheme. Study each inflectional morpheme
carefully and point out its grammatical meaning.
Sue moves in high-society circles in London.
A traffic warden asked John to move his car.
The club has moved to Friday，February 22nd.
The branches of the trees are moving back and forth.
5. Determine whether the words in each of the following groups are related to one another by processes of inflection or
derivation
a) go, goes, going, gone
b) discover, discovery, discoverer, discoverable, disverabitity
c) inventor, inventor's, inventors, inventors'
d)democracy, democrat, democratic, democratize
6. The following sentences contain both inflectional and derivational affixes. Underline all of the derivational affixes and
circle the inflectional affixes.
a) The farmer's cows escaped.
b) It was raining.
c)Those socks are inexpensive.
d)Jim needs the newer copy.
e) The strongest rower continued.
f) She quickly closed the book.
g) The alphabetization went well.

参考答案
1. a. micro+file
b. be+draggle+ed
c. announce+ ment
d. pre+digest+ion
e. tele+communicate+ion
f. fore+father
g. psycho+physics
h. mechan+ist
2. (1) suffix: -able
meaning: something can be done or is possible
 stem type: added to verbs
examples: acceptable , "can be accepted"; respectable, "can be respected"
(2) suffix: ly meaning: functional
stem type: added to adjectives
examples: freely, "adverbial form of ‗ free ' "; quickly, "adverbial form of ‗quick‘".
(3) suffix :-ee
meaning: the person receiving the action
stem type: added to verbs
examples: employee, " one who works in a company"; interviewee , "one who is interviewed"
3. (1) prefix: dis-
meaning: showing an opposite
stem type: added to verbs or nouns
examples: disapprove, ―do not approve‖
dishonesty, ―lack of honesty‖
(2) prefix: anti-
meaning: against, opposed to
stem type: added to nouns or adjectives
examples: antinuclear, ―opposing the use of atomic weapons and power‖
antisocial, ―opposed or harmful to the laws and customs of an organized community. ‖
(3) prefix: counter-
meaning: the opposite of
stem: added to nouns or adjectives
examples: counterproductive, "producing results opposite to those intended"
counteract, ―act against and reduce the force or effect of (sth. )
4. (1) the third person singular
(2) the past tense
(3) the present perfect
(4) the present progressive
5. a) inflection
b) derivation
c) derivation
d) derivation
6. a) The farmer's cows escaped.
b) It was raining.
c) Those socks are inexpensive.
d) Jim needs the newer copy.
e) The strongest rower continued.
f) She quickly closed the book.
g) The alphabetization went well.
 3.3 考研真题与典型题详解

I. Fill in the blanks

1. The ______ is the minimal distinctive unit in grammar, a unit which cannot be divided without destroying or
drastically altering the meaning, whether lexical or grammatical. (北二外 2008 研)
2. A _____ morpheme is one that cannot constitute a word by itself. (北二外 2003 研)
3. Affix is the collective term for the type of formative that call be used only when added to another morpheme．Affixes
are limited in number in a language，and are generally classified into three subtypes，namely, prefix，suffix，and____.
(北京邮电大学 2010 研)
4. As the lexical words carry the main content of a language while the grammatical ones serve to link its different parts
together, the lexical words are also known as content words and grammatical ones ______. (中山大学 2008 研)
5. There are two fields of morphology: the study of and the study of . (人大 2006 研)
6. In traditional grammar, is the only word class which can function as a substitute for another item. (中山大学
2006 研)
7. Take is the _____ of taking, taken and took.
8. ______ is a unit of expression that has universal intuitive recognition by native speakers, whether it is expressed in
spoken or written form. It is the minimum free form. (中山大学 2005 研)
9. In terms of the meaning expressed by words, they can be classified into ______ words and ______ words. (南开大学
2007 研)
10. ______ is a branch of linguistics that studies the interrelationship between phonology and morphology. (南开大学
2007 研)
11. Bound morphemes are classified into two types: _____ and_____ root.
12. A word formed by derivation is called a______, and a word formed by compounding is called a ______.

II. Multiple Choice

1. Bound morphemes do not include _______. (西安交大 2008 研)
A. roots
B. prefixes
C. suffixes
D. words
2. ______ refers to the way in which a particular verb changes for tense, person, or number. (西安外国语学院 2006 研)
A. Affixation
B. Inflection
C. Derivation
D. Conjunction
3. Words like pronouns, prepositions, conjunctions, articles are _______ items. (北二外 2003 研)
A. open-class
B. closed-class
C. neither open-class nor closed-class
4. ______other than compounds may be divided into roots and affixes. (大连外国语学院 2008 研)
A. Polymorphemic words
B. Bound morphemes
C. Free morphemes
5. Nouns, verbs and adjectives can be classified as _______. (西安交大 2008 研)
A. lexical words
B. grammatical words
C. function words
D. form words
6. Which two terms can best describe the following pairs of words: table—tables, day + break—daybreak. (大连外国语
学院 2008 研)
 A. inflection and compound
B. compound and derivation
C. inflection and derivation
7. Compound words consist of _______ morphemes. (北二外 2003 研)
A. bound
B. free
C. both bound and free
8. Which of the following words is formed by the process of blending? (对外经贸 2006 研)
A. WTO
B. Motel
C. Bookshelf
D. red-faced
9. Language has been changing, but such changes are not so obvious at all linguistic aspects except that of______. (西安
外国语学院 2006 研)
A. phonology
B. lexicon
C. syntax
D. semantics
10. A suffix is an affix which appears _______ .
A. after the stem
B. before the stem
C. in the middle of the stem
D. below the stem
11. Morphemes that represent tense, number, gender and case are called_______ morpheme.
A. inflectional
B. free
C. bound
D. derivational
12. There are_______morphemes in the word denationalization?
A. three
B. four
C. five
D. six

III. True or False

1. The words ―boys‖ and ―raise‖ have a common phoneme and a common morpheme as well. (北二外 2008 研)
2. Free morpheme may constitute words by themselves. (大连外国语学院 2008 研)
3. Pronouns, prepositions, conjunctions and articles are all open class items. (清华 2001 研)
4. The words ―loose‖ and ―books‖ have a common phoneme and a common morpheme as well. (北二外 2007 研)
5. Nouns, verbs, adjectives and many adverbs are content words. (北二外 2008 研)
6. Root also falls into two categories: free and bound. (北二外 2006 研)
7. The words ―water‖ and ―teacher‖ have a common phoneme and a common morpheme as well. (北二外 2006 研)
8. A stem is the base form of a word which cannot be further analyzed without total loss of identity. (对外经贸 2006 研)
9. Words are the most stable of all linguistic units in respect of their internal structure. (大连外国语学院 2008 研)
10. The smallest meaningful unit of language is allomorph.

IV. Explain the following terms

1. Compound (四川大学 2007 研)
2. Inflectional morpheme (南开大学 2004 研)
3. Morpheme (武汉大学 2008 研)
4. Stem (四川大学 2007 研)
5. Lexical word (武汉大学 2005 研)
6. Free morphemes (西安交大 2008 研)
7. Bound morpheme (上海交大 2007 研)
8. Inflection (四川大学 2007 研)
9. Open-class words (浙江大学 2007 研)
10. Allomorph
11. Prefix

V. Short answer questions

1. What is the distinction between inflectional affixes and derivational affixes? (四川大学 2007 研)
2. What does the concept morphophoneme mean? What is the relationship between phoneme and morphophoneme? (南
开大学 2004 研)
3. What are phonologically conditioned and morphologically conditioned form of morphemes? (武汉大学 2005 研)
4. How are affixes classified? (四川大学 2008 研)
5. A number of interesting word-formation processes can be discerned in the following examples. Can you identify what
is going on in these? (上海交大 2007 研)
(a) The deceased‘s cremains were scattered over the hill.
(b) He‘s always taking pills, either uppers or downers.
6. How to distinguish root and stem?
7. Illustrate the relationship between morpheme and allomorph by examples.
8. What are closed-class words and open-class words?
9. In English, the suffix -er can be added to a place name. Examine the words in the two columns below.
Column A Column B
Londoner Glasgower
New Yorker Denverer
Berliner Sydneyer
Dubkiner Australiaer
Newfoundlander Victoriaer
Winnipeger Calcuttaer
New Zealander Bristoler
(1) In general terms, what does the suffix -er mean in these words?
(2) How is this -er different in meaning from the -er found in the words skater and walker?
(3) State the constraint on the . distribution of -er illustrated above in your own words.
(4) Does this constraint also apply to the type of -er used in the word skater? (Hint: What would you call "one who
discovers" or "one who ploughs"?)

参考答案及解析
I. Fill in the blanks
1. morpheme
(语素是最小的语义单位，是语法中的最小单位。它不能被分割成更小的单位而不改变它的意义。)
2. bound
(粘着语素指不能单独出现，必须跟至少一个其他语素共同出现的语素。)
3. infix
(词缀是那些只能附着于另一个语素(词根或词干) 上的一类语素的总称。词缀都是粘着语素，可分为前缀、中
缀和后缀三种。)
4. function words
(词可分为词汇词和语法词。具有词汇意义的词称为词汇词，例如名词、动词、形容词和副词。表达语法意义的
词是语法词，例如连词、介词和代词。)
5. inflectional；derivational
(在形态学中，有两大主要研究方面，一是词的屈折变化，一是词的派生。)
6. pronoun
(在传统语法中，代词是唯一一种可用来代替其他语言项目的词性。)
7. lexeme
(词位是语言词汇的基本单位，taking, taken 和 took 都是 take 这个词位的词位变体。)
8. Word
(词是个语言表达单位，无论是在口语还是在书面语中，说母语的人都能够凭直觉识别这个语言单位。它是最小
的自由形式词，是能够独立构成一个完整语句的最小单位。)
9. lexical, grammatical
(从词所表达的意义划分，词可分为词汇词和语法词。)
10. Morphophonology
(形态音系学是语言学的一个分支，主要研究形态学与音系学的关系。)
11. affix ; bound
(粘着语素指不能单独出现，必须跟至少一个其他语素共同出现的语素。词缀和粘着词根都是粘着语素。)
12. derivative ; compound
(词汇的变化方式主要有复合和派生两种。派生而成的词叫派生词，复合而成的词叫合成词。)
II. Multiple Choice
1. D (粘着语素指不能单独出现，必须跟至少一个其他语素共同出现的语素。词根，词缀都可能是粘着词素。)
2. B (屈折变化是通过附加屈折词缀表现语法关系，如数、人称、有定性、体和格。它并不改变所附加词干的语
法类别。)
3. B (封闭类词的成员数目固定，数量有限，像代词、介词、连词和冠词都属于封闭类词。)
4. A (多语素词可被分为词根和词缀，而合成词是不可以被这样分的。)
5. A (开放类词的成员数目基本上是无限的,名词、动词、形容词和副词属于开放类词。)
6. A (屈折变化是通过附加屈折词缀表现语法关系，如 tables。合成词是由词根语素按一定的规则组合起来构成的,
如 daybreak。)
7. B (合成词是由自由词素组合而成的。)
8. B (紧缩法是指一个词由两个单词混合而成，一般把第一个单词的开头部分和第二个单词的最后部分连接起来，
或者是把两个单词的开头部分连接起来。Motel 是由 motor 与 hotel 二词的缩合。)
9. B (语言总在不断的变化，其在词汇方面的发展和变化尤为明显。)
10. B (词缀根据它们与词干的位置可分为前缀、中缀和后缀三种。前缀指出现在词干前面的词缀。)
11. A (性数格属于曲折。)
12. C (五个语素。)
III. True or False
1. F (有共同的音位，但音位/z/在前者中表示复数，而在后者中没有任何意义。)
2. T (自由语素指是能够单独出现或独立成词的语素。)
3. F (封闭类词的成员数目固定，数量有限。像代词、介词、连词和冠词都属于封闭类词。)
4. F (这两个词中的/z/和/s/是同一个音位[z]的不同变体，所以有共同的音位，但 loose 中的语素是 se，books 中
的语素是 s。)
5. T (具有词汇意义的词称为词汇词，例如名词、动词、形容词和副词。)
6. T (词根是构成词的基础成分，它可以是自由语素或粘着语素。)
7. F (有共同的音位,但语素不同,前者是-ter, 后者是-er。)
8. T (词干指能加屈折词缀的语素(组合)，它相当于词根或词根加派生词缀。)
9. T (就词的内部结构而言，词是所有语言单位中最稳定的。)
10. F (语言最小的有意义的单位是语素不是语素变体。)
IV. Explain the following terms
1. Compound refers to those words that consist of more than one lexical morpheme, or the way to join two separate
words to produce a single form, such as the compound words ―blackboard‖ and ―well-known‖.
2. Inflectional morpheme: It is also called inflectional affixes, which attaches to the end of words. Inflectional affixes
only add a minute or delicate grammatical meaning to the stem. The plural suffix is a typical example of this kind.
3. Morpheme is the smallest unit of language in terms of relationship between expression and content, a unit that cannot
be divided into further smaller units without destroying or drastically altering the meaning, whether it is lexical or
grammatical. For example, in boys, there are two morphemes: ―boy‖ and ―-s‖; in international, there are three
morphemes: ―inter-‖ ―nation‖ and ―-al‖.
4. A stem is a morpheme or combination of morphemes to which an inflectional affix can be added. For example,
―friend-‖ in friends, and ―friendship-‖ in friendships are both stems. The former shows that a stem can be equivalent to
a root, whereas the latter shows that a stem may contain a root and a derivational affix.
5. Lexical words are also called content words, referring to those which have lexical meanings，that is，those which refer
to substance, action and quality, such as nouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs.
6. Free morpheme is an element of meaning which takes the form of an independent word. They may occur alone, that is,
they may make up words by themselves. For example, ―dog‖, ―nation‖ and ―close‖ are free morphemes. And such
words are called mono-morphemic words. Thus all mono-morphemic words are free morphemes.
7. Bound morphemes refer to those morphemes that can not occur alone and must appear with at least another morpheme.
For example, in the word ―careless‖, ―-less‖ is a bound morpheme since it could not occur by itself as a word.
8. Inflection is the manifestation of grammatical relationship through the addition of inflectional affixes, such as number,
person, finiteness, aspect and case, which do not change the grammatical class of the stems to which they are attached.
For example, the past form of the verb work is realized by the addition of the inflectional suffix: ―-ed‖; the plural form
of the noun child is realized by the inflectional suffix: ―-ren‖.
9. Open-class words refer to words whose membership is in principle infinite or unlimited and with the emergence of
new ideas, inventions, and so on; new expressions are continually and constantly being added to the lexicon. For
example, nouns, verbs, and adjectives all belong to this class.
10. A morpheme may take various shapes or forms, and an allomorph is any of the variant forms of a morpheme as
conditioned by position or adjoining sounds. For instance, the morpheme of plurality {-s} has a number of
allomorphs in different sound context, as in ―cats‖ /s/, in ―bags‖ /z/, in ―matches‖ /iz/.
11. In linguistics, a prefix is a type of affix that precedes the morphemes to which it can attach. Prefixes are bound
morphemes (they cannot occur as independent words). While most languages employ both prefixes and suffixes,
prefixes are less common. Some languages employ mostly suffixes and almost no prefixes at all. The use of prefixes
has been found to correlate statistically with other linguistic features, such as a verb-object word order and the use of
prepositions.
V. Short answer questions
1. The distinction between inflectional morphemes and derivational morphemes could be illustrated in the following four
aspects.
Inflectional affixes very often only add a minute or delicate grammatical meaning to the stem, for instance, those
inflectional affixes in words such as toys, walks, John’s, etc. Therefore, they serve to produce different forms of a
single word. In contrast, derivational affixes often change the lexical meaning, e. g. cite, citation；generate,
generation.
Inflectional affixes do not change the word class of the word they attach to, such as flower, flowers; whereas
derivational affixes might or might not, such as the relation between small and smallness for the former, and that
between brother and brotherhood for the latter.
Very often inflectional affixes are conditioned by non-semantic linguistic factors outside the word they attach to
but within the phrase or sentence; whereas, derivational affixes are more often based on simple meaning distinctions.
In English, inflectional affixes are mostly suffixes, which are always word final. But derivational affixes can be
prefixes or suffixes.
2. Morphophoneme refers to the phoneme (or string of phonemes) that constitutes the various allomorphs of a
morpheme.
Relationship between phoneme and morphophoneme: Generally speaking, the concept of morphophoneme adds a
grammatical meaning to the concept of phoneme. For example, as to the phoneme /s/, it is in fact a configuration of
allomorphs of different morphemes, such as the plural morpheme and the 3rd person present simple morpheme.
Therefore, we would regard this phoneme as a morphophoneme, represented as /s/.
3. Some phonological factors can affect the appearance of morphemes, namely, the form of a morpheme; and there could
 be assimilation, and dissmilation. For example, the negative morpheme could be realized as ―in-‖ or ―im-‖ followed by
different phonological environments, as in ―inefficient‖ and ―imperfect‖, as a result of assimilation.
Morphemes can also be conditioned by morphological factors; for example, the allomorphs of the plural
morpheme, as could be seen in ―oxen‖, ―cows‖, and ―feet‖.
4. Considering the free and bound morpheme, affix is the collective term for the type of formative that can be used only
when added to another morpheme, so it is naturally bound.
Depending on their position with reference to the root or stem of the word, affixes are generally classified into
three subtypes, namely, prefix, suffix, and infix. For examples, ―para-‖ as prefix, ―-tion‖ as suffix, and ―-bloomingly-‖
in word ―abso-bloomingly-luty‖ as infix.
Affix can also be classified depending on the distinction between inflectional affixes and derivational affixes. The
former often only add a minute grammatical function to the stem and do not change the word class of the word they
attach to; while the latter are very productive in making new words and often change the lexical meaning. For
instances, ―-s‖ in words ―toys‖, ―walks‖ and ―John‘s‖ is inflectional affixes, while ―-tion‖ is a derivational affix in
word ―recitation‖.
5. The words ―deceased‖ ―upper‖ and ―downer‖ have undergone a process of class shift. By shifting the word class one
can change the meaning of a word from a concrete entity or notion to a process or attribution. This process of word
formation is also known as zero-derivation，or conversion. In the sentences above, ―deceased‖, ―upper‖ and ―downer‖
are originally adjectives, meaning ―dead‖, ―higher‖ and ―lower‖ respectively; in the sentences above, however, they
mean ―dead people‖, ―a drug used as a stimulant. ‖ and ―a depressant or sedative drug‖, which are nouns.
6. Root is that part of a word-form that remains when all the inflectional and derivational affixes have been removed.
Thus in the word undesirables, the root is desire. Stem is the part of a word-form that remains when all inflectional
affixes have been removed. So in the word undesirables, the stem is undesirable. The stem of a word may be: a) a
simple stem consisting of only one morpheme or root, e. g. work; b) a root plus a derivational affix, e. g. worker; c)
two or more roots, e. g. workshop.
7. Morpheme is the smallest meaningful linguistic unit of language, not divisible or analyzable into smaller forms. What
is usually considered a single word in English may be composed of one or more morphemes. Take disagreeable for
example, it contains three morphemes, dis-, agree and -able. A morpheme may take various shapes or forms. For
instance, -ion, -tion, -sion and -ation are the positional variants of the same suffix. They do not differ in meaning or
function but show a slight difference in sound depending on the final phoneme of the preceding verb. They are called
allomorphs. So an allomorph is any of the variant forms of a morpheme as conditioned by position or adjoining
sounds.
8. A word that belongs to the closed-class is one whose membership is fixed or limited. New members are not regularly
added. Therefore, pronouns, prepositions, conjunctions, articles, etc. , are all closed items.
The open-class is one whose membership is in principle infinite or unlimited. With the emergence of new ideas,
inventions, etc. , new expressions are continually and constantly being added to the lexicon. Nouns, verbs, adjectives
and many adverbs are all open-class items.
However, the distinction between closed-class words and open-class words is not quiet as clear-cut as it seems.
Preposition, though a closed-class, is relatively open one in English. Expressions such as ―regarding‖, ―throughout‖,
―out of‖ are now recognized as prepositions or complex prepositions. In respect of open-class items, auxiliary verbs,
which used to be ranked as open-class words, are relatively closed in number.
9. (1) ―–er‖ means the residents of a place.
(2) ―-er‖ added to a place name like ―Londoner‖ means the residents of a place; while ―-er‖ added to a verb such as
―skater‖, ―walker‖ means the doer of an action.
(3) ―-er‖ can be added to a place name only when the pronunciation of that place ends with a consonant like [k], [n], [d]
and [g]. If it ended with a vowel, it can not be modified by an ―-er‖.
(4) However, such constraint sometimes applies to the type of ―-er‖ used in the word skater, that is, the kind of ―-ed‖
used after a verb, and sometimes not. For example, the verb discover ended with a central vowel / /, but we still
use ―discoverer‖ to call one who discovers; the verb plough ended with a back vowel / /, and we use the word
―ploughman‖ to call one who ploughs.
 第 4 章 句法学

4.1 复习笔记

本章要点：
1. Syntax
句法
2. Phrase structure rule
短语结构规则
3. Phrase elements
短语成分
4. Sentences
句子
5. Transformations
转换

本章考点：
句法的定义；句法关系；深层结构；表层结构；并列结构与从属结构；范畴; 用实例进行分析，树形图分析
句子的结构等。

本章内容索引：
I. The definition of Syntax
II. Categories of Syntax
1. Word-level categories
2. Phrase categories and their structures
III. Phrase structure rule
1. Definition
2. XP rule
3. Coordination rule
IV. Phrase elements
1. Specifiers
2. Complements
3. Modifiers
V. Sentences (The S rule)
VI. Transformations
1. Auxiliary movement
2. Do Insertion
3. Deep structure and surface structure
4. Wh Movement
5. Move –α and constraints on transformations

I. The definition of Syntax I. 句法的定义

【考点： 名词解释】 句法学是语言学的一个分支，它研
Syntax is a branch of linguistics that studies how words 究词是如何被组合成句子的，以及支配
are combined to form sentences and the rules that govern the 句子构成的规则。
formation of sentences.

II. Categories of Syntax II. 句法的范畴

Category refers to a group of linguistic items which 范畴是指在某一特定语言中执行
fulfill the same or similar functions in a particular language
相同或相近功能的一组语言项目，如句
such as a sentence，a noun phrase or a verb.
子、名词短语、或者动词。
1. Word-level categories 1. 词层面范畴
 Word level categories are divided into two kinds: major 词层面范畴被分为两种: 主要词
lexical categories and minor lexical categories. 汇范畴和次要词汇范畴。
(1)主要词汇范畴有名词、动词、
(1)Major lexical categories are Noun，Verb，Adjective，
and Preposition. 形容词和介词。
(2)Minor lexical categories include determiner，degree (2)次要词汇范畴包括限定词、程
words, qualifier，auxiliary, conjunction, etc. 度词、修饰词、助动词、连词，等等。

2. 短语范畴和它们的结构
2. Phrase categories and their structures
围绕某一词范畴构成的句法单位
Syntactic units that are built around a certain word
称为短语。由多个单词构成的短语通常
category are called phrases (NP, VP, AP and PP). Phrases that
包括以下成分: 中心语、标志语和补
are formed of more than one word usually contain the
语。
following elements：head，specifier and complement.
(1)短语构成所围绕的词叫做中心
语。
(1)The word around which a phrase is formed is termed
(2)出现于中心语左边的词用作标
head.
志语。
(2)The words on the left side of the heads are said to
(3) 出 现 于 中 心 语 右 边 的 词 是 补
function as specifiers.
语。
(3)The words on the right side of the heads are
complements.

III. 短语结构规则
III. Phrase structure rule
1. Definition 1. 定义
A certain word can only concur with certain other words. 某一特定的词只能与另一类特
There must be certain grammatical mechanism that ensures 定的词一起出现。这其中必定存在着
the appropriate positions that specifiers ， heads ， and
某种确保标志语、中心语和补语在短
complements occupy in phrase structure. Such special type of
grammatical mechanism that regulates the arrangement of 语结构中处于恰当位置的的语法机
elements that make up a phrase is called a phrase structure 制。这种规定构成一个短语的成分的
rule. 排列的特殊语法机制类型被称为短
语结构规则。
2. XP rule
2. XP 规则
In all four phrases，the specifier is attached at the top
level to the left of head while the complement is attached to 在所有这四种短语中，标志语在
the right. These similarities can be summarized with the help 中心语左边的顶层，而补语则位于右
of the template below. in which X stands for the head N，V， 边。
A or P.

XP 规则: XP →(标志语)X→(补语)

The XP rule：XP→(specifier)X→(complement)

3. Coordination rule 3. 并列规则

Some structures are formed by joining two or more 有些结构是借助于像 and 或者
elements of the same type with the help of a conjunction such or 这样的连词将同种类型的两个或
as and or or. Such phrases are called coordinate structures and
多个成分连接起来而构成的。这样的
this phenomenon is known as coordination. Coordination
exhibits four important properties: 短语被称为并列结构，这种现象称为
并列。并列有四个重要的特征。
第一，可以出现在连词前面的并
(1) There is no limit on the number of coordinated
categories that can appear prior to the conjunction. 列范畴在数量上没有限制。
第二，在任何层面 (一个中心语
(2) A category at any level (a head or an entire XP) can 或一整个 XP 的范畴)都可以是并列
be coordinated. 的。
第三，并列的范畴必须是同一类

(3) Coordinated categories must be of the same type. 型的。

第四，并列短语的范畴类别与所
连接成分的范畴类别相同。并列规则
(4) The category type of the coordinate phrase is
可以公式化为:
identical to the category type of the elements being conjoined.
The coordination rule can be formulated as below： X→X *Con X
X→X *Con X
IV. Phrase elements IV. 短语成分
A phrase can contain specifiers and complements besides 一个短语除了中心语之外，还可
the head.
以包括标志语和补语。
1. Specifiers
1. 标志语
In English specifiers occur at the left boundary of their 在英语中，标志语出现在它们各
respective phrases. They are attached to the top level of phrase
自短语的左界。它们依附于短语结构
structures, to the left of the head. Determiners serve as the
specifiers of Ns while qualifiers typically function as the 的顶层，位于中心语的左边。限定语
specifiers of Vs and degree words as the specifiers of As and 是作为名词的标志语，修饰语通常则
sometimes Ps. 作为动词的标志语，而程度词则作为
形容词(有时是介词)的标志词。

2. Complements 2. 补语
Complements are themselves phrases and provide 补语自身就是短语，它们为中心
information about entities and locations whose existence is 语的意义中所必然包含的实体与位
implied by the meaning of the head. They are attached to the 置提供了信息。在英语中，它们依附
right of the head in English. 在中心语的右边。
XP 规则(经修订的)
XP→(标志语) X (补语)
The XP Rule (revised)
这条规则也抓住了这个简单但又
XP→(Specifier) X (Complement)
This rule also captures the simple but important fact that 重要的事实:在英语中，无论有多少补
complements，however many there are，occur to the right of 语，它们都只出现在中心语的右边。
the head in English.
3. 修饰语
3. Modifiers
它详细说明了中心语具有选择
It can specify optionally expressible properties of heads.
性的可表达特征。名词最为常见的修
The most common modifiers of NS are adjective phrases and
饰语是形容词短语，动词最为常见的
those of verbs are adverb phrases and prepositional phrases
修饰语是描述方式和时间的副词短
which describe manner and time. Modifiers in English vary in
语和介词短语。英语中的修饰语随着
terms of their position with respect to the head.
它们相对于中心语的位置的变化而
变化。
经扩展的 XP 规则:
XP→ (标 志 语 )(修 饰 语 )X(补 语 )
The Expanded XP rule：
(修饰语)
XP→(Spec)(Mod)X(Complement*)(Mod)
这条规则允许修饰语既可以出
This rule allows a modifier to occur either before the 现在中心语之前，又可以出现在中心
head or after it. Where there is a complement，a modifier that 语之后。在有补语的地方，出现在中
occurs after the head will normally occur to the right of the 心语之后的修饰语通常也出现在补
complement as well
语的右边。
V. 句子(S 规则)
V. Sentences (The S rule) 句子也有其中心语。
【考点： 用树形图分析句子结构】 句子中心语 -屈折变化的位置可
Many linguists nowadays believe that sentences，like
以由一个编码于表明句子时态的动
other phrases，also have their own heads.
 The structure of S can be depicted as below. 词或助动词的抽象范畴来取代。

Sentence head-Infl position can be taken by an abstract

category encoded in a verb which indicates the sentence‘s
tense or an auxiliary VI. 转换
VI. Transformations
1. 助动词移位
1. Auxiliary movement
指 诸 如 be, have, do, may, can,
It refers to the movement of such words as be, have, do,
shall, should 之类的助动词从原来的位
may, can, shall, should and so on, from the original position
置移动到句首。
to the beginning of the sentence.
2. Do 插入
2. Do Insertion
语言学家们通过加特殊助动词来
Linguists circumvent the problem to form a yes-no
question that does not contain an overt Infl by adding the 解决构成一个不带显性 Infl 的是非疑
special auxiliary verb do. So we can formulate an insertion 问句的问题，用公式将插入规则表示如
rule as follows. 下:
Do 插入
Do insertion
Insert interrogative do into an empty Infl position. 把疑问词 do 插入到 I nf1 的空位
After the auxiliary do is inserted into the Infl position， 在把助动词 do 插入到 Infl 位置后，
the inversion transformation can be made by moving the 就可以通过把疑问词 do 移到 C 位置来
interrogative do into the C position. E. g. , Birds fly. → Do 进行倒置转换。
birds fly? 3. 深层结构和表层结构
3. Deep structure and surface structure 有两个层面的句法结构。
【考点： 名词解释，绘制句子的结构树形图】 (1)第一个是由 X 规则按照中心语
There are two levels of syntactic structure.
的次范畴化特征而构成的，称为深层结
(1)The first，formed by the XP rule in accordance with
the head‘s sub. categorization properties ， is called deep 构(或 D 结构)。
structure(or D-structure). (2)第二个是与通过恰当转换而形
(2)The second，corresponding to the final syntactic form 成的句子的最终句法形式相对应的，称
of the sentence which results from appropriate 为表层结构(或 S 结构)。
transformations, is called surface structure(or S-structure).
E. g. Will the train arrive?(表层结构) →the train will
arrive. (深层结构) 4. Wh 移位
4. Wh Movement 主要发生在 wh-问句，包括直接
The movement mostly takes place in wh-question wh-问句和间接 wh-问句以及关系分句
sentences, indirect wh-question sentences and relative clauses. 中。就是把 wh-短语移到 CP 下的标志
Move the wh phrase to the specifier position under CP. E. g. ， 语位置。
She has finally found the man [CP who [InflP___loves
her]]. 5. 移取α和转换的制约
5. Move-α and constraints on transformations 这个规则是指任何成分可以移动到任
It is a general movement rule which accounts for the 何位置。
syntactic behavior of any constituent movement.
 4.2 课后习题详解

1. What is syntax?
2. What is phrase structure rule?
3. What is category? How to determine a word's category?
4. What is coordinate structure? What properties does it have?
5. What elements does a phrase contain and what rule does each element play?
6. What is deep structure and what is surface structure?
7. Indicate the category of each word in the following sentences.
a) The old lady got off the bus carefully.
b) The car suddenly crashed onto the river bank.
c) The blinding snowstorm might delay the opening of the school.
d) This cloth feels quite soft. .
8. The following phrases include a head，a complement，and a specifier. Draw the appropriate tree structure for each.
a) rich in minerals
b) often read detective stories
c) an augment against the proposals
d) already above the window
9. The following sentences contain modifiers of various types. For each sentence，first identify the modifier(s)，then draw
the tree structures
a) A crippled passenger landed the airplane with extreme caution.
b) A huge moon hung in the black sky.
c) The man examined his car carefully yesterday.
d) A wooden hut near the lake callapsed in the storm.
10. The following sentences all contain conjoined categories. Draw a tree structure for each of the sentences.
a) Jim has washed the dirty shirts and pants.
b) Helen put on her clothes and went out.
c) Mary is fond of literature but tired of statistics.
11. The following sentences all contain embedded clauses that function as complements of a verb，an adjective，a
preposition or a noun. Draw a tree structure for each sentence.
a) You know that I hate war.
b) Gerry can‘t believe the fact that Anna flunked the English exam.
c) Chris was happy that his father bought him a Rolls-Royce.
d) The children argued over whether bats had wings.
12. Each of the following sentences contains a relative clause. Draw the deep structure and the surface structure trees for
each of these sentences.
a) The essay that he wrote was excellent.
b) Herbert bought a house that she loved.
c) The girl whom he adores majors in linguistics.
13. The derivations of the following sentences involve the inversion transformation. Give the deep structure and the
surface structure of each of these sentences.
a) Would you come tomorrow?
b) What did Helen bring to the party?
c) Who broke the window?

参考答案

1. Syntax is a branch of linguistics that studies the rules that governs the formation of sentences.
2. The special type of grammatical mechanism that regulates the arrangement of elements that make up a phrase is called
a phrase structure rule.
3. Category refers to a group of linguistic items which fulfill the same or similar functions in a particular language such
as a sentence, a noun phrase or a verb. To determine a word's category, three criteria are usually employed, namely,
meaning, inflation and distribution.
4. The structures that are formed by joining two or more elements of the same type with the help of a conjunction are
called coordinate structures. It has four properties: first, there is no limit on the number of coordinated categories.
Second, a category at any level can be coordinated. Third, coordinated categories must be of the same type. Fourth, the
category type of the coordinate phrase is identical to the category type of the elements being conjoined.
5. The phrase elements are specifiers, complements and modifiers. Specifiers help make more precise the meaning of the
head. They typically mark a phrase. The complements provide information about entities and locations whose
existence is implied by the meaning of the head. Modifiers specifies optionally expressible properties of heads.
6. The structure that formed by the XP rule in accordance with the head's subcategorization properties is called the deep
structure. The structure that corresponds to the final syntactic form of the sentence which results from appropriate
transformation is called surface structure.
7. a) The old lady got off the bus carefully.
Det. Adj. N. V Prep. Det. N Adv.
b) The car suddenly crashed onto the river bank.
Det. N. Adv. V. Prep. Det. Adj. N.
c) The blinding snowstorm might delay the opening of the school.
Det. Adj. N Aux. V Det N Prep. Det N
d) This cloth feels quite soft
Det N V Adv. Adj.
8. a) rich in minerals
AP

head complement
rich in minerals

b) often read detective stories

VP

specifier head complement

often read detective stories
c). the argument against the proposals
NP

specifier head complement

the argument against the proposals

d) already above the window

PP

specifier head complement

already above towards the window
9. (The modifiers are represented by italics. )
a) A crippled passenger landed the airplane with extreme caution.

InflP (S)

NP
NP

Det. A. N. Infl V. NP. PP

Pst Prep. A. N.

A crippled passenger landed the airplane with extreme caution

 b) A huge moon hung in the black sky.
InflP(=S)

NP Infl VP

Det A N Pst V PP

P NP

Det A N

A huge moon hung in the black sky

c) The man examined his car carefully yesterday.
InflP(=S)

NP Infl complement

Det N V Pst NP A Adv.

The man examined his car carefully yesterday.

d) A wooden . hut near the lake callapsed in the storm.
InflP(=S)

NP Infl VP

Det A NP Pst V PP

N PP P NP
NP
P Det N Det N

A wooden hut near the lake callapsed in the storm.

10. a) Jim has washed the dirty shirts and pants.

Infl P(=S)

NP VP

N Infl V NP

Det A NP

N CON N

Jim has washed the dirty shirts and pants

 b) Helen put on her clothes and went out.
S

NP VP

N VP CON VP

VP NP V Adv

V P Det N

Helen put on her clothes and went out

c) Mary is fond of literature but tired of statistics.

NP VP

N VP CON VP

VP NP VP NP

V A P N V A P N

Mary is fond of literature but (is) tired of statistics

11. a) You know that I hate war.
S

NP VP
CP
N V C S

NP VP
Infl
N Infl V NP

You know that I hate war

b) Gerry can‘t believe the fact that Anna flunked the English exam.
S

NP VP

N VP NP
CP
Infl Neg V NP C S

Det N NP VP

N V NP

Det A N

Gerry can not believe the fact that Anna flunked the English exam
c) Chris was happy that his father bought him a Rolls-Royce.
S

NP VP
CP
N Infl VL A C S

NP VP

Det N V NP NP

Pst N Det N

Chris was happy that his father bought him a Rolls-Royce

d) The children argued over whether bats had wings.
S

NP VP
CP
Det N Infl VP C S

V P NP VP

N V NP

Pst N

The children argued over whether bats had wings

12. a) The essay that he wrote was excellent.
Deep structure
CP

C S

NP VP

Det N CP V A

C S

NP Infl VP

N V NP

The essay he wrote that was excellent.

Surface Structure
CP

C S

NP VP

Det N CP V A

C S

NP NP Infl VP

N N Pst V NP

The essay that he wrote e was excellent.

b) Herbert bought a house that she loved.
Deep structure
CP

C S

NP VP

N Infl V NP
CP
Det N C S

NP Infl VP
NP
N V
N

Herbert bought a house she loved that

Surface Structure
CP

C S

NP VP

N Infl V NP
CP
Det N S
C
NP Infl VP
NP NP
N V
N N

Herbert bought a house (that) she loved e

c) The girl whom headores majors in linguistics.
Deep structure

CP

C S

NP VP

Det N CP V PP
P NP
C Infl S
N
NP VP

N V N

The girl he adores whom majors in linguistics

Surface Structure
CP

C S

NP VP

Det N CP V PP
P NP
C S
N
NP NP Infl VP

N N V N

The girl whom he adores e majors in linguistics

13. a) Would you come tomorrow?
Deep structure
CP

C S
VP
NP AdvP

N Infl V Adv

you would come tomorrow

Surface structure
CP

C S
VP
NP AdvP
Infl
N Infl V Adv

would you e come tomorrow

b) What was Helen bringing to the party?

Deep structure
CP

C S
VP
NP PP
NP NP.
N Infl V P
N Det. N
Helen bought what to the party
Surface structure
CP

NP C S
VP
N Infl NP PP
NP NP.
N Infl V P
N Det. N

what did Helen e bring e to the party

 4.3 考研真题与典型题详解

I. Fill in the blanks

1. _____ is a branch of linguistics that studies how words are combined to form sentences and the rules that govern the
formation of sentences.
2. Major lexical categories are _____，_____，_____ and _____.
3. Syntactic movement is dictated by rules traditionally called _____ rules, whose operation may change the syntactic
representation of a sentence.
4. When the affirmative sentence ―Jack sold his linguistics textbooks to Jill after the final examination‖ is transformed
into ―When did Jack sell his linguistics textbooks to Jill?‖，three transformational rules are applied. They are
Do-insertion，Subject-aux Inversion and＿＿. (武汉大学 2002 年研)
5. The branch of grammar which studies the internal structure of sentences is called______. (北二外 2010 研)

II. Multiple Choice

1. ______ refer to the relationship that linguistic units have with other units because they may occur together in a
sentence. (西安外国语学院 2006 研)
A. Syntagmatic relations
B. Hypotactic relations
C. Paradigmatic relations
D. Paratactic relations
2. Phrase structure rules allow us to better understand . (西安交大 2008 研)
A. how people produce and recognize possible sentences
B. what constitutes the grammaticality of strings of words
C. how words and phrases form sentences
D. All of the above
3. The phrase ―my small child‘s cot‖ is an ambiguous phrase, which can be revealed by ______tree diagrams.
A. one
B. two
C. three
D. four
4. ____ is a grammatical category used for the analysis of word classes displaying such contrast as singular, dual, plural,
etc. ____ .
A. Category
B. Number
C. Gender
D. Case
5. In English, ____ and ____ are often expressed by subject and object.
A. theme and rhyme
B. theme and predicate
C. predicate and object
D. subject and predicate
6. Which one of them is not the cohesive device _____.
A. ellipsis
B. reference
C. substitution
D. subject

III. Explain the following terms

1. Syntax
2. Category (中山大学 2004 年)
3. Phrases
4. Phrase structure rule
5. deep structure (上海外国语大学 2000 年研)

IV. Short answer questions

1. What are the advantages of using tree diagrams in the analysis of sentence structures? (西安交通大学 2008 研)
2. What is move-α rule?
3. What are deep and surface structures?
4. What is the relationship between tree diagrams and structural ambiguity?
5. Can you describe the syntactic structure of the sentence ―The old tree swayed in the wind‖ by using a tree diagram?
6. How to reveal the differences in sentential meaning in the sentence ―The mother of the boy and the girl will arrive
soon‖ by drawing tree diagrams?
7. What are the D-structures for the following sentences?
8 . P ro d u ce su rfa c e stru c tu re s fro m th e fo l l o win g d eep stru ctu res with o u t g o in g th ro u g h th e
process of transformations. (大连外国语学院 2002 研)
(1) Neg she past work last week
(2) Tag you past meet him
(3) the students l pres be+ing help the students l
(4) policemen past be+en beat John
(5) Q the professor pres be angry SOME REASON
(6) SOMEONE past be+ing be+en beat Joseph hard
(7) Q he past do SOMETHING
(8) Imp you pres will wash you
(9) [ Neg Mary past go to the bookstore] [Neg Lisa past go to the bookstore]
(10) the girl[the girl pres be beautiful]pres be from China

V. Essay questions
1. Disambiguate the following sentences, using the tree diagram with labels or analyzing their syntactic structures. (北交
大 2006 研)
1. Times flies like an arrow.
2. We got down from the duck.
3. Old men and women will be served first.
4. John passed the hammer and saw through the window.
5. Who would you like to visit?
2. Which of the following sentences are ambiguous? If you know how, use tree diagrams to show how these sentences
are ambiguous. (南京大学 2006 研)
(1) The children put the toy in tile box.
(2) The professor‘s appointment was shocking.
(3) No smoking section is available.
(4) Jack refused to change his decision.
3. For each of the following pairs of sentences, discuss how the two sentences are different from each other. (南京大学
2006 研)
(1) A. His carelessness I can‘t bear.
B. I can‘t bear his carelessness.
(2) A. A dagger killed the tourist.
B. The tourist was killed with a dagger.
(3) A. A hurricane killed eight people.
B. Eight people died in a hurricane.
4. The English sentences given below are ungrammatical. You are required to give the syntactic explanation to the
ungrammaticality in each of the sentences.
(1)*Jack put his ball.
 (2)*I wonder Michael walked the dog.
(3)*Frank thinks himself is a superstar.
5. Phrases are considered to be syntactic units, or constituents. The phrases labeled in the sentence given below can be
independently verified with the help of some special tests. You are required to use two tests as they apply to XP-level
constituents for verification. You may draw a tree diagram for demonstration if you think it is necessary. (南开 2011
研)
[The children]NP will [stop[at the corner]PP]VP if they see us do so.
6. What are the similarities and differences between a phrase and a clause？(中山大学 2011 研)
7. Place an asterisk next to any of the sentences that sound ungrammatical to you. Explain what makes these sentences
ungrammatical.
(1) The tutor told the students to study.
(2) The tutor suggested the students to study.
(3) The customer asked for a cold beer.
(4) The customer requested for a cold beer.
(5) He gave the Red Cross some money.
(6) He donated the Red Cross some money.
(7) The pilot landed the jet.
(8) The jet landed.
(9) A journalist wrote the article.
(10) The article wrote very well.
(11) Julie is bored of her job.
(12) Julie is tired of her job.
(13) Myself bit John.
(14) I was surprised for you to get married.
(15) Has the nurse slept the baby yet?
8. (1) List as many examples of these constituents as you can identify in sentences (a) and (b) below: NP, PP, VP. .
(2) List as many examples of these lexical categories as you can identify in
sentences (a) and (b): N, prep, V.
a. A Guns "N" Roses concert at an arena near ST. Louis ended in disaster after some 2500 fans staged a full-fledged
riot.
b. The trouble started when Axl Rose asked venue security to confiscate a camera he saw near the front of the stage.
9. Paraphrase each of the following sentences in two different ways to show that you understand the ambiguity involved:
Example: Smoking grass can be nauseating.
a. Putting grass in a pipe and smoking it can make you sick.
b. Fumes from smoldering grass can make you sick.
(1) Terry loves his wife and so do I.
(2) They said she would go yesterday.
(3) The governor is a dirty street fighter.
(4) The design has big squares and circles.

参考答案及解析

I. Fill in the blanks

1. Syntax
(句法学是语言学的一个分支，它研究词是如何被组合成句子的，以及支配句子构成的规则。)
2. Noun，Verb，Adjective，Preposition
(主要词汇范畴有名词、动词、形容词和介词。)
3. Transformational
(句法移位是一种转换规则，指一个句子的任意成分从原来的位置移到另一个新位置。它可能会引起句子句法的
变化。)
4. wh-movement
(用实例考查转换规则)
5. Syntax
(句法学是研究句子内部结构的一门学科。)
II. Multiple Choice
1. A (句法关系可能发生在句子层面，所以通常我们说句法关系是指一个语言单位与另一个语言单位之间的关
系。)
2. D (乔姆斯基在其经典理论中提出短语结构规则，这个规则有助于我们更好的明白句子是如何产生与被理解
的，以及单词和短语是怎样根据语法规则形成句子的。)
3. C ( my small child‘s cot

my small child‘s cot

my small child‘s cot

4. B (数是用来分析词类的语法范畴，有单数、双数和复数等。在英语中，数主要是名词的范畴，包括两种形式：
单数和复数。).
5. A (较早提出主位和述位概念的是布拉格学派创始人之一马泰休斯。主位和述位通常指主语和谓语，但主位结
构分析属于语义分析 ,而主语—谓语—补语分析属于结构分析。)
6. D (有很多衔接手段，例如，指称，替代，省略。主语不属于衔接手段。)
III. Explain the following terms.
1. Syntax is a branch of linguistics that studies how words are combined to form sentences and the rules that govern the
formation of sentences.
2. Category refers to a group of linguistic items which fulfill the same or similar functions in a particular language such
as a sentence，a noun phrase or a verb.
3. Syntactic units that are built around a certain word category are called phrases.
4. A certain word can only concur with certain other words. There must be certain grammatical mechanism that ensures
the appropriate positions that specifiers，heads，and complements occupy in phrase structure. Such special type of
grammatical mechanism that regulates the arrangement of elements that make up a phrase is called a phrase structure
rule.
5. Deep structure refers to the abstract representation of the syntactic properties of a construction, i. e, the underlying
level of structural relations between its different constituents, such as the relation between the underlying subject
and its verb, or a verb and its object.
IV. Short answer questions
1. The tree diagram can not only reveal a linear order, but also a hierarchical structure that groups words into structural
constituents. It can, in addition, show the syntactic category of each structural constituent, thus it is believed to most
truthfully illustrate the constituent relationship among linguistic elements.
2. Move-a rule is a general movement rule accounting for the syntactic behavior of any constituent movement. It goes
like this: any element may be moved to another place, or more generally changed in some way, as long as the relevant
conditions (principles) are satisfied. That is to say, the movements are constrained by the other modules of grammar in
order to rule out ungrammatical forms, such as the kissed boy girl and were kissed the girl by the boy. It is the
interaction of move-α with other syntactic principles that results in grammatical strings. It is responsible for the
mapping between active and passive.
3. Deep structure is a central theoretical term in generative grammar opposed to surface structure. It is the abstract
 syntactic representation of a sentence—an underlying level of structural organization which specific all the factors
governing the way the sentence should be interpreted.
Surface structure is a central theoretical term in generative grammar, opposed to deep structure. It is the final
stage in the syntactic representation of a sentence, which provides the input to the phonological component of the
grammar, and which thus most closely corresponds to the structure we articulate and hear.
4. In a theory of syntax using tree diagrams (phrase markers) to represent syntactic structure, the explanation of the
phenomenon of structural ambiguity is straightforward: whereas an unambiguous sentence is associated with just one
basic tree diagram, a structurally ambiguous sentence is associated with more than one basic tree diagram.
5.

6. The sentence is an ambiguous sentence, which can be interpreted in two different ways, so it could be assigned two
tree diagrams, as would be shown below:
Tree Diagram (1):

In this tree diagram, the ―head‖ noun of the subject, mother, is modified by a prepositional phrase that has a
conjoined noun phrase in it: of the boy and the girl. In the following tree diagram, on the other hand, the subject noun
phrase is itself a conjoined noun phrase: the mother of the boy followed by the girl.
Tree Diagram (2):

To conclude, a system of representation using tree diagrams allows us to account for structurally ambiguous
sentences by assigning more than one tree diagram to each ambiguous sentence. In this way, the system of tree
diagrams can be used to describe instances of ambiguity that are not lexical.
7. The D-structures for the five sentences are:
(1) The workers built these buildings.
(2) Lucy threw away the ball in the garden.
(3) I can do what for you.
(4) You will help her.
(5) The dog past gnaw a bone.
8. (1) She didn't work last week.
(2) You met him, didn't you?
(3) The students are helping themselves.
(4) The policemen were beaten by John.
 (5) Why is the professor angry?
(6) He／She was being beaten hard by Joseph.
(7) What did he do?
(8) Wash yourself.
(9) Mary didn't go to the bookstore. Lisa didn‘t go to the bookstore either.
(10) The girl who is beautiful is from China.
V. Essay questions
1. (1)
(a) Times flies like an arrow.
N N V Det N
NP NP
VP
S
(b) Times flies like an arrow.
N V Prep Det N
NP
PP
VP
S
(2)
(a) The word ―down‖ could be seen as an adverbial, which means ―from the higher position to a lower one‖.
(b) The word ―down‖ could be also seen as a noun, which means ―the fluffy feathers forming the first plumage of a
young bird‖.
(3)
(a) Old men and women will be served first.
Adj N N

(b) Old men and women will be served first.

Adj N N

(4)
(a) John passed the hammer and saw through the window.
V Det N N
NP
NP
VP
(b) John passed the hammer and saw through the window.
V Det N V Prep Det N
NP NP
VP PP
VP
(5)
(a) ―Who‖ could be interpreted as the direct object of the verbal group ―would like‖. Therefore, the answer to this
question could be ―I would like John to visit‖.
(b) ―Who‖ could also be interpreted as the direct object of the verb ―visit‖. Thus, the answer to this question could
be ―I would like to visit John‖.
2. (1) This sentence is unambiguous since the structure can be illustrated as:
(NP The children) (VP put (NP the toy) (PP in (NP the box. )))
 (2) The professor‘s appointment was shocking.

The professor‘s appointment was shocking.

Therefore, it could be clear that the sentence is ambiguous.

(3) No smoking section is available.

No smoking section is available.

Thus, this sentence is ambiguous.

(4) Jack refused to change his decision.

Thus, this sentence is unambiguous.

3. (1) These two sentences are different in the sense that the thematic structures are different. The theme of a sentence is
often the known information, which the sentence is mainly about. Sentence A provides some information about ―his
carelessness‖, since ―his carelessness‖ serves as the theme. Whereas, Sentence B is a statement about ―I‖, and from
the remainder of the sentence the recipient could know some information about me.
(2) In sentence A, ―A dagger‖ serves as the theme, with which the sentence could be seen as an answer of ―What did
the dagger do?‖ In sentence B, ―The tourist‖ is treated as the given information, around which the sentence
develops; thus, the corresponding question of this sentence as an answer could be ―What happened to the tourist?‖
(3)There are still differences of thematic structures between these two sentences, with the first one about ―A
hurricane‖ and the second one about ―eight people‖. What‘s more, in sentence A, the verb ―kill‖ emphasizes a
direct relationship between the hurricane and the eight people, that is, it is the hurricane that caused the people to
die. Whereas, in sentence B, a meaning like above is not entailed.
4. (1) *Jack put his ball. Because of the word ―put‖, the sentence lacks a complement, which should be a PP. Therefore,
it should be ―Jack put his ball under the chair. ‖
(2) *I wonder Michael walked the dog. The sentence is ungrammatical, for what follows the word ―wonder‖ should
be a clause. The correct form is ―I wonder if Michael walked the dog. ‖
(3) *Frank thinks himself is a superstar. In English, the pattern of the word ―think‖ is that think pluses a clause or a
complement. So the correct form should be ―Frank thinks himself as a superstar. ‖ or ―Frank thinks he is a
superstar. ‖
5. (1) The first test of the phrase of ―the children‖. It is a noun phrase and it can be verified by the substitution of a
simple noun word such as ―they‖. Then the sentence will become ―They will stop at the corner…‖
NP

Det N
the children
 (2) The second way of testing ―stop at the corner‖. It is a verb phrase and the head is ―stop‖, which is the maximal
projection of the verb ―stop‖. The phrase can serve as a sentence fragment, illustrated as the following.
VP

V PP
stop
P NP
at
Det N
the corner
6. Phrase and clause are both grammatical units contained in the set of layers in the grammar of a language, as following:
morpheme, word, phrase, clause, clause complex. They are attached to the sentences. For example, the tallest girl
(nominal phrase), Having finished their task, they came to help us. (clause)
Phrase is a single element of structure containing more than one word, and lacking the subject-predicate structure
typical of clauses. Traditionally, it is seen as part of a structural hierarchy, positioned between clause and word. While
clause is a constituent with its own subject and predicate, and it is included in a larger sentence. First, a phrase must be
a group of words which form a constituent. Second, a phrase is lower on the grammatical hierarchy than clauses. More
precisely, simple clauses may (and usually do) contain phrases, but simple phrases do not (in general) contain clauses.
(考查短语与从句的异同，要分别分析其定义并举例。)
7. (1) grammatical
(2) * ungrammatical suggest sb. to do sth. 无此用法，suggest 只能用于 suggest that…
(3) grammatical
(4) * ungrammatical request for sth. 无此用法，request 只能用于 request that…或 be requested to do sth.
(5) grammatical
(6) * ungrammatical donate 后不能接双宾语，可以说 he donated some money to…
(7) * ungrammatical land 是不及物动词，不能接宾语
(8) grammatical
(9) grammatical
(10) * ungrammatical article 和 write 间是被动的关系， write 不是 article 主动发出的动作， 应改为 The article was
written very well.
(11) * ungrammatical be bore of sth. 介词搭配不当，可以说 be bored by sth.
(12) grammatical
(13) * ungrammatical myself 是反身代词不能作主语，应改为 I
(14) * ungrammatical be surprised for sth. 介词搭配不当，可以说 I‘m surprised of your getting married.
(15) * ungrammatical sleep 是不及物动词不能接宾语，the baby 是 sleep 的动作发出者，改为 Has the nurse make
the baby sleep yet?
8. (1) NP: a Guns ―N‖ Roses concert, some 2500 fans, a full-fledged riot, the troubles, venue security, a camera he saw,
the front of the stage.
PP: at an arena, in disaster, near ST. Louis, after some 2500 fans staged a full-fledged riot.
VP: ended in disaster, staged a full-fledged riot, the troubles started, confiscated a camera, near the front of the
stage.
(2) N: concert, fans, riot, troubles, venue, security, camera, stage, arena, ST. Louis, disaster
Prep: at, after, near, the front of, in
V: ended, staged, started, asked, confiscated, saw
9. (1) Terry loves his wife and I love her, too.
Terry loves his wife and I love mine, too.
(2) Yesterday, they told us about her leaving.
They had said that she was going to leave on yesterday.
(3) The governor is a street fighter who is really dirty.
The governor cannot stand the street being dirty.
(4) The design has lots of circles and big squares.
The design has lots of circles and squares, which are both really big
 第 5 章 语义学

5.1 复习笔记
本章要点：
1. Semantics
语义学
2. The referential and sense
指称和涵义
3. Analysis of meaning
意义分析
4. Component analysis
成分分析
5. Sentence meaning
句子意义

本章考点：
语义学的定义；词汇意义关系(同义、反义、下义)；识别各种实例中词与词的意义关系、以及句与句之间的蕴
涵、前提、会话含义、同义、不相容、语义矛盾、语义反常等意义关系; 用成分分析法分析同义词、反义词，
句子意义的区别等; 反义词的种类及举例。

本章内容索引：
I. The definition of Semantics
II. Some views concerning the study of meaning
1. The naming theory
2. The conceptualist view
3. Contextualism
4. Behaviorism
III. Lexical meaning
1. Sense and reference
2. Major sense relations
(1) Synonymy
(2) Polysemy
(3) Homonymy
(4) Hyponymy
(5) Antonymy
IV. Sense relations between sentences
1. X is synonymous with Y
2. X is inconsistent with Y
3. X entails Y. (Y is an entailment of X. )
4. X presupposes Y. (Y is a prerequisite of X·)
5. X is a contradiction
6. X is semantically anomalous
V. Analysis of meaning
1 Componential analysis—a way to analyze lexical meaning
2 Predication analysis—a way to analyze sentence meaning
I. The definition of Semantics I. 语义学定义
【考点: 名词解释，与语用学的区分】 语义学可以简单地定义为对意义的
Semantics can be simply defined as the study of 研究。
meaning.

II. Some views concerning the study of meaning II. 有关意义研究的一些观点

【了解各种观点的意思，优缺点】
1. The naming theory 1. 命名论
(1)Content： (1)内容
Naming theory was proposed by the ancient Greek 命名论是由古希腊学者柏拉图提出
scholar Plato. According to this theory，the linguistic forms or
的。据此理论，语言学形式和符号，换
symbols，in other words，the words used in a language are
言之，就是一门语言中所使用的词仅仅
simply labels of the objects they stand for. So words are just
names or labels for things. 是其所代表的物体的标记。所以词语只
不过是其所代表的事物的名字或标记。

(2)The limitations:
① This theory seems applicable to nouns only，but (2)局限性
verbs，adjectives，and adverbs such as ―think‖，hard‖， ① 首先，这一理论看起来仅适用
―slowly‖ are definitely not labels of objects. 于名词，而像 think、hard 和 slowly 这样
的动词、形容词和副词就绝对不是物体
的标记。
② Besides，within the category of nouns，there are
nouns which denote things that do not exist in the real world ② 另外，在名词这 一范畴之内，
such as ―ghost‖，―dragon‖，and― unicorn‖，and also nouns that 有些名词指称的是现实世界中根本就不
do not refer to physical objects. but abstract notions such as 存在的事物，如 ghost (鬼)、dragon (龙)
―joy‖，―impulse‖.
和 unicorn (独角兽)，还有一些名词并不
是 指 实物 性的物体 ，而 是指 像 joy，
2. The conceptualist view impulse 这样的抽象概念。
This conceptualist view holds that there is no direct link 2. 概念论
between a linguistic form and what it refers to (i. e. ，between 概念论认为，在语言学形式和它的
language and the real world) ；rather，in the interpretation of 所指之间并不存在直接的联系(即在语
meaning they are linked through the mediation of concepts in
the mind. 言和真实世界之间并没有直接联系);而
This is best illustrated by the classic semantic triangle or 是在意义的诠释中它们通过大脑思维中
triangle of significance suggested by Ogden and Richards: 的概念为媒介相连。
这在由奥格登和理查兹所提出的经
典语义三角或意义三角中得到极好的例
示:
概念

符号----------所指
In the diagram，the SYMBOL or FORM refers to the 在该图中，"符号"或"形式"指的是语
linguistic elements(words，phrases)，the REFERENT refers to 言学成分(单词、词组) , "所指"指的是现
the object in the world of experience, and THOUGHT or 实世界中的物体，而"思想"或"指称"是指
REFERENCE refers to concept. 概念。

Problem: the link between the symbol and the concept 问题：因为符号和概念之间确切的
remains unclarified. 联系是什么这个问题还没有得以澄清。
3. Contextualism 3. 语境论
The theory holds that meaning should be studied in 这种理论认为意义应当从场景、运
terms of situation，use，context elements closely linked with 用、语境这些与语言行为紧密相联的成
language behaviour. A representative of this approach was J. 分的角度来进行研究。这一观点的代表
R. Firthiv. 人物是约翰·鲁南特·弗斯。
意义的语境论基于这样一个假设:
人们可以从可观察的语境中推出意义，
The contextualist view of meaning is based on the 或者将意义还原至可观察的语境。已被
presumption that one can derive meaning from or reduce 人们承认的语境有两种:场景语境和语
meaning to observable contexts. Two kinds of context are 言语境。
recognized: the situational context and the linguistic context.

4. Behaviorism
4. 行为主义论
Behaviorists attempted to define the meaning of a
行为主义者试图将语言形式的意义
language form as the ―situation in which the speaker utters it
定义为"言者发出该形式的场景和它在
and the response it calls forth in the hearer. ‖(Bloomfield，
听者身上所起的反应"。(布龙菲尔德，
1933).
1933 )。

III 词汇意义
III. Lexical meaning
1. 涵义和指称
1. Sense and reference
(1) 涵义指的是语言形式的内在意义。它
(1) Sense is concerned with the inherent meaning of the
是语言形式所有特征的集合，是抽象的，
linguistic form. It is the collection of all the features of the
而且与语境无关，是词典编篡者所感兴
linguistic form；it is abstract and de-contextualized. It is the
趣的方面。
aspect of meaning dictionary compilers are interested in.
(2) 指称意指语言形式在现实的物质世
界中所指的事物;它涉及的是语言成分
(2) Reference means what a linguistic form refers to in the
和非语言的经验世界之间的关系。
real. physical world；it deals with the relationship between the
linguistic element and the non-linguistic world of experience.
▼(3) Relation of sense and reference
(3) 二者关系
【考点：名词解释&辨析—Sense 和 Reference 的区别】
The distinction between sense and reference is
涵义与指称的区别类似于内涵和外
comparable. Sense refers to the abstract properties of an
延：前者指一个实体的抽象属性，后者
entity whereas reference refers to the concrete entities having
指拥有这些属性的具体实体。在某种程
these properties. In other words, Leech‘s conceptual meaning
度上，我们可以说每个单词都有涵义，
has two sides: sense and reference. Every word has a sense, i.
即概念内容；但并非每个单词都有指称。
e. some conceptual content; but not every word has a
语法词如 and, if, but 不指称任何事物。
reference. For example, grammatical words like and, if, but
do not refer to anything.
2. 主要的意义关系
2. Major sense relations
(1) 同义关系
【重点，考点：名词解释，判断两词的涵义关系，举例】
(1) Synonymy 同义关系是指意义的相同或极为相
Synonymy refers to the sameness or close similarity of 近。意义相近的词称为同义词。
meaning. Words that are close in meaning are called ① 方言同义词 —— 不同地区方言中
synonyms.
所使用的同义词。
① Dialectal synonyms——synonyms used in different
regional dialects. E. g. autumn, fall. ② 文体同义词 —— 文体上存在差异
② Stylistic synonyms——synonyms differing in style. 的同义词。
E. g. old man，daddy，dad，father，male parent.
③ Synonyms that differ in their emotive or evaluative ③ 情感或评价意义存在差异的同义
meaning. E. g. collaborator and accomplice.
词。
④ Collocational synonyms. E. g. rotten tomatoes ，
addled eggs.
⑤ Semantically different synonyms. E. g. amaze and ④ 搭配同义词。
astound. ⑤ 语义上存在差异的同义词。
(2) Plysemy
(2) 多义关系
 The same one word may have more than one meaning. 同一个词也可能有多个意义， 这就
This is what we call polysemy，and such a word is called a 是我们所称的多义关系，这样的词就称
polysemic word. E. g. , table has seven meanings.
为多义词。如，table 有七个意思。
(3) Homonymy (3) 同音异义
① Definition：Homonymy refers to the phenomenon ① 定义：同音异义是指某些词的意
that words having different meanings have the same form，i. 义不同，但是具有相同形式的现象，即
e. ，different words are identical in sound or spelling，or in 不同的词在发音或拼写上一样，或发音
both.
和拼写都一样。
② 分类
② Classification： a)当两个词读音一样时，它们是同
音异义词。
a) When two words are identical in sound，they are
homophones. (rain／reign, night／knight, piece／peace, leak
／leek. ) b)当两个词拼写相同时，它们就是
b) When two words are identical in spelling，they are 同形异义词。
homographs. (bow v. ／bow n. , tear v. ／tear n. , lead v. ／ c)当两个词发音和拼写都相同时，
lead n. ) 它们就是完全同音同形异义词。
c) When two words are identical in both sound and
spelling, they are complete homonyms. (fast adj. ／fast v. ,
scale n／scale v. )
(4)Hyponymy (4) 上下义关系
Hyponymy refers to the sense relation between a more 上下义关系是指一个更广义、更具
general，more inclusive word and a more specific word. 有包容性的词与一个更具体的词之间的
意义关系。
The word which is more general in meaning is called the 意义更广泛的词叫上坐标词，更为
superordinate，and the more specific words are called its 具体的词称作下义词。同一个上坐标词
hyponyms. Hyponyms of the same super ordinate are 的几个下义词之间互为并列下义词。
co-hyponyms to each other，e. g.
(5) 反义关系
Superordinate: flower
Hyponyms: rose，tulip，carnation，lily，morning glory„ 反义关系一词用来指意义上的对
(5) Antonymy 立; 意义上对立的词叫反义词。
The term antonymy is used for oppositeness of ① 级差反义词：有些反义词是存在
meaning；words that are opposite in meaning are antonyms.
级差的，因为在一对词的两个词之间往
① Gradable antonyms. Some antonyms are gradable
往具有中间形式。因此，它是一个程度
because there are often intermediate forms between the two
members of a pair. So it is a matter of degree. For example, 的问题，可以用 very 修饰。
―old‖ and ―young‖. ② 互补反义词：一对互补相反词具
有否定该对中的一个词就意味着对另一
②Complementary antonyms. A pair of complementary
个的肯定的特征，不能用 very 修饰，这
antonyms is characterized by the feature that the denial of one
member of the pair implies the assertion of the other. For 是区分互补反义词与级差反义词的重要
example, ―alive‖ or ‗‗dead‖. 标准。
③ Relational opposites. Pairs of words that exhibit the ③ 关系反义词：显示两个词项之间
reversal of a relationship between the two items are called
关系颠倒的成对词被称为关系反义词。
relational opposites. For example，―husband‖ and ―wife‖.

IV. Sense relations between sentences IV. 句子之间的意义关系

【考点：分析句子之间的关系】 1. X 与 Y 同义。如，X: He was a bachelor
1. X is synonymous with Y. E. g. X: He was a bachelor all
all his life. Y: He never married all his life.
his live. Y: He never married all his life. (If X is true，Y is
true，and if X is false. Y is false). (从真值条件的角度来看，如果 X 为真，
那么 Y 也为真，如果 X 为假，那么 Y
也为假。)
2. X 与 Y 不一致。如，X: John is married.
2. X is inconsistent with Y. E. g. X: John is married. Y: John
is a bachelor. (If X is true，Y iS false，and if X is false. Y is Y: John is a bachelor. (如果 X 为真，那么
true. ) Y 为假，如果 X 为假，那么 Y 为真。)
3. X 蕴含 Y。 ( Y 是 X 的一个含义)。如，
 X: John married a blond heiress. Y: John
3. X entails Y. (Y is an entailment of X. ) E. g. X: John married a blond. (如果 X 为真，那么 Y
married a blond heiress. Y: John married a blond. (If X is
必定为真，如果 X 为假，那么 Y 可能为
true，Y is necessarily true, If X is false, Y may be true or
false. ) 真也可能为假。)
4. X 预设 Y。( Y 是 X 的先决条件)。如，
4. X presupposes Y. (Y is a prerequisite of X·) E. g. X: John’s
X: John's bike needs repairing. Y: John has
bike needs repairing. Y: John has a bike. (If X is true. Y must
be true If X is false，Y is still true. ) a bike. (如果 X 为真，那么 Y 必定为真。
如果 X 为假，那么 Y 仍然为真。)
5. X 是一个矛盾。当 X 是一个矛盾的时
5. X is a contradiction. When X is a contradiction，it is 候 ， 它 总 是 不 真 实 的 ， 例 如 : My
invariably false，e. g. My unmarried sister is married to a
unmarried sister is married to a bachelor.
bachelor.
(我的未 婚姐姐 /妹妹 嫁给了 一个单身
汉。)

6. X is semantically anomalous. E. g. The table has bad

intentions. When X is semantically anomalous, it is absurd in 6. X 语义破格。例如，The table has bad
the sense that it presupposes a contradiction. intentions. (那张桌子居心不良。) 当 X
语义破格时，它预设了一个矛盾，在意
义上它是很荒诞的。

V. 意义分析
V. Analysis of meaning
1. 成分分析 —— 分析词汇意义的一种
1. Componential analysis——a way to analyze lexical
方法
meaning
(1)背景
成分分析是由结构语义学家提出的分析
(1)Background:
Componential analysis is a way proposed by the structural 词义的方法。这个理论是基于这样一个
semanticists to analyze word meaning. The approach is based 信念: 一个词的意义能被分解成被称为
upon the belief that the meaning of a word can be dissected
语义特征的意义成分。
into meaning components，called semantic features.
(2)分析方法
(2)Analysis method： 加号和减号用来表示一个词的意义中是
Plus and minus signs are used to indicate whether a certain 否存在某一个语义特征，而且这些特征
semantic feature is present or absent in the meaning of a 符号通常用大写字母书写。例如，man
word ， and these feature symbols are usually written in
一词可以分析为是由 + HUMAN， +
capitalized letters. For example，the word ―man‘‘ is analyzed
ADULT, + ANIMATE， + MALE 这些特
as comprising the features of +HUMAN ， +ADULT ，
+ANIMATE, +MALE. 征构成的。
(3)意义
(3)Significance： 成分分析提供了一个洞察词义的方式和
Componential analysis provides an insight into the meaning
研究意义相关的词之间的关系的方法。
of words and a way to study the relation ships between words
that are related in meaning 2. 述谓结构分析 —— 分析句子意义的
一种方法
2. Predication analysis——a way to analyze sentence (1) 述谓结构的定义
meaning 述谓结构分析是由英国语言学家利
(1) Definition of predication: 奇提出的。在他的分析框架内，基本单
The predication analysis is proposed by the British 元被称为述谓结构，它是句子意义的抽
linguist G. Leechv In his framework of analysis，the basic 象。这适用于所有句子形式，包括陈述
unit is called predication，which is the abstraction of the 句、析使句和疑问句形式。
meaning of a sentence. This applies to all forms of sentence，
including statements，imperative and interrogative forms.
(2) Composition of predication: (2) 述谓结构的构成
A predication consists of argument(s) and predicate. 一个述谓结构由变元和谓词构成。
E. g. TOM (SMOKE) is the predication of these two 一个变元就是一个述谓结构的逻辑
different sentences: 参与者，在很大程度上等同于一个句子
Tom smokes. 的名词性成分。
Tom is smoking. 谓词是对变元所作的陈述，或是陈
An argument is a logical participant in a predication， 述一个句子中连接变元之间的逻辑关
largely identical with the nominal element(s)in a sentence. 系。
The argument of the example is TOM.
A predicate is something said about an argument or it
states the logical relation linking the arguments in a sentence.
In the above example, the predicate is SMOKE.
 5.2 课后习题详解

1. What are the major views concerning the study of meaning?

2. What are the major types of synonyms in English?
3. Explain with examples ―homonymy‖，―polysemy‖，and ―hyponymy‖.
4. How can words opposite in meaning be classified? To which category does each of the following pairs of antonyms
belong?
north／south
vacant／occupied
literate／illiterate
above／below
doctor／patient
wide／narrow
poor／rich
father／daughter
5. Identify the relations between the following pairs of sentences:
Tom‘s wife is pregnant. My sister will soon be divorced.
Tom has a wife. My sister is a married woman.
He likes seafood. They are going to have another baby.
He likes crabs. They have a child.
6. In what way is componential analysis similar to the analysis of phonemes into distinctive features?
7. What is grammaticality? What might make a grammatically meaningful sentence semantically meaningless?
8. Try to analyze the following sentences in terms of predication analysis:
The man sells ice-cream. Is the baby sleeping?
It is snowing. The tree grows well.

参考答案
1. (1) Naming theory: According to this theory, the linguistic forms used in a language are simply labels of the objects
they stand for. Therefore, words are just labels or names for things.
(2) Conceptualism: According to this theory, there is no direct link between a linguistic form and what it refers to, i. e.
between language and the real world; rather, a linguistic form and the thing it refers to in the real world are linked
through the mediation of concepts in the mind.
(3) Contextualism: According to this theory, meaning should be studied in terms of situation, use and context, which
are closely linked with language behavior. This theory has attracted those linguists who have been working toward
the ideal of scientific objectivity.
(4) Behaviorism: Behaviorists define the meaning of a language form as ―situation in which the speaker utters it and
the response it calls forth in the hearer‖ (Bloomfield, 1933).
This theory, somewhat close to contextualism, is linked with psychological interest.
2. Major types of synonyms in English:
(1) Dialectual synonyms are synonyms used in different regional dialects. For example, ―autumn‖ and ―fall‖ reflect the
difference between British English and American English for naming the same season.
(2) Stylistic synonyms are synonyms differing in style, such as the formal one of ―father‖ and the colloquial one of
―dad‖.
(3) Emotive synonyms are synonyms differing in their affective or evaluative meaning. For example, ―thrifty‖,
―miserly‖ and ―economical‖ are a group of words with different affective meaning.
(4) Collocational synonyms are synonyms differing in collocation. For example, ―beautiful‖ and ―handsome‖ are used
in different collocational situations. The former is used to describe women and children while the latter is used to
describe males.
(5) Semantic synonyms are semantically different. For example, ―escape‖ and ―flee‖ are different in that the former
word emphasizes on the meaning of ―get free‖ while ―flee‖ emphasizes on the meaning of ―running away‖.
3. (1) Homonymy refers to the phenomenon that words having different meanings have the same form, i. e. , different
words are identical in sound or spelling, or in both.
When two words are identical in sound, they are homophones, such as rain/reign, night/knight, piece/peace, and
leek/leak.
When two words are identical in spelling, they are homographs, such as bow v. / bow n. , tear v. / tear n. , lead v. /
 lead n.
When two words are identical in both sound and spelling, they are complete homonyms, such as fast a. / fast v.
scale n. / scale v.
(2) A same one word may have more than one meaning. This is what we call polysemy, and such a word is called a
polysemic word. Take the word ―table‖ for example, it has at least the following seven meanings:
a. a piece of furniture
b. all the people seated at the table
c. the food that is put on a table
d. a thin flat piece of stone, metal, wood, etc.
e. orderly arrangement of facts, figures, etc.
f. part of a machine tool on which the work is put to be operated on
g. a level area, a plateau
(3) Hyponymy refers to the sense relation between a more general, more inclusive word and a more specific word. The
word which is more general in meaning is called the superordinate, and the more specific words are called its
hyponyms. Hyponyms of the same superordinate are co-hyponyms to each other, e. g.
Superordinate: flower
Hyponyms: rose, tulip, carnation, lily, morning glory…
Superordinate: animal
Hyponyms: dog, cat, digger, lion, wolf, elephant, fox, bear…
Superordinate: furniture
Hyponyms: bed, table, desk, dresser, wardrobe, settee…
4. Words opposite in meaning can be classified as gradable antonyms, complementary antonyms and relational opposites.
Gradable antonyms are: literate/ illiterate, wide/ narrow, poor/ rich
Complementary antonyms are: vacant/ occupied
Relational opposites are: north/ south, above/ below, doctor/ patient, father/ daughter
5. ―Tom‘s wife is pregnant‖ presupposes ―Tom has a wife‖
―My sister will soon be divorced‖ presupposes ―My sister is a married woman‖
―He likes crabs‖ is entailed by ―He likes seafood‖
―They are going to have another baby‖ presupposes ―They have a child‖
6. They both base on the belief that the meaning of a word can be dissected into meaning components. Plus and minus
signs are used to indicate whether a certain semantic feature is present or absent in the meaning of a word, and these
feature symbols are usually written in capitalized letters.
7. Grammaticality refers to the grammatical meaning of a sentence, i. e. , its grammatical well-formedness. The
grammaticality of a sentence is governed by the grammatical rules of the language. If some sentences violate the
selectional restrictions, i. e. , constraints on what lexical items can go with what others, they may not be semantically
meaningful.
e. g. * Green clouds are sleeping furiously.
* Sincerity shook hands with the black apple.
8. The man sells ice-cream. MAN, ICE-CREAM (SELL)
Is the baby sleeping? BABY (SLEEP)
It is snowing. (BE SNOW)
The tree grows well. TREE (GROW)
 5.3 考研真题与典型题详解

I. Fill in the blanks

1 _____ is the technical name for the sameness relation. (北二外 2007 研)
2. Terms like ―apple‖, ―banana‖ and ―pear‖ are _____ of the term ―fruit‖. (北二外 2007 研)
3. ―Mary gave a book to Jack‘‘ is synonymous with ―Jack ____ a book from Mary. ‖ (北二外 2005 研)
4. Terms like ―rolling pin‖ and ―ladle‖ are ____of the term ―kitchen implements‖. (北二外 2005 研)
5. Antonyms like ―husband‖ v. ―wife‖ are ____ antonyms. (北二外 2003 研)
6. Terms like ―desk‖ and ―stool‖ are _____ of the term ―furniture‖. (北二外 2003 研)
7. ______is concerned with the inherent meaning of the linguistic form.
8. ―Charge‖ and ―accuse‖ are said to be ______synonyms.
9. Sentence meaning is the combination of the meanings of the component words and______.
10. ______opposites may be seen in terms of degrees of quality involved.
11. Predication analysis is to break down predications into their constituents:______ and______.
12. ______ sentences express judgment.
13. The sense relation between ―A lent a book to B‖ and ―B borrowed a book from A‖ is＿＿________. (北二外
2003 年研)

II. Multiple Choice

1. When the word ―root‖ means ―part of plant that keeps it firmly in the soil and absorbs water and food from the soil‖,
the meaning is ___________ meaning. (北二外 2004 研)
A. connotative
B. conceptual
C. reflected
2. deals with the relationship between the linguistic element and the non-linguistic world experience. (西安交大 2008 研)
A. Reference
B. Concept
C. Semantics
D. Sense
3. According to C. Ogden and I. Richards, ______is regarded as the crucial intermediary between ______ and ______(西
安外国语学院 2006 研)
A symbol ... referent ... thought
B. referent ... thought ... symbol
C. thought ... symbol ... referent
4. Point out which item does not fall under the same category as the rest and explain the reason in ONE sentence. (南京
大学 2007 研)
A. school/college
B. move/run
C. furniture/table
D. mature/ripe
[Focus on the type of semantic relation]
5. There are generally three kinds of sense relations recognized, sameness relation, oppositeness relation and
inclusiveness relation. They are represented by ______ respectively. (大连外国语学院 2008 研)
A. synonymy, antonymy, and hyponymy
B. synonymy, hyponymy, and antonymy
C. antonymy, synonymy, and hyponymy
6. Synonyms in English can be divided into three different categories(对外经贸 2006 研)
A noun synonym, verb synonym, adjective synonym
B dialectal synonym, stylistic synonym, relational synonym
C dialectal synonym, complementary synonym, collocational synonym
 D dialectal synonym, stylistic synonym, collocational synonym
7. By componential analysis, BECOME(x, (~ALIVE(x)))is an explanation of______. (西安外国语学院 2006 研)
A. die
B. dead
C. kill
D. killed
8. The sense relationship between ―John plays the piano‖ and ―John plays a musical instrument‖ is_________. (北二外
2004 研)
A. synonymy
B. antonymy
C. Entailment
9. ―Wide／narrow‖ is an example of＿＿. (东南大学 2002 年研)
A. gradable opposites
B. relational opposites
C. converseness
D. complementarity
10. ―Semantics is the scientific study of meaning‖ is a＿＿. (东南大学 2002 年研)
A. synonymy
B. polysemy
C. antonymy
D. tautology

III. True or False

1. In the sentence ―Money is often said to be the root of all evil‖, ―root‖ is used in its conceptual meaning. (北二外 2007
研)
2. Conceptual meaning overlaps to a large extent with the notion of ―reference‖. (北二外 2005 研)
3. When you use your own sentence with a meaning other than the conceptual, the meaning is sometimes referred to as
speaker‘s meaning, or contextual meaning. (大连外国语学院 2008 研)
4. Reference is one of the rarely used cohesive devices. (南开大学 2005 研)
5. Odgen and Richards argue that the relation between a word and a thing it refers to is not direct. (南开大学 2004 研)
6. ―Tulip‖, ―rose‖ and ―violet‖ are all included in the notion of ―flower‖. Therefore they are superordinates of
―flower‖(北二外 2006 研)

IV. Explain the following terms

1. Conceptual meaning (武汉大学 2007 研)
2. Contextual meaning(浙江大学 2005 研)
3. Semantic Triangle (大连外国语学院 2008 研)
4. Sense relations (北京交通大学 2006 研)
5. Lexical relations (上海交大 2006 研)
6. Homonymy(上海交大 2007 研)
7. Hyponymy (武汉大学 2005 研)
8. Synonymy(西交大学 2008 研)
9. Gradable antonym (人大 2006 研)
10. Entailment(武汉大学 2006 研)
11. Presupposition
12. Predication analysis (中山大学 2000 年、湖南师范大学 2003 年研)

V. Short answer questions

1. What are the three kinds of antonyms? (武汉大学 2004 研)
2. Comment briefly on the British linguist Palmer‘s argument that ―there is no absolute distinction between gradable
 antonyms and complementary antonyms. We can treat male/female, married/single, alive/dead as gradable antonyms
on occasions. Someone can be very male or more married and certainly more dead than alive. (武汉大学 2006 研)
3. What is your opinion on ―true synonymy is non-existent‖? (四川大学 2006 研)
4. What is one obvious presupposition of the speaker who says: (上海交大 2006 研)
(a) Where did he buy the beer?
(b) Your watch is broken.
5. What is reference?
6. What is contextualism?
7. What is entailment? What are the sources of entailment?

VI. Essay questions

1. Discuss sense, denotation and reference, using Chinese examples to illustrate your points. (20 points) (北外 2008 研)
2. Words are in different sense relations with each other. What sense relation is illustrated in each of the pairs of words
below? Add one more example to each pair. (北航 2008 研)
(a) casual-informal
(b) intelligent-stupid
(c) steal-steel
(d) animal-dog
3. What are the major types of synonyms? (西安外国语学院 2006 研)
4. The British linguist F. R. Palmer argues that ―there is no absolute distinction between [gradable antonyms and
complementary antonyms]. ‖ Do you believe so? Support your view with examples. (南开大学 2007 研)
5. Discuss five kinds of lexical relations, using English examples to illustrate your points. (北外 2008 研)
6. Advantages and Disadvantages of Componential Analysis. (北京交通大学 2005 研)
7. Consider the following statements. When do we say Statement A entails Statement B? When do we say Statement A
presupposes Statement B? Does Statement A necessarily entail Statement C? Why? Do Statements A and D both
presuppose Statement B? Why? (南京大学 2008 研)
A. Jack’s brother has gone bankrupt.
B. Jack has a brother.
C. Jack’s sibling has gone bankrupt.
D. Jack’s brother has not gone bankrupt.
8．What is the relationship between sentence meaning and word meaning? Give examples.
9. Comment on the following observation in about 150 words. (武汉大学 2010 研)
―The meaning of a word is not an unanalysable whole. ‖
10. Some of the sets of terms below form semantic fields. For each set:
(1) Identify the words that do not belong to the same semantic field as the others in the set.
(2) Identify the superordinate term of the remaining semantic field, if there is one (it may be a word in the set).
(3) Determine whether some terms are less marked than others, and justify your claim.
a. acquire, buy, collect, hoard, win, inherit, steal
b. whisper, talk, narrate, report, tell, harangue, scribble, instruct, brief
c. road, path, barn, way, street, freeway, avenue, thoroughfare, interstate, method
d. stench, smell, reek, aroma, bouquet, odoriferous, perfume, fragrance, scent, olfactory
11. Identify which of the following may be considered to have or to be homographs, homophones, homonyms or
polysemy:
sea break line ear prayer mature trace house
12. What are the differences between less marked and more marked terms in the same semantic field?
13. For each group of words given below, state what semantic feature or features distinguish between the classes of (a)
words and (b) wo. ds. If asked, also indicate a semantic feature shared by both the (a) words and the (b) words.
Example: a. widow, mother, sister, aunt, maid
b. widower, father, brother uncle, valet
The (a) and (b) words are "human".
 The (a) words are "female" and the (b) words are "male".
(1) a. bachelor, man, son, paperboy, pope, chief
b. bull, rooster, drake, ram
The (a) and (b) words are
The (a) words are
The (b) words are
(2) a. ask, tell, say, talk, converse
b. shout, whisper, mutter, drawl, holler
The (a) and (b) words are
The (a) words are
The (b) words are
(3) a. walk, run, skip, jump, hop, swim
b. fly, skate, ski, ride, cycle, canoe, hang-glide
The (a) and (b) words are
The (a) words are
The (b) words are

参考答案及解析
I. Fill in the blanks
1. Synonymy
(同义关系是相同关系的专业术语，完全的同义关系是很少的。所谓的同义词都是依赖语境的，它们总是在这方
面或那方面有所不同。)
2. Hyponyms
(上下义关系是指意义内包关系或者说一种类和成员间的关系。)
3. Receive
(参考“同义词”的定义。)
4. Hyponyms
(“擀面杖”和“勺子”都属于“厨房用具”的下义词。)
5. Converse
(反向反义关系是反义关系的一种特殊类型，典型地表现在两两相对的社会角色、亲属关系、时间和空间等方面；
丈夫与妻子的关系属于此种反义关系。)
6. (co-)hyponyms
(在上下义关系中，一个坐标词通常有很多下义词。同类中的成员叫做同下义词。题中 “桌子”和“凳子”都
是“家具”的下义词。)
7. Sense
(涵义是指语言形式的内在意义。)
8. collocational
(搭配近义词。)
9. the meaning of its structure
(句子意思是成分单词和其结构的意义色结合。)
10. Gradable
(等级对立设计质量级别。)
11. argument; predicate
(论元和谓词。)
12. Declarative
(宣告性句子表达一种判断。)
13. synonym
 (两句话是一个意思，两句子的关系是同义关系。)
II. Multiple Choice
1. B (概念意义是语用学术语。)
2. A (指称的含义。)
3. A (语义三角。)
4. C (C 组是上下义关系，其他是同义关系。)
5. A (同义，反义和上下义。)
6. D (同义词的三种类型。)
7. A (注意词性和状态。)
8. C (两句是包含关系。)
9. A (宽和窄是相对的概念，有层级。)
10. D (用 ‖对意义的科学研究― 解释 ‖语义学― 属于同义反复。)
III. True or False1.
1. F (是 reflected meaning。)
2. T (概念意义在指称之上。)
3. T (句子的意义。)
4. F (指称是常用的连贯的手法。)
5. T (语义三角。)
6. F (是―flower‖的下义词。)
IV. Explain the following terms
1. Conceptual meaning, which makes up the central meaning of a word, refers to logical, cognitive or denotative content.
For example, the conceptual meaning of the word ―chair‖ could be ―a piece of furniture consisting of a seat, legs, back,
and often arms, designed to accommodate one person‖.
2. Contextual meaning. It is also called speaker‘s meaning, or utterance meaning, which is more closely related to the
context. For example, when a person says ―My bag is heavy‖, what he actually means may be asking the hearer to help
him carry the bag.
3. Ogden and Richards presented the classic ―Semantic Triangle‖ as manifested in the following diagram, in which the
―symbol‖ or ―form‖ refers to the linguistic elements (word, sentence, etc. ), the ―referent‖ refers to the object in the
world of experience, and ―thought‖ or ―reference‖ refers to concept or notion. According to this view, there is no direct
link between symbol and referent, that is, between language and the world. the link is via thought, the concept in our
minds.
Thought (concept)

Symbol----------Referent
(the word) (the object)
4. Sense relations: Words are in different sense relations with each other, and there are mainly three types of sense
relations:
(a) Synonymy, which refers to the sameness or close similarity of meaning. For example, buy and purchase.
(b) Antonymy, used for the oppositeness relation. Under this heading, there are generally three sub-types: gradable
antonymy, complementary antonymy, and converse antonymy.
(c) Hyponymy, which in fact is a matter of class membership. The word which is more general in meaning is called the
superordinate, while the more specific word is called hyponym.
5. 参见“5. 1 复习笔记 III. Lexical meaning 2. Major sense relations” 。
6. In any language there are words which have the same linguistic form but are different in meaning. These words are
called homonyms. For example, bank (of a river), and bank (financial institution).
7. Hyponymy. It refers to the sense relationship between a more general, more inclusive and a more specific word. The
word which is more general in meaning is called the superordiante, and the more specific words are called its
hyponyms. For example, the hyponymy relationship could be established between ―animal‖ and ―rabbit‖.
8. Synonymy is the technical name for the sameness relation. Two or more forms with very closely related meanings are
 synonyms, which are often, but not always, intersubstitutable in sentences. For example, in English ―hide‖ and
―conceal‖ in: ―He hid the money under the bed. ‖ and ―He concealed the money under the bed. ‖ Often one word may
be more appropriate than another in a particular situation, e. g. ―conceal‖ is more formal than ―hide‖.
9. Gradable antonym. Gradable antonyms are antonyms that are gradable because there are often intermediate forms
between the two members of a pair. For example, cold and warm constitute a pair of gradable antonyms.
10. Entailment. It refers to the relation between propositions one of which necessarily follows from the other. If X is true,
Y is necessarily true, and if X is false, Y may be true or false. For example, The sentence ―He has been to France‖
entails ―He has been to Europe‖.
11. A presupposition is a proposition (expressed in a sentence) that is assumed to be true in order to judge the truth or
falsity of another sentence. For example, John didn’t pass chemistry presupposes that John took chemistry.
12. Predication analysis: Predication analysis is an important step in the analysis of sentential meaning. The predication
is the common category shared by propositions, questions, commands, etc. Such analysis is to break down the
sentence into its smaller constituents: argument and predicate. The predicate is the major or pivotal element
governing the argument. The argument is the logical participant.
V. Short answer questions
1. The three kinds of antonyms are gradable antonyms, complementary antonyms and converse antonyms.
Gradable antonyms refer to antonyms that differ in terms of degree. For example, good and bad.
Complementary antonyms are a pair of antonyms complementary to each other: not only the assertion of one
means the denial of the other; the denial of one also means the assertion of the other. For example, male and female.
Converse antonyms do not constitute a positive-negative opposition; they only show the reversal of a
relationship between two entities. For example, husband and wife.
2. In fact, pairs like male/female, married/single, alive/dead are still complementary antonyms even though expressions
like very male, more married, more dead than alive occur. To say someone is very male does not mean there is
intermediate term between male and female, what it actually means is that someone is very manly. And the
expressions more married, more dead than alive are not true comparatives, for example, more dead than alive could
only used for somebody who is still alive.
3. Generally speaking, synonyms are the words which have different forms but similar meaning. There are several types
of synonyms: dialectal synonyms, such as lift/elevator, flat/apartment; synonyms of different styles, as shown
in gentleman/guy; synonyms of different registers, such as salt/sodium chloride; synonyms differing in affective
meaning, such as attract/seduce; synonyms differing in collocation, such as beautiful/handsome, able/capable.
4. (a) One obvious presupposition of the sentence ―Where did he buy the beer‖ should be ―He has some beer‖.
(b) One obvious presupposition of the sentence ―Your watch is broken‖ should be ―You have a watch‖.
5. Reference means what a linguistic form refers to in the real, physical world; it deals with the relationship between
linguistic elements and non-linguistic world of experience.
Reference in its wider sense would be the relationship between a word or phrase and an entity in the external
world. For example, the word tree refers to the object ―tree‖.
Reference in its narrower sense is the relationship between a word or phrase and a specific object, e. g. a
particular tree or a particular animal. For example, Peter’ s horse would refer to a horse which is owned, ridden by, or
in some way associated with Peter.
6. Contextualism is based on the presumption that one can derive meaning from, or reduce it to, observable context—the
situational context and the linguistic context. Every utterance occurs in a particular spatio-temporal situation, and the
following factors are related to the situational context: (1)the speaker and the hearer; (2) the actions they are
performing at the time; (3) various external objects and events; (4) deictic features. The linguistic context considers
the probability of one word‘s co-occurrence or collocation with another, which forms part of the meaning, and an
important factor in communication.
7. Entailment is basically a semantic relation (or logical implication). If sentence A entails sentence B, it must observe
that, in terms of truth value, when sentence A is true, sentence B must be also true; when sentence B is false, sentence
A must also be false, and that when sentence B is true, sentence A may be true or false.
The source of entailment may be lexical or syntactical. Lexical source of entailment can be shown in the
example like,
 (a) The anarchist assassinated the emperor.
(b) The emperor died.
The relationship of entailment between (a) and (b) derives from the lexical relationship between assassinate and
die. In some sense the meaning of assassinate contains the meaning of die.
Other sources for entailment are syntactic: for example, active and passive versions of the same sentence will
entail one another. Sentences below show this well:
(c) The Etruscans built this tomb.
(d) This tomb was built by Etruscans.
VI. Essay questions
1. Sense is concerned with the inherent meaning of the linguistic expression. It is the collection of all the features of the
linguistic form; it is abstract and de-contextualized. It is the aspect of meaning dictionary compilers are interested in.
For example, the word ―狗‖ in Chinese is given the definition of ―哺乳动物，种类很多，听觉嗅觉都很敏锐，善于
看守门户，有的可以训练成军犬、警犬‖. This does not refer to any particular dog that exists in the real world, but
applies to any animal that meets the features described in the definition. So this is the sense of the word dog.
Reference means what a linguistic expression refers to in the real, physical world; it deals with the relationship
between the linguistic element and the non-linguistic world of experience. If we say ―这只狗真可爱‖, we must be
talking about a certain dog existing in the situation; the word ―狗‖ here refers to a dog known to both the speaker and
the hearer. This is the reference of the word ―狗‖ in this particular situation.
Denotation refers to the relationship between an expression and its extension. The term extension of an
expression is the set of things which could be possibly be the referent of that expression. So the extension of the word
―狗‖ is ―所有种类的狗‖. Thus, the relationship between the word ―狗‖ and ―所有种类的狗‖ is denotation, that is,
the word ―狗‖ denotes ―所有种类的狗‖.
Furthermore, the differences between the three terms are discussed as follows.
Sense and reference are two different but related aspects of meaning. Two expressions may refer to the same
referent but have different senses. For example, in sentences ―1949 年 10 月 1 日，毛泽东在天安门城楼上宣布：今
天，中华人民共和国成立了！‖ and ―1949 年 10 月 1 日，那位伟大的领袖在天安门城楼上宣布：今天，中华人
民共和国成立了！‖, expressions ―毛泽东‖ and ―那位伟大的领袖‖ refer to the same person (have the same referent)
but with different senses. There is also another difference between sense and reference. To some extent, all words
have senses, but not every word has a referent. Some words like ―和‖, ―但是‖, ―假如‖, ―的‖ do not refer to anything.
Therefore, the meaning if an expression will arise both from its sense and its reference.
Both reference and denotation refer to the relationship between a linguistic expression and the world, but there
are also differences. Denotation refers to the relationship between a linguistic expression and a set of possible
referents of that expression in the world; while reference is used for the relationship between a linguistic expression
and a particular entity in the world. For example, in the sentence ―一只云鹊飞进了房间‖, the expression ―一只云
鹊‖ refers to the lark in that particular situation, while denotes to the whole class ―鸟‖. Another difference is that
denotation is a stable relationship in a language which is not dependent on any one use of a word. Reference, on the
other hand is a moment by moment relationship: what entity somebody refers to by using the word ―云雀‖ depends
on the situation.
(本题考查意义、所指和外延。先给出各自的定义，并举例；再阐释它们之间的不同，并举例说明。)
2. The sense relation of (a) is synonymy. The two words ―casual‖ and ―informal‖ have similar meaning. One more
example of synonym: ―buy‖ and ―purchase‖.
(b) is a pair of antonym. The two words have opposite meaning. There are three main sub-type for antonymy,
namely gradable antonymy, complementary antonymy and converse antonymy. (b) is the first type. Another example
for antonymy: ―good‖ and ―bad‖.
―Steal‖ and ―steel‖ are a pair of homonym, which have the same pronunciation but different meanings. One more
example for ―homonym‖: ―no‖ and ―know‖.
―Animal‖ and ―dog‖ have a sense relation of hyponymy, in which ―animal‖ is a superordinate while ―dog‖ a
hyponym. One more example: ―bird‖ and ―lark‖.
(本题考查词汇之间的意义关系，分析并举例。)
3. 参见“5. 2 课后习题详解题 2” 。
 4. I would prefer not to agree with this argument that there is no absolute distinction between gradable antonyms and
complementary antonyms. The common way to distinguish gradable antonyms and complementary antonyms could
be to see the forms they could occur: adjective gradable antonyms could be modified by ―very‖, and could have
comparative forms and superlative forms; while the complementary counterparts could not. For example, we could
say ―very warm‖, ―warmer‖, but we could not say ―very absent‖ or ―more absent‖ (absent here is opposed to present).
The expressions with ―very‖ or ―more‖ modifying complementary antonyms are in fact not true comparatives
and have a clear indication of either this one or the other one in the pair of complementary antonyms. For example,
expression like He is more dead than alive actually means ―It is more correct to say that he is dead than to say he is
alive‖. And this sentence could only be used when he is still alive; after all we do not say someone is more dead than
other.
5. 参见“5. 1 复习笔记 III. Lexical meaning 2. Major sense relations” 。
(本题考查词义关系。任选五种进行描述，并举例说明。)
6. The componential analysis is a way to analyze the lexical meaning, which treats the meaning of a word as a composite
of some smaller semantic units, which are called semantic components, or semantic features.
One advantage of componential analysis is that by specifying the semantic features of certain words, it will be
possible to show how these words are related in meaning. For example, the two words ―man‖ and ―woman‖ share the
features of +HUMAN, + ADULT, and + ANIMATE, but differ in the features of MALE. Additionally, the sense
relations could be better accounted for. Two words, or two expressions, which have the same semantic components,
will be synonymous with each other; words which have a contrasting component are antonyms; and words which have
all the semantic components of another are hyponyms of the latter.
The semantic components are also able to explain sense relations between sentences, for example, the
contradictory relationship, and the entailing relationship.
However, as have been found, there are also difficulties in the approach to analyze the meaning of a word in
terms of semantic components. First, many words are polysemous. They have more than one meaning; consequently
they will have different sets of semantic components. Second, some semantic components are seen as binary
taxonomies. However, sometimes the distinction to differentiate two semantic components such as ―ADULT‖ and
―YOUNG‖ is rather vague. Third, apart from the neatly organized parts of the vocabulary, there are words whose
semantic components are difficult to ascertain. For example, the semantic components themselves, like HUMAN,
ADULT, are not ordinary words of English; they belong to a meta-language. To someone who does not know the
meta-language, the semantic components explain nothing.
7. A truth-based approach is a good way to characterize the semantic relations of entailment and presupposition. In a
truth-based definition of entailment, a sentence p entails a sentence q when the truth of the first (p) guarantees the truth
of the second (q), and the falsity of the second guarantees the falsity of the first. Thus, when we examine Statement A
and Statement B here, suppose the result is like this: if A is true, B is also true; if B is false, A is also false, then we can
say A entails B. However, the result is the opposite. The true result we find is: if A (Jack‘s brother has gone bankrupt. )
is true, B (Jack has a brother. ) is true; if B (Jack has a brother. ) is false, A (Jack‘s brother has gone bankrupt. ) fails,
that is, if Jack has no brother, how can A (Jack‘s brother has gone bankrupt. ) be judged? Is it false? Is it in grey area,
neither true nor false? If A is false, then A entails B; but if we can not judge, we can not say A entails B.
If we view presupposition as a truth relation, then: if p is true, q is also true; if p is false, q is still true; if q is true,
p could be either true or false; if q is false, no truth value can be said about p. Adopting this approach, we find the
relation between Statement A and Statement B here is: if A (Jack‘s brother has gone bankrupt. ) is true, B (Jack has a
brother. ) is true; if A (Jack‘s brother has gone bankrupt. ) is false, B (Jack has a brother. ) is still true; if B (Jack has a
brother. ) is true, A (Jack‘s brother has gone bankrupt. ) can be either true or false; if B (Jack has a brother. ) is false,
we can not say anything true or false about A (Jack‘s brother has gone bankrupt. ). Therefore, from the above analysis,
the conclusion we get here is A presupposes B.
No, Statement A not necessarily entails Statement B here, because the word “sibling” does not necessarily
have all the semantic components of “brother”. Entailment is concerned with the meaning of the sentence itself. It
does not depend on the context in which a sentence is used. Therefore, the context what Jack has is brother or sister is
not necessarily taken into consideration. Just in terms of semantic meaning, the word ―sibling‖ means “a brother or
sister”. A brother? Or a sister? If it refers to a brother, we can say that Statement A entails Statement B; but if it refers
 to a sister, the semantic relation between A and B will fail to be an entailment.
Yes, statements A and D both presuppose Statement B. Statement D is the negation of Statement A. According the
above analysis about presupposition, we have already drawn the conclusion that Statement A presupposes Statement
B. , so both the truth and falsity of Statement A can prove the truth of Statement B, that is to say, both Statement A and
D can prove the truth of Statement B. Therefore, it is undoubtedly that Statement D also presupposes Statement B.
8. The meaning of sentence is supposed to be the combination of word meaning and sentence structure. Sentences using
the same words may mean quite differently in that the words are arranged in different orders. For example,
(a) The man chased the dog.
(b) The dog chased the man.
Even when two sentences mean similarly as (c) and (d), there is still difference in thematic meaning:
(c) I‘ve already seen that film.
(d) That film I‘ve already seen.
With sentences like (e), we need not only know the linear order of a sentence, hut also the hierarchical structure:
(e) The son of Pharaoh‘s daughter is the daughter of Pharaoh‘s son.
The hierarchical structure may be analyzed as the following:

Sentences also exhibit meaning properties and relations that words and phrases may lack. Communicative
potential is one point in case. A diagram for this may be as follows:
(f) Declarative sentence→Used to constate (assert, state, claim, etc. )
(g) Imperative→Used to direct (order, request, command, etc. )
(h) Interrogative→Used to question
9. (1) On the analogy of distinctive features in phonology, some linguists suggest that there are semantic features or
semantic components. Componential analysis is a way proposed by the structural semanticists to analyze word
meaning. This is based on the belief that there are semantic units smaller than the meaning of a word, that is to
say the meaning of a word can be dissected into meaning components, called semantic features or properties. The
analysis breaks down the meaning of the word into these features, and it is these features that distinguish word
meaning. Since it is economical, componential analysis gives a better account for sense relations and those
between sentences.
(2)Plus and minus signs are used to indicate whether a certain semantic feature is present or absent in the meaning of
a word, and these feature symbols are written in capitalized letters. For example, the meaning of the word boy
can may be analyzed into +HUAMN, -ADULT, +MALE.
10. (1) a. hoard (all other words are indicating ―the way one gets sth. ‖)
b. scribble (all other words concern about ―manner in talking‖ while scribble is a ―manner of writing‖)
c. barn (all other words relates to ―way‖. )
d. olfactory (all other words are a kind of ―smell‖, while olfactory is the organ of smelling)
(2) a. ―acquire/get‖; b. ―tell/say‖; c. ―way‖; d. ―smell‖.
(3) Yes, there are words which are less marked than other words. Let‘s take group c for example: words like road,
path, way, street and method are less marked than words like freeway, avenue, thoroughfare, and interstate. The
less marked members of a semantic field will usually be easier to learn and remember than more marked members.
Typically, a less marked word consists of only one morpheme, in contrast to more marked words. The less marked
member of a semantic field cannot be described by using the name of another member of the same field, for
instance, method cannot be replaced by street.
11. Homographs: break n. /break v. line n. /line v. ear n. /ear v.
Homophones: sea/see
Homonyms: break n. /break v. line n. /line v. ear n. /ear v.
Polysemy: sea, mature, trace, house.
12. The differences between less marked words and marked words in a semantic field are:
The less marked members of a semantic field will usually be easier to learn and remember than more marked
 members. Typically, a less marked word consists of only one morpheme, in contrast to more marked words. The less
marked member of a semantic field cannot be described by using the name of another member of the same field; while
more marked words can be thus described. Less marked words also tend to be used more frequently in conversation
and writing. Besides, less marked words are also often broader in meaning than more marked terms. Finally, less
marked words are not the result of the metaphorical usage of the name of another object or concept, whereas more
marked words often are.
13. (1) a. bachelor, man, son, paperboy, pope, chief
b. bull, rooster, drake, ram
The (a) and (b) words are ―male living/animate things‖
The (a) words are ―human beings‖
The (b) words are ―animals‖
(2) a. ask, tell, say, talk, converse
b. shout, whisper, mutter, drawl, holler
The (a) and (b) words are ―speaking‖
The (a) words are ―reciprocal‖
The (b) words are ―alone‖
(3) a. walk, run, skip, jump, hop, swim
b. fly, skate, ski, ride, cycle, canoe, hang-glide
The (a) and (b) words are ―sports‖
The (a) words are ―done with one‘s body‖
The (b) words are ―done with instruments‖
 第 6 章 语用学

6.1 复习笔记

本章要点：
1. Speech act theory
言语行为理论
2. Cooperative principle and its maxims
合作原则及其准则
3. Gricean theory of conversational implicature
格赖斯会话含义理论

本章考点：
语用学的定义；语义学与语用学的区别；语境与意义；言语行为理论(发话行为、行事行为和取效行为)；合作
原则。实例分析言语行为、合作原则的违反和会话含义。

本章内容索引：
I. Pragmatics
1. Definition
2. Pragmatics vs. semantics
3. Context
4. Sentence meaning vs. utterance meaning
II. Speech act theory
1. Austin‘s model of speech acts
2. Searle‘s classification of speech acts
3. Indirect speech acts
III. Principle of conversation
1. Cooperative Principle and its Maxims
2. Violation of the Maxims
IV. Conversational Implicature
1. Definition
2. Characteristics of Conversational Implicature
(1) Calculability.
(2) Cancellability
(3) Non-detachability
(4) Non-conventionality.
V. Cross-cultural Pragmatic Failure

I. Pragmatics I. 语用学
【考点：名词解释，与语义学的关系】
1. Definition 1. 定义
It is the study of how speakers of a language use 它是研究某一语言的言者是如何
sentences to effect successful communication. 利用句子成功进行交际的。
2. Relation between pragmatics vs. semantics 2. 语用学与语义学的关系
(1)Once the notion of context was taken into (1)一旦将语境的概念考虑在内，语
consideration, semantics spilled over into pragmatics. 义学就变成了语用学。
(2)What essentially distinguishes semantics and (2)语义学和语用学的本质区别在
pragmatics is whether in the study of meaning the context of 于在意义的研究中是否将运用的语境
use is considered. 考虑在内。
(3)If it is not considered，the study is confined to the area (3)如果不加以考虑，那么研究就仅
of traditional semantics；if it is considered，the study is being 限于传统语义学的领域；如果考虑在
carried out in the area of pragmatics 内，那么研究就是在语用学的领域内进
3. Context 行的。
(1)Definition： 3. 语境
It is generally considered as constituted by the (1) 定义
knowledge shared by the speaker and the hearer. Various 一般认为它是由言者和听者的共
components of shared knowledge have been identified, e. g. 享知识构成的。共享知识的各种成分已
knowledge of the language. they use，knowledge of what has 被确认，如他们所使用的语言知识，以
been said before，knowledge about the world in general， 前所说过的事物的知识，有关世界的总
knowledge about the specific situation in which linguistic 体的知识，有关语言交际产生的具体场
communication is taking place，and knowledge about each 景的知识和对彼此的了解。
other.
(2)Significance: (2) 意义
Context determines the speaker‘s use of language and 语境决定着言者对语言的运用和
also the hearer‘s interpretation of what is said to him. Without 听者对他所听到的话语的理解。没有这
such knowledge ， linguistic communication would not be 种知识，语言交际就不可能。而且不考
possible，and without considering such knowledge，linguistic 虑这种知识， 从语用含义的角度来看，
communication cannot be satisfactorily accounted for in a 语言交际就不可能得到满意的解释。
pragmatic sense.
4. Sentence meaning vs. utterance meaning 4. 句子意义与话语意义
While the meaning of a sentence is abstract and 一个句子的意义是抽象的、非语境
de-contextualized，that of an utterance is concrete and context 化的，而话语的意义却是具体的、依赖
dependent. The meaning of an utterance is based on sentence 于语境的。语话的意义是基于句子意义
meaning: it is the realization of the abstract meaning of a 之上的;它是一个句子的抽象意义在一
sentence in a real situation of communication，or simply in a 个真实的交际场合，或仅在一个语境中
context. 的体现。

II. Speech act theory II. 言语行为理论

【重点，考点：名词解释，区分，举例】 1. 奥斯汀的言语行为模式
1. Austin‘s model of speech actsvi 根据奥斯汀的模式，言者可以在说
According to Austin‘s model ， a speaker might be 话的时候同时执行三个动作: 言内行
performing three acts simultaneously when speaking: 为、言外行为和言后行为。
locutionary act，illocutionary act，and perlocutionary act. (1)言内行为就是发出词、短语、
(1)A locutionary act is the act of uttering words，phrases， 从句的动作。它是通过句法、词汇和音
clauses. It is the act of conveying literal meaning by means of 位学的方式来传达字面意义的行为。
syntax, lexicon and phonology. (2)言外行为是表达言者意图的行
(2)An illocutionary act is the act of expressing the 为，是在说话的过程中执行的动作。
speaker‘s intention: it is the act performed in saying
something. (3)言后行为是由说某事或因为说
(3)A perlocutionary act is the act performed by or 某事而执行的动作;它是由话语所引起
resulting from saying something；it is the consequence of，or 的后果或变化是由说某事而执行的动
the change brought about by the utterance；it is the act 作。
performed by saying something.
2. Searle‘s classification of speech acts 2. 舍尔对言语行为的分类
According to Searle，speech acts all into five general 根据舍尔的观点，语言行为分为五
categories，i. e. ，there are five general types of things we do 大范畴，即我们运用语言有五种方式。
with language. Specific acts that fall into each type share the 每一类中的具体行为都具有相同的言
same illocutionary point，but differ in their strength. 外之意，但是它们的力度有所有不同。
(1)representatives: stating or describing，saying what the (1)阐述类: 陈述或描述，说出言者
speaker believes to be true. (The illocutionary point of the 认为正确的东西。(阐述类的言外之意
representatives is to commit the speaker to something‘s being 是要言者承诺某事是这样，承诺所说的
the case, to the truth of what has been said. Stating，believing， 话为真。陈述、相信、发誓、假设都是
swearing，hypothesizing are among the most typical of the 最为典型的阐述类词。)
representatives. )E. g. , (I swear) I have never seen the man
before.
(2)directives: trying to get the hearer to do something. (2)指令类: 试图让听者来做某事。
(Directives are attempts by the speaker to get the hearer to do (指令类是言者让听者做某事的企图。
something. Inviting ， suggesting ， requesting ， advising ， 邀请、建议、要求、忠告、警告、威胁、
warning，threatening，ordering are all specific instances of this 命令都是这一类别中具体的例子。)
class. ) E. g. , Open the window!
(3)commissives: committing the speaker himself to some (3)承诺类: 言者已对某个未来的
future course of action. ( Commissives are those illocutionary 行为作出许诺。(承诺类是那些言者对
acts whose point is to commit the speaker to some future 未来行为过程作出承诺的言外行为，即
course of action，i. e. when speaking the speaker puts himself 在说话的时候，言者将自己置于了某种
under a certain obligation. Promising，undertaking，vowing are 义务之中。允诺、保证、发誓都是最典
the most typical cases. ) E. g. , I promise to come. 型的例子。)
(4)expressives: expressing feelings or attitude towards an (4)表达类: 表达对存在的状态的
existing state. (The illocutionary point of expressives is to 感情或观点。(表达类的言外行为是指
express the psycho—·logical state specified in the utterance. 在该话语中详细表达心理-逻辑状态。
The speaker is expressing his feelings or attitude towards an 言者是在表达对现存事物状态的感情
existing state of affairs ， e. g. apologizing ， thanking ， 或者态度。例如道歉、感谢、祝愿。)
congratulating. ) E. g. , I am sorry for the mess I have made.
(5)declarations: bringing about immediate changes by (5)宣告类: 通过说某事带来立刻
saying something. (―Declarations‖ has the characteristic that 的变化。("宣告类"的特征是:这种行为
the successful performance of an act of this type brings about 的成功执行会带来所说的话与现实之
the correspondence between what is said and reality. ) E. g. , I 间的一致。)
fire you!
3. Indirect Speech acts 3. 间接言语行为
According to Searle, when a speaker is using indirect 瑟尔认为，说话人使用间接语言
language, he is performing two speech acts simultaneously: 时，他是在执行两种言语行为：主要
one is the primary speech act and the other is the second 行为和次要行为。主要行为是说话人
speech act. The primary one is the speaker's goal of 的交流目标，次要行为是为达到目标
communication and the second one is the means by which he 所使用的方式。
achieves his goal.

III. Principle of conversation III. 会话原则

【重点，考点：名词解释，判断】 1. 合作原则及其准则
1. Cooperative Principle and its Maxims 格赖斯提出的合作原则(CP)，如下
The Cooperative Principle，abbreviated as CP is proposed 阐述：
by Paul Grice. It goes as follows: “使你所说的话，在其所发生的阶
Make your conversational contribution such as required 段，符合你所参与的交谈的公认目标或
at the stage at which it occurs by the accepted purpose or 方向。
”
direction of the talk exchange in which you are engaged. 在这个大原则下有四条准则，它们
分别为数量、质量、关系和方式准则。
To be more specific，there are four maxims under this
general principle:

The maxim of quantity 数量准则

1. Make your contribution as informative as is required 1. 使你的话语提供(为达到交谈的
(for the current purpose of the exchange). 当前目)所要求的充分信息。
2. Do not make your contribution more informative than 2. 不要使你的话语多出要求的信
is required. 息。
 The maxim of quality 质量准则
1. Do not say what you believe to be false. 1. 不要讲明知是虚假的话。
2. Do not say that for which you lack adequate evidence. 2. 不要说没有足够证据的话。

The maxim of relation 关系准则

Be relevant. 所谈内容要密切相关。

The maxim of manner 方式准则

1. Avoid obscurity of expression. 1. 避免含糊不清。
2. Avoid ambiguity. 2. 避免歧义。
3. Be brief(avoid unnecessary prolixity) 3. 要简练(避免冗长)。
4. Be orderly. 4. 要有序。

2. Violation of the Maxims 2. 对会话原则的违反

【重点，考点：分析】 使用原则和准则这两个术语,并不
The use of terms ―principle‖ and ―maxim‖ does not mean 是说每个人一直遵守合作原则及其四
that everybody will follow the CP and its maxims all the time. 条准则。人们会违反准则,会撒谎。也因
People do violate the maxims and tell lies. And the violations 为如此而产生了会话含义。以下是违反
of such maxims have given rise to the Conversational 合作原则具体准则的几种情况。
Implicature. The following provides different circumstances of
the violation of cooperative principle and its maxims.
① Violation of the Maxim of Quantity; ① 违反数量准则；
—When is Susan‘s birthday party?
—Sometime next week. [Refuse to say the exact time. ]
—We‘ll all miss Bill and Jane, won‘t we?
—Well, we‘ll all miss Bill. [We didn‘t miss Jane. ]
Tautology 同义反复句
e. g. War is war. [War is cruel. ]
② Violation of the Maxim of Quality; ② 违反质量准则；
(tell lies; rhetoric device)
e. g. He is made of iron. (Metaphor) [He has some
properties similar to those of iron. ]
She is the cream in my coffee. [She is really very
important to me, and I can‘t stand the life without her. ] ③ 违反关系准则；
③ Violation of the Maxim of Relation;
—How do you like my painting?
—I‘m afraid I don‘t have an eye for beauty, [I don‘t like
it at all. ]
—What do you think of the party?
—I thought the party we had was too big. [The party was
dull or boring. ] ④ 违反方式准则。
④ Violation of the Maxim of Manner.
—Where is your mother?
—She‘s either in her room or at the market. [I don‘t now
exactly where she is. ]
IV. Conversational Implicature
According to Grice, it refers to the extra meaning not IV. 会话含义
contained in the utterance, but understandable to the listener 根据格赖斯的理论，会话含义指不
only when he shares the speaker‘s knowledge or he knows 包含在话语之内的额外意义。这种额外
why and how he violates intentionally one of the four maxims 意义只有当听话者和说话者具有共同
of CP. 知识，或听话者知道说话者为什么和如
何有意违背会话合作原则中的某一准
V Cross-cultural Pragmatic Failure 则时，才是可以理解的。
Pragmatic failure occurs when the speaker fails to use V 跨文化语用错误
language effectively to achieve a particular purpose, or when 语用错误表现在两种情况，一种是
the hearer fails to recognize the intention of the speaker's 当说话者不能用有效的语言达到某种
utterance. There are two kinds of pragmatic failure: 目的，另一种是听者不能正确地识别说
pragmalinguistic failure and sociolinguistic failure. 话者的说话意图。语用错误包括两种：
Pragmatics is assumed to have two dimensions: 语用语言错误和社会语言错误。
pragmalinguistics and sociopragmatics. 语用学包括两方面：语用语言学和
社会语用学。
 6.2 课后习题详解

1. What does pragmatics study? How does it differ from traditional semantics?
2. Why is the notion of context essential in the pragmatic study of linguistic communication?
3. How are sentence meaning and utterance meaning related，and how do they differ?
4. Try to think of contexts in which the following sentences can be used for other purposes than just stating facts:
a) The room is messy.
b) Oh，it is raining!
c) The music of the movie is good.
d) You have been keeping my notes for a whole week now.
5. According to Austin, what are the three acts a person is possibly performing while making an utterance. Give an
example.
6. What are the five types of illocutionary speech acts Searle has specified? What is the illocutionary point of each type?
7. What is indirect language use? How is it explained in the light of the speech act theory?
8. What are the four maxims of the CP? Try to give your own examples to show how flouting these maxims give rise
to conversational implicature?
9. What is pragmatic failure? Try to find instances of pragmatic failure in English used by Chinese learners of English.

参考答案
1. Pragmatic is the study of language in use, i. e. , how speaker use language appropriately and effectively in a given
context. It concerns about the meaning as communicated by speaker and interpreted by listener.
Although both pragmatics and semantics focus on the study of meaning, they differ in whether or not to take
context into consideration. The major difference between pragmatics and traditional semantics lies in that the former
studies meaning in a dynamic way while the latter studies meaning in a static way.
2. Context determines the speaker‘s use of language and also the hearer‘s interpretation of what is said to him. Without
such knowledge, linguistic communication would not be possible, and without considering such knowledge, linguistic
communication cannot be satisfactorily accounted for in a pragmatic sense.
Take the following sentences as an example:
How did it go? (a)
It was a hot Christmas day so we went down to the beach in the afternoon and had a good time swimming and
surfing. (b)
Sentence (a) might be used in a conversation between two students talking about an examination, or two surgeons
talking about an operation, or in some other contexts.
Sentence (b) makes sense only if the hearer has the knowledge that Christmas falls in summer in the southern
hemisphere.
3. Sentence meaning is usually directly predictable from the grammatical and lexical features of the sentence. It is often
studied as the abstract, intrinsic property of sentence itself in terms of predication. A sentence becomes an utterance
when it is actually uttered by people in the course of communication.
The utterance meaning is the meaning a speaker conveys by using a particular utterance in a particular context. It
is based on the sentence meaning and is the realization of the abstract meaning in real situation of communication.
Therefore, it is concrete and context-dependent.
Take the sentence ―My bag is heavy‖ as an example. A semantic analysis of the meaning of the sentence results in
the one-place predication BAG (HEAVY). A pragmatic analysis of the utterance meaning of the sentence varies with
the context in which it is uttered. For example, it could be uttered by a speaker as a straightforward statement, telling
the hearer that the bag is heavy. It could also be intended by the speaker as an indirect, polite request, asking the hearer
to help him carry the bag. Another possibility is that the speaker is declining someone‘s request for help. All these are
possibilities interpretations of the utterance ―My bag is heavy‖. How it is to be understood depends on the context in
which it is uttered and the purpose for which the speaker utters it.
4. (a) The room is messy.
A father entered his son‘s bedroom, and then he found that the room is not tidy and is in a total mess, he
uttered the sentence ―The room is messy‖ to blame his son and show his dissatisfaction.
(b) Oh, it is raining!
A son asked his father to play tennis outside with him. So when his father said, ―Oh, it‘s raining‖, he meant
 that they couldn‘t play outside together.
(c) The music of the movie is good.
Two persons just watched a movie and had a discussion of it. One person said, ―The story of the movie is
very moving‖, so when the other person said, ―The music of the movie is good‖, he meant he didn‘t think the story
of the movie was good.
(d) You have been keeping my notes for a whole week now.
Student A wanted to borrow a pen from student B, so when student B said, ―You have been keeping my
notes for a whole week now‖, he was displaying his dissatisfaction and he meant that he didn‘t want to lend a pen
to A.
(本题考查语用学的中语境，答案不唯一，可自由发挥)
5. According to Austin, one might be performing three acts simultaneously while speaking.
(1) A locutionary act is an act of saying something, the act of uttering words, phrases, clauses. It is the act of conveying
literal meaning by means of syntax, lexicon and phonology.
(2) An illocutionary act is the act of expressing the speaker‘s intention. It is the act performed in saying something.
(3) A perlocutionary act is the act performed by or resulting from saying something. It is the consequence of, or the
change brought about by the utterance. It is the act performed by saying something.
Take the sentence ―It is so hot in the room‖ as an example. The locutionary act performed by the speaker is his
utterance of all the words ―it‖ ―hot‖ ―in‖ ―room‖, etc. thus expressing what the words literally mean. The illocutionary
act performed by the speaker can be a request of the hearer to open the window or turn on the air conditioner. The
perlocutionary act can be the hearer‘s act of opening the window or his refusal to comply with the request.
6. According to Searle， speech acts all into five general categories，i. e. ，there are five general types of things we do with
language. Specific acts that fall into each type share the same illocutionary point，but differ in their strength.
(1)representatives: stating or describing，saying what the speaker believes to be true. (The illocutionary point of the
representatives is to commit the speaker to something‘s being the case, to the truth of what has
been said. Stating，believing，swearing，hypothesizing are among the most typical of the
representatives. )E. g. , (I swear) I have never seen the man before.
(2)directives: trying to get the hearer to do something. (Directives are attempts by the speaker to get the hearer to do
something. Inviting，suggesting，requesting，advising，warning， threatening，ordering are all specific
instances of this class. ) E. g. , Open the window!
(3)commissives: committing the speaker himself to some future course of action. ( Commissives are those illocutionary
acts whose point is to commit the speaker to some future course of action，i. e. when speaking the
speaker puts himself under a certain obligation. Promising，undertaking，vowing are the most typical
cases. ) E. g. , I promise to come.
speaker is expressing his feelings or attitude towards an existing state of affairs，e. g. apologizing，thanking，
congratulating. ) E. g. , I am sorry for the mess I have made.
speaker is expressspeaker is expressing his feelings or attitude towards an existing state of affairs，e. g. apologizing，
thanking，congratulating. ) E. g. , I am sorry for the mess I have made.
(5)declarations: bringing about immediate changes by saying something. (―Declarations‖ has the characteristic that the
successful performance of an act of this type brings about the correspondence between what is said
and reality. ) E. g. , I fire you!
7. When a speaker is using indirect language, he is performing two speech acts simultaneously: one is the primary speech
act and the other is the second speech act. The primary one is the speaker's goal of communication and the second one
is the means by which he achieves his goal.
8. (1) Four maxims of CP:
A. The maxim of quantity
(1) Make your contribution as informative as is required (for the current purpose of the exchange).
(2) Do not make your contribution more informative than is required.
B. The maxim of quality
(1) Do not say what you believe to be false.
(2) Do not say that for which you lack adequate evidence.
C. The maxim of relation
Be relevant.
D. The maxim of manner
(1) Avoid obscurity of expression.
 (2) Avoid ambiguity.
(3) Be brief(avoid unnecessary prolixity)
(4) Be orderly.
(2) It should be noted that while conversation participants nearly always observe the CP, they do not always observe
these maxims strictly. In daily conversation, people do not usually say things directly but tend to imply them.
When the maxims are violated, conversational implicature occurs.
For example,
A: When is Lily‘s farewell party?
B: Sometime next month.
This is said when it is known to both A and B that B knows exactly when Lily is going to give her farewell
party. Thus B is withholding some of the information required at this stage of conversation and is thus flouting the
maxim of quantity. The implicature that results is ―I do not wish to tell you when the party is going to be held. ‖
9. Pragmatic failure occurs when the speaker fails to use language effectively to achieve a particular purpose, or when
the hearer fails to recognize the intention of the speaker's utterance.
The example would be that many Chinese learners of English at primary level would like to greet the foreigners
by saying "Have you have your lunch?". But asking whether somebody has eaten around meal is not a proper way of
greeting. Another example is that some Chinese learner of English would use "It doesn't matter" as a response to an
expression of thanks in English which is a case of pragmalinguistic failure.
 6.3 考研真题与典型题详解

I. Fill in the blanks

1. A perlocutionary act is the act performed by or resulting from saying something; it is the_________of, or
the_________ the utterance. (人大 2004 研)
2. When a teacher says ―The exam this year is going to be really difficult‖, the sentence would have an _________force.
(清华 2001 研；清华 2000 研)
3. H. P. Grice believes that there is a set of assumptions guiding the conduct of conversation. This is what he calls the
Cooperative Principle. According to the maximum of _________: Do not say what you believe to be false or for which
you lack evidence. In other words，speak truthfully; do not lie.
4. There has been a maxim in _________ which claims that ―You are what you say. ‖ (中山大学 2008 研)
5. In the light of the_________principle, four maxims are specified．They are the maxim of quantity, maxim
of_________, maxim of_________and the maxim of_________．(人大 2005 年；吉林大学 2004 年研)

II. Multiple Choice

1. The speech act theory was developed by ______. (对外经贸 2006 研)
A. John Searle
B. John Austin
C. Levinson
D. G. Leech
2. Point out which item does not fall under the same category as the rest and explain the reason in ONE sentence. (南京
大学 2007 研)
A. threaten
B. advise
C. beseech
D. urge
[Focus on the type of illocutionary act]
3. ______is using a sentence to perform a function. (西安外国语学院 2006 研)
A. A perlocutionary act
B. An illocutionary act
C. A locutionary act
D. Speech act
4. By saying ―You have left the door wide open,‖ a speaker might be performing the three acts: locutionary, illocutionary
and perlocutionary . (西安交大 2008 研)
A. at the same time
B. one after another
C. two first and then the other
D. one first and then the other two
5. The Illocutionary Act was developed by . (西安交大 2008 研)
A. John Austin
B. Levinson
C. John Lyons
D. John Searle
6. Point out which item does not fall under the same category as the rest and explain the reason in ONE sentence. (南京
大学 2008 研)
A. quantity
B. manner
C. approbation
D. quality
[Focus on a conversational principle]
7. According to the conversation maxim of _______suggested by Grice, one should speak truthfully. (西安外国语学院
2006 研)
A. quantity
B. quality
C. relevance
D. manner
8. Which of the following is NOT one of the four maxims of the Cooperative Principle? (对外经贸 2006 研)
A. the maxim of quantity
B. the maxim of quality
C. the maxim of manner
D. the maxim of strength
9. Four categories of Maxims in Grice‘s Cooperative Principle include all the following EXCEPT______. (大连外国语
学院 2008 研)
A. Manner
B. Relation
C. Qualification
10. An illocutionary act is identical with＿＿. (东南大学 2002 年研)
A. sentence meaning
B. the speaker‘s intention
C. language understanding
D. the speaker‘s competence
11. The Indirect Speech Act was developed by＿＿. (东南大学 2000 年考研试题)
A. John Austin
B. Levinson
C. John Lyons
D. John Searle
12. ＿is a branch of linguistics which is the study of meaning in the context of use. (武汉理工大学 2005 年研)
A. Morphology
B. Syntax
C. Pragmatics
D. Semantics
13. Tautologies like boys are boys and war is war are extreme examples in which the maxim of is violated. (武汉理工大
学 2005 年研)
A. quality
B. quantity
C. relevance
D. manner

III. True or False

1. Speech act theory was proposed by G. Leech. (北二外 2008 研)
2. A speaker flouts the Maxim of Quantity when his contributions to the conversation are not truthful. (对外经贸 2005
研)
3. The co-operative principle was proposed by Grice. (南开大学 2004 研)
4. The Cooperative Principle, an important pragmatic principle proposed by E Grice, aims to explain how speakers carry
on communication cooperatively in utterances．(上外 2000 年研)
5. A sentence is a grammatical unit and an utterance is a pragmatic notion．(上外 2000 年研)
6. According to Searle‘s classification of speech acts, request, order, suggest and advice all belong to the same one
general class because they are all intended by the speaker to get the hearer to do something．(上外 2000 年研)
IV. Explain the following terms
1. Locutionary Act, Illocutinary Act and Perlocutionary Act (北京交通大学 2005 研；武汉大学 2005 研)
2. Speech act(浙江大学 2005 研)
3. Performatives (中山大学 2008 研)
4. Cooperative principle(北京师范大学 2003 研)
5. Violation of maxims (北京交通大学 2006 研)

V. Short answer questions

1. What are the major concerns of pragmatics? (人大 2006 研)
2. How is the illocutionary act different from the perlocutionary act? (人大 2006 研)
3. Please explain the original idea in the speech act theory. (南开大学 2004 研)
4. How would you describe this short exchange in terms of the ardors performed by the speakers? (浙江大学 2005 研)
Motorist: My car needs new exhaust system.
Mechanic: I‘ll be busy with this other car all day.
5. What are the four maxims of the co-operative principle? Which maxim does this speaker seem to be particularly
careful about: ―Well, to be quite honest, I don’t think she is ill today. ‖(上海交大 2006 研；上海交大 2005 研)
6. Decide which maxim of the cooperative principle has been flouted in the following utterances and what implicature
can be drawn. (厦门大学 2006 研)
(1) A: Can you tell me the secret?
B: But John is there.
(2) A: Let‘s go to the movies.
B: I‘ll bring the Kleenex.
(3) A: Would you drive a Mercedes?
B: I wouldn‘t drive ANY expensive car.
7. Do you think B is cooperative in the following dialogue? Support your argument with Cooperative Principle. (南开大
学 2004 研)
A: When is the bus coming?
B: There has been an accident further up the road.
8. Analyze the following dialogue with reference to Grice‘s Cooperative Principle (北二外 2005 研)
A: Oh. I like this popular song so much. How about you?
B: I often hear classical music, especially, the symphonies composed by Beethoven. His Symphony No. 9 is my
favorite.
9. In what ways do people cooperate in their conversations? (人大 2006 研)
10. How are sentence meaning and utterance meaning related, and how do they differ?
11. How would you describe this short exchange in terms of the actions performed by the speakers?
Carol: Are you coming to the party tonight?
Lara: I've got an exam tomorrow.

VI. Essay questions

1. When a teacher says ―it‘s so hot in here‖ during a class, what does she probably mean? Refer to the theory of
pragmatics when you analyze the situation. (人大 2002 研)
2. A speech act consists of three related acts according to J. L. Austin‘s Speech Act theory. What are they? Analyze the
following conversation in the light of Speech Act theory. (北航 2008 研)
Customer: Waiter! There’s a fly in my soup.
Waiter: Don’t worry, there’s no extra charge.
3. Explain speech act theory and list the different kinds of speech acts with examples for each. (浙江大学 2004 研)
4. What is the relationship between speech event and speech act? (Explain with an example). (南开大学 2005 研)
5. Think of the four maxims of the Cooperative Principle proposed by P. Grice, and explain the violation of maxims in
the cases below. (北航 2008 研)
(1) A: Have you seen my watch?
 B: Look in the drawer.
(2) A: Reno’s the capital of Nevada.
B: Yeah, London’s the capital of New Jersey.
(3) A: I really liked that dinner.
B: I’m a vegetarian.
(4) A: Let’s dine out with the kids this weekend
B: Okay, but not M-c-D-o-n-a-l-d-s.
6. Describe the ―Cooperative principle‖ proposed by Grice, and explain how the violation of the maxims gives rise to
conversational implicature. (浙江大学 2005 研)
7. Discuss the following sentences in terms of violation of maxims in the cooperative principle. (浙江大学 2007 研)
a. I think he was married and had a lioness at home.
b. A: What do you intend to do?
B: I have a terrible headache.
c. A: Where‘ve you been?
B: Out.
8. Discuss the following advertisement extensively: ―你不理财，财不理你‖. (浙江大学 2007 研)
9. What are the four maxims under the cooperative principle? (西安交大 2008 研)
10．What does pragmatics study? How does it differ from traditional semantics?
11. What kind of linguistic phenomenon can you identify in the following dialogue? Define, analyse and explain the
phenomenon. (北外 2010 研)
甲：上车请买票。
乙：三张天安门。
甲：您拿好。

参考答案及解析
I. Fill in the blanks.
1. consequence, change brought about by
(言外行为指说话的效果。)
2. illocutionary
(言外行为，表达说话人的意图。)
3. quality
(质量原则的内容。)
4. quantity
(格莱斯的数量准则指 1. 使你的话语如(交谈的当前目的)所要求的那样信息充分； 2. 不要使你的话语比要求的
信息更充分。即说你该说的。)
5. cooperative; quality; relation; manner
(考查合作原则及四条次则：数量准则、质量准则、关联准则、方式准则。)
II. Multiple Choice.
1. B (言语行为理论是奥斯丁提出的。)
2. A (A 是承诺性的，而其他是指令性的。)
3. D (言语行为是用语言做事。)
4. D (三种行为的顺序。)
5. D (言外行为理论是舍尔发展的。)
6. C (A, B 和 D 是四个最大原则里的，而 C 是礼貌原则里的。)
7. B (质量原则。)
8. D (the maxim of strength 不属于四个最大原则。)
9. C (四个最大原则不包括 qualification。)
10. B (行事行为是通过做事来实现说话人的意图。)
11. D (“间接言语行为”理论的创立者为美国哲学家塞尔。)
12. C (语用学的定义。)
13. A (同义重复没有提供新的信息，违背了“合作原则”中的“质”的次则。)
III. True or False.
1. F (言语行为理论是由奥斯丁提出的。)
2. F (违背了质量原则。)
3. T (合作原则是由格莱斯提出的。)
4. T
5. T (句子与语句的区别)
6. T (request, order, suggest and advice 这些都属于 Directives。)
IV. Explain the following terms
1. 参见“6. 1 复习笔记 II. Speech act theory” 。
2. This is a central concept in Speech Act Theory, according to which, we are performing various kinds of acts when we
are speaking. Actions performed through utterances are generally called speech acts.
3. Performatives are sentences that do not state a fact or describe a state. They cannot be said to be true or false. The
uttering of these sentences is, or is part of, the doing an action. The judge‘s imprisonment sentence, the president‘s war
or independence declaration, etc. , are performatives.
4. 参见“6. 1 复习笔记 III Principle of conversation 1. ―Cooperative Principle and its Maxims‖.
5. There are circumstances where speakers may not follow the maxims of the cooperative principle. For example, in
conversation, a speaker may violate the maxim expectations by using an expression like ―No comment‖ in response to
a question. Although it is typically not ―as informative as is required‖ in the context, it is naturally interpreted as
communicating more than is said (i. e. the speaker knows the answer). This typical reaction to any apparent violation
of the maxims is actually the key to the notion of conversational implicature. When we violate any of these maxims,
our language becomes indirect. In this way, we can convey more than is literally said. For example, there is violation
of the first maxim of Quantity, and sometimes the first Quantity maxim can be in conflict with the Quality maxim.
V. Short answer questions
1. 参见“6. 2 课后习题详解题 1” 。
2. An illocutionary act is the act of expressing the speaker‘s intention; it is the act performed in saying something. Thus,
if someone says ―Morning‖, we can ask questions like ―What did he mean?‖ and the answer could be ―He offered a
greeting. ‖
A perlocutionary act, however, is the effect of the utterance. By telling somebody something the speaker may
change the opinion of the hearer on something, or mislead him, or surprise him, or induce him to do something, and so
on. Therefore, the perlocutionary act of the saying ―Morning‖ could be to keep friendly relations with the hearer.
3. Speech act theory, originally proposed by Austin, is a philosophical explanation of the nature of linguistic
communication.
Austin made a distinction between what he called ―constatives‘‘ and ―performatives‖. Constatives were
statements that either state or describe, and were thus verifiable; performatives, on the other hand, were sentences that
did not state a fact or describe a state, and were not verifiable.
Later on, for a variety of reasons, Austin gave up his initial distinction between constatives and performatives. He
set up another model to explain the way acts were performed by means of language. According to his new model, a
speaker might be performing three acts simultaneously when speaking: locutionary act, illocutionary act, and
perlocutionary act.
4. In the motorist‘s utterance, there are two types of speech acts performed, namely representative and directive, and as
to the latter one, it is recognized as an indirect speech act, which is performed through the performance of the former
one. Thus, by stating that his car needs new exhaust system, the motorist has in fact asked the mechanic to equip a
new exhaust system for him.
Similarly, in the mechanic‘s utterance, there are two types of speech acts performed; one is representative, the
other commissive. The commissive speech act in fact is an indirect one since it is recognized through the performance
of representative action. That is to say, by stating that he will be busy with another car all day, the mechanic has in fact
told the motorist that he could not repair his car right away.
5. The four maxims of the co-operative principle are as follows:
Quantity. (1) Make your contribution as informative as is required (for the current purposes of the exchange).
(2) Do not make your contribution more informative than is required.
Quality. Try to make your contribution one that is true.
(1)Do not say what you believe to be false.
(2) Do not say that for which you lack adequate evidence.
Relation. Be relevant.
Manner. Be perspicuous.
(1) Avoid obscurity of expression.
(2) Avoid ambiguity.
(3) Be brief.
(4) Be orderly.
In the utterance given, it is probable that the speaker is particularly careful about the maxim of Quality, which
rules that do not say that for which you lack adequate evidence.
6. In the exchanges, the maxim of relation has been flouted. As to instance (1), A will assume that if B is cooperative his
reply must be relevant in a different sense: I will not talk about my secret now because I do not want to let John know.
In (2), the answer of B seems irrelevant to A‘s utterance. By doing so, A will likely derive the implicature that B has
accepted his suggestion, and is going to get prepared. In (3), by violating the maxim of relation, B intends to implicate
that Mercedes is an expensive car, and he would not drive a Mercedes.
7. On the face of it, B violated the maxim of relation since he did not provide a direct answer to A‘s question. But A
would assume that B is cooperative in the conversation, and would try to explore the link between the seemingly
irrelevant response to something relevant. Thus, A would interpret B‘s utterance in such a way that because there had
been as accident further up the road, it was quite possible that the road was blocked; in a consequence, the bus would
not be able to come.
8. B has obviously violated Maxim of Relation: A was asking B‘s opinion about a particular popular song, but B‘s
response was actually about classical music. By such a violation, B probably wanted to imply that he did not like that
popular song.
9. In daily conversations people do not usually say things directly but tend to imply them, and according to Grice, they
seem to observe willingly or unwillingly certain principle, which is called ―cooperative principle‖: ―Make your
conversational contribution such as is required, at the stage at which it occurs，by the accepted purpose or direction of
the talk exchange in which you are engaged‖. Under this principle, there are four maxims, namely, Quantity, Quality,
Relation, and Manner.
10. 参见“6. 2 课后习题详解题 3” 。
11. It is an indirect speech act. Carol invites Lara to a party, but Lara wants to decline the invitation. To be polite, she
doesn‘t choose a direct refusal, instead she says “I‘ve got an exam tomorrow‖ as a reasonable excuse to decline the
invitation. In this way, she minimizes the expression of impolite beliefs, thus the utterance conforms to PP.
Obviously Lara breaks the maxim of relation of CP by talking about something totally irrelevant with
Carol‘s question. However, we can understand her meaning perfectly. Lara is conveying an indirect
meaning by giving out an utterance containing a conversational implicative. Her aim is to refuse
Carol‘s invitation in an polite and less harsh manner.
VI. Essay questions
1. This utterance would be semantically ambiguous if it was seen isolatedly without any context of situation. Its
interpretation has to rely on the context in which it was uttered.
There could be generally two types of situation in which this utterance could happen. One may be that it is
summer; the teacher just came into the class and was sweating heavily. The other may be that in class the students are
quite active towards the questions or problems the teacher has posed, for example, discussing in group, or debating in
a large scale.
According to the cooperative principle, in our conversation, in order to be cooperative, that is, to make his
intentions to be known by the hearer, the speaker will try to make his conversational contribution such as is require, at
the stage at which it occurs.
 Therefore, according to the third maxim of cooperative principle, RELATION, which says ―be relevant‖, the
utterance could be interpreted differently as follows:
In the first situation, when the students hear the teacher saying ―it‘s so hot in here‖, they would probably assume
that the teacher is obeying the cooperative principle, and what he says is relevant to the context, which is that the
teacher is sweating, and maybe accompanied by fanning herself with his hand. Therefore, what the teacher means is
probably that the temperature is high. What‘s more, if the windows in the classroom are closed, this utterance will go
further to be an implication of an request for opening the windows.
In the second situation, the students would assume that the teacher should have observed the maxim of relation,
since it is under normal circumstances. Given the context in which the students are discussing or debating about
certain questions furiously, the hearer would tend to interpret the teacher‘s utterance as: ―you are discussing (or
debating) so actively‖, which implies a praise for the active participation of the students in class activity.
2. 第一问参见“6. 2 课后习题详解题 5” 。
In this conversation, by saying ―Waiter! There‘s a fly in my soup‖, the locutionary act of this utterance is that the
customer produces a number of sounds with it literal meaning that there is a fly in his/her soup. The illocutionary act is
that the customer intends not to just review the information to the waiter, but might express his feelings and expect the
waiter to do something. It might be a complaint, a warn, a criticism, or a threaten, but whatever it might be, it is no
doubt a force, making the waiter to change soup or give some compensation. The perlocutionary act of the utterance
here is the waiter‘s doing nothing but giving a strange respond.
As to the waiter‘s responding, by saying that he not only produces a number of sounds to state that there is no
extra charge, but also shows his possible misinterpretation or his sense of humor or his indirect refusal.
(本题考查言语行为理论中的三种言语行为，并用其分析实例。)
3. The speech act theory was proposed by John Austin. According to this theory, we are performing various kinds of acts
when we are speaking. Actions performed through utterances are generally called speech acts. An utterance can
perform different speech acts depending on the context and that one speech act can be performed by more than one
utterances.
According to Searle，speech acts all into five general categories. Specific acts that fall into each type share the
same illocutionary point, but differ in their strength.
1) Representatives: the acts of saying what the speaker believes to be true; they include stating, describing,
asserting, and so on; such as ―It‘s raining‖, ―They won the game‖.
2) Directives: acts of trying to get the hearer to do something. Commands, orders, requests, warnings, suggestions,
and on so are of this type, as illustrated in ―Be quiet!‖, ―Don‘t touch that!‖
3) Commissives: acts of committing the speaker himself to some future course of action. They include promising,
vowing, offering, threatening, and so on. Examples are ―I‘ll take her to the vet. ‖ and ―We won‘t do that. ‖
4) Expressives: acts of expressing feelings or attitude towards an existing state. They can be statements of
pleasure, pain, likes, sorrow, and so on. For example, ―I‘m sorry to hear that‖.
5) Declarations: acts of bringing about immediate changes by saying something. They include resigning,
dismissing, naming, appointing, and so on. For example, the priest may say in a wedding ―I now pronounce you
husband and wife‖.
4. Speech act refers to an utterance as a functional unit in communication. There are many kinds of speech acts, such as
requests, orders, commands, complaints, and promises. A speech act that is performed indirectly is sometimes known
as an indirect speech act. Speech event refers to a particular instance when people exchange speech, e. g. an exchange
of greetings, an enquiry, a conversation. Speech events are governed by the rules and norms for the use of speech,
which may be different in different communities. The structure of speech events varies considerably according to the
genre they belong to.
Both speech act and speech event are concerned about the actual utterance of sentences. But speech act deals with
a particular utterance that has locutionary act, illocutionary act and perlocutionary act. Speech event is related to
certain speech situations that are composed many utterances, though may be not speech act.
For example, when you ask for the time at a bus stop with the sentence, ―what time is it?‖ your meaning is that
you want to know the time. This speech act takes place within a speech event, which could be called asking for the
time. Such an event is very brief and usually has three speech acts: asking the time, giving the time, and thinking.
 Speech events usually take place within the larger context of speech situations. Based on the differences between
speech act and speech event, the former is usually studied in pragmatics while the latter is the focus of
socio-linguistics.
5. The four maxims of the Cooperative Principle proposed by P. Grice are the maxim of quantity, the maxim of quality,
the maxim of relation and the maxim of manner.
In (1), B violates the maxim of quantity, for his/her not giving enough information to A‘s question. B does not
answer ―yes‖ or ―no‖ to a yes-no question, so A doesn‘t know whether B is sure it is in the draw. But B says this way
may imply he/she is unsure about it (look at the drawer, maybe it is there), or he/she is sure (just go get it, it is in the
drawer).
In (2), B violates the maxim of quality. Apparently London is not the capital of New Jersey. What B says is a
false statement, and B knows it is false. But B says it to imply that A‘s statement is also false, that is, Reno is not the
capital of Nevada.
In (3), B violates the maxim of relations. B does not talk about ―that dinner‖ directly but with ―I‘m a vegetarian‖
instead. Although the two utterances are not relevant superficially, yet what B says may imply that ―there is meat in
that dinner, and I am a vegetarian, so I don‘t like it. ‖ which makes the conversation coherent.
In (4), B violates the maxim of manners. B may be deliberately obscure by saying in that way so that the children
will not be able to understand what they are talking about.
(本题考查合作原则中的四个准则，并用其分析实例。分析时先说明违反了哪个准则，再进行阐释，并解释其
可能的隐含意义。)
6. The ―cooperative principle‖ and its four maxims 参见“6. 1 复习笔记 III. Principle of conversation 1. Cooperative
Principle and its Maxims ” 。
There are circumstances where speakers may not follow the maxims of the cooperative principle. For example, in
conversation, a speaker may violate the maxim expectations by using an expression like ―No comment‖ in response to
a question. Although it is typically not ―as informative as is required‖ in the context, it is naturally interpreted as
communicating more than is said (i. e. the speaker knows the answer). This typical reaction (i. e. there must be
something ―special‖ here) of listeners to any apparent violation of the maxims is actually the key to the notion of
conversational implicature. When we violate any of these maxims, our language becomes indirect. In this way, we can
convey more than is literally said.
7. In sentence a, the speaker has violated the first Quality maxim, which says ―do not say what you believe to be false‖.
In the literal sense, no human being would marry a lioness, and therefore at this level, it is a false statement. However,
the deliberate violation of the maxim will lead us to interpret it as a metaphor, meaning that his wife had a bad temper.
In sequence b, B has flouted the maxim of Relation, since he did not answer A‘s question directly. However,
assuming that B was co-operative, A was likely to derive the implicature that since B had a terrible headache, he
would probably just lie in bed and do nothing.
In exchange c, a violation of the first Quantity maxim was recognized, which says ―make your contribution as
informative as is required for the current purposes of the exchange‖. B was supposed to provide the specific
information of the place he had been to; however, he didn‘t. By such a violation, B probably implied that ―I do not
want to tell you where I have been‖.
8. This advertisement is an interesting one, for its witty use of pun words. There are two places of punning. First, ―理财‖
could be interpreted in two different ways: one is ―to manage one‘s money‖, the other is ―not to ignore money‖.
Second, in the second part of the sentence, ―财‖ is punned through homophony: it could be interpreted as ―财‖,
therefore, the whole part ―财不理你‖ could mean ―fortune will ignore you‖, or rather, ―fortune will pass you away‖.
This character could also interpreted as ―才‖, therefore, the whole part ―财不理你‖ could mean ―I will ignore you‖, or
rather, ―I will show you my cold shoulder‖ (Here ―I‖ refers to the company which put out this advertisement).
Therefore, this utterance could be possibly interpreted in the following ways. 1) If you do not handle your money
in a proper way, then money will pass you by. 2) If you do not handle your money properly, then I won‘t take care of
any of your business. 3) If you ignore money, and do not pay any attention to it, then money will pass you by. 4) If you
ignore money, then I will ignore you, too, and I won‘t take care of any of your business. In these four interpretations, it
is clear to see that in 1 and 4, the advertiser conveyed the messages to the readers as if he was having a face-to-face
talk to a friend. This has in some way made the piece of ad interesting to read.
 It is known the punning is by nature ambiguous. Therefore, according to Grice, the advertisement has violated the
principle of avoiding ambiguity under Manner Maxim. By such a violation, the advertiser has possibly intended to
make the potential consumers pay more attention to it, and spend more time on it, since it is known that ambiguity will
increase the time for processing the sentence; and by interpreting it in additional ways, the readers are also expected to
get another interesting message from this ad. All of these could eventually come to a higher memorability of the
advertisement.
9. Paul Grice made an attempt to explain the course of natural conversation, in which implied massages are frequently
involved. His idea is that in making conversation, the participants must first of all be willing to cooperate; otherwise,
it would not be possible for them to carry on the talk. This general principle is called the Cooperative principle.
There are four maxims under this general principle: the maxim of quantity (make your contribution as informative as
required; do not make your contribution more informative than is required); the maxim of quality (do not say what
you believe to be false; do not say that for which you lack adequate evidence); the maxim of manner (avoid
obscurity of expression; avoid ambiguity; be brief; be orderly). While conversation participants nearly always
observe the CP, they do not always observe these maxims strictly. These maxims can be violated for various reasons,
but only when they are ―flouted‖, dose ―conversational implicature‖ occurs. When participants flout a maxim, their
language becomes indirect. In the above example, this conversation is said when it is known to both 同事甲 and 同
事乙 that it is possible for 同事乙 to tell 同事甲 where 小林 had gone yesterday. 同事乙‘s response is thus
apparently irrelevant to 同事甲‘s question. But we can see that 同事乙 intend to observe the CP, otherwise he would
not give any answer to 同事甲, but he answers indirectly. Under the Paul Grice‘s CP, we can see 同事乙‘s response
flouts the maxim of relation but may observe the maxim of quality. The 同事乙‘s implicature may be ― I am not sure
but maybe he went to 小林‘s home because I see his car there this morning. ‖
10．Pragmatics studies how meaning is conveyed in the process of communication. Generally it deals with how speakers
of a language use sentences to effect successful communication. The scope of pragmatic study includes ―speech act
theory‖, ―context‖, ―conversational implicature‖, presupposition, etc.
Semantics and pragmatics are both linguistic studies of meaning. What essentially distinguishes them is
whether in the study of meaning the context of use is considered. If it is not considered, the study is restricted to
the area of traditional semantics; if it is considered, the study is carried our in the area of pragmatics.
Semantics studies sentences as units of the abstract linguistic system while pragmatics studies utterances as
instances of the system. The former stops at the sentence level while the latter looks at bigger chunks of
conversation. The former regards sentences as stable products; the latter treats utterances as dynamic process. The
former analyzes sentences in isolation; the latter analyzes utterance in close connection with their contexts of
situation. Semantics answers the question: What does X mean? Pragmatics answers the question: What did you
mean by X?
11. This conversation consists of the linguistic phenomenon which is called the ―Cooperative Principle‖, proposed and
formulated by P. Grice, based on such a pragmatic hypothesis that the participants must first of all be willing to
cooperate; otherwise, it would not be possible to carry on the talk. It goes as follows:
Make your conversational contribution such as required at the stage at which it occurs by the accepted purpose
or direction of the talk exchange in which you are engaged. To be more specific, there are four maxims under this
general principle:
The maxim of quantity:
a) Make your contribution as informative as is required (for the current purposes of the exchange).
b) Do not make your contribution more informative than is required.
The maxim of quality:
a) Do not say what you believe to be false.
b) Do not say that for which you lack adequate evidence.
The maxim of relation:
Be relevant.
The maxim of manner:
a) Avoid obscurity of expression.
b) Avoid ambiguity.
 c) Be brief (avoid unnecessary prolixity).
d) Be orderly.
There are circumstances where speakers may not follow the maxims of the cooperative principle. For
example, in this conversation, the speaker may violate the maxim expectations by using an expression like ―三张
天安门‖ in response to a question. Although it is typically ―more informative than is required‖ in the context, it is
naturally interpreted as communicating more than is said (i. e. the speaker knows the answer). This typical reaction
(i. e. there must be something ―special‖ here) of listeners to any apparent violation of the maxims is actually the
key to the notion of conversational implicature. When we violate any of these maxims, our language becomes
indirect. In this way, we can convey more than is literally said.
 第 7 章 语言变化

7.1 复习笔记

本章要点：
1. Phonological Change
音系变化
2. Morphological and syntactic change
形态和句法变化
3. Lexical and semantic change
词汇和语义变化

本章考点：
新词的增加(创新词，缩略词，紧缩法，词首字母缩略词，逆构词法)；词义的变化(意义扩大，意义缩小，意
义转换)。

本章内容索引：
I. Definition of historical linguistics
II. Phonological Change
III. Morphological and syntactic change
1. Addition of affixes
2. Loss of affixes
3. Chang of word order
4. Chang in negation rule
IV. Lexical and semantic change
1. Addition of new words
(1) Coinage
(2) Clipped words
(3) Blending
(4) Acronyms
(5) Back-formation
(6) Functional shift
(7) Borrowing
2. Loss of words
3. Semantic Changes
(1)Semantic broadening
(2) Semantic Narrowing
(3) Semantic shift
V. Some recent trends
1. Moving towards greater informality
2. The influence of American English
3. The influence of science and technology
(1) Space travel
(2) Computer and internet language
(3) Ecology
VI. Causes of language change

I. Definition of historical linguistics I. 历史语言学的定义

Historical linguistics, as a branch of linguistics, is mainly 历史语言学是语言学的一个分支，
concerned with both the description and explanation of 主要研究语言随着时间的变化而产生
language changes that occurred over time. 的变化与变化的原因。
II. Phonological Change II. 音系变化
Sound changes tend to be systematic；it is possible to see 音系变化倾向于系统化;在整个英
a regular pattern of pronunciation changes throughout the 语语言的历史中，我们可能看到一个发
history of the English language. 音变化的规则模式。

III. Morphological and syntactic change III. 形态和句法变化

1. Addition of affixes 1. 前缀的增加
In English many affixes are borrowed, e. g. the suffix 英语中很多词缀是借用的，比如来
–ment in French. Besides, some lexical forms became 自于法语的-ment。此外，还有一些词
grammaticalized over time. In the case where two words are 与形式会语法化。如果两个词语形式很
frequently adjacent, over time they can become fused to form 相近，那么它们最终会变成一种形式。
a single unit. Fusion refers to the type o gammaticalization in 联合就是词语变成词缀的语法化形式。
which words develop into affixes. 2. 词缀的消失
2. Loss of affixes 有些词缀的消失并没有明显的原
Some affixes simply fade out of use for no apparent 因。一些则可以通过语音的变化来解
reasons. Some loss van be explained via sound changes. Many 释。很多古英语中的格或性的标志已经
of earlier case and gender markings are obliterated. 消失。

3. Change of word order 3. 词序的变化

Since case markings are lost during the Middle English 格标志的消失使主谓宾形式成为
period, fixed subject-object-verb order became the means of 语法关系的主要形式。
grammatical relation marking.
4. Change in negation rule 4. 否定规则的变化
As late as the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries，one could 直到 15 世纪和 16 世纪，人们还可
merely add not at the end of an affirmative sentence to negate 以在一个肯定句句尾加一个 not 来否定
it，as in： 它，如:
I love thee not.
I love thee not. He saw you not.
He saw you not. 在现代英语中，not 必须处于主动
In modern English，not must precede the main verb，and 词之前，而且还必须插入标记适当时态
ado，marked for the proper tense，must be inserted： 的 do :
I love you. — I do not love you.
I love you. —l do not love you He saw you. — He did not see you.
He saw you—He did not see you.

IV. 词汇和语义变化
IV. Lexical and semantic change 1. 新词的增加
【重点，考点：区分各个词汇变化方式】 (1) 创新词
1. Addition of new words 为达到某种目的可以直接创造新
(1) Coinage/invention 词。
A new word can be coined outright to fit some purpose，
e. g. Walkman, Kodak, Xerox, Ford. (2) 缩略词
(2) Clipped words 缩略是指比较长的词或短语的缩
Clipping refers to the abbreviation of longer words or 写。
phrases，e. g.
gym——gymnasium
expo——exposition
memo——memorandum (3) 紧缩法
disco——discotheque 紧缩词是指通过组合其他词的某
(3) Blending 些部分而构成的词。
A blend is a word formed by combining parts of other
words，e. g.
 smog——smoke+fog
motel——motor+hotel
brunch——breakfast+lunch
(4) Acronyms (4) 首字母缩略法
Acronyms are words derived from the initials of several 词首字母缩略词是指由几个词的
words. e. g. 首字母构成的词。
CBS—Columbia Broadcasting System
ISBN—International Standard Book Number
IT—information technology (5) 逆构词法
(5) Back-formation 新词也可以通过"去掉"一个被认
New words may be coined from already existing words 为是旧词的一部分的词缀而被创造出
by ―subtracting‖ an affix thought to be part of the old word. 来。这些词因而被称为逆构词。如：to
Such words are thus called back. formation ， e. g. to edit (从 editor 得出的一个错误的设想，
edit(derived from editor on the mistaken assumption that or 认为"or"是一个施事后缀)；to hawk (由
was the agentive suffix); to hawk(derived from hawker) hawker 得出)。

(6) Functional shift (6) 功能转换法

Words may shift from one part of speech to another 单词可以不通过加词缀就从一个
without the addition of affixes，e. g. ，noun—verb: to knee, to 词类转到另一个词类。
bug, to tape. (7) 借词法
(7) Borrowing 当不同的文化发生接触时，词就经
When different cultures come into contact，words are 常从一种语言"借到"另一种语言之中。
often ‗‗borrowed‖ from one language to another. The loan 外来词可以标记一个新的概念，或可以
word may label a new concept，or it may replace or become a 取代或成为本族词的同义词。
synonym of a native word. 在其整个历史中，英语已从许多不
同的语言中借用了大量的词。
English has borrowed a very large number of words from
many different languages throughout its history. The examples
below are some of the loan words in English. E. g. ,
Latin: bonus, education, exit
Greek: tragedy, cycle, physics
2. Loss of words 2. 词的废弃
Words can be lost from a language. The following 单词也会从一门语言中消失。下面
words，taken from Romeo and Juliet，have faded out of the 这些摘自《罗密欧与朱丽叶》中的词已
English language. 经从英语中消失了。
beseem →to be suitable
wot →to know
gyve →a fetter
wherefore →why 如例所示，词的废弃是在几代人的
The loss of words，as the examples show，takes place 过程中逐渐发生的。
gradually over the course of several generations. 3. 词义的变化
3. Changes in the meaning of words (1) 词义的扩大
【考点：区分，会判别，举例】 当一个词的意义变得更广的时候，
(1) Semantic broadening 它不仅表示它以前所表示的意义，而且
When the meaning of a word becomes broader，that word 还表示更多的意思。一个有趣的例子是
means everything it used to mean ， and then more. An holiday 一 词 ， 它 最 初
interesting example is the word holiday，which originally 是指 holy day，即具有宗教意义的一
meant holy day，i. e. a day of religious significance. Today this 天。今天它表示任何一个我们无须工作
word signifies any day on which we don‘t have to work. 的日子。
 (2) Semantic Narrowing (2) 意义的缩小
In the course of several generations，semantic change has 在几代人的时间进程中，语义变化
narrowed the meaning of a word to what it is in Modern 也把词的意义缩小到了现代英语中才
English. ―Hound‖，for example，which used to be the general 有的意思。例如，"hound"过去是"dog"
term for ―dog‖，has been narrowed to a special kind of dog. 的一个总称，现在已经被缩小到指一种
特殊的狗。

(3) Semantic shift (3) 意义转换

The fact that a lexical item may undergo a shift in 词汇项的意义可能发生转换的事
meaning is the third kind of semantic change. The word inn 实是第三种语义变化。inn 一词指的是
refers to a small hotel or pub，usually an old one. But now a 一个小旅馆或酒吧，通常是很旧的那
well-known nice hotel may use inn as its name，such as 种。但是，现在一个非常有名的好旅馆
Holiday Inn. 也用它作名字，如 Holiday Inn。

V. 一些最近的趋势
V. Some recent trends 1. 更趋于非正式性
1. Moving towards greater informality 自第二次世界大战以来，就一直有
Since the Second World War there has been a trend 一个在表达上趋于更为非正式的趋势。
towards much greater informality of expression. 像 ain't，don't 和 can't 这些会话形
Conversational forms like ain’t，don’t and can’t are now 式现在被广泛地用在出版的文章中，而
commonly used in articles in the press，and often people prefer 且通常人们更喜欢像"It's me"和"Who
to use informal styles such as ―It's me‖ and ―Who did you did you see?"这样的非正式风格。
see?‖

2. The influence of American English 2. 美国英语的影响

For many years American English has been assaulting the 多年以来，美国英语通过电影、报
British Isles with ever，increasing weight and persistence. E. 纸、杂志、广播和电视一直在以不断增
g. , to host means to be host at. 加的强势和毅力攻击着英伦岛。
3. The influence of science and technology 3. 科技的影响
As science and technology develop，they use new words 由于科学和技术的发展，它们运用
to express new concepts，new techniques as well as new 新词来表达新的概念、新技术和新发
inventions. As they have developed more rapidly during the 明。由于在过去 50 年中它们的发展速
last 50 years，consequently，new words and expressions have 度更快，新词和新的表达方式也因而一
been coined one after another. 个接一个的被创造出来。
(1) Space travel (1) 太空旅行
There has been a tendency to coin nice simple words and 在太空旅行这个领域里已形成一
phrases like：space suit, heat-shield, splash-down. 种创造美好的简单词和短语的趋势。
(2) Computer and internet language (2) 计算机和网络语言
The development of computer and internet technology 计算机和网络技术的发展已经造
has produced a new vocabulary of their own. E. g. , program, 就了属于它们自己的新词汇。
input, output, hacker. (3) 生态学
(3) Ecology 生态学是指对植物、动物、人和他
Ecology refers to the study of the relationship between 们的环境之间的关系，以及这些关系之
plants，animals，people，and their environment，and the 间的平衡的研究。随着越来越多的人关
balances between these relationships. As more and more 心环境和自然资源的保护，在这一方面
people are concerned with the preservation of the environment 已经出现了大量的词汇。
and natural resources，quite a lot of words have appeared in
this regard. E. g. , ecocide, ecoactivist, eco-friendly.
VI. Causes of language change VI. 语言变化的原因
Many factors may contribute to the change—lexical 有许多因素造就了语言的变化
addition，borrowing，simplification of grammars，elaboration ——词汇的增加、借用、语法简化、复
(to maintain intelligibility)，etc. Although exact reasons for 杂化(以保持可理解性)，等等。语言变
language change are still elusive and need to be further 化的确切原因仍然难以捉摸，需要作进
investigated, we can name some of them. 一步的研究。以下是造成语言变化的几
·Rapid development of science and technology; 种原因：
·Social and political changes & political needs; ·经济与科技的飞速发展；
·Women go out for work, leading to new neutral job ·社会政治变化及政治需要；
titles; ·妇女参加工作，催生了一些中性
·Language acquisition of children; 职称词汇；
·Economy of memory; ·孩童习得语言；
·Regularization of exceptional plural forms. ·为了记忆方便省力；
·一些不规则复数变化规则化。
 7.2 课后习题详解

1. The vocabulary of English consists of thousands of borrowed words. Look up the following words in a dictionary
which provides the etymologies (history) of words. In each case speculate as to how the particular word came to be
borrowed from a particular language.
a. size
b. skill
c. royal
d. ranch
e. robot
f. potato
g. astronaut
h. emerald
i. pagoda
j. khaki
k. bulldoze
l. hoodlum
2. The Encyclopedia Britannica Yearbook has usually published a new word list，which is，in the Britannica‘s editor‘s
view，a list of those words that had entered the language during the year. Would you expect a yearbook to publish a
―lost-word list‖ recording the words dropped from the language during the year? Defend your answer.
3. Below is a passage from Shakespeare‘s Hamlet，
King：Where is Pelonius?
Hamlet：In heaven, send thither to see. If your messenger find him not there，seek him i‘ the other place yourself. But
indeed，if you find him not within this month，you shall nose him as you go up the stairs into the lobby.
Act IV. scene iii
Study these lines and identify every difference in expression between Elizabethan and Modern English that is evident.
4. Comment with examples on the following statement ―Words and expressions will be forced into use in spite of all the
exertions of all the writers in the world. ‖
5. Suppose you are outside a government office where doors still bear the notice，―This door must not be left in an open
position. ‘‘ Now try to explain the notice in simple and plain English.
6. Give at least two examples showing the influence of American English on British English.
7. Find in any books，newspapers，or journals newly coined words in association with social and political needs，internet
or computer language.
8. With examples，give some plausible explanations for linguistic changes.

参考答案
1. a. size (< old French)
b. skill (< old Norse)
c. royal (< old French < Latin)
d. ranch (< Spanish < French)
e. robot (< Czech < old Church Slavonic)
f. potato (< Spanish < Taino)
g. astronaut (< French)
h. emerald (< Middle English & old French)
i. pagoda (< Persian < Sanskirt)
j. khaki (< Hindi < Persian)
k. bulldoze (< bull (Botany Bay Slang) < old English)
l. hoodlum (< German)
2. No. Words can be lost from a language. A reading of any Shakespeare‘s works will quickly reveal that English has lost
many words. The following words，taken from Romeo and Juliet，have faded out of the English language: beseem, wot,
gyve, wherefore. The loss of words，as the examples show，takes place gradually over the course of several
generations. On the other hand，the arrival of a new word is quite obvious and often draws attention. Because the loss
of the words is very slow, we can not expect a yearbook to publish a ―lost-word list‖.
3. In modern English, these lines are more likely written as:
King: Where is Pelinius?
Hamlet: In heaven, send to see there. If your messenger can not find him there, you seek him at the other place
yourself. But indeed, if you cannot find him within this month, you shall notice him as you go up the stairs into the
lobby.
4. I agree with this comment. When necessary, people will make use of available uses even if there are no writers‘ efforts.
For example, there are more and more words and expressions being introduced into language not by writers, such as
laptop computer, hovercraft, bullet train, email, hacker and IBM (international big mouth, means one who acts like a
gossip).
5. ―Please do not forget to close the door. ‖ ―The door must be kept close. ‖
6. For many years, American English has been assaulting the British Isles with ever-increasing weight and persistence,
through movies, newspapers, magazines, radio and television. Though ―petrol‖ ―autumn‖ ―lift‖ and ―pavement‖ have
not surrendered to ―gasoline‖ ―fall‖ ―elevator‖ and ―sidewalk‖, words which aptly fill a real need such as ―teenager‖
and ―commuter‖ have now become well established in British English, as in the following sentence:
―At the same time, a number of teenagers climbed on to the dish and held a little party of their own. ‖
Similar examples of American English influence can be seen in the increasing use of the following words or
expressions in British English:
to update (which does the work of ―to bring up to date‖)
to host (which means ―to be host at‖)
to check up (which slightly intensify the meaning of the simple verb ―to check‖)
7. Cybernaut 网迷，沉迷于网络者
SARS “非典”
Golden week 黄金周
Multimedia 多媒体的
Eyephone 视像耳机
E-mail 电子邮件
8. Linguistic changes are more gradual, particularly those in the phonological and syntactic system. Now, let‘s list some
reasons.
For example, the rapid development of science and technology has led to the creation of many new words:
―bullet train‖ ―fax‖ ―laser printer‖ ―eurostar‖ ―hovercraft‖ ―CD-ROM‖ ―laptop computer‖, etc.
In addition, social and political changes and political needs have supplied the English vocabulary with great
quantity of new words and expressions: ―shuttle diplomacy‖ ―mini-summit‖ ―jungle war‖ ―hot line‖, etc.
As more and more women have taken up activities formerly reserved for men, more neutral job titles have
been created. The following are some examples that can be used for both genders, especially in the United States.
Former job title: chairman; foreman; policeman; fireman; jury foreman
New job title: chairperson; supervisor; police officer; fire fighter; jury foreperson
 7.3 考研真题与典型题详解

I. Fill in the blanks

1. ______ is a relatively complex form of compounding in which a new word is formed by joining the initial part of one
word and the final part of another word. For example, the English word smog is made from and . (人
大 2006 研)
2. Back-formation refers to an abnormal type of word-formation where a shorter word is derived by deleting an
affix from a longer form already in the language. (中山大学 2006 研)
3. ____is a type of word-formation by which a shorter word is coined by the deletion of a supposed affix of a longer
form already present in the language. For example，the verb edit was formed from editor by dropping the supposed
derivational suffix -or.

II. Multiple Choice

1. Which of the following words are formed by blending? (对外经贸 2005 研)
A. girlfriend
B. television
C. smog
D. bunch
2. The word UN is formed in the way of . (西安交大 2008 研)
A. acronymy
B. clipping
C. initialism
D. blending
3. Which of the following is NOT a process of the lexical change? (大连外国语学院 2008 研)
A. INVENTION.
B. ACRONYM.
C. LEXICON.
4. ―Wife‖, which used to refer to any woman, stands for ―a married woman‖ in modern English. This phenomenon is
known as . (西安交大 2008 研)
A. semantic shift
B. semantic broadening
C. semantic elevation
D. semantic narrowing
5. It is true that words may shift in meaning，i. e. semantic change. The semantic change of the word tail belongs
to .
A. narrowing of meaning
B. meaning shift
C. loss of meaning
D. widening of meaning
6. Which of the following words is formed by the process of blending? (对外经贸 2006 研)
A. WTO
B. Motel
C. Bookshelf
D. red-faced
7. Vocabulary change in language can include all except(对外经贸 2006 研)
A. addition of new words
B. simplification of word forms
C. loss of words
D. changes of word meaning
8. Words like brunch, guesstimate are examples of______. (西安外国语学院 2006 研)
 A. acronyms
B. contractions
C. blends
D. cohyponyms

III. True or False

1. Invention is a form of compounding, in which two words are blended by joining the initial part of the first word and
the final part of the second word, or by joining the initial parts of the two words. (大连外国语学院 2008 研)
2. Girl, once meaning ―young person of either sex‖, now refers to ―young person of the femail sex‖. Here the change of
the meaning of this word belongs to semantic broadening.

IV. Explain the following terms

1. Back-formation (四川大学 2008 研；北外 2010 研)
2. Blending (西安交通大学 2008 研)
3. Meaning shift(中山大学 2006 研)

V. Short answer questions

1. A number of interesting word-formation processes can be discerned in the following examples. Can you identify what
is going on in these?
(a) The deceased‘s cremains were scattered over the hill.
(b) He‘s always taking pills, either uppers or downers. (上海交大 2007 研)
2. Language can change through blending, metanalysis and borrowing. Give two English words to illustrate each of them:
(清华 2001 研)
3. What is acronymy?
4. Why is back-formation a productive way of forming verbs ?

VI. Essay questions

1. Illustrate lexical change proper with the latest examples in English, covering at least four aspects. (大连外国语学院
2008 研)
2. Semantic change plays a very important role in widening the vocabulary of a language. (中山大学 2008 研)
3. Illustrate the ways of lexical change. (武汉大学 2005 研)
4. What are the major types of semantic Changes? (人大 2006 研)
5. Explain the various word-formation processes and give an example fro each process. (浙江大学 2003 研)

参考答案及解析
I. Fill in the blanks
1. Blending；smoke；fog
(混成法是指一个词由两个单词混合而成，一般把第一个单词的开头部分和第二个单词的最后部分连接起来，或
者是把两个单词的开头部分连接起来。)
2. imagined
(逆构词法是一种不规则的构词类型，即把一个语言中已经存在的较长单词删去想象中的词缀，由此造出一个较
短的单词。)
3. Back-formation
(逆构词法。)
II. Multiple Choice
1. C (smog 是由 smoke 和 fog 二词缩合而成的。)
2. A (缩略语是由组织机构的首字母组成的，UN 来源于 United Nations。)
3. C (词的变化方式很多，新创词和缩略语都属于其中，而选项 C 不属于。)
4. D (词义缩小是指原来的词义缩小或被限制到某个明确的意义上。)
5. D (“tail”它曾经表示马的尾巴，现在可表示任何动物的尾巴，属于词义的扩大。)
6. B (混成法。)
7. D (意义转变。)
8. C (混成法。)
III. True or False
1. F (是 Blending。)
2. F (是 semantic narrowing。)
IV. Explain the following terms
1. Back formation refers to an abnormal type of word formation where a shorter word is derived by deleting an imagined
affix from a longer form already in the language. For example, the word ―television‖ appeared before ―televise‖, and
so does ―editor‖ to ―edit‖.
2. Blending is a process in which two words are blended by joining the initial part of the first word and the final part of
the second word，or by joining the initial parts of the two words. For example, the word ―smog‖ is blended from
―smoke‖ and ―fog‖.
3. Meaning shift: In a narrow sense, meaning shift is used to refer to the change of meaning that has nothing to do with
generalization or restriction such as broadening or narrowing of meaning.
V. Short answer questions
1. The words ―deceased‖ ―upper‖ and ―downer‖ have undergone a process of class shift. By shifting the word class one
can change the meaning of a word from a concrete entity or notion to a process or attribution. This process of word
formation is also known as zero-derivation，or conversion. In the sentences above, ―deceased‖, ―upper‖ and ―downer‖
are originally adjectives, meaning ―dead‖, ―higher‖ and ―lower‖ respectively; in the sentences above, however, they
mean ―dead people‖, ―a drug used as a stimulant. ‖ and ―a depressant or sedative drug‖, which are nouns.
2. 1) blending: smog, brunch
2) metanalysis: an apron (which was originally ―a napron‖); an adder (which was originally ―a nadder‖)
3) borrowing: tea, encore
3. Acronymy is a type of shortening by using the first letters of words to form a proper name, a technical term, or a
phrase, such as World Bank/ WB or European Economic Community/EEC. If the shortened word is pronounced letter
by letter, it is an initialism like BBC// (for British Broadcasting Corporation); if the shortened word is
pronounced as word rather than as a sequence of letters, it is an acronym like SAM//(for surface-to-air missile).
4. Backformation is a type of word-formation by which a shorter word is derived by the deletion of an imagined affix of
a longer form already present in the language. It is a special kind of metanalysis, combined with analogical creation, e.
g. the verb edit was formed from editor by dropping the imagined derivational suffix -or.
The majority of backformed words are verbs, for verbs have a peculiar property to develop around them a
number of deverbal nouns, such as the agent noun and the noun of action, like edit from editor. Verbs also generate
various types of participial adjectives, such as creating and created. Hence people expect to find a family of
derivatives attached to a verb. On the other hand, when people come across one or more apparently deverbal nouns,
they often take for granted that there must he a corresponding verb, and they simply create the verb base from which
the original word seems to be derived.
VI. Essay questions
1. New words or expressions are created through the following processes except compound and derivation, which are
called lexical change proper.
(1) Invention
Technological and economic activities are the most important and dynamic in modern human life, many new
lexical items come directly from them, such as Kodak, Coke, nylon, etc.
(2) Abbreviation
Many English words have come into being through abbreviation. This phenomenon is also called clipping: a new
word can be created by:
a. cutting the final part, for example, ad for advertisement.
b. cutting the initial part, for example, plane for aeroplane.
c. cutting both the initial and final parts accordingly, for instance, fridge for refrigerator.
(3) Blending is a relatively complex form of compounding, in which two words are blended by joining together the
 initial part of the first word and the final part of the second word, or by only joining the initial parts of the two
words, for example, emotion + icon → emoticon; car + hijacking→carjacking.
(4) Acronym is made up from the first letters of the name of an organization, which has heavily modified headword;
an example is EU for European Union. This process is also widely used in shortening extremely long words of
word groups in science, technology and other special fields, for example, SARS is short for ―Severe Acute
Respiratory Syndrome‖. What‘s more, people also use this process in internet chatting or e-mail communication,
such as BTW for ―by the way‖, ASAP for ―as soon as possible‖.
2. Semantic change plays a very important role in widening the vocabulary of a language. Since language is symbolic,
each word serves as a symbol in relation to a specific meaning. In this sense, we need infinite numbers of words or
symbols to code the physical entities and our experiential concepts. But this is impossible for
communication．Therefore, users give a new concept to an old form, thus the meaning of a form is multiplied. There
are three kinds of semantic changes, namely, broadening, narrowing, and meaning shift．Class shift and folk
etymology also contribute to change in meaning.
Semantic broadening refers to the process in which the meaning of a word becomes more general or inclusive
than its historically earlier denotation. For instance，the word holiday used to mean ―holy day‖ in religious English.
Today it means ―a day for rest‖ regardless of its religious nature.
Semantic narrowing is a process in which the meaning of a word becomes less general or inclusive than its
historically earlier meaning. For example, the Old English word ―hund‖ (―hound‖) was once used for any breed of dog;
whereas in Modern English its meaning has been narrowed to a particular kind of dog.
Semantic shift is a process of semantic change in which a word loses its former meaning and acquires a new,
sometimes related, meaning. For example, the word ―silly‖ meant ―happy‖ in Old English, and ―naive‖ in Middle
English, but ―foolish‖ in Modem English.
3. 参见“7. 2 复习笔记 III. Vocabulary change”。
4. There are mainly three kinds of semantic changes, namely, broadening, narrowing, and meaning shift.
All semantic changes involve meaning shift．Yet, in its narrow sense, meaning shift refers to the change of
meaning, which has nothing to do with generalization or restriction. What makes the meaning of a word different is its
departure from its original domain as a result of its metaphorical usage. For instance，the word bead originally means
―prayer‖, but later it refers to ―the prayer bead‖, the visible manifestation of a prayer, finally ―small, ball-shaped piece
of glass, metal or wood‖.
5. 参见“7.1 复习笔记 III. Vocabulary change 1. Addition of new words” 。
 第 8 章 语言与社会

8.1 复习笔记

本章要点：
1. The scope of sociolinguistics
社会语言学的范围
2. Varieties of language
语言变体
3. Standard dialect
标准方言
4. Pidgin and Creole
洋泾浜语和和克里奥耳语
5. Bilingualism and diglossia
双语现象和双语

本章考点：
社会语言学的定义；语言变体(方言变体，语域，文体)；洋泾浜语和克里奥耳语；标准方言；双语现象和双语。

本章内容索引：
I. The scope of sociolinguistics
1. Definition of sociolinguistics
2. The relatedness between language and society
3. Speech community and speech variety
4. Two approaches to sociolinguistic studies
II. Varieties of language
1. Dialectal varieties
(1) Regional dialect
(2) Sociolect
(3) Language and gender
(4) Language and age
(5) Idiolect
(6) Ethnic dialect
2. Register
3. Degree of formality
III. Standard dialect
IV. Pidgin and Creole
V. Choosing a Code
1. Diglossia
2. Bilingualism and multilingualism
3. Code-switching
VI. Linguistic taboos and Euphemisms

I. The scope of sociolinguistics I. 社会语言学的范围

1. Definition of Sociolinguistics 1. 社会语言学的定义
【考点：名词解释】
社会语言学是语言学中的一个次
It is the sub field of linguistics that studies the relation
between language and society，between the uses of language 领域，它研究语言与社会的关系，以及
and the social structures in which the users of language live. 语言的运用与语言使用者所在的社会
结构之间的关系。
2. The relatedness between language and society 2. 语言和社会的相关性
(1) Language is principally used to communicate (1) 语言主要用来传达意义，同时
meaning，it is also used to establish and maintain social
也用来确立和保持社会关系。
relationships.
(2) Users of the same language in a sense all speak
differently. The kind of 1anguage each of them chooses to use (2) 从某种意义上来讲，同一语言
is in part determined by his social background. 的使用者说话的方式都不尽相同。他们
每个人所选择使用的语言部分上是由
他的社会背景所决定的。

3. Speech community and speech variety 3. 言语社团和言语变体

【考点：名词解释】
(1) Speech community: The social group that is singled (1) 言语社团: 单独划分出来用以
out for any special study is called the speech community. 进行特殊研究的社会群体。
(2) Speech variety: or language variety，refers to any (2) 言语变体: 或语言变体指的是
distinguishable form of speech used by a speaker or a group of 由一位言者或一群言者所使用任何具
speakers Linguistic features of a speech variety can be found 有区别性的言语形式。言语变体的语言
at the lexical，the phonological，the morphological，or the 特征可以从语言的词汇层、音位层、形
syntactical level of the language. 态层或句法层上找到。

4. Two approaches to sociolinguistic studies 4. 社会语言学研究的两种方法

(1) Macro-sociolinguistics or the sociology of language:
(1) 宏观社会语言 学或语 言 社会
look at society as a whole and consider how language
functions in it and how it reflects the social differentiations，i. 学: 将社会看作一个整体，考察语言是
e. a bird‘s-eye view of the languages used in society. 如何在其中运作的，以及它是如何反映
社会差异的，即对社会中所使用的语言
的一个总观。
(2) Micro-sociolinguistics or sociolinguistics proper: look (2) 微观社会语言学或严格意义的
at society from the point of view of an individual member 社会语言学: 从其中的个体成员的角度
within it，or a worm‘s-eye view of language in use. 来观察社会，或者对使用中的语言作一
个具体的详细的观察。

II. Varieties of language

II. 语言变体
1. Dialectal varieties
1. 方言变体
【考点：名词解释，分析原因，特点】
(1) 地域方言
(1) Regional dialect
① Definition: A regional dialect is a linguistic variety ① 定义：地域方言是指生活在同
used by people living in the same geographical region. 一地理区域的人所使用的语言变体。
② 特点：(a)地域方言的边界线往
② Features: (a) Regional dialect boundaries often
往与地理障碍重合 (由于交通不便造
coincide with geological barriers (owing to lack of
communication caused by difficulty in transportation); (b) in 成沟通交流缺失)；(b)在大多数情况下，
most cases，the regional dialects spoken in two neighbouring 两个相邻地区的地域方言在很大程度
areas are mutually intelligible to a great extent，and the change 上是可以彼此理解的，而且一个方言到
from one dialect to another is very often a gradual，rather than 另一个方言的变化往往是一个渐进的，
an abrupt process.
而非突变的过程。

③ Reasons: Although geographical barriers are the ③ 原因：尽管地理障碍是语言的

major, sources of regional variation of language，loyalty to 地域变体的主要源泉，但是，对本族语
one‘s native speech and physical and psychological resistance 的忠诚和对变化的生理和心理上的抵
to change are among other reasons of such variations. 制也是形成这种变体的原因。

(2) Sociolect (2) 社会方言

① Definition：Sociolect，or social-class dialect, refers to ① 定义:社会方言, 或社会阶层方
the linguistic variety characteristic of a particular social class. 言，是指具有某一特定社会阶层特征的
It has to do with separation brought about by different social 语言变体。它与由不同社会条件所造成
conditions. 的分离有关。
② Features: Two people who were born and brought up ② 特点： 两个在同一地理区域出
in the same geographical region and speak the same regional 生长大，操同样地域方言的人可能因为
dialect may speak differently because of a number of social
一些社会因素而以不同的方式说话。他
factors. Consciously or unconsciously ， their social 们的社会背景有意识或无意识地影响
backgrounds influence their choice of linguistic forms，and the 着他们对于语言形式的选择，并且他们
linguistic features of the language they use reveal their
所使用的语言特征也揭示了他们的身
identities.
份 。

③ Accent is an important marker of sociolect. A case in ③ 口音是社会方言的一个重要标

point is the so called ―Received Pronunciation‖(RP) vii in
志。英国英语中所谓的"标准发音"
British English，which had become characteristic of upper
class speech through out the country by the 19th century. ( RP )就是个很好的佐证，到 19 世纪，
Subsequently this non-localized particular way of pronouncing 它已成为全国上层阶级的一个特点。因
standard English was an indicator of a public school education 此，这种非地方化的发标准英音的独特
and thus a high social status on the part of the speaker.
方式就是私立学校教育的标志，并且也
因此成为言者社会地位高的标志。
(3) Language and gender (3) 语言与性别
Language varies between genders: 不同性别语言也有差异：
① The language of women is more standard than that of
① 女性的言语比男性言语更接近
man.
② In the use of intonations: The female speakers tend to 标准变体。
have a wider range in their intonation. And female speakers ② 在语调的使用上: 女性言者的
are heard to use the low-rise intonation with statements much 语调范围更广一些; 而且，女性在陈述
more frequently than male speakers.
时用降升调的频率要比男性高得多。
③ In the use of certain lexical items, the word girls is
commonly used by females to females as an address form， ③ 在某些词汇项的运用上，女性
men would mainly use ladies Some adjectives of evaluation 一般用 girls 这个词作为对女性的称谓
are used more frequently by females than by males，such as 语，而男性主要用 ladies。女性使用评
nice，lovely，cute，fantastic and also some intensifiers，such 价性形容词及某些强度词的频率高于
as awfully.
男性，如 nice， lovely, cute, fantast，
④ Female speech is less assertive and thus sounds to be
more polite than male speech. Female speakers tend to use awfully。
more often the question tag, and such syntactic forms as I'm ④从整体来看，女性言语的独断性
afraid…and I'm not sure but… 不强，因此，听起来比男性言语要礼貌。
女性言者更倾向于用反意疑问句，以及
像 I'm afraid. 和 I'm not sure but. 这样
的句法形式。
(4) Language and age
(4) 语言与年龄
In many communities the language used by the old
generation differs from that used by the younger generation in 在许多社团中，老一代人所使用的
certain ways. 语言与年轻一代所使用的语言在某些
① The most striking difference is found at the lexical 方面存在差异。
level.
① 词汇层面的差异最明显。
② Lexical variation is more noticeable across
three-generation time span than two generation time span. ② 跨三代人的时间段的词汇变化

(5) Idiolect 要比跨两代的变化要显著。

① Definition: Idiolect is a personal dialect of an (5) 个人语言

individual speaker that combines elements regarding regional， ① 定义：个人语言是个体言者的

social，gender，and age variations. 个人方言，它结合了有关地域、社会、

② Features: An individual speaker‘s regional and social 性别和年龄的变体成分。

back ground，his／her gender and age jointly determine the ② 特点：个体言者的地域和社会

way he／she talks，And the language he／she uses. which 背景、性别和年龄共同决定了他/她说话

bears distinctive features of his／her own，is his／her idiolect. 的方式。而这种他/她所使用的、带有其

What makes up a person‘s idiolect also includes such factors 自身的区别性特征的语言就是他/她的

as voice quality，pitch and speech tempo and rhythm. 个人语言。一个人的个人语言的构成也

包括像音质、音高、言语语速和韵律这
些特征。
(6) Ethnic dialect (6) 种族方言
① Definition ① 定义
 An ethnic dialect is a social dialect of a language that cats 种族方言是一个不同于地域差别
across regional differences；it is mainly spoken by a less 的社会方言;主要是那些经历过像种族
privileged population that has experienced some form of
歧视或隔离这种形式的社会孤立，没有
social isolation such as racial discrimination or segregation.
多少特权的人群使用这种语言。
② Features of Black English ② 黑人英语的特点
a) This kind of English spoken mostly by a large section a)一种主要由大部分非中产阶级的
of non-middle-class American Blacks.
美国黑人所使用的方言。
b) A prominent phonological feature of Black English is
the simplification of consonant clusters at the end of a word. b)黑人英语一个突出的音位特征
c) A syntactic feature of Black English that has often 是词尾辅音丛的简化。
been cited to show its illogicality is the deletion of the link
c)黑人英语中经常用来说明其非逻
verb ―be‖.
辑性的一个句法特征就是系动词"be"的
省略。

2. Register
2. 语域
【考点：名词解释，分析文段的语域特征】
(1) Definition
According to Hallidayviii，―Language varies as its function (1) 定义
varies：it differs in different situations. ‖The type of language 韩礼德的语域理论: 韩礼德认为，
which is selected as appropriate to the type of situation is a
“语言随其功能而变; 因其场合而异”
。
register.
选择的与情景类型相适应的语言类型
就是语域。

(2) Three social variables that determine the register

(2) 决定语域的三个社会变量
① Field of discourse refers to what is going on：to the
area of operation of the language activity. It is concerned with ① 语场是指所正在进行的事物:语
the purpose and subject matter of communication. 言活动操作的领域。它涉及交际的目的
② Tenor of discourse refers to the role of relationship in 和主题事件。
the situation in question: who the participants in the
② 语旨是指这些问题所涉及的场
communication groups are and in what relationship they stand
to each other. 合中关系的作用:交际群体中的参与者
③ Mode of discourse mainly refers to the means of 是谁，他们彼此之间是何种关系。
communication. It is concerned with ―how‖ communication is
carried out. Fundamental to the mode of discourse is the
③ 语式主要是指交际的方式。它
distinction between speaking and writing.
涉及到交际是"如何"展开的。语式的基
本原理在于口头语和书面语之间的区
分。

3. Degree of formality 3. 正式程度

(1)Features (1) 特点
Language used on different occasions differs in the 在不同场合所使用的语言在正式
degree of formality ， which is determined by the social
程度上是不同的，它是由社会变量来决
variables，e. g. who we are talking with and what we are
talking about. 定的，如我们在与谁交谈，以及我们在
(2)Five stages of formality(by Martin Joos) 谈些什么。
1. intimate，2 casual，3 consultative，4. formal，and 5. (2) 五个阶段
frozen. According to Joos，it is routine to alternate，within a 即：1. 亲密的; 2. 随意的; 3. 客气
single discourse，between two styles which neighbour on this
的;4. 正式的; 5. 冷淡的。根据裘斯的
scale.
说法，在同一个交谈中这个阶内相邻的
两种风格之间的变换是正常的。

III. Standard dialect

III. 标准方言
【考点：名词解释，特征】
1. Definition 1．定义
The standard variety is a superimposed ， socially 标准变体是语言中一门带有强制
prestigious dialect of a language. It is the language employed 性的、具有社会优越感的方言。它是政
by the government and the judiciary system，used by the mass 府和司法系统所采用的语言，被大众传
media，and taught in educational institutions，including school 媒所使用，在教育机构，包括把这门语
settings where the language is taught as a foreign or second 言当作外语或第二语言传授的学校环
language.
境中所教授的语言。
2．Nature
The standard dialect is a particular variety of a language 2. 性质
in that it is not related to any particular group of language 标准方言是语言的一个特特殊变
users，but it is the variety which any member of a speech 体，因为它与任何特定语言使用者群体
community can possibly use regardless of his social and
都无关，而是一个语言社团的任何成员
geographical backgrounds，his gender and age.
3. Features 都有可能使用的变体，无论其社会和地
(1) The standard dialect is based on a selected variety of 理背景、性别和年龄如何。
the language，usually it is the local speech of an area which is 3. 特点
considered the nation‘s political and commercial center. (1)标准方言是基于该语言的经过
(2) The standard dialect is not a dialect a child acquires
选择的一种变体，通常被认为是国家政
naturally like his regional dialect ， It is a superimposed
variety；it is a variety imposed from above over the range of 治和商业中心的地区的地方言语。
regional dialects. (2)标准方言并不是像地域方言那
(3) The standard dialect has some special functions. 样由孩子自然习得的方言。它是一种强
Being designated as the official or national language of a
制性变体，是一种强加于地域方言范围
country，the standard dialect is used for such official purposes
as government documents，education，news reporting；it is the 之上的变体。
language used on any formal occasions.
(3)标准方言具有一些特殊的功能。
被指定为一个国家官方和民族语言的
标准方言也被用于像政府文件、教育和
新闻报道这样的官方需求中;它是一种
在任何正式场合都被使用的语言。

IV. Pidgin and Creole IV. 洋泾浜语和克里奥耳语

【考点：名词解释，分析原因，特征】 1. 洋泾浜语
1. Pidgin (1) 定义
(1) Definition
A pidgin is a special language variety that mixes or 洋泾浜语是将几种语言混合或
blends language sand it is used by people who speak different 者融合在一起的一种特殊语言变体，
languages for restricted purposes such as trading. 它是由操不同语言的人为了有限的
(2) Origin
目的，如贸易而使用的语言。
Pidgins arose from a blending of several languages in the
sense that some of its grammar and vocabulary is derived from (2) 起源
the European language used by traders and missionaries in 洋泾浜语起源于几种语言的融
order to communicate with peoples whose languages they did
合，因为有些洋泾浜语的语法和词汇
not know.
(3) Features 是由为了与那些他们不懂其语言的
① A limited vocabulary; 人进行交际的商人和传教士所使用
② A very reduced grammatical structure characterized 的欧洲语言中获得的。
by the loss of inflections，gender and case. (3) 特点
① 词汇有限;
② 语法结构非常简单，其特点
为其屈折变化、性和格的消失。
2. 克里奥耳语
2. Creole
(1) Definition (1)定义
When a pidgin has become the primary language of a 当一种洋泾浜语成为了某一言
speech community，and is acquired by the children of that 语社团的主要语言，并且由该言语社
speech community as their native language，it is said to have 团的孩子习得作为本族语时，它就成
become a Creole.
(2) Features 为了克里奥耳语。
① The structure of the original pidgin is expanded to
enable it to fulfill its new functions. (2) 特点
② The vocabulary is vastly enriched ， and new ① 最初的洋泾浜语的结构得以
syntactic-semantic concepts developed. 扩展，使其能够执行新的功能。
② 词汇被极大地丰富，新的句法
语义概念也得以发展。

V. 选择语码
V. Choosing a Code 1. 双语
1. Diglossia (first used by Ferguson in 1959) 定义：当某一种语言的两种变体同
Definition: it refers to a situation where two varieties of a 时存在于一个社团，并且每一种语言都
language exist side by side throughout the community, with 有不同的使用目的时，这种现象就叫做
each having a definite role to play. Usually, the more standard 双语。通常情况下，更标准的语言变体
variety can be called the high variety or H-variety, which is 被称作高标准语言，用于政府、新闻媒
used in government, the media, education, and for religious 介、教育和宗教活动。另一种一般是无
services. The other one is usually a non-prestige variety, the 声望的语言，称低标准语言，用于家庭、
low variety or L-variety used in the family, with friends, when 朋友之间、购物时等。
shopping, etc. 特征：两种语言变体功能的具体化
Feature: specialization of function of the two varieties.
2. 双语现象和多语现象
2. Bilingualism and multilingualism (1) 定义
(1) Definition 双语指的是两种语言同时使用，且
Bilingualism is a situation where two languages are used 其功能各不相同的情况。多语则是指个
side by side with each having a different role to play; and 人或群体使用至少两种语言的情况。例
language switching occurs when the situation changes. 如特定地区或国家的居民。
Multilingualism refers to a situation where three or more
languages are used by an individual or by a group of speakers
such as the inhabitants of a particular region or nation. (2)双语现象的典型例子
(2) Typical examples of Bilingualism 巴拉圭是进行过双语现象研究的
Paraguay is one of the places where research on 地区之一。另外加拿大魁北克也是双语
bilingualism has been carried out.
A typical example of a bilingual community is an ethnic (英语和法语)地区。
ghetto where most of the inhabitants are either immigrants or 双语社团的一个典型例子就是种
children of immigrants. 族贫民窟。
【考点： 名词解释&辨析—Diglossia 和 Bilingualism 的区别】
3. 语码转换
3. Code-switching
语码转换是指说话者或写作者从
Code-switching refers to a change made by a speaker or
一种语言或语言变体转用另一种语言
writer from one language or language variety to another one.
或语言变体的现象。
There are two major kinds of code-switching.
(1)情景语码转换发生在所使用的
(1)The situational code-switching occurs when the
语言随着参与者对他们自身认识的境
language used changes according to the situation in which the
况发生改变，他们在不同情境下使用不
participants find themselves; they speak one language in one
同的语言。
situation and another in a different one.
(2)当话题的转变要求语言也随之
(2)When a change in topic requires a change in the
变化时就叫做隐喻语码转换。
language used, this is called metaphorical code-switching.

VI. 禁忌语和委婉语
VI. Linguistic Taboos and Euphemisms
1．禁忌语是由于宗教、政治或性
1．Taboo is a term that is avoided for religious, political,
别原因而避免使用的词汇，通常被委婉
or sexual reasons and is usually replaced by a euphemism, e.
语所代替，
例如用 rest room 或 bathroom
g. rest room or bathroom for toilet.
来代替 toilet。
2．Euphemism refers to the use of a word which is
2．委婉语是用一词代替比较唐突
thought to be less offensive or unpleasant than another word.
的令人不快的另一词的表达方法。如用
pass away 代替 die。
 8.2 课后习题详解

1. How is language related to society?

2. Explain with an example that the evaluation of language is social rather than linguistic.
3. What are the main social dialects discussed in this chapter? How do they jointly determine idiolect?
4. In what sense is the standard dialect a special variety of language?
5. What is register as used by Halliday? Illustrate it with an example of your own.
6. What linguistic features of Black English do you know? Do you think Black English is an illogical and inferior variety
of English? Why (not)?
7. What peculiar features does pidgin have?
8. How do bilingualism and diglossia differ，and what do they have in common?

参考答案
1. (1) While language is principally used to communicate meaning, it is also used to establish and maintain social
relationships. This social function of language is embodied in the use of such utterances as ―Good morning!‖,
―How is your family?‖, ―Nice day today, isn‘t it?‖
(2) Users of the same language in a sense all speak differently. The kind of language each of them chooses to use is
in part determined by his social background. And language, in its turn, reveals information about its speaker.
(3) Language, especially the structure of its lexicon, reflects both the physical and social environment of a society.
For example, while there is only one word in English for ―snow‖, there are several in Eskimo. This is a reflection
of the need for the Eskimos to make distinctions between various kinds of snow in their snowy living
environment.
2. As a social phenomenon, language is closely related to the structure of the society in which it is used, and the
evaluation of a linguistic form is entirely social.
To a linguist, all language forms and accents are equally good as far as they can fulfill the communication
functions they are expected to fulfill. Therefore, judgments concerning the correctness and purity of linguistic varieties
are social rather than linguistic.
A case in point is the use of the postvocalic [r]. While in England accents without postvocalic [r] are considered
to be more correct than accents with it, in New York city, accents with postvocalic [r] enjoys more prestige and
considered more correct than without it.
3. The main social dialects discussed in this chapter are regional dialect, sociolect, age and gender. Idiolect is a personal
dialect of an individual speaker that combines elements regarding regional, social, gender, and age variations. These
factors jointly determine the way she/he talks. While the language system provides all its users with the same set of
potentials, the realization of these potentials is individualized by a number of social factors, resulting in idiolects.
4. (1) The standard dialect is a particular variety of a language in that it is not related to any particular group of language
users, but it is the variety which any member of a speech community can possibly use regardless of his social and
geographical backgrounds, his gender and age.
(2) The standard dialect is based on a selected variety of the language; usually it is the local speech of an area which is
considered the nation‘s political and commercial center. For example, standard English developed out of the
English dialects used in and around London as they were modified over the centuries by speakers in the court, by
scholars from universities and writers. Gradually, the English used by the upper classes in the capital city
diverged markedly from the English used by other social groups and came to be regarded as the model for all
those who wished to speak and write well.
(3) The standard dialect is not a dialect a child acquires naturally like his regional dialect. It is a superimposed variety;
imposed from above the range of regional dialects.
(4) The standard dialect has some special functions. Also designated as the official or national language of a country,
the standard dialect is used for such official purpose as government documents, education, news reporting; it is
the language used on any formal occasions.
5. According to Halliday, ―Language varies as its function varies; it differs in different situations. ‖ The type of language
which is selected as appropriate to the type of situation is a register. Halliday further distinguishes three social
variables that determine the register: field of discourse, tenor of discourse, and mode of discourse.
 For example, a lecture on biology in a technical college could be identified as:
Field: scientific (biological)
Tenor: teacher-students (formal, polite)
Mode: oral (academic lecturing)
6. (1) Linguistic features of Black English:
Phonological features: simplification of consonant clusters at the end of a word. According to this consonant
deletion rule, the final-position consonants are often deleted; thus ―passed‖ is often pronounced [pa:s], mend
[men], desk [des], and told [toul]
Syntactic features one: the deletion of link verb ―be‖. In Black English, we often come across many
sentences without copula verb: ―They mine‖, ―You crazy‖, ―Her hands cold‖, and ―That house big‖. In fact, copula
verb deletion is not a unique feature of Black English, it is often found in other dialects of English and in
languages like Russian and Chinese.
Syntactic features two: the use of double negation structure. e. g.
He don’t know nothing. (He doesn‘t know anything. )
I ain’t afraid of no ghosts. (I am not afraid of ghosts. )
Some people consider these sentences illogical because they claim that two negatives make positive. But
in fact, such double negative constructions were found in all dialects of English of earlier period.
(2) I don‘t think Black English is an illogical and inferior variety of English.
Linguists are agreed that no variety of a language is inherently better than any other. They insist that all languages
and all varieties of a particular language are equal in that they quite adequately serve the needs of those who use
them. The only exception they recognize are pidgins, which are by definition restricted varieties, or the varieties
we associate with people who are impaired in some way, e. g. certain mentally or physically handicapped people.
American English is considered ―better‖ only in a social sense: it has a preferred status; it gives those who use it
certain social advantages; and it increases their life chances. Black English, being a nonstandard variety, tends to
produce the opposite effect. These are some of the consequences that follow from elevating one variety and
denigrating others, but there is no reason to suppose that any one of the varieties is intrinsically more worthy than
any other.
7. A pidgin is a special language variety that mixes or blends languages and it is used by people who speak different
languages for restricted purposes such as trading. Pidgin arose from a blending of several languages such as Chinese
dialects and English, African dialects and French. Usually a European language serves as the basis of the pidgin in the
sense that some of its grammar and vocabulary is derived from the European language used by traders and
missionaries. Pidgins typically have a limited vocabulary and a reduced grammatical structure characterized by the
loss of inflection, gender and case. The ―simplified‖ variety performs its function as trading and employment.
8. Differences:
(1)Bilingualism refers to the situation that two languages are used side by side with each having a different role to
play; and language switching occurs when the situation changes.
(2)Diglossia, refers to a sociolinguistic situation similar to bilingualism. In a diglossic situation, two varieties (high
variety and low variety) of a language, instead of two different languages, exist side by side throughout the
community, with each having a definite role to play. One of the most important features of diglossia is the
specialization of function of the two varieties. Each variety is the appropriate language for certain situations with
very slight overlappings.
Similarity:
The two languages of bilingualism and two varieties of diglossia exist side by side and have different role to
play as situation changes.
 8.3 考研真题与典型题详解

I．Fill in the blanks

1. Any discourse can be seen as a configuration of field，mode and＿＿．(中山大学 2003 年研)
2. English belongs to the＿＿subfamily of the＿＿family．(上海交大 2003 年研)
3. The term＿＿describes a situation in which two distinct varieties of a language, a ―high‖ and a ―low‖, are used, each
with separate social functions．(吉林大学 2004 年研)
4. A＿＿is a mixed and limited language used for some practical purposes by groups of people who do not know each
other‘s languages. (武汉大学 2002 年研)
5. When a pidgin has acquired native speakers，that is to say, when it becomes the first language of a social community，
it becomes a＿＿. (上海交大 2003 年研)
6. More qualifiers and intensifiers are used by ＿＿.

II. Multiple Choice

1. ______ are language varieties appropriate for use in particular speech situations.
A. Slang
B. Address terms
C. Registers
D. Education varieties
2. _____ refers to a marginal language of few lexical items and straight forward grammatical rules, used as a medium of
communication.
A. Lingua franca
B. Creole
C. Pidgin
D. Standard language
3. In sociolinguistic studies，speaker are regarded as members of social groups，the social group that is singled out for
any special study is called _____.
A. the speech community
B. the linguistic group
C. the linguistic community
D. the speech variety group
4. In the present day, the stability of＿＿seems to be decreasing. (东南大学 2002 年研)
A. social-class dialect
B. idiolect
C. taboo
D. regional dialect

III. True or False

1. If a child is deprived of linguistic environment，he or she is unlikely to learn a language successfully later on.
2. When children learn to distinguish between the sounds of their language and the sounds that are not part of the
language， they can acquire any sounds in their native language once their parents teach them.
3. Language reflects sexism in society. Language itself is not sexist，just as it is not obscene； but it can connote sexist
attitudes as well as attitudes about social taboos or racism.
4 Regional dialect is a variety of language related to the use of language．(东南大学 2003 年研)
5. Sociolinguists are interested in ―terms of address‖ because they offer some socio-cultural information about the type
of relationship between the speaker and the hearer. (上外 2000 年研)
6. Micro-sociolinguistics is sociolinguistics proper. (东南大学 2003 年研)

IV. Explain the following terms

1. Sociolinguistics(北航 2008 研)
2. Pidgins and Creoles
3. Speech community(北外 2010 研)
4. Diglossia (南开大学 2010 研)
5. Register (南开大学 2010 研)
6 Idiolect (中山大学 2002 年研)
7 Sociolect (中山大学 2000 年；南开大学 2003 年研)
8 Grammaticalization (北航 2006 年研)

V. Short answer questions

1. What are sociolinguistics of society and sociolinguistics of language? (武汉大学 2007 研)
2. The following is a statement by a Japanese businessman: ―You buy in your own language, but you sell in your
customer‘s language. ‖ How do you understand it? (人大 2005 研)
3. Is American English superior to African English? Why or why not? (人大 2003 研)
4. What is register? Use an example to illustrate your idea. (人大 2003 研)
5. What is language variation?
6. It is claimed in sociolinguistics that you are what you say. How would you comment on this theoretical claim? (武汉
大学 2011 研)
7. What is language planning, and how might it be carried out effectively?
8. What is a pidgin, and how may it be distinguished from a creole?
9. Euphemisms abound for "toilet" (which is itself a euphemism). What are some of them? Can you judge them in terms
of acceptability for various kinds of social functions and interactions?
10. There are various suggestions why women tend to approximate more closely to the standard language than men do.
What do you consider to be relevant factors? Why?
11. Below are given some words used in British English for which different words are usually used in American English.
See if you can match the British and American equivalents.
British American
a. clothes peg A. candy
b. braces B. truck
c. lift C. line
d. pram D. main street
e. waistcoat E. crackers
f. shop assistant F. suspenders
g. sweets G. wrench
h. boot (of a car) H. flashlight
i. bobby I. potato chips
j. spanne J. vacation
k. biscuits K. baby buggy
l. queue L. elevator
m. torch M. can
n. underground N. cop
o. high street O. wake up
p. crisps P. trunk
q. lorry Q. vest
r. holiday R. subway
s. tin S. clothes pin
t. knock up T. clerk

VI. Essay questions

1. It has been observed that women tend to approximate more closely to the standard language than men do. Why do you
think this is so? (北外 2003 研)
2. How do you understand the role of linguistic research in social and economic development? (南开大学 2004 研)
3. What is the difference between pidgins and creoles? (大连外国语 2000 年；东南大学 2003 年
研)
4. Forms of address in Chinese seem to differ according to a number of features such as age and sex. Describe three other
features which may influence our choice of forms of address. Then illustrate with one example what actually happens
when an inappropriate form of address is used. (北外 2001 年研)
5. Explain the difference between Chinese and English culture by illustrating one aspect of life.
Which is rich in Chinese but limited in English, and vice versa. (东南大学 2003 年研)

参考答案及解析
I. Fill in the blanks
1. tenor
(话语包括语场、语式、语旨三个方面。)
2. Gemanic; Indo-European
(英语属于印欧语系日耳曼语的一支。)
3. diglossia
(双语的定义。)
4. pidgn
(―洋泾浜‖语的定义)
5. creole
(―克里奥尔语‖的定义。)
6. women
(语言使用的性别差异。)
II. Multiple Choice
1. C (语域是特殊人群使用的言语变体，通常指具有相同职业或具有同样爱好的人。某一语域通常具有自己一些
独特的词汇或使用词或短语的特殊方式，而使其与其他语域区分开来。)
2. C (皮钦语不是任何人的母语，是在交往联系的情况下(例如交易)学习的语言变体。)
3. A (在社会语言学中，语言使用者都被看作是社会的成员。而具有相同的语言认同或至 少共享一种语言
变体的人群可称作语言社区。)
4. D (地域方言的特点。随着人们日常交流的增加，地域方言的稳定性在逐步下降。)
III. True or False
1. T (如果一个孩子失去了语言环境，他或她是不可能成功地学好一种语言的。)
2. F (不论孩子们生活在何种语言环境中，他们首先获得的是世上所有语言的普遍性知识，之后他们才会学习更
为复杂的语言。)
3. T (语言可以反应出社会的性别歧视现象，但语言本身并无性别歧视意义，语言可以表达出人们对性别的态度
及对一些禁忌语和种族歧视的态度。)
4. F (语言的变体可从使用者和使用两个角度划分为方言变体和类型变体，前者称为方言，后者为语域。地域方
言应该与语言的使用者相关。)
5. T (―称谓‖中包含社会文化意义。)
6. F (微观社会语言学‖或―小社会语言学‖是研究语言的变异(Variation)，并且联系社会因素来探讨语言变异发生
的原因和规律，常常使用统计的方法和概率的模式来描写这些变异现象。―宏观社会语言学‖研究社会中的
语言问题，如双语、语言接触、双方言，语言规范化问题等。因此，―微观社会语言学‖只是社会语言学的
一部分。)
IV. Explain the following terms
1. Sociolinguistics is an umbrella term which covers a variety of different interests in language and society, including the
social functions of language and the social characteristics of its users. It studies the characteristics of language
varieties, the characteristics of their functions, and the characteristics of their speakers as these three constantly
interact and change within a speech community.
(本题考查社会语言学的定义)
2. A pidgin refers to a variety of a language that is not native language of anyone, but is learned on contact situations
such as trading. When a pidgin develops beyond its role as a trade language and becomes the first language of a social
community, it becomes a creole. The process by which a pidgin becomes a creole is called creolization.
3. Speech community is a group of people who share a set of norms and expectations regarding the use of language.
Speech communities can be members of a profession with a specialized jargon, distinct social groups like high school
students or hip-pop fans. In addition, online and other mediated communities, such as many internet forums, often
constitute speech communities. Members of speech communities will often develop slang or jargon to serve the
group's special purposes and priorities.
4. When two languages or language varieties exist together in a community and each one is used for different purposes,
this is called diglossia. Usually, the more standard variety can be called the high variety or H-variety, which is used in
government, the media, education, and for religious services. The other one is usually a non-prestige variety, the low
variety or L-variety used in the family, with friends, when shopping, etc.
5. It is a speech variety used by a particular group of people, usually sharing the same occupation (e. g. doctors, lawyers)
or the same interests. A particular register often distinguishes itself from others by having a number of distinctive
words, by using words or phrases in a particular way, and sometimes by special grammatical constructions (e. g. legal
language).
6. Just as every speech community has a dialect, every speaker has his own pet words and expressions and special way of
expressing his ideas in language．This language variety of individual users is called ―idiolect‖
7. Dialects which identify where a person is in terms of a social scale are called ―social dialects‖ or ―class dialects‖ or
―sociolects‖ for short.
8. Grammaticalization refers to the process of turning lexical expressions into grammatical rules such as the increase in
the use of progressive forms to perform different grammatical functions.
V. Short answer questions
1. If we want to know more about a given society or community by examining the linguistic behavior of its members, we
are doing a sociolinguistic study of society. That is, we are doing sociolinguistics at a macro level of investigation. At
this level of discussion, things that we are interested in include bilingualism or multilingualism, language attitudes,
language choice, language maintenance and shift, language planning and standardization, vernacular language
education, and so on.
On the other hand, if we want to know more about some linguistic variations in language use by turning to
potential socio-cultural factors for a description and explanation, we are doing a sociolinguistic study of language.
Consequently, we are more interested in examining micro linguistic phenomena such as structural variants, address
forms, gender differences, discourse analysis, Pidgin and Creole languages, and other more language related issues.
2. This reflects some features of pidgin which is a special language variety that mixes or blends languages and it id used
by people who speak different languages for restricted purposes such as trading. And also, it reflects the tendency of
intercultural communication from the aspect of language.
3. American English is not superior to African English. As different branches of English, African English and American
English are equal. Similar as they are, they are influenced by their respective cultural context and thus form respective
systems of pronunciation, words and even grammar.
4. There are many social constraints that come into play in controlling which variety from the linguistic repertoire of a
speaker is to be used on a particular occasion. The type of language that is selected as appropriate to the type of
situation is a register. The register is determined by three social variables: field of discourse, tenor of discourse, and
mode of discourse. For example, an appropriate language to an academic lecture in a college should be formal and
polite, which is called register.
5．It is differences in pronunciation, grammar, or word choice within a language. Variation in a language may be related
to region, to social class and/or educational background or to the degree of formality of a situation in which language
is used.
For sociolinguists, the most important verity is that a language—any language—is full of systematic variation,
variation that can only accounted for by appealing, outside language, to socially relevant force and facts.
Sociolinguistics takes as its primary task to map linguistic variation on to social conditions. This mapping helps
understand not just synchronic variation (variation at a single point of time), but also diachronic variation (variation
 over time) or language change.
6. Everyone speaks differently. A personal dialect of an individual speaker combines elements regarding regional, social,
gender, and age variations. In other words, an individual speaker‘s regional and social back ground, his/her gender
and age jointly determine the way he/she talks. From this point, we can claim that ―You are what you say‖.
Following this claim, we may expand the scope of our observation by introducing some social factors that are
believed to influence our language behavior in a social context. Among these factors, some major ones include a)
class; b) gender; c) age; d) ethnic identity; e) education background, f) occupation, and g) religious belief. In our
daily speaking, the potential selection of linguistic forms can reflect the above factors, which determine our
identities.
For example, women use more ―fancy‖ color terms such as ―mauve‖ and ―beige‖; use less powerful curse words;
use more intensifiers such as ―terrible‖ and ―awful‖; use more tag questions. On the other hand, your way of
speaking, to some extent, reflect your identity.
(本题为开放式题目，围绕自语言与社会及文化之间的关系简要阐述自己对这句话的观点即可。)
7. Governments and people carefully examine all the language and dialects in the country and decide which is the
standard, official language or languages and specify their scope of use. They also make plans for the regional use
and/or development of other languages and dialects. This is now called language planning. Through language planning,
an official language policy is established and implemented.
The official attempt may concentrate on either of the status of a language with regard to some other language or
variety or its internal condition with a view to change it. Language planning may involve both of these aspects, the
first is called status planning and the second is corpus planning.
8. A pidgin is a variety of a language that is not a native language of anyone, but is learned on contact situations such as
trading. A pidgin is usually based on one language, though it soon takes on substances of other languages. It usually
has a limited vocabulary and much reduced grammatical structure which may expand when it is used over a long time
or for many purposes. Sometimes, a pidgin dies out of its own accord.
When a pidgin develops beyond its role as a trade language and becomes the first language of a social community,
it becomes a creole. Creole has large numbers of native speakers and is not restricted at all in their use. Once a creole
is in existence, it may continue almost without change; it may evolve further into a normal language or gradually
merge with its base language through decreolization.
9. Euphemism for toilet: Men‘s room, Lady‘s room, Rest room, Powder room, Lavatory, and so on.
When we are together with intimate people such as friends or family members, we can ask them about the
position of toilet or lavatory. However, if we are in public places, together with people we are not so familiar, such as
business partner, fresh acquaintances, especially people of the other sex, we seldom use toilet, lavatory and WC. We
prefer to use more polite words like gentlemen‘s/lady‘s room, rest room instead. Sometimes, ladies use powder room
as if they are going to powder their face, and then comes the expression ―I have to powder my nose. ‖ which actually
means that she is going to answer the call of nature.
10. In my opinion, the fact that women tend to approximate more closely to the standard language than men do is related
to their social positions.
Women, from a historical perspective, were in an inferior position to men. To obtain same right, women are
constantly in struggling with discriminations. A sense of social role leads to a language consciousness inevitably. So
they do their best to use more of a standard and prestigious speech patterns in their community. From the point of
culture, girls are taught to be gentle and quiet. There are more taboo words for women than men, swearwords and
four-letter-words are considered to be unbearable for women. Besides, men‘s and women‘s different social roles and
field of activities are important factors. Men are rated socially by their occupation, income and other abilities, while
for the most of the time women‘s ability and potentiality are underrated or even denied. Therefore, women have to
find other way to maintain and raise their social status, one of which is through language.
11. a-S b-F
c-L d-K
e-Q f-T
g-A h-P
i-N j-G
 k-E l-C
m-H n-R
o-D p-I
q-B r-J
s-M t-O
VI. Essay questions
1. Language is a social, value-loaded practice, which reflects an intricate network of social, political, cultural, and age
relationships within a society.
Women‘s speech closely approaches the standard variety than the speech of men, this has been explained in terms
of a greater consciousness of status on the part of women. Women are more usually more status-conscious than men in
the English-speaking world, they are aware of their low status in society and, as a result, use more standard speech
forms in their attempt to claim equality or achieve high social status. In a sense, they are up in arms against men's
society. The status of men has been traditionally defined by their occupation and wealth, while women have had to
find other ways of establishing their position and one of these has been their speech.
A second explanation relates to the ways in which society treats women. Women are expected to behave better
than men, traditionally, just as society has been harsher on women with regard to such vices as promiscuity and
drunkenness, a better standard of language may have been required.
A third explanation is that, by using standard or polite forms, a woman is trying to protect her face. In other
words, a woman claims more status in society. Her greater use of standard forms may also imply that she does not
attend solely to her own face needs but also to those of the people she is interacting with, thus avoiding disagreement
and seeking agreement and rapport.
2. To see the role linguistics plays in social and economic development, we could specifically consider the integration of
linguistic research with other fields of social life, such as computational linguistics, psycholinguistics, applied
linguistics, anthropological linguistics.
As to the applied linguistics, it is undeniable that linguistic research has greatly influenced the language teaching
and learning. For example, various linguistic schools have shed insight into the methodology of language teaching,
especially foreign language teaching. Those different models of language teaching are all aimed at a more successful
and effective language teaching.
As is known, for a human being in the society, communication is very important. In the social communication,
linguistic research also made some important interpretations and explanations. Such as Grice‘s Cooperative Principle,
Brown& Levinson‘s face and politeness theory, etc, those theories have good inspirations as to how to create a
successful communication, and how to avoid and deal with miscommunication
In a word, although without linguistic research society and economics could still develop in their own way, yet
linguistics with its effort to explain what is the nature of the activities concerning language, and how these activities
works, has undoubtedly made it easier for the social and economic development.
3. A pidgin is a special language variety that mixes or blends languages and it is used by people who speak different
languages for restricted purposes such as trading. The term is believed to have originated from the pronunciation of
the English word―business‖in Chinese Pidgin English.
Pidgins arose from a blending of several languages such as Chinese dialects and English, African dialects and
French, African dialects and Portuguese. Usually a European language serves as the basis of the pidgin in the sense
that some of its grammar and vocabulary is derived from the European language used by traders and missionaries in
order to communicate with peoples whose languages they did not know.
Pidgins typically have a limited vocabulary and a very reduced grammatical structure characterized by the loss of
inflections, gender and case. The―simplified‖variety performs its functions as trading and employment.
When a pidgin has become the primary language of a speech community, and is acquired by the children of that
speech community as their native language, it is said to have become a creole. The structure of the original pidgin is
expanded to enable it to fulfill its new functions. The vocabulary is vastly enriched, and new syntactic-semantic
concepts developed. Notable examples of Creole are the English-based Creole of Jamaica, and the French-based
Creole of Haiti.
4. (1) Other features might be social status, regional difference and intimacy. A man of higher social status, such as the
 employer, calls his employees by name, while the opposite is unacceptable. An employee calls his employer by the
title. Regional difference influences people‘s address forms as well. People in the south tend to address each other
in terms of the first name only while people in the north the full name. Instead of ―papa‖ or ―mama‖, some
children call their parents―laoba‖, ―laoma‖ (literally ―old father‖, ―old mother‖) to show intimacy.
(2)―Shifu‖(1iterally―master worker‖)is frequently used to show respect for strangers. English speakers, on similar
occasions, would use ―Sir‖ or ―Madam‖. The extension of kinship terms is another example of Chinese culture.
Terms such as ―uncle‖, ―aunt‖, ―grandpa‖, and―granny‖ are used as honorific titles for senior people or strangers,
as in―Granny Li‖and―Uncle Wang‖. Native speakers of English would be puzzled if they are addressed in this way
by people outside the immediate family.
(3) Similarly, the use of respectful titles—Chairman Mao, Premier Zhou—to indicate people‘s influential status is
typical of Chinese culture. Such practice, however, is less common in English-speaking cultures.
5. Different cultural features—be they environmental, material, or social—produce different linguistic features.
(1) One aspect of life which is rich in Chinese but limited in English is the kinship terms. The kinship field is
generally built around the lexical differentiation of three fundamental human family relations：filiations,
consanguinity and spouseship. In English different words are used primarily to distinguish the sex of kin relations,
e. g. ―brother‖and―sister‖, ―aunt‖and―uncle‖, etc. 1, but in Chinese distinction is also made lexically between
members of kin who are older or younger than the speaker, or his／her parents, who are on the maternal side or
on the paternal side, and who are in—laws or not. Thus, for the English―aunt‖, we have in Chinese―gu‖(father‘s
sister), ―shen‖(wire of father‘s younger brother), ―bomu‖(wife of father‘s elder brother), ―yima‖(mother‘s sister),
and―jiuma‖(Wife of mother‘s brother).
(2) One aspect of life which is rich in English but limited in Chinese is the horse words. The fact that English boasts
a large number of horse words is a ready explanation in the important part horse plays in the life of the English
people. Besides the most common word―horse‖, there are ―gee‖(a term for a horse used by children),
―horseflesh‖(horses considered as a group, especially for driving, riding, or racing), ―steed‖(a spirited horse),
―mare‖(a female horse), ―foal‖(the young offspring of a horse), ―colt‖(a young male horse), ―filly‖(a young female
horse), ―pony‖(a horse small in size when full grown), ―thoroughbred‖(a purebred or pedigreed horse), and―bay‖(a
reddish brown horse).
 第 9 章 语言与文化

9.1 复习笔记

本章要点：
1. The relationship between language and culture
语言与文化的关系
2. Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis
萨丕尔-沃尔夫假说
3. Linguistic evidence of cultural differences
文化差异的语言证据

本章考点：
语言与文化的定义及关系，萨丕尔-沃夫假说，文化差异的语言证据

本章内容索引：
I. Definition of culture
II. The relationship between language and culture
III. Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis
IV. Linguistic evidence of cultural differences
1. Greetings and terms of address
2. Gratitude and compliments
3. Colour words
4. Privacy and taboos
5. Rounding off numbers
6. Words and cultural-specific connotations
7. Cultural-related idioms，proverbs and metaphors
V. Culture contact, culture overlap and culture diffusion
1. Culture contacts
2. Culture overlap
3. culture diffusion
VI. The significance of cultural teaching and learning
VII. Intercultural communication

I. Definition of culture I. 文化的定义

【考点：名词解释】 (1) 广义上讲，文化是指一个民族
(1)Culture，in a broad sense，means the total way of life 的整个生活方式，包括信仰的模式、风
of a people，including the patterns of belief，customs，objects， 俗、目标、机构、技术以及打上人类社
institutions，techniques，and language that characterizes the 区生活烙印的语言。
life of the human community. (2) 狭义上讲，文化可以指地方性
(2)In a narrow sense，culture may refer to local or 的或具体的惯例、信念或风俗习惯，这
specific practice，beliefs or customs，which can be mostly 些多见于民间文化、企业文化或食品文
found in folk culture，enterprise culture or food culture etc. 化等之中。

II. The relationship between language and culture II. 语言与文化的关系

【考点：分析异同点】 由于构成人们文化的知识和信仰
Since the knowledge and beliefs that constitute a people‘s 被习惯性的编码，并在人们的语言之中
culture are habitually encoded and transmitted in the language 传承，因此要将两者分开来是极其困难
of the people，it is extremely difficult to separate the two. 的。
(1) 一方面，语言作为人类密不可
(1) On the one hand，language as an integral part of 分的一部分，渗入了他的思想和世界
human being，permeates his thinking and way of viewing the 观，既表达了文化现实，也体现了文化
world，language both expresses and embodies cultural reality. 现实。
(2) 在另一方面，语言作为文化的
(2) On the other hand，language，as a product of culture， 产物，也有助于文化的恒定，而且，语
helps perpetuate the culture，and the changes in language uses 言运用中的变体也反过来反映了文化
reflect the cultural changes in return. 的变化。

III. Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis III. 萨丕尔-沃尔夫假说

【考点：名词解释；指出该假说的两种版本】 萨丕尔-沃尔夫假说认为，语言塑
Sapir-Whorf suggests: our language helps mould our 造了我们的思维模式，相应地，不同的
way of thinking and consequently, different languages may 语言表达决定了人们认识世界方式的
probably express their unique ways of understanding the 不同。
world. 从这个观点出发，可以得到两点知
Following his argument, two important points could be 识：
captured in this theory: (1) 强版(语言决定论)
(1) The strong version (linguistic determinism) 语言可以决定我们的思维方式。
Language may determine our thinking patterns. (2)弱版(语言相对主义)
(2) The weak version (linguistic relativity) 语言之间的相似性是相对的。对于
Similarity between languages is relative. For two 两个语言社区，其结构性差异越大，表
different speech communities, the greater their structural 明其对世界的认识越不同。
differentiations are, the more diverse their conceptualization of
the world will be.
IV. Linguistic evidence of cultural differences IV. 文化差异的语言证据
Any linguistic sign consists of three layers of meaning: 任何一个语言符号都都包含三层意义：
a. Denotative meaning (denotation): the meaning a. 指示意义：字典中提供的意义
provided in a dictionary b. 暗涵意义：联想意义
b. Connotative meaning (connotation): associative c. 图像意义：语言符号在人脑中唤
meaning 起的图像
c. Iconic meaning (icon): the image or icons invoked to
people
1. Greetings and terms of address 1. 问候语和称呼语
There are at least a dozen different greetings in English. 英语中至少有十几种不同的问候
People choose the proper one to greet different people they 语，人们在不同的场合选择适当的问候
meet on different occasions. Differently，a Chinese speaker 语来他们所碰到的不同的人打招呼，与
may greet his friends or new acquaintance with ‗‗Nin hao‖ or 此不同，汉语言者可能用"您好"或"你好
‗‗Ni hao‖ whether they meet for the first time or anytime in the "来问候他的朋友或新知，不管他们是
day. 第一次见面还是在一天中的任何时候。

2. Gratitude and compliments 2. 感激与称赞

Cultural differences are also evident in the ways gratitude 文化差异也可以从表达感激与称
and compliments are expressed. It is noted that people in the 赞的方式中明显地看出来。人们注意到
West tend to verbalize their gratitude and compliments more 西方人比中国人喜欢在口头上表达他
than Chinese speakers and that the westerners tend to accept 们的感激和称赞，而且西方人也比我们
thanks and compliments more directly and frankly than we 中国人倾向于更直接和坦诚地接受感
Chinese do. 激和赞许。
3. Colour words 3. 颜色词
Different languages may have different divisions of 不同的语言会有不同的颜色区分，
colour and different languages entail different color related 不同的语言含义了不同的与色彩相关
associations 的联想。
 4. 隐私和禁忌
4. Privacy and taboos 西方人极为看重隐私。问像"年龄、
The western people place a high value on privacy. It is 家庭背景、薪水"等这样有关私人信息
not appropriate for us to ask questions about personal 或个人活动的问题是不合适的。而且，
information like age，family background，salary，or questions 我们应该小心避免与性交、某些身体部
on personal activities. Moreover，we should be careful to 位、粗话和种族主义等相关的表达。
avoid expressions related to sexual intercourse，some organ of
human body，four-letter word sand racism etc.

5. Rounding off numbers 5. 数字处理

Members of a speech community often give preference to 一个言语社团中的成员往往偏爱
the numbers that their community regards as significant. 他们的言语社团认为是重要的数字。例
Americans，for instance，prefer to round off number to 4，as 如，美国人喜欢把数字弄成 4，如四分
in 4 ounces in a quarter pound or 4 quarts in a gallon. A 之一磅就是 4 盎司，或一加伦就是 4 夸
Frenchman，however，would not regard such a number as 脱。法国人根本不认为这个数字是圆满
round at all; he would round off to 5 as he is familiar with the 的，他们会把数字处理为 5 个他所熟悉
decimal system. 的十进制。

6. Words and cultural-specific connotations 6. 词及文化特有的内涵

Generally the semantic differences between two 一般而言，两种语言之间的语义差
languages may be grouped as the following: 别可以分类如下:
a. A term in one language that does not have a a. 一门语言中的一个术语在另一
counterpart in another language. 门语言中找不到其对应的事物。
b. Words or terms in both languages that appear to refer b. 两门语言中的词或术语在表面
to the same object or concept on the surface，but which 上看起来是指同一物体或概念，但是实
actually refer to quite different things. For example ―weekend‖ 际所指的事物则大相径庭。例如，
may stir up different connotations in Chinese and English. "weekend" 在汉语和英语中就会激起
c. Things or concepts that are represented by one or 不同的暗涵。
perhaps two terms in one language，but by many more terms c. 在一门语言中由一个或者可能
in the another language，that is，finer distinctions exist in the 是两个术语表征的事物或概念,在另一
other language， 门语言中是由更多术语来表征的，也就
d. Terms that have more or less the same primary 是说，在另一门语言中存在着更为精细
meaning，but which have considerably different secondary or 的区分。
additional meanings. d. 主要意义或多或少相同的术语
却具有极为不同的次要或附加意义。
7. Cultural-related idioms，proverbs and metaphors 7. 与文化相关的习语、谚语和隐喻
Idioms，proverbs and sayings and metaphors in different 不同语言中的习语、谚语、俗语和
languages，derived from different origins，also demonstrate 隐喻，起源不同，所显示的文化也有差
cultural differences. Different languages may have different 异。由于生活环境、社会规范和文学传
idioms owing to different living environments ， social 统等的不同，不同的语言也许会有不同
conventions and literature tradition etc. 的习语。
For example，since English people view dog as human 例如，英国人把狗看作是人类的朋
being‘s best friend，we can find more English expressions with 友，因此，英语中有关狗的表达要比汉
dog than in Chinese. 语中多。
lucky dog: a lucky person
clever dog: a clever boy or smart lad

V. Culture contact, culture overlap and culture diffusion V. 文化接触，文化重叠和文化渗透

Traditionally, there are three kinds of culture contacts: 传统意义上，文化接触有三种：积
accumulation, assimilation and amalgamation. 聚，同化和融合。
 ① Accumulation is the process of changing in material ①文化积聚就是一个文化群体与
culture, traditional practices, and believes that occurs when 另一个文化群体接触时所带来的物质
one group's culture system interferes with that of another, 文化，传统观念和信仰上的变化，或直
directly or indirectly challenging the latter to adapt the ways 接或间接的使后者融入到前者。
of the former. ②同化就是个人或社会群体融入到
② Assimilation is the process whereby individuals or 主流文化中，即使不是完全的融入。
groups of differing ethnicity are absorbed into the dominant ③文化渗透就是一个社会群体在种
culture of a society. 族上的融合从而形成一个社会综合体，
③ Amalgamation occurs when a society becomes 而不是一种文化被另一种文化消灭或
ethnically mixed in a way that represents a synthesis rather 吸收。
than the elimination or absorption of one group by anther. 尽管文化间存在差异，但是由于社
Despite the differences, there exists a greater or lesser 会之间自然环境和人类心理的相似性，
degree of culture overlap between two societies owing to some 不同文化间会存在多多少少的文化重
similarities in the natural environment and psychology of 叠。
human beings. 通过文化交际，文化 A 中的元素会
Through communication, some elements in culture A enter 融入到文化 B 中，并成为文化 B 的一
culture B and become part of culture B, thus bring about 部分，这就是文化渗透。
culture diffusion.
VI. The significance of cultural teaching and learning VI. 文化教学与学习的意义
When learning a foreign or second language，we should 在我们学习一门外语或第二语言
not only learn the mere imitation of the pronunciation， 时，不仅要模仿发音，学习语法、词汇
grammar，words and idioms. but also learn to see the world as 和习语，而且还要学会像本族语者一样
native speakers do，that is to say，learn the ways in which the 看世界，也就是说学会外语所反映的那
foreign language reflects the ideas，customs. and behavior of 个社会的思想、风俗和行为的方式，学
that society，learn to understand their ‗‗language of the mind‖ 会理解他们的"思维语言"或同化过程。
or acculturation.
VII. 跨文化交际
VII. Intercultural communication 跨 文 化 交 际 (intercultural
Intercultural communication，also known as cross cultural communication/cross-cultural
communication，is communication between people whose ommunication )，是指文化感知和符号
cultural perceptions and symbols systems are distinct enough 系统的差异足以改变交际事件的人之
to alter the communication event. It is frequently used to refer 间进行的交际，常指来自不同文化的人
to communication between people from different cultures， 之间的交际，暗含了文化之间的一个比
which implies a comparison between cultures. 较。
 9.2 课后习题详解

1. Try to sum up the relation between language and culture. Can you find similar relationship between local dialect and
regional culture?
2. What do you think of Sapir-Whorf hypothesis? Give examples or proof to support your point of view.
3. Can you find some loan words in Chinese from other languages? Explain how they were used in the original language
and how they are used now?
4. Based on your own learning experiences，please illustrate to what extent it is necessary to learn its culture when
learning a foreign language.
5. What do you think of linguistic imperialism and cultural imperialism? Is it nonsense or something worth
consideration?
6. Work out the meaning of the following underlined expressions. Find its origin and corresponding Chinese expressions.
a)The boss offers a high pay，but he wants his pound of flesh back in return and make them working very hard.
b) All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.
c) That‘s a dear John letter saying that she would never come back again.
d) The best fish swim near the bottom.
e) By so doing，they have actually opened a Pandora's box.
f) Any engineer worth his salt should know how to deal with such problems.
g) The little girl is the apple of her father's eye.

参考答案
1. Relation between language and culture:
(1) A language not only expresses facts, ideas, or events which represent similar world knowledge by its people, but
also reflects the people‘s attitudes, beliefs, world outlooks etc. In a word, language expresses cultural reality. To dig
it further, a language, as a system of signs with their own cultural substances and values, may be viewed as a
symbol of social identity.
(2) As people‘s language uses express the culture, to be more specific, their community culture represented by its
social conventions, norms and social appropriateness, the culture both emancipates and constrains people socially,
historically and metaphorically.
(3) Historically, each culture has its past and tradition, to put it simply, the culture of everyday practices has been
evolved and become consolidated over time. It is language that has played a major role in socializing the people and
in perpetuating culture, especially in print form.
(4) Culture also affects its people‘s imagination or common dreams which are mediated through the language and
reflected in their life. The interplay between language and culture may result in various forms of socialization and
people with different cultures may be socialized in different ways with different acculturation.
(5) On one hand, language as an integral part of human being, permeates his thinking and way of viewing the world,
language both expresses and embodies cultural reality. On the other, language, as a product of culture, helps
perpetuate the culture, and the changes in language uses reflect the cultural changes in return.
We can find similar relationship between local dialect and regional culture. For example, in China, there are
many local dialects and regional operas. Those regional operas can only be performed in the local dialects;
meanwhile those regional operas are part of local culture.
2. The hypothesis is now interpreted mainly in two different ways: a strong version and a weak one. While the strong
version believes that the language patterns determine people‘s thinking and behavior, the weak one holds that the
former influence the later. In my opinion, the weak version is more reasonable. So far, many researches and
experiments conducted in various disciplines provide support to the weak version. The studies have shed new light
on our understanding of the hypothesis: people tend to sort out and distinguish experiences differently according to
the semantic categories provided by their different codes.
Here is an example. English-speaking culture teaches its people to name what is practical, useful and important.
In a general sense, the important things take on specific names while the less important things have general names
that must be modified through additional word to become specific. A good illustration of this point is the word
―snow‖ in Eskimo and English. The Eskimos have countless words for snow. For them, snow is extremely
 important and so crucial to life that each of its various forms and conditions is named. In English-speaking cultures,
snow is far less important and the simple word ―snow‖ usually suffices the needs.
3. There are many loan words in Chinese from other languages, for example, ―肯德基‖ ―麦当劳‖ come from English
(KFC, McDonalds). These two words have the same meaning in both languages, referring to the fast food shops.
4. Based on my own learning experiences, learning a language is inseparable from learning its culture. We need to learn
enough about the language‘s culture so that we can communicate in the target language properly to achieve not only
the linguistic competence but also the pragmatic or communicative competence as well; otherwise, we may cause
some unnecessary misunderstandings and confusions sometimes. For example, when greeting acquaintances, we tend
to say ―Where are you heading for?‖ instead of ―How are you today?‖, which will cause confusion to foreigners.
5. With the increasing cultural diffusion, a tendency of cultural imperialism has been recognized. Linguistic imperialism
is closely linked with cultural imperialism. Linguistic imperialism is a kind of linguicism which can be defined as the
promulgation of global ideologies through the worldwide expansion of one language. With the monopoly of one
language over others, its accompanied ideologies, structures and practices will be a potential threat to the individual
cultural identity and cultural integrity. Therefore, it is something worth consideration.
6. a) 无情逼索全部债务；合法但极不合理的要求 (源自莎士比亚戏剧《威尼斯商人》)
b) 整天用功不玩耍，聪明孩子也变傻。(源自谚语，英国作家贺维尔)
c) 绝交信，女子给男友或丈夫的分手信。 (源自美国口语)
d) 好鱼游水底，良鸟藏深山。 (源自谚语)
e) 潘多拉盒子，灾难之源。(源自希腊神话)
f) 称职，值得雇用。(源自古语)
g) 珍爱之人，宝贝。(源自古语)
 9.3 考研真题与典型题详解

I. Fill in the blanks

1. ―Linguistic relativity‖ was proposed by ______ and ______. (清华 2001 研)
2. Taboo and _____ are two faces of the same communication coin.
3. ＿＿，which serves as a polite substitute for taboo expressions，is a mild，indirect or less offensive word or expression
substituted when the speaker or writer fears that more direct wording might be harsh or offensive. (武汉大学 2002 年
研)
4. People do not perceive the world freely but rather they do SO through language. a filtering structure which will distort
the reality and thus influence and control the thought. This view is commonly referred to as＿＿Hypothesis，which
can be traced back to Von Humboldt. (中山大学 2003 年研)

II. True or False

1. According to the strong version of the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis, speaker‘s perceptions determine language and
pattern their way of life.
2. Many native Chinese speakers will not feel embarrassed when they hear compliments like ―You speak excellent
English. ‖

III. Explain the following terms

1. Linguistic relativity (人大 2006 研)
2. Sapir -Whorf hypothesis(武汉大学 2004 研)
3. Linguistic determinism(上海交大 2007 研)

IV. Short answer questions

1. Eskimos have many different words for different types of snow, Aborigines for different types of sand, and in Arabic
one must choose from a whole range of words which are subsumed under the Western category CAMEL. Can you
explain these phenomena with your linguistic knowledge? (北航 2008 研)
2. What do you think of the Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis? (西安外国语学院 2006 研；北航 2010 研)
3. What will you say to a statement like ―our language is our culture‖? (四川大学 2006 研)
4．The following statements are examples of excessive use of euphemism. How to improve them?
Examples of excessive use of euphemism:
(1) The employees who had been notified of an interruption in their employment were referred to their
outplacement manager.
(2) The official acknowledged that he had misspoken when he said the troops had not engaged in any
protective-reaction missions.
(3) The prisoner‘s life will be terminated at dawn.
(4) The non-essential personnel in this division will be vacationed by next week.
(5) Reaching the top of the ladder of success must be a moving experience.
(6) I was told that he did away with himself.
(7) It is a widespread but unproven hypothesis that the parameters of significant personal change for persons in
mid-life are extremely narrow.
(8) I purchased a residential property that was in need of substantial upgrading.

V. Essay questions
1. Some comments on the following statement based on your own experience:
There exists a close relationship between language and culture. In other words, a successful master of a given
language has much to do with an understanding of that culture. (武汉大学 2007 研)
2. Explain this statement and give at least two examples of it: “In studying other cultures，we do so from the perspective
of our own culture. ‖ (北外 2007 研)
3. What is linguistic relativity and why is it so important in linguistic studies? (中山大学 2006 研)
4. How much does our language influence the way we think? How deeply do language and culture interpenetrate and
influence one another? These questions about language have fascinated thinkers throughout the ages. For example,
Johann Gottfried Herder and Wilhelm yon Humboldt in the German Romantic tradition regarded language as a prisma
or grid spread over things in the world so that each language reflects a different worldview. Write a short essay to
explain your position on this view. (北外 2004 研)

参考答案及解析
I. Fill in the blanks
1. Sapir, Whorf
(萨丕尔—沃尔夫假说认为，一方面，语言可以决定我们的思维方式；另一方面，语言之间的相似性是相对的，
结构性差异越大，反映出对于世界认识的越不同。因此，这个假说也被称作“语言决定论”和“语言相对主义”。)
2. euphemism
(禁忌语是由于宗教、政治或性别原因而避免使用的词汇，通常被委婉语所代替。委婉语是用一词代替比较唐突
的令人不快的另一词的表达方法。他们是同一交流过程的两个方面。)
3. Euphemism
(“委婉语”的定义。)
4. Sapir-Whorf
(萨丕尔-沃尔夫假说。)
II True or False
1. F (根据萨丕尔—沃尔夫假说的强势版本，语言决定了说话者的感知能力和生活模式， 而非说话者的感知
能力决定了语言和生活模式。)
2. F (中国人不习惯被过分表扬。)
II. Explain the following terms
1. Linguistic relativity. This is one of two points in Sapir-Whorf hypothesis. It states that similarity between languages is
relative, the greater their structural differentiation is, the more diverse their conceptualization of the world is. For
example, not every language has the same set of words for the colors; in Spanish there is no word that corresponds to
the English meaning of ―blue‖.
2. Sapir-Whorf hypothesis consists of two parts: linguistic determinism and linguistic relativity. Linguistic determinism
refers to the notion that a language determines certain nonlinguistic cognitive processes. Different languages offer
people different ways of expressing around, they think and speak differently. Linguistic relativity refers to the claim
that the cognitive processes that are determined are different for different languages. Thus, speakers of different
languages are said to think in different ways. The hypothesis is now interpreted mainly in two different ways: a strong
version and a weak one. The strong version believes that the language patterns determine people‘s thinking and
behavior; the weak one holds that the former influence the later. So far, many researches and experiments conducted
provide support to the weak version.
3. Linguistic determinism, is one of the two points of Sapir-Whorf hypothesis, and has developed into the strong version
of this hypothesis. It could be summarized as follows: (1) One‘s thinking is completely determined by his native
language because one cannot but perceive the world in terms of the categories and distinctions encoded in the
language. (2) The categories and distinctions encoded in one language system are unique to that system and
incommensurable with those of other systems. Therefore, the following statement could represent this hypothesis ―If
Aristotle had spoken Chinese, his logic would have been different‖.
III. Short answer questions
1. These phenomena can be explained from the following perspectives:
(1) These phenomena show a relationship between language and society. Language changes from region to region, from
one social group to another and from individual to individual. The living environment makes great impact on the
changes of language. As Eskimo are always living in an environment of a snow world, they have made a good
cognition to snow and classified it in different types. Human use language to describe the world they have cognized.
(2) These phenomena can be explained from the Sapir-Whorf hypotheses. This hypothesis suggests that: our language
helps mould our way of thinking and, consequently, different languages may probably express speaker‘s unique ways
of understanding the world. So Eskimos‘s different words for different types of snow reflect their different ways to
 understand snow.
(本题可从社会环境对语言的影响和萨丕尔-伍尔夫假说两方面说明。)
2. 参见“9. 2 课后习题详解题 2” 。
3. This statement reveals a fact that language is part of the culture. Culture is the total pattern of beliefs, customs,
institutions, objects and techniques that characterize the life of a particular society. It is regarded as a carrier of
culture, because without language culture would be impossible. Language is the principal mean by which culture is
passed down. Language is the symbolic representation of a people, and it comprises their historical and cultural
backgrounds as well as their approach to life and their ways of living and thinking. People use language for the sake
of communication, but language itself cannot fulfil the task of communication without the culture system behind the
language. Language is a product of our social life.
4. Improved versions:
(1) The laid-off employees were told to speak to the person who would try to help them find new jobs.
(2) The official admitted that he had lied when he claimed the troops had not engaged in any offensive missions.
(3) The prisoner will be executed at dawn.
(4) The unnecessary people in this division will be laid off by next week.
(5) Being successful must be a pleasant experience
(6) I was told that he had committed suicide.
(7) It is a widely held myth that middle-aged people can‘t change.
(8) I bought a house in need of repair.
IV. Essay questions
1. Language use is heavily tinted with its culture. A language does not only expresses facts, ideas, or events which
represent similar world knowledge by its people, but also reflects the people‘s attitudes, beliefs, world outlook, and so
on. In a word, language expresses cultural reality. To dig it further, a language, as a system of signs with their own
cultural substances and values, may be viewed as a symbol of social identity. People are identified via their use of
language. In this sense, language symbolizes cultural reality.
On the other hand, as people‘s language uses express the culture, to be more specific, their community culture
represented by its social conventions, norms and social appropriateness, the culture both emancipates and constrains
people socially, historically and metaphorically.
Historically, each culture has its past and tradition. A culture consists both of its ways how a social group
represents itself, its technological achievements, monuments and works of art and of its historical identity recorded
and passed down by the pop culture. It is language that has played a major role in socializing the people and in
perpetuating culture, especially in print form.
In addition, culture also affects its people‘s imagination or common dreams which are mediated through the
language and reflected in their life. Language is not only intrinsically related to what the culture is and what it was, but
also related to the culture of imagination governing people‘s decisions as well as actions. The interplay between
language and culture may result in various forms of socialization and people with different cultures may be socialized
in different ways with different acculturation.
Although language and culture are inextricably intertwined, this relationship is not analogous to that of structures
and processes. Rather, culture is a wider system that completely includes language as a subsystem. Linguistic
competence is one variety of cultural competence and speech behavior is one variety of social behavior. The relation
of language to culture is that of part to whole.
2. Culture is a semiotic meaning system in which symbols function to communicate meaning from one mind to another.
It is related to language in such a way that language is a part of culture and a part of human behavior, and also the
primary medium for transmitting much of culture. Therefore, without language, culture would not be possible.
Consequently, when studying a culture, we often rely on the language. Therefore, we may use our own language to
describe the target culture, which may be the one interpretation of the statement ―In studying other cultures, we do so
from the perspective of our own culture. ‖
What‘s more, when studying other cultures, we will definitely come across the differences between the target
culture and our own culture. We will subconsciously compare the two different cultures. Seeing from the perspective
of our own culture, we find how the target culture is different from our own culture, and this makes the target culture
 more distinctive from our own.
3. Linguistic relativity is one of the two points in Sapir-Whorf hypothesis, which states that distinctions encoded in one
language are unique to that language alone, and ―there is no limit to the structural diversity of language‖. Therefore,
similarity between languages is relative, the greater their structural differentiation is, the more diverse their
conceptualization of the world will be. For example, in English, the boundaries among the color spectrum are made in
this way: red, orange, violet, blue, and yellow. In fact, these discriminations are arbitrary, and in other language the
boundaries are indeed different. In neither Spanish, Italian nor Russian is there is a word that corresponds to the
English meaning of ―blue‖.
Linguistic relativity is important in linguistic studies because it recognizes the fact of linguistic diversity, which
stands as the base which descriptive linguistics lies on. Linguistic diversity also triggers out the study of the linguistic
similarity.
The study of the linguistic relativity has shed light on two important insights: there is nowadays recognition that
language, as a code, reflects cultural and preoccupations and constrains the way people think.
4. Humans have a unique linguistic system for communication that serves as the primary vehicle for expressing thoughts.
Language and thought may be viewed as two independent circles that develop along two different routes but overlap
in some parts, where language and thought are consistent with each other. But language is not the only means of
expressing thought. As for the relationship between language and the thought, we think that language does not
determine the way we think but influence the way we perceive the world and recall things, and affects the ease with
which we perform mental tasks. That is, language may be used to provide new ideas, bring about a change in beliefs
and values, solve problems, and keep track of things in memory. For example, a well-developed vocabulary may well
assist us in learning the concepts the lexis covers. We recall things more easily when they correspond to readily
available words or phrases. It is certainly easier for us to make a conceptual distinction if it neatly corresponds to a
particular lexical item available in our language. When we label our experience with linguistic symbols, our language
will influence how we remember and think about those experiences; otherwise the relationship between language and
perception, memory or thinking will be greatly reduced.
In terms of relationship between language and culture, we can infer that a language not only expresses facts, ideas,
or events that represent similar world knowledge by its people, but also reflects the people‘s attitudes, beliefs, world
outlooks, and etc. Language expresses cultural reality. On the other hand, as people‘s language uses express their
culture represented by its social conventions, norms and social appropriateness, the culture both emancipates and
constrains people socially, historically and metaphorically. Sharing a same community culture, people have acquired
common ways of viewing the world through their speech interactions with other members of the same group.
Although language and culture are inextricably intertwined, culture is a wider system that completely includes
language as a subsystem. The knowledge and beliefs that constitute a people‘s culture are habitually encoded and
transmitted in the language of the people. Language as an integral part of human being, permeates his thinking and
way of viewing the world, language both expresses and embodies cultural reality.
As for the relationship between language and world views, the language system does not necessarily provide
specifics of one‘s world view. All humans share a general conceptualizing capacity; Speakers of different languages
are capable of distinguishing and recognizing experiences according to their respectively different linguistic coding
systems for the same objective world. On the one hand, people speaking the same language may have different world
views, including political, social, religious, scientific and philosophical views. On the other hand, people speaking
different languages may share similar world views on above aspects. Moreover, one language can describe many
different worldviews, as is evident in the case of successful translation.
According to the theories shown above, we can infer that Johann Gottfried Herder and Wilhelm yon Humboldt‘s
view has both merits and limitations. First, they see clearly that there exists a relationship between language and
thoughts. Second, they assume that language influences so much the way people think that people who think in
different ways will have different world views. Based on the theoretical views above we think this view is not rational
in this aspect.
 第 10 章 语言习得

10.1 复习笔记

本章要点：
1. Theories of child language acquisition
儿童语言习得的理论
2. Cognitive development in child language development
儿童语言发展中的认知因素
3. Language environment and the Critical Period Hypothesis
语言环境和临界期假说
4. Stages in child language development
儿童语言发展的阶段
5. Atypical development
非典型发展

本章考点：
行为主义者预言习得观； 语法天生主义者的习得观；语言环境和临界期假说。

本章内容索引：
I. Theories of child language acquisition
1. A behaviourist view of language acquisition
2. An innatist view of language acquisition
3. An interactionist view of language acquisition
II. Cognitive development in child language development
III. Language environment and the Critical Period Hypothesis
IV. Stages in child language development
1. Phonological development
2. Vocabulary development
3. Grammatical development
4. Pragmatic development
V. Atypical development

I. Theories of child language acquisition I. 儿童语言习得的理论

1. A behaviourist view of language acquisition 1. 行为主义者的语言习得观
(1) Main content (1) 主要观点
① A behaviourist view of language acquisition
① 传统的行为主义者把语言看作
Traditional behaviorists view language as behavior and
believe that language learning is simply a matter of imitation 是行为，并且相信语言学习仅仅只是一
and habit formation. A child imitates the sounds and patterns 个模仿和习惯形成的问题。儿童模仿其
of the people around him ； people recognize the child‘s 周围的人的声音和模式;人们识别儿童
attempts and reinforce the attempts by responding differently， 的努力，并且通过不同的反应来强化这
the child repeats the right sounds or patterns to get the
种努力，儿童重复正确的语音或模式来
reward(reinforcement)
获得奖励(强化)。
② So imitation and practice are preliminary ， ②在这个理论中，模仿和实践是基
discrimination and generalization are key to language 本的，进行区别和总结对于语言的发展
development in this theory. Imitation：word for word repetition
至关重要。
of a11 or part of an utterance.
(2) 意义
(2) Significance
The behaviorist theory of child language acquisition 行为主义者关于儿童语言习得的
offers a reasonable account of how children acquire some of 理论为儿童是如何习得一些语言规则
the regular and routine aspects of the language，yet how they 和惯例的方面提供了合理的解释。然
acquire more complex grammatical structures of the language
而，要了解他们是如何习得更为复杂的
requires a different explanation.
 语言语法结构的则需要一个不同的解
释。

2. An innatist view of language acquisition 2. 语法天生主义者的语言习得观

【考点：名词解释，概念阐述】 (1) 定义
(1) Definition 诺姆·乔姆斯基声称人天生就具有
Noam Chomsky claims that human beings are
语言能力，而且语言的发展是和儿童的
biologically programmed for language and that the language
develops in the child just as other biological functions, such as 其他生物功能的发展一样的，如行走。
walking. (2) 发展
(2) Development 最初，乔姆斯基把这种天生的能力
Originally Chomsky referred to this innate ability as
称为语言习得机制。
Language Acquisition Deviceix，(also known as LAD).
Later Chomsky prefers this innate endowment as 后来，乔姆斯基偏向于将这种内在
Universal Grammar(UG) and holds that if children are 天赋称为普遍语法(UG)，并且认为，如
pre-equipped with UG，then what they have to learn is the 果儿童天生具备 UG，那么，他们所要
ways in which their own language makes use of these
学习的，就是他们的语言运用这些原则
principles and the variations on those principles which may
exist in the particular language they are learning. 的方式和他们正在学习的特定语言中
可能存在的那些原则的变体。
(3) Main content (3) 主要观点
The innatists argue that children could not discover the
rules of reflexive pronouns by trial and error. Instead 语法天生主义者认为，儿童并不能
children‘s acquisition of these grammatical rules is guided by 通过试用和错误发现反身代词的规则。
principles of an innate UG. Different languages have different 相反，儿童对于这些语法规则的习得是
rules about reflexives, and children seem to be able to ―know‖
受内在 UG 原则的指导的。不同的语言
the rules by being exposed to a limited number of examples.
有不同的反身代词规则，而且，通过接
触有限的例子，儿童似乎就能够"知道"
这些规则。

3. An interactionist view of language acquisition 3. 互动主义者的语言习得观

The interaetionist view holds that language develops as a 互动主义者观认为语言的发展是
result of the complex interplay between the human 儿童身上人类的特点与儿童发展所在
characteristics of the child and the environment in which the
的环境之间复杂的相互作用的结果。
child develops. Integrated with the innatist view ， the
interactionist further claims that the modified language which 与语法天生主义者观构成一个整体，互
is suitable for the child‘s capability is crucial in his language 动主义者进一步声称适合儿童能力的
acquisition. 经过限定的语言在他的语言习得中是
至关重要的。

II. Cognitive factors in child language development II. 儿童语言发展中的认知因素

The cognitive factors relate to language acquisition
认知因素与语言习得主要在两种
mainly in two ways.
1. Language development is dependent on both the 方式上相关。
concepts children form about the world and what they feel 1. 语言发展既依赖于儿童对周围
stimulated to communicate at the early and later stages of their 世界形成的概念，也依赖于在他们语言
language development.
发展的早期和晚期所感到的剌激他们
进行交际的事物。
2. The cognitive factors determine how the child makes 2. 认知因素决定了儿童如何自己
sense of the linguistic system himself instead of what
弄清语言系统的意义，而不是儿童所感
meanings the child perceives and expresses. Many careful
studies of children‘s acquisition sequences and errors in 受和表达的意义。在不同语言中的许多
various languages have revealed that children have some 对儿童的习得序列和错误的仔细研究
―operating principles‖ for making sense of language data.
已经揭示出，儿童具有某些"操作原则"
来找出语言数据的意义。
III. Language environment and the Critical Period Hypothesis III. 语言环境和临界期假说
【考点：名词解释】
1. Definition
1. 定义
Eric Lenneberg，a biologist，argued that the LAD，like
生物学家艾利克·列里伯格认为
other biological functions，works successfully only when it is
stimulated at the right time——a specific and limited time LAD 像其他生物功能一样，只有在恰
period for language acquisition——which is referred to as the
当的时间 ——语言习得的一个特定的
Critical Period Hypothesis(CPH).
有限的时间段，受到刺激才能成功运
2. Content 行。这指的就是临届期假说(CPH ) 。
There are two versions of the CPH. While the strong one 2. 内容
suggests that children must acquire their first language by
CPH 有两个版本。 强版认为儿童
puberty or they will never be able to learn from subsequent
exposure. 必须在青春期之前习得第一语言，否则
The weak holds that language learning will be more 在以后的语言环境中再也无法学到。
difficult and incomplete after puberty.
弱版则认为，过了青春期之后，语
People now have reached the consensus that there is a
critical period for first language acquisition. 言学习将会更困难、更不完整。
尽管关于年龄对语言习得的影响
仍有很多争议，但是现在人们都一致认
为，对于第一语言的习得，确实存在一
个关键期。
IV. Stages in child language development IV. 儿童语言发展的阶段
【考点：名词记忆】 1. 音位的发展
1. Phonological development 儿童天生就具有区别和发音的能
Children are born with an ability to discriminate and 力，而且对声音的习得在所有的文化和
produce sounds，and the acquisition of sounds is universal 语言之中都是共通的。声音习得的序列
across all culture and languages. The sequence in which the 就像是一个先决系统，也就是说，儿童
sounds are acquired works like a system of pre-requisites，that 必须经过每一个阶段，然后才能到下一
is to say，the child must pass each stage before he can proceed 个阶段。
to the next one. 2. 词汇的发展
2. Vocabulary development 词汇发展最明显的事实是它与儿
The most obvious fact about vocabulary development is 童所处的环境紧密相关。最初的词都是
that it goes hand in hand with the child‘s environment. First
环境中事物的标签。当儿童学会一个词
words are labels for things in the environment. When the child
learns a word，he learns not only how to pronounce the word 的时候，他不仅学会了如何发这个音，
but also the meaning of each form and how each form is 而且也知道每种形式的意义，以及每种
different in meaning from every other form. 形式是如何在意义上不同于其他形式
的。

3. Grammatical development 3. 语法的发展

While children are increasing their mastery of 儿童增加其对语法词素的掌握的
grammatical morphemes，they are also increasing their ability 同时，他们对基本句子结构进行"转换"
to carry out“transformations”of the basic sentence structure so 以产生更为复杂的话语的能力也在增
as to produce more complex utterances. This grammatical
强。这种语法发展部分上是一个增加 "
development is partly a matter of growing “competence”(in
语言能力" (从基本知识的意义上讲)的
the sense of underlying knowledge) and partly a matter of
increasing“performance”capacity. 问题，部分上是一个增加"语言行为"能
力的问题。
4. Pragmatic development 4. 语用的发展
While children are acquiring morpho-syntax and
儿童习得形态句法以及词汇的同
vocabulary，they are also acquiring pragmatics，or how to
speak to others in an appropriate manner. These include，for 时，也在习得语用，或如何以一种适当
example，the greetings to be used，the taboo words，the polite 的方式同他人说话。包括使用问候语、
forms of address and the various styles appropriate to different 禁忌词、礼貌的称谓形式以及适合于其
speech situations of his community. 社区的不同言语场合的不同风格，等
等。
V. Atypical development V. 非典型发展
【考点：简答非典型语言发展类别】 非典型语言发展包括:
The atypical language development includes 1. 听力受损(它可以是轻微的，也
1. hearing impairment(which can be slight or severe and 可以是严重的，并且可能导致语言小部
may lead to minor loss or total lack of language) 分的或完全的丧失)
 2. 思维障碍(它会造成语言习得延
2. mental retardation(which may cause a delayed 迟)
language acquisition) 3. 臆想症(从一开始就语言受损)
3. autism(language impairment from the very beginning) 4. 口吃(在言者无法"释放"该词的
4. stuttering(repetition of sounds，syllables，or phrases 地方，音、音节或短语的重复)
where the speaker can not ―release‖ the words) 5. 失语症(由于大脑受损，语言部
5. aphasia(partial or total loss of language due to brain 分或完全的失去)
damage) 6. 失读症和书写困难症(可能在习
6. dyslexia and dysgraphia (disorders in reading and 得或发展的阅读和书写中出现紊乱)
writing which may be acquired or developmental)
 10.2 课后习题详解

1. Try to explain the terms：

Language Acquisition
Language Acquisition Device
Critical Period Hypothesis
2. Among the language acquisition theories mentioned in this chapter，which one do you think is more reasonable and
convincing? Explain why.
3. Which of the following statements are TRUE and which are FALSE? Why?
a. All normal children have equal ability in learning their first language.
b. It is easy for parents to teach their children grammar.
c. The young child is not taught to speak, or to understand his language. There is no formal learning of grammar or
pronunciation practice.
d. At first children do not inflect nouns or verbs.
e. Children learn their native language well whenever they start and whatever kinds of language samples they receive.
f. The ability to learn a second language as an adult may vary considerably between individuals.
g. For a child to acquire his mother tongue the most basic requirement is that he hears people speaking this language. He
will then begin to learn the language.
h. Phonology and grammar are finite, tightly structured systems，the child must master them before puberty in order to be
a native speaker of the language.
4. Each of the following utterances comes from the speech of a child in the two- word state. Identify the semantic
relation expressed by each of these utterances.
Intended meaning Child's utterance
a). Jimmy is swimming? Jimmy swim.
b). Ken's book. Ken book.
c). Daddy is at his office. Daddy office.
d). You push the babies. Push baby.
e). Mommy is reading. Mommy read.

参考答案
1. (1) Language acquisition refers to the child‘s acquisition of his mother tongue, i. e. how the child comes to understand
and speak the language of his community.
(2) Chomsky referred to children‘s innate ability to learn their native language as Language Acquisition Device
(LAD). The LAD was described as an imaginary ―black box‖ existing somewhere in the human brain. The ―black
box‖ is said to contain principles that are universal to all human languages. Children need access to the samples of
a natural language to activate the LAD, which enables them to discover his language‘s structure by matching the
innate knowledge of basic grammatical system to that particular language.
(3) This hypothesis was put forward by Eric Lenneberg in 1967. It states that children have a special propensity
for acquiring language, especially between the ages of 2 to 13. There are two versions of CPH. While the strong
one suggests that children must acquire their first language by puberty or they will never be able to learn from
subsequent exposure, the weak one holds that language learning will be more difficult and incomplete after
puberty.
2. There are three language acquisition theories mentioned in this chapter. Traditional behaviorists view language as
behavior and believe that language learning is simply a matter of imitation and habit formation. According to innatist
view, human beings are biologically programmed for language and that the language develops in the child just as other
biological functions such as walking. The interactionist view holds that language develops as a result of the complex
interplay between the human characteristics of the child and the environment in which the child develops.
Behaviorists view sounds reasonable in explaining the routine aspects, the innatist accounts most plausible in
explaining children‘s acquiring complex system, and the interactionist description convincing in understanding how
children learn and use the language appropriately from their environment.
 In my opinion, I think that the interactionist view is more reasonable, because environment plays a great role
in our acquisition of language. Only when conversations provide the right level of language that children are capable
of processing can they facilitate children‘s language acquisition, otherwise, it is insufficient for children to learn the
language‘s structure.
(答案不唯一，言之成理即可)
3. a) True. (Language acquisition device explains it. )
b) False. (Grammatical development is partly a matter of growing ―competence‖ and partly a matter of increasing
―performance‖ capacity. Some subtle grammatical distinctions may not be mastered much before the age of ten. )
c) True. (Young children acquire their mother tongue. )
d) True (At the beginning, children‘s acquisition focuses on content. )
e) False (Critical Period Hypothesis can explain it. )
f) True (Different individuals are exposed to different language learning environment; and their learning abilities are
affected by different motivation and personalities. )
g) True. (When a child begins acquire his mother tongue, he must be exposed to the language environment. )
h) True. (Critical Period Hypothesis can explain it. )
4. a) The child‘s utterance ―Jimmy swim‖ may have a lot of different semantic meanings such as ―Jimmy can swim‖,
―Jimmy swims‖, or ―Jimmy is swimming‖. For children have no concepts of tense at this age, he/she only use two
words ―Jimmy swim‖ to express his/her intended meaning ―Jimmy is swimming?‖, a interrogative question.
b) The semantic meaning of ―Ken book‖ is ―Ken‘s book‖. The part which is omitted by the child is the possessive case
of Ken, but it still can imply the meaning of ―Ken‘s book‖.
c) When the child sees his/her father in the office, the child may say ―Daddy office‖, which means ―Daddy is at his
office‖.
d) By omitting the subject of the sentence ―You‖, the child expresses the meaning using ―Push baby‖. Obviously the
meaning is synonymous with ―You push the babies‖.
e) When the child sees his/her mother reading, he/she simply says ―Mommy read‖ instead of using the present tense.
 10.3 考研真题与典型题详解

I. Explain the following terms

1．Language acquisition
2．Language Acquisition Device
3. Universal Grammar (四川大学 2010 研；西安交大 2008 研)

II. Short answer questions

1. What are the different views of behaviourist theory and cognitive theory on when language transfer occurs?
2. What is the nativist theories‘ view on language acquisition? What is the representative of these theories for L1
acquisition?
3. What is the view of the environmentalist theories of language acquisition? What are the representatives?
4. What is the characteristic of Interactionist theories of language acquisition? What are the representatives?

III. Essay questions

1. Dialogues 1) and 2) were produced by an English child aged 2 years and 4 months and her mother. Dialogues 3) and 4)
were produced by another English child aged 3 years and 11 months and her mother, i. Describe the language of the
two children lexically, syntactically, semantically and pragmatically, ii. Discuss the similarities and differences you
notice in their language. (C refers to child, and M mother. ) (北外 2008 研)
1) C: me want that piano.
M: you‘ve got a real piano.
C: why?
M: it‘s upstairs.
C: why? why?
M: what do you mean why?
C: why?
2) C: me want to read that.
M: okay. Let‘s read that.
C: read that, wrong side.
M: I think you‘ve got it upside down.
C: look, look her toe.
M: I think they‘re funny shoes actually, made to look like toes.
C: why?
3) (Looking at a picture book)
M: that‘s an animal called an iguana, don‘t you like that?
C: cover he‘s face.
M: oh why? don‘t you like it?
C: no he‘s—
M: he‘s rather a friendly iguana.
C: what are guanas?
M: Iguanas. It‘s a sort of lizard—animal—green animal.
4) C: when is Daddy going to come back?
M: quite soon. I think love.
C: at eight o‘clock?
M: no. I hope he‘ll be back at one o‘clock.
C: Mummy, he‘s going to be back at eight o‘clock.
M: is he?
 参考答案及解析
I. Explain the following terms
1. 参见“10. 2 课后习题详解题 1” 。
2. 参见“10. 2 课后习题详解题 1” 。
3. Universal grammar is a theory of linguistics postulating principles of grammar shared by all languages, thought to be
innate to humans (linguistic nativism). It attempts to explain language acquisition in general, not describe specific
languages. Universal grammar proposes a set of rules intended to explain language acquisition in child development.

II. Short answer questions

1. Behaviourist theory, cannot account for the fact that transfer errors do not always occur when they are predicted to
occur. Whereas cognitive theory holds whether or not learners actually transfer a form can depend in part on perceived
transferability or their perception of the L1-L2 distance. The learner‘s proficiency level is also a relevant factor in
determining when transfer will occur—error frequency in the three phases (beginner stage, intermediate stage, and
advanced stage) has been noted to be initially low, then rise, and finally fall again.
2. Nativist theories purport to explain acquisition by positing an innate biological endowment that makes learning
possible. The nativist view claims that human beings are biologically programmed for language and that the language
develops in the child just as other biological functions such as walking.
The most famous representative of nativist theories is Chomsky‘s creation of Language Acquisition Devise
( LAD) and universal grammar (UG). According to Chomsky, humans are innately endowed with universal
language-specific knowledge—Universal Grammar, and that language is governed by a set of highly abstract
principles that provide parameters which are given in particular settings in different languages.
3. Environmentalist theories of learning hold that an organism‘s nurture, or experience, is of more importance to
development than its nature, or innate contributions. The best known examples are the various forms of behaviourist
and neo-behaviourist stimulus-response learning theories.
Schumann‘s pidginization hypothesis and acculturation model is among the current claims in this line. Schumann
proposed that pidginization in L2 acquisition results when learners fail to acculturate to the target-language group,
which is clue to social distance and psychological distance.
4. Interactionist theories invoke both innate and environmental factors to explain language leaning, so that they are
considered more powerful than nativist or environmentalist theories. They hold that language develops as a result of
the complex interplay between the human characteristics of the child and the environment in which the child develops.
Also, the interactionist view claims that the modified language which is suitable for child‘s capacity is crucial in his
language acquisition.
The representatives can be Givon‘s Functional-Typological Theory which holds that speakers and linguistic
systems move from a discourse-based, pragmatic mode of communication to a more syntactic mode, and the ZISA
group and associates‘ Multidimensional Model which distinguishes a developmental and a variational axis.
III. Essay questions
1. i. 1) As to the utterance of the 2 years and 4 months old child, lexically, ―me‖ was used instead of ―I‖; ―at‖ was missed
in the sentence ―look her toe‖ and inflection ―-s‖ doesn‘t add to the word ―toe‖; ―the‖ and ―a‖ are not used in the
child‘s utterance. That ―piano‖ is wrongly pronounced may not only show that the child‘s failure of acquiring the
pronunciation of diphthongs but also the failure of acquiring the word ―piano‖, a comparatively complicated
word.
From the perspective of syntax, the child constructs two complete SVO sentences: ―me want that piano. ‖
and ―me want to read that. ‖ except for the mistakenly using ―me‖. In the latter sentence, the child uses ―want to
read‖ may indicate that he/she could use to-infinitives. What‘s more, there are several verb phrases in the child‘s
utterance, like ―read that‖, ―look her toe‖, and adjective phrase ―wrong side‖. Besides, the child uses ―why‖ to
ask question.
Semantically, the child may use ―why‖ instead of all ―wh-‖ questions, such as where, what etc. When the
child uses ―toe‖, he/she may refer to the whole part of feet including shoes. Such phenomena indicate the child‘s
overextension of meaning of word.
When the child uses language, we cannot say whether he/she observe any maxim of cooperation principle
 either in surface or deep sense, because he/she doesn‘t have the ability to give enough information and make an
conversation as is required.
2) Regarding to the utterance of the 3 years and 11 months old child, lexically, ―he‘s‖ is used instead of ―his‖;
plural forms are used in ―What are guanas?‖; more complicated words like ―guanas‖ are used; ―at‖ is not
missed in ―at eight o‘clock‖; and ―to be‖ turns up.
Syntactically, more complicated sentences are constructed by the child, like ―wh-‖ questions and negative
answer. For example, he/she uses more wh- questions like ―what are guanas‖ and ―when is Daddy going to
come back‖; besides, he/she uses ―no‖ to answer his/her mother. He can use a present continuous tense ―is
going to‖ to express the future.
Semantically, the child insists that his father will be back at eight o‘clock may because that he/she think
―quite soon‖ refers to ―eight o‘clock‖, which shows that the child specified ―quite soon‖ to a certain time
―eight o‘clock‖.
Pragmatically, we cannot say whether the child observe any maxim of cooperation principle either in
surface or deep sense, because he/she doesn‘t have the ability to give enough information and make an
conversation as is required.
ii. Differences: Compared to the younger child, the older one can produce more vocabulary, with inflective changes
and more functional words, and more complete expressions and more types of sentences, with more
wh-questions, negations, as well as sentences with more tenses and aspects. From the perspective of
semantics, the second child makes fewer mistakes of overgeneralization and undergeneralization.
Similarities: the utterance of these two children can ‗t be interpreted in terms of cooperative principle, because both
of them do not have the ability to make an ideal conversation with adequate information and
perspicuous expressions.
(本题考查儿童的母语习得。)
 第 11 章 第二语言习得

11.1 复习笔记

本章要点：
1. Connections between first language acquisition and second language acquisition
第一语言习得与第二语言习得之间的联系
2. Contrastive analysis
对比分析
3. Error Analysis
错误分析
4. Interlanguage
中介语
5. The role of native language in second language learning.
本族语在第二语言学习中的作用
6. Second language learning models and input hypothesis
第二语言学习的模式和输入假说.
7. Individual differences
个体差异

本章考点：
第一语言习得与第二语言习得之间的联系；错误分析；中介语；本族语在第二外语学习中的作用；二语习得
的模式和输入假说；个体差异。

本章内容索引：
I. Definition of SLA
II. Connections and differences between first language acquisition and second language acquisition
III. Contrastive analysis
IV. Error Analysis
1. Overgeneralization
2. Cross-association
V. Interlanguage
VI. The role of native language in second language learning
VII. Second language learning models and input hypothesis
VIII. Individual differences
1. Language aptitudes
2. Motivation
3. Learning strategies
4. Age of acquisition
5. Personality
IX. Second language acquisition and its pedagogical implications

I. Definition of SLA I. 第二语言习得定义

【考点：名词解释】
Second language acquisition(SLA)，formally established 第二语言习得(SLA )在二十世纪
itself as a discipline around the 1970s，refers to the systematic 七十年代左右被正式确立为一门学科，
study of how one person acquires a second language 是指对一个人习得其母语之后如何习
subsequent to his native language. 得一门第二语言的系统研究。

II. Connections and differences between first language II. 第一语言习得与第二语言习得之间

acquisition and second language acquisition 的联系与区别
1. Connections
1. 联系
The first language study has served as a backcloth for
perceiving and understanding new facts about second 第一语言的研究为捕捉和理解第
language learning. 二语言学习中新的事实提供了依据。
2. Differences 2. 区别
Second language acquisition ， just as the term itself 第二语言习得，顾名思义是不同于
suggests，is different from first language acquisition and the 第一语言习得的，而且第二语言的学习
second language learners generally fail to attain native—like 者一般达不到如其本族语一样的能力。
competence. The language they produce，which is called 他们所创造的被称为中介语或学习者
interlanguage (IL) or learner language ， tends to become
语言的语言会在某种程度上出现语言
fossilized at certain level.
石化现象。
III. Contrastive analysis III. 对比分析
Starting with describing comparable features of the native 从描写本族语和目的语之间可比
language and target language‗(e. g. tense, words or 较的特征(如时态、词或表达等)开始，
expressions etc. ), contrastive analysis compares the forms and
对比分析将两种语言之间的形式和意
meanings across the two languages to spot the mismatches or
differences. 义进行比较以便找出不匹配或有差异
的地方。

IV. Error Analysis

IV. 错误分析
The errors are significant in telling the teacher what
needs to be taught，in telling the researcher how learning 错误在告诉老师需要教什么和告
proceeds and those errors are a means whereby learners test 诉研究者学习是如何进行的方面发挥
their hypotheses about the language to be learnt. 着重要作用，而且，那些错误也是学习
者测试对所要学习的语言进行假设的
一种手段，值得对其进行进一步探索。
1. Interlingual errors
The interlingual errors mainly result from cross. 1. 语际错误
1inguistic interference at different levels such as 语际错误主要是不同层面的跨语
phonological，lexical，grammatical or discoursal etc. 言干扰而造成的，如音位层、词汇层、
2. Intralingual errors 语法层或话语层等。
The intralingual errors mainly result from faulty or partial
2. 语内错误：
leaning of the target language，independent of the native
语内错误主要是由于对目的语的
language. There are learning strategies-based errors ，
错误或不完全的学习造成的，它与本族
communication strategies-based errors，induced errors，and
some compound and ambiguous errors. 语无关。语内错误包括基于学习策略的
错误、基于交际策略的错误、归纳的错
(1)Overgeneralization 误，和一些复合和歧义的错误。
Overgeneralization is defined as the use of previously
(1)过度概括
available strategies in new situations. In second language
learning some of these strategies prove helpful in organizing 过度概括被定义为将以前适用的
the facts about the second language. 策略运用于新的场合。在第二语言的学
习中，这些策略中的一些对组织有关第
(2)Cross-association
二语言的事实是有帮助的。
In English we sometimes may come across words which
are similar in meaning. Their spelling and pronunciation are (2)互相联想
also alike. The close association of the two often leads to 在英语中，我们有时会碰到意义相
confusion. This aspect of internal interference is often referred 近的词。它们的拼写和发音也相近。两
as cross association.
者之间相近的联想经常会导致混淆。这
一方面的内部干扰就经常被称为互相
联想。
V. 中介语
V. Interlanguage
1. 定义
【考点：名词解释】
由S. P. 科德和莱瑞·塞林克提出
1. Definition
Proposed by S. Pit Corder and Larry Selinker ， the 的中介语这一概念被确立为学习者独
concept of interlanguage was established as learners‘ 立于第二语言的系统，它既不是本族
independent system of the second language which is of neither 语，也不是第二语言，而是一个处于本
the native language nor the second language，but a continuum
族语和目的语之间的连续体或临界体。
or approximation from his native language to the target
language. 2. 特征
2. Features (1)系统性
(1) systematicity (2)渗透性
(2) permeability
(3)语言石化现象: 在第二语言和
(3) fossilization: a process occurring from time to time in
which incorrect linguistic features become a permanent part of 外语教学中, 一个时不时会出现的过
the way a person speaks or writes a language. Aspects of 程，在这个过程中，不正确的语言特征
pronunciation，vocabulary usage，and grammar may become 成为了一个人说或写一门语言的方式
fixed or fossilized in second or foreign language learning. 的一个不变的部分。发音、词汇用法和
语法方面在第二语言或外语学习中可
能会变得固定或石化。

VI. The role of native language in second language learning.

VI. 本族语在第二语言学习中的作用
【考点：阐述】
1. 语言迁移的定义
1. Definition of language transfer
学习者对主要语言信息的运用(主
In the heyday of behaviorism， learners‘ use of prior
linguistic information(chiefly his mother tongue)or some 要是他的母语)，或者将某些本族语的
physically carryover of native language surface to a second 表层形式搬到第二语言的语境之中(例
language context (e. g. ―to touch the society‖ the direct
如，"to touch the society"就是直接将汉
transfer from Chinese collocation to English collocation), is
namely language transfer. 语的搭配转换为英语的搭配的形式)。
2. Factors in determining language transfer in second language 2. 决定第二语言学习的语言迁移中的
learning 因素
a) a learner‘s psychology，how a learner organize his or
a)学习者的心理、学习者如何组织
her native language；
他或她的本族语;
b) perception of native-target language distance；
c) actual knowledge of the target language. b)对本族语和目的语之间距离的
感知;
c) 对目的语的实际知识。

3. Influences of native language

(1) The native language influences not only occur as 3. 本族语的影响
direct linguistic reflexes at phonological，lexical，semantic， (1)本族语的影响不仅是作为在音
syntactical or discoursal levels;
位、词汇、语义、句法或话语层面的直
(2) but also directly reflect underlying organizational
principles of languages at cognitive 1evel. 接语言反映出现的;
(2)而且也直接反应了认知层面基
(3) L1 transfer may result in learners‘ avoidance of 础的语言组织原则。
certain target language structures，different learning rates，
(3)第一语言迁移可能造成学习者
overproductionand different learning paths etc. .
对某些目的语结构的回避、不同的学习
速率、衍生过度以及不同的学习路径
等。

VII. Second language learning models and input hypothesis VII．第二语言学习的模式和输入假说

1. Second language learning models： 1. 第二语言习得的模式
(1)Currently the models and theories of second language (1)当今的第二语言习得的模式和
acquisition are mainly divided on the point：to what extent
理论主要在这一点上有分歧:第二语言
second language acquisition is a function of innateness.
习得在多大程度上是一个内在的功能。
(2)Those who adopt an innateness position believe that a (2)接受语法天生假说的人认为，学
learner‘s structural knowledge allows him or her to construct
习者的结构知识让他或她在有限的数
the grammar of the target language on the basis of limited
data. The opposite holds that language acquisition and social 据的基础之上构建目的语的语法。反方
interaction are mutually dependent and that language 则认为语言习得和社会互动是相互依
acquisition cannot be understood if detached from the context 赖的，如果脱离其所产生的语境它就无
it occurs.
法被理解。
2. Input hypothesis
【考点：名词解释】 2. 输入假说
Krashen‘s Input Hypothesis：Krashen assumed that there 克拉申的输入假说：假定有两种独
were two independent means or routes of second language, 立的第二语言学习方式或途径，即习得
acquisition and learning. 和学习。
(1) Acquisition is a process similar to the way children
(1)习得是一个与儿童习得第一语
acquire their first language，it is a subconscious process
without minute learning of grammatical rules. Learners can 言类似的过程，它是一个没有具体的语
hardly be aware of their learning but they are using the 法规则的学习的一个潜意识的过程。学
language to communicate. 习者虽然几乎不能意识到他们在学习，
但是他们是在运用语言进行交际。

(2) Learning as another route is a conscious learning of (2)学习作为另外一种途径，是指通

the second language knowledge by learning the rules and 过学习规则和谈论规则对第二语言的
talking about the rules. 知识进行的一个有意识的学习。

VIII. Individual differences VIII. 个体差异

【考点：概念阐述】 1. 语言能力
1. language aptitudes 语言能力在这里是指学习第二语
It refers to a natural ability for learning a second 言的天生能力。人们认为它与学习者的
language. It is believed to be related to a learner‘s general 总体智力有关。约翰·卡罗尔曾经对语
intelligence John Carroll once identified some components of
language aptitude：phonemic coding ability，grammatical 言能力的几个组成成分作出鉴定:音位

sensitivity ， inductive language learning ability， and rote 编码能力、语法敏感度、归纳性语言学

learning ability. 习能力和背诵学习能力。
2. 动机
2. motivation
(1)Definition (1) 定义
Motivation ， defined as the learner‘s attitudes and 被定义为学习者的态度、情感状态
affective state or learning drive，has a strong impact on his 或学习动力的动机，对学习者在学习第
efforts in learning a second language. 二语言中所作出的努力有很大的影响。
(2) 类别
(2)Categories ① 工具性动机:它出现在人们为了
① Instrumental motivation：which occurs when people 达到通过考试、获得财金奖励或事业上
learn a foreign language for external goals such as passing 的提升等外部目标而学习外语的时候。
exams, financial rewards or furthering a career etc.
② 综合性动机:人们希求确认目的
语文化而学习外语的动力。
② Integrative motivation： the drive that people learn a ③ 结果性动机:学习者为了外部目
foreign language because of the wish to identify with the 的而学习第二语言。
target culture.
④ 内在动机:学习者为了获得学习
③ Resultative motivation ： learners learn a second
language for external purposes 所带来的享受或快乐而学习第二语言。
④Intrinsic motivation：learners learn the second language (3) 特点
for enjoyment or pleasure from learning. ① 所有的动机都能促进学习，而
且彼此互补。
(3)Features ② 根据学习者的特定兴趣、学习
① All types of motivation promote learning and they are 的参与度和学习环境，学习者的动机可
complementary to each other. 能会时消时涨。
③ 在学习者强烈的动机会促进他
② Learners‘ motivation may ebb and flow at times and
in accordance with their particular interests ， learning 们的学习的同时，他们学习上的进步或
involvement and the learning context. 成就又会反过来增加他们的语言学习
动机。
③As learners‘ strong motivation promotes their learning，
their learning progress or achievement will in return enhance
their language learning motivation further. 3. 学习策略
学习策略是学习者有意识的、以目
3. learning strategies 的为导向、以解决问题为基础、提高学
Learning strategies are learners‘ conscious，goal-oriented 习效率而作出的努力。
and problem-solving based efforts to achieve learning
efficiency. 4. 习得的年龄
至目前为止，大多数的研究结果支
4. age of acquisition 持这一假说:从学习成就和语法性的角
So far, most study results support the hypothesis that in
度来看，年幼的学习者比成人的要强。
terms of learning achievement and grammaticality, the
younger learners outperform the adults. 5. 个性
成功的二语言学习者身上都具备
5. personality 健谈、自尊、自信这些个性特征。某些
Talkative, self-esteem, self-confidence can be found in 个性特征在完成学习第二语言的某些
successful second language learners. Certain personality traits
appear helpful in completing certain tasks in learning a second 任务中表明是有帮助的。
language. IX. 第二语言习得及其教学启示
学习的模式和理论、对待语言学习
的不同方法、输入的作用、促进输入向
IX. Second language acquisition and its pedagogical
摄入转换的各种互动形式以及个人因
implications
The learning models and theories，different approaches to 素等等都表明了在课堂第二语言/外语
language learning，the role of input，the various forms of 传授、语言教学研究、材料构建、评估
interaction which facilitate the conversion of input to intake 系统、教师培训和教师教育、课程设计
and the personal factors etc. all suggest language teaching
和革新以及教育管理中的语言教学法，
methodology in classroom second/ foreign language
instruction, language teaching research, materials 都要为提高第二语言或外语教与学的
construction, evaluation system，teacher training and teacher 效率的这一最终目的而服务。
education, curriculum design and innovation ， and also
education management, to serve the ultimate purpose of
improving second or foreign language teaching and learning
efficiency.
 11.2 课后习题详解

1. To what extent is second language learning similar to first language learning? Can you list some proof from your own
learning experiences?
2. Try to observe yourself and pay attention to your own learning experience, what conclusions are you more likely to
use or depend on Chinese in learning and using English?
3. Identify the errors in the following sentences and trace the possible cause for each error.
a) Please do not hinder my work.
b)——Would you mind lending me your tape-recorder?
——Yes，certainly.
c) During the meeting we discussed about the research project
d) Alison is in poor health. She is easy to catch cold.
e) The light can impress the film and in this way to fix the image of the film.
f) The scenery is too beautiful to describe it.
4. Based on your own experience，give at least three examples which are related to overgeneralization and performance
errors.
5. What kind of a language learner you are? Have you ever thought of why and how you learn English?
6. List the learning strategies you use frequently, then compare that with the strategy list in 11. 8.
7. Identify personality factors that may contribute to the SUCCESS of learning a second／foreign language.

参考答案
1. Theoretically the new findings and advances in first language acquisition especially in learning theories and learning
process are illuminating in understanding second language acquisition. The techniques used to collect and analyze
data in first language acquisition also provide insights and perspectives in the study of second language acquisition.
For example, we started to learn our native language from listening, then speaking.
(答案不唯一，自由发挥即可。)
2. When I first contacted with English, I often used Chinese to help me learn it. According to the pronunciation of some
English words, I picked an approximate accent to mark an English word. Chinese played a great role as interlanguage
in such an English learning process. Those Chinese markers helped me remember the English words better.
(答案不唯一，自由发挥即可。)
3. a) Please do not hinder me from working. (Negative transfer)
b) ——Would you mind lending me your tape-recorder?
——No, not at all. (Negative transfer)
c) During the meeting we discussed the research project. (Overgeneralization)
d) Alison is in poor health. She catches cold easily. (Overgeneralization)
e) The light can impress the film and in this way can fix the image of the film. (Negative transfer)
f) The scenery is too beautiful to describe. (Cross-association)
4. * I losed the game.
* There are ten sheeps.
* I was devoted to do this job.
5. Due to my extroverted personality, I am a positive language learner. I tried every possible means to let myself be
exposed to second language environment, for example, to listen to foreign music and to watch foreign movies, which
played a great role in enhancing my spoken English.
English is the most influential foreign language in China, mastering excellent English ability can benefit one a
lot in his life and career. Besides, learning English is conducive to our understanding of foreign culture.
Karl Marx once said, "When one is learning a foreign language, he must use the foreign language. " In this way,
he could use several languages. I clearly understand the old saying that "Practice makes perfect. " Therefore, when I
learn English, I always read more, speak more, listen to English from time to time and practice writing every day.
Don't be afraid of making mistakes. Only in this way can we learn it well.
(答案不唯一，自由发挥即可。)
6. I often use the following strategies:
(1) Make my own opportunity for practice in using the language inside and outside the classroom
(2) Use mnemonics and other memory strategies to recall what has been learned
By comparing with the strategy listed in 11. 8 Learning strategies, I find that, I should do more, such as, making
errors work and not against them, using linguistic knowledge, using contextual cues to help them in
 comprehension.
(答案不唯一，自由发挥即可。)
7. In terms of communicative ability rather than grammatical accuracy or knowledge of grammatical roles, the
personality traits such as extroversion, talkative, self-esteem, self-confidence can be found in successful second
language learners. Certain personality traits appear helpful in completing certain tasks in learning a second language.
 11.3 考研真题与典型题详解

I. Fill in the blanks

1. The type of language constructed by second or foreign language learners who are still in the process of learning a
language is often referred to as __________. (中山大学 2008 研)
2. is formed when the leaner attempts to learn a new language, and it has features of both the first language and the
second language but is neither. (中山大学 2006 研)
3. Error is the grammatically incorrect form; ________appears when the language is correct grammatically but
improper in a communicational context. (中山大学 2008 研)
4. In learning a second language, a learner will subconsciously use his L1 knowledge. This process is called
language_____.
5. Such errors as ―teached‖ and ―womans‖ are caused by______.

II. Multiple Choice

1. In Krashen‘ s monitor theory, ―i‖ in ―i + 1‖ hypothesis of second language acquisition refers to______. (对外经贸
2006 研)
A. interaction
B. interference
C. input
D. intake
2. Negative transfer in learning a second language is known as_____.
A. interference
B. interlanguage
C. fossilization
D. acculturation
3. _____ sees errors as the result of the intrusion of L1 habits over which the learner had no control.
A. error analysis
B. performance analysis
C. contrastive analysis
D. discourse analysis

III. True or False

1. Stereotyping is synonymous with overgeneralization. (南开大学 2005 研)
2. Through hard work, the second language learners can usually reach the level of the native speakers in the target
language learning.

IV. Explain the following terms

1. Interlanguage(武汉大学 2005 研)
2. Contrastive analysis (浙江大学 2004 研)

V. Short answer questions

1. How do you understand interlanguage? (西安交大 2008 研)
2. What are the four obvious barriers to adult L2 acquisition? (浙江大学 2003 研)
3. Please state the factors that cause errors and mistakes in foreign language learning. (厦门大学 2006 研)
4. Comment on the following statement:
―It is believed that SCHEMATA, meaning packets of stored knowledge, play an important role in language
processing. ‖(武汉大学 2009 研)
5. Discuss the influence of motivation on language acquisition.
6. What is communicative competence? How should we develop it in our foreign lauguage learning?(四川大学 2010 研)
7. Discuss why second language learners, regardless of their first language, might produce forms such as goed, sheeps,
 and coulds given that they never hear these forms in input from native speakers of English. Give some other forms
analogous to the above that might be generated.

VI. Essay questions

1. Comment on the following statement based on your own experience.
―Knowing words is the key, to understanding and being understood. The bulk of learning a new language consists of
learning new words. Grammatical knowledge does not make for great proficiency in a language. ‖ (Vermeer1992) (武
汉大学 2005 研)
2. Explain Krashen‘s Input Hypothesis and Monitor Hypothesis. (浙江大学 2003 研)
3. Some comments on the following statement based on your own experience ―A condition for language acquisition to
occur is that the acquirer understands (via hearing or reading) input language that contains structure ‗a bit beyond‘ his
or her current level of competence... If an acquirer is at stage or level i, the input he or she understands should contain
i +I…The best acquisition will occur in contexts where the ‗affective filter‘ (anxiety) is low. ‖ (Krashen 1981) (武汉大
学 2006 研)
4. What do you think are the similarities and dissimilarities between learning a first and a second language? (北外 2003
研)
5. It has been noticed that Chinese learners of English tend to make mistakes in the marking of past tense，even at the
advanced level of proficiency. What do you think are the possible causes of this problem? How call language teachers
help solve this problem and why? (北外 2005 研)
6. Analyze the following speech errors，by commenting on how they might have arisen (北外 2006 研)
a. He rode his bike to school tomorrow. (←yesterday)
b. gone mild. (←wild/mad)
c. He misfumbled the ball. (←mishandled/fumbled)
d. That‘s torrible. (←terrible/horrible)
7. Use contrastive or non-contrastive strategies to analyze the underlined errors and mistakes committed by Chinese
learners of English. (浙江大学 2007 研)
a. As for meal, we Chinese like to eat chopsticks, and you spoons.
b. You have helped me a lot. Really troubled you.
c. They are happy but we are far more happier.
8. It has been noted that first language (L1) acquisition is completely successful，but second language (L2) learning is
usually not. As Towell & Hawkins (1994: P. 14) observe, ‗Very few L2 learners appear to be fully successful in the
way that native speakers are‘. How do you account for this difference in ultimate attainment between L1 and L2
acquisition? (北外 2006 研)
9. What factors influence the acquisition of the second language? (厦门大学 2008 研)
10. Read the following paragraphs and then answer four questions. (北外 2011 研)
The idea behind the experiential vision of learning is that the use of the target language for communicative purposes
is not only the goal of learning, but also a means of learning in its own right. This may clearly involve students using
language which they may not have fully mastered, and contrasts with other more ‗traditional‘ approaches which
emphasize part practice (i. e. , isolating parts of the whole for explicit study and learning) leading up in a more or less
controlled manner to integrated language use for communicative purposes. An experiential approach to learning may
therefore involve a degree of what Johnson (1982) refers to as an ‗in at the deep end strategy‘. Simply throwing
learners into wholly uncontrolled and undirected language use is, of course, as dubious a strategy with respect to
language learning as doing the same with someone who is learning to swim. For this reason, considerable effort has
been devoted by methodologists, material writers, and teachers in recent decades to the way in which two sets of
factors can be combined. One is the basic insight that language use can serve a significant role in promoting learning,
and the other is the acknowledgement that use of the language needs to be structured in a coherent and pedagogically
manageable way. The experiential vision of learning has evolved in a variety of ways since the 1960s and is now
encountered in a number of differing forms. Nevertheless, most experiential approaches to learning rest on five main
principles which were developed in the earlier days of the communicative movement, even if certain receive more
attention in one variant than in another. These principles are the following：message focus, holistic practice, the use of
 authentic materials, the use of communication strategies, and the use of collaborative modes of learning. (Tudor 2001:
79)
An analytical view of learning posits that according explicit attention to the regularities of language and
language use can play a positive role in learning. Each language manifests a number of structural regularities in areas
such as grammar, lexis and phonology, and also with respect to the ways in which these elements are combined to
communicate messages. The question, therefore, is not whether languages have structural regularities or not, but
whether and in which way explicit attention to such regularities can facilitate the learning of the language. An
analytical approach to learning rests on a more or less marked degree of part practice, i. e. , isolating parts of the
whole for explicit study and learning, even if its ultimate goal remains the development of learners‘ ability to put
these parts together for integrated, holistic use. At least, two main considerations lend support to an analytical
approach to learning. First, in terms of learning in general, the isolation and practice of sub-parts of a target skill is a
fairly common phenomenon. … Second, explicit identification of regularities in a language has advantages which
Johnson (1996：83) refers to as ‗generativity‘ and ‗economy‘. Mastering a regularity in a language gives learners
access to the generative potential of this regularity in new circumstances. … Explicit presentation or discovery of the
structural regularities of a language can therefore represent a short-cut to mastery of this language and support
learners‘ ability to manipulate these regularities for communicative purposes. (Tudor 2001：86-7)
(1). What are the differences between experiential and analytical modes of language learning?
(2). What serves as the theoretical foundation for the experiential mode of language learning and what are its advantages
and disadvantages?
(3)What serves as the theoretical foundation for the analytical mode of language learning and what are its advantages and
disadvantages?
(4)How would you balance the two modes of learning in your teaching or learning of a foreign language?
11. Some adult second language learners may have stayed in an English speaking country for years. However, when they
speak, their English can still be full of mistakes. What do you think might be the problem? Use a second language
acquisition theory to analyze the problem. (北外 2010 研)
12. Identify the errors in the following sentences and explain the possible cause for each error:
(1) Please do not hinder my work.
(2) -Would you mind lending me your dictionary?
-Yes, certainly.
(3) During the meeting we discussed about the research project.
(4) Alice is in poor health. She is easy to catch cold.
(5) The light can impress the film and in this way to fix the image of the film.
(6) The scenery is too beautiful to describe it.
13. What happens when an interlanguage fossilizes? Have you ever experienced any fossilization in your language
learning?
14. What factors can you think of that might influence fossilization? In other words, do you think that some people are
more likely to fossilize than others? Do you think it can be reversed? How?

参考答案及解析
I. Fill in the blanks
1. interlanguage
(中介语是在外语或第二语言学习中形成的。)
2. interlanguage
(参见上题解析。)
3. mistake
(mistake 是指在语法上正确但在交流语境中不恰当。)
4. transfer
(学习第二语言时不自觉地使用第一语言的过程叫语言移转。)
5. second language learners
(这些错误一般是第二语言习得者犯的。)
II. Multiple Choice
1. C (克拉申的"监控理论"中有一种二语习得输入假说，他用 i 表示学习者现有水平，用 1 表示略高于的水平，
这就是克拉申的“i﹢1”输入假说。)
2. A (语言学习者在学习第二语言时，难免受到母语的种种影响。其中有正面的影响 ,称作正迁移，也有负面的
影响，称作负迁移或者干扰。)
3. C (对比分析是通过对比不同语言来确定潜在错误的方法，它将错误看作是受母语习惯的结果，并认为这是学
习者无法控制的。)
III. True or False
1. T (刻板意思接近于概括过头。)
2. F (第二语言的学习者一般达不到如其本族语一样的能力。他们会创造被称为中介语或学习者语言的语言，会
在某种程度上出现语言石化现象。)
IV. Explain the following terms
1. Interlanguage. It refers to the type of language constructed by second or foreign language learners who are still in the
process of learning a language. It‘s a language system between the target language and the learner‘s native language,
and imperfect compared with the target language, but not mere translation from the learner‘s native language. For
example, when the Chinese student is learning English, he may make errors like ―to touch the society‖.
2. Contrastive analysis. It is an approach to analysis of second language acquisition, based on a belief that a more
effective teaching pedagogy would come out when the similarities and differences between native language and target
language are taken into consideration. By such an analysis, it is supposed that some leaning difficulties could be
predicted in terms of language transfer.
V. Short answer questions
1. The type of language constructed by second or foreign language learners who are still in the process of learning a
language is often referred to as interlanguage. nterlanguage is often understood as a language system between the
target language and the learner‘s native language. It is imperfect compared with the target language, but it is not mere
translation from the learner‘s native language. However, interlanguage should not really he seen as a bridging
language between the target language and native language. Interlanguage is a dynamic language system, which is
constantly moving from the departure level to the native-like level. Therefore, ―inter‖ actually means between the
beginning stage and the final stage. There are many examples of interlanguage, such as I no have a book. I like read
books.
(本题考查中介语的含义。)
2. A variety of explanations have been put forward for the apparent declined in adults: physical factors such as the loss of
―plasticity‖ in the brain and ―lateralization‖ of the brain; social factors such as the different situations and relationships
that children encounter compared to adults; cognitive factors such as the interference with natural language learning
by the adult‘s more abstract mode of thinking; and input factors that adults spend only a few hours each week of
school time, rather than via the constant interaction experienced by a child, with a lot of other occupations.
3. There are generally two types of factors that cause errors and mistakes in foreign language learning, one is
inter-lingual, traced to the influence of the mother tongue, the other is intra-lingual, committed by language learners
regardless of their L1.
In second language learning, the learners attempt to transfer the features of their mother tongue to the second
language. When the structures of the two languages are similar, we can get positive transfer; when the two languages
are different in structures, negative transfer or interference occurs and results in errors.
Not all errors are caused by the interference of the mother tongue. There are cases that the learner knows some
rules of the target language but applies them in the wrong place. Errors of overgeneralization and hypercorrection
belong to this type.
4. Schemata have three distinct features.
1) Schemata can vary considerably in the information they contain, from the very simple to the very complex.
2) Schemata are frequently organized hierarchically; for example, in addition to a rather general restaurant schema or
script, we probably also have more specific restaurant schemata for different kinds of restaurant (e. g. fast-food
place, up-makert French restaurant, and so on).
3) Schemata operate in a top-down or conceptually driven way to facilitate interpretation of environmental stimuli.
 There are various characteristics of language processing which indicate the key role played by schematic
and other stored knowledge. For example, language comprehension frequently requires us to go far beyond the
literal meaning of the sentences we read or hear. Essential information is often only implied, so that it is
necessary to draw the inference in order to understand fully what is intended. Schemata lead people to draw
schema-relevant inferences which facilitate comprehension but which may impair memory. Many inferences
are drawn during the comprehension process. There is also evidence that retrieval processes can be systematically
affected by the prior knowledge in the form of schemata. Therefore, the schemata play a very important role
during the language processing.
(本题考查第二语言习得过程中语言的处理和加工过程。)
5. Motivation involves the affective states that influence the degree of effort that learners make to learn a language.
Various kinds of motivation have been identified: instrumental, integrative, resultative, and intrinsic.
Under instrumental motivation learners make efforts to learn a language for some functional reason, namely, to
pass an examination, etc. Under integrative motivation learners identify with another ethnolinguistic group. Under
resultative motivation learners‘ success in learning may result in their enthusiasm in learning further. Intrinsic
motivation due to their curiosity, interest, etc. may force learners holding no distinct attitudes towards the
target-language group to do the learning tasks they are asked to.
Motivation is a highly complex phenomenon. These four types of motivation should be seen as complementary
rather than as distinct and oppositional. Furthermore, motivation is dynamic in nature; it is not something that a
learner has or does not have but rather something that varies from one moment to the next depending on the learning
context or task.
6. Communicative competence is what a learner knows about how a language is used in particular situations for effective
and appropriate communication. Communicative competence includes knowledge of the grammar and vocabulary,
knowledge of rules of speaking, knowledge of how to use and respond to different types of speech acts and social
conventions, and knowledge of how to use language appropriately.
In order to develop communicative competence in our foreign lauguage learning, language learners are
encouraged to deal with accomplishing actions, which are believed to help them acquire the target language. Two
types of tasks are usually required to be performed by the learners: real-world tasks and pedagogical tasks. For
example, students may be asked to work or discuss in groups.
Besides, teachers can adopt the communicative syllabus which aims at the learner‘s communicative competence.
It teaches the language needed to express and understand different kinds of functions, and emphasizes the process of
communication.
7. Forms like ―goed‖, ―sheeps‖, and ―coulds‖ results from analogous creation of second language learners. It is a kind of
interlanguage produced in the process of second language acquisition. Having acquired some basic English grammars,
for example, the common past form for English verbs is to add a suffix ―-ed‖ to the end of the verb, those
English-learners easily assumed that all the English verb should change their form like that in past tense. However,
there are exceptions as ―go-went‖, ―sing-sang‖ and so on. Those English-learners fail to see those exceptions and
created all the past forms analogously, thus produce the wrong forms like ―goed‖.
Other examples:
run-runned(ran), child-childs(children), must-musts.
VI. Essay questions
1. The nature of a word implies an association with something in the real world and a sequence of sounds that conveys
that something to other people. It is words which, expressed as sounds, convey the thought of a thing, of a concept,
from the mind of one person to the mind of another person, providing that these two people speak the same language.
Therefore, whether knowing the words of a language will affects whether one can speak that particular language even
the understanding of it.
As we all know, what grammar is about is the linguistic form. The grammatical hierarchy could be roughly
described as: sentences, word groups, words, morphemes. Therefore, without knowledge of the words, one in fact
could not assert to have really grasped the grammatical knowledge. Having grammatical knowledge without
knowledge of the words is like having an empty frame without any content.
Knowing the vocabulary of a new language, on the other hand, does not merely means recognizing the words; it
 also includes knowing how the words are used. For example, as to the two words, ―chat‖ and ―conversation‖, one will
be supposed to know what different situations these two expressions are used.
2. Input hypothesis claims that ― Human acquire language in only one way—by understanding messages or by receiving
‗comprehensible input‘‖. According to Krashen, input that is useful for L2 acquisition must be neither too difficult nor
too easy to understand and ought to be tuned just right to learner‘s current level, represented as i. In the course of
acquiring the L2, learners progress form one level to another. The next level is called ―i +1‖. For i +1 to occur, the
input has to be slightly beyond the level at which learners are well proficient. The gap between i and i +1 is bridged by
comprehensible input, which is the information drawn from the context and previous experience. Comprehensible
input is considered both necessary and sufficient for L2 acquisition to occur and output plays little role. In other words,
L2 learning takes place because the data to which learners are exposed contain comprehensible input.
According to Krashen's acquisition-learning hypothesis, there are two ways to approach language learning:
acquisition and learning. Acquisition helps us produce natural, rapid, and fluent speech. Learning, which is a
conscious study of form, helps us edit this speech. In other words, when we learn something it won't help us produce
fluent communication, but it will help us monitor our communication and correct minor errors.
It can only occur if three conditions are fulfilled: The performer has to have enough time; the performer has to be
thinking about correctness and the performer has to know the rule. Learners will be most likely to use the Monitor in
formal exam situations, where their attention has been drawn to linguistic form, and where they have enough time. If
all these conditions are fulfilled, the Monitor may be used, but may be used inaccurately.
3. This statement is related to Krashen‘s Input Hypothesis, according to which, learners acquire language as a result of
comprehending input addressed to them, and the language that learners are exposed to should be just far enough
beyond their current competence that they can understand most of it but still be challenged to make progress. Input
should neither be so far beyond their reach that they are overwhelmed, nor so close to their current stage that they are
not challenged at all.
This hypothesis has in fact confirmed the importance of the input accessible to the learner learning a language.
Additionally, the input must be comprehensible if it is to have any effect on learning. However, there are still some
problems concerned with the nature of the input, for example, how to determine whether an input is ―i+1‖, or only ―i‖,
or even ―i+2‖.
The affective filter is used to refer to the complex of negative emotional and motivational factors that may
interfere with the reception and processing of comprehensible input. This filter turns on when anxiety is high,
self-esteem is low, or motivation is low. Basically, if you are stressed, uncomfortable, or unmotivated, you are unlikely
to learn anything. Therefore, low anxiety is better for language acquisition.
To some extent, the supply of ―i+1‖ input could help lower the affective filter, since it is believed that the
appropriate input will arouse the learner‘s learning motivation as well as producing challenges to him.
4. Similarities between first and second language acquisition:
(1) Both L1 and L2 are constructed from prior conceptual knowledge. Language emerges as a procedural
acquisition to deal with events that the child already understands conceptually and to achieve communicative
objectives that the child can realize by the other means.
(2) Second language learners seem to use similar strategies to those learning their first language.
(3) Overgeneralization and transfer are used by both L1 and L2 learner as the result of a necessity to reduce
language to the simplest possible system, as an effort to lessen the cognitive burden involved in trying to
master something as complex as language.
(4) The L2 learner, like the first, attempts to ― regularize, analogize, and simplify‖ in an effort to communicate.
(5) Speech addressed to children (motherese) and speech addressed to foreigners (foreign talk) present
similarities: shorter sentences, high-frequency vocabulary, ― here and now‖ times, indirect correction,
frequent gesture, lake of overt attention to form.
(6) A reasonable hypothesis is that the brain and nervous system are biologically programmed to acquire language
(L1 and L2) in a particular sequence and in a particular mode (silent period).
(7) Both groups are probably using the same learning process. For example, the L2 sequence for English
grammatical morphemes was similar, though not identical, to that found in L1 acquisition. Other similar
sequences of syntactic acquisition have been found in L1 and L2 learning. L2 learners such as L2 learners,
 like L1 children, at first put negative elements at the beginning of the sentence ―No the sun shining‖ and
then progress to negation within the sentence ―That‘s no ready. ‖
Differences between L1 and L2 acquisition:
(1) L2 learners are usually older when learning their L2. Therefore, they are more developed cognitively. They
have a greater knowledge of the world in general; they have more control over the input they receive; they are
able to learn and apply rules that may aid in facilitating the acquisition process; they have one or more
cultures that give them advanced information about expectations, discourse in general, and how to get things
done with language.
(2) Older learners may have increased inhibition and anxiety and may find themselves afraid to make errors (poor
attitudes and lack of motivation); there might be interference form the L1, particularly for items that are
similar, either structurally or semantically.
(3) L1 acquisition is completely successful, but L2 learning is not. The evidence for this deficiency is held to be
the lack of completeness of L2 grammars or the fossilization in L2 learning where the learner cannot progress
beyond some particular stage, both familiar ‗facts‘ in some sense.
(4) The variation in situation and other factors also produces many differences between L1 acquisition and L2
learning. L1 children mostly acquire language in different settings with different exposure to language than
L2 learners and they are at different stages of mental and social maturity.
In all, the differences exist in levels of cognitive development and affect and the similarities exist in the
process of acquisition itself.
5. Tenses are one of the most difficult aspects for Chinese to master because of the non-inflected nature of the Chinese
language In English, the different forms of the verb can tell us whether something is happening in the present or in the
past. This information is technically termed as tense. The tense is shown by adding related morphemes at the end of
the verb. So the learners can judge the tense easily by looking at the different verb forms. However, the Chinese verb
form does not have a well defined past, present or future tense. In writing or in speaking, the Chinese verb in the
sentence does not necessarily inform the reader or listener as to whether they are referring to the past, present or future.
Therefore, Chinese often places prepositional, phrases, as well as conjunctive adverbs (e. g. Mandarin Chinese le, guo)
that indicate time at the front of the sentence so as to inform the speaker or the reader of the appropriate tense. The
different ways of expressing the tense cause Chinese learners of English tend to make mistakes in the marking of tense.
When translating into English, Chinese writers sometimes forget that English has a well-defined past/present/future
verb tense. Therefore, the unconscious tendency of placing several prepositional or other phrases that indicate time at
the front of the sentence is often redundant or neglect using different tense form of verb. Another factor which
contributes to the difficulties is the difference in the concept of time of Chinese as compared to native speakers of
English. Different concepts of time of non-native speakers with those of native speakers contribute to their difficulties
in learning the English tenses.
As the learning of tenses, Chinese learners are faced with a totally new set of classification of time situations that
have no counterpart in their own native language. So in teaching English tenses teachers have to explain English time
attributes thoroughly rather than assuming L2 learners will understand them as long as they have acquired the rules.
For example, past tense is used for situations which are less probable, or more remote. A lot of Chinese do not have
this concept and teachers should spend time in clarifying this to them. Teachers can also allow learners to understand
the meanings of the two broad types of English and Chinese tenses and their differences in teaching Chinese learners.
Through the comparison of different ways of expressing tense, the teacher can provide the students a clear framework
and then students will take special notice in using verb associated with tense.
6. The speech errors arise above can be grouped into two: instance a as one group, and b, c, d as another.
Producing a speech may involve the following 5 steps: 1, the message-level representation; 2, the functional-level
representation; 3, the positional-level representation; 4, the phonetic-level representation; 5, the articulatory-level
representation.
The error occurring in a is possibly related to the Semantic Association Network. Therefore, it probably arises in
step3, in which the words of the sentence that is to be produced are incorporated. And Semantic Association Network
is such a network that it represents the relationships between various semantically related words. Thus, it may happen
like this: when the speaker wants to express the meaning of ―yesterday‖, some other members of the association
 network referring to the time is activated, such as ―tomorrow‖. Then the later probably replace the original one
―yesterday‖, and through the proceeding steps of 4 and 5, the meaning of ―tomorrow‖ is produced, although what the
speaker originally wanted to mean is ―yesterday‖.
The errors that arise in b, c, d, may be related to steps 3 and 4. We can see obviously from b to d that after step 2,
what the speaker wants to express is already clear. And for a same meaning, the speaker obviously has two different
words in his mind. However, he may go into the step3 before make a definite selection between the two different
expressions. Therefore, going into step4, which indicates some the necessary information about the ways in which
words in the intended sentence are pronounced, he has two phonetic representation emerged altogether. As a
consequence, in the last step, the articulating of the words, with two different expressions at a time, the speaker
presents an expression involving the two words.
7. Contrastive analysis and non-contrastive analysis are two major approaches to error analysis. It has been found a large
percentage of the errors are directly related to the learner‘s mother tongue. The systematic study of evidence of the
influence of the mother tongue is called contrastive analysis. Therefore, contrastive analysis has to taking the source
and the target language into consideration. However, not all errors are caused by the interference of the mother tongue,
such as overgeneralizations and hypercorrections. The analysis based on such intra-language factors is called
non-contrastive analysis.
As for sentence a, the correct expression should probably be ―eat with chopsticks‖. When recalling the
corresponding expression in Chinese, we might get ―我们中国人喜欢用筷子吃‖, and therefore it could be seen that
in Chinese a preposition is also required. In this sense, the mistake occurring in this sentence is probably not caused by
the interference of Chinese. Therefore, it might be more proper to be regarded as an inter-lingual error which might
caused by the unfamiliarity of the preposition ―with‖.
The mistake in sentence b, however, could be attributed to the negative transfer of Chinese, since in Chinese,
there exists a corresponding expression ―真是麻烦你了。‖. This transfer has in some way shown the differences
between Chinese and English, such as the difference in syntactic structure. The Chinese language does not obligatorily
require the occurrence of the Subject in a sentence, while in English it is obligatory to have a Subject in a sentence.
The mistake in sentence c is one obviously not caused by the interference of Chinese. This mistake is also an
inter-lingual one, as it concerns about the use of the comparative form of adjectives in English. In Chinese, there is no
corresponding structure as in English. And this could be seen as a misuse of the comparative form of adjectives.
8. There can be generally three possible reasons, one related to the language learner himself, one to the language itself,
and one to the culture.
L2 learners are usually older when learning their L2. Older learners may have increased inhibition and anxiety
and may find themselves afraid to make errors (poor attitudes and lack of motivation); there might be interference
form the L1, particularly for items that are similar, either structurally or semantically.
According to the generative approach, the acquisition of L1 is greatly owed to the innateness of the universal
grammar. It is a natural development of a child, and with large amount of input, which activates the universal grammar
in the brain, the child could acquire L1 successful. In the acquisition of L2, however, there is the existence of the L1
transfer. The transfer may sometimes functions as a positive one, but there are also the negative transfers, which may
function as the obstacles during L2 acquisition.
What‘s more, a speaker who learns a L2 usually cannot be totally involved into the culture of L2. However, as we
know, language is closely related to the culture. Language is an essential and important part of a culture, and culture
has impact upon the language, not only in language changes, but also in language use. A speaker, with L1 as his native
language, often knows much better about his culture, which is related to L1 than he does about L2. Therefore, with
less culture exposure, a speaker is usually more successfully in L1 acquisition than L2 acquisition.
9. There are mainly two kinds of factors that influence the second language acquisition.
1) Internal factors. Internal factors are those that the individual language learner brings with him or her to the
particular learning situation.
a. Age: Second language acquisition is influenced by the age of the learner. Children, who already have solid
literacy skills in their own language, seem to be in the best position to acquire a new language efficiently.
Motivated, older learners can be very successful too, but usually struggle to achieve native-speaker-equivalent
pronunciation and intonation.
 b. Personality: Introverted or anxious learners usually make slower progress, particularly in the development of oral
skills. More outgoing students will not worry about the inevitability of making mistakes.
c. Motivation: Intrinsic motivation has been found to correlate strongly with educational achievement. Extrinsic
motivation is also a significant factor. ESL students, for example, who need to learn English in order to take a
place at an American university or to communicate with a new English boy/girlfriend, are likely to make greater
efforts and thus greater progress.
d. Experiences: Learners who have acquired general knowledge and experience are in a stronger position to develop
a new language than those who haven't.
e. Cognition: In general, it seems that students with greater cognitive abilities will make the faster progress. Some
linguists believe that there is a specific, innate language learning ability that is stronger in some students than in
others.
f. Native language: Students who are learning a second language which is from the same language family as their
first language have, in general, a much easier task than those who aren't.
2) External factors
External factors are those that characterize the particular language learning situation.
a. Curriculum: For ESL students in particular it is important that the totality of their educational experience is
appropriate for their needs.
b. Instruction: Clearly, some language teachers are better than others at providing appropriate and effective learning
experiences for the students in their classrooms. These students will make faster progress.
c. Culture and status: There is some evidence that students in situations where their own culture has a lower status
than that of the culture in which they are learning the language make slower progress.
d. Motivation: Students who are given continuing, appropriate encouragement to learn by their teachers and parents
will generally fare better than those who aren't.
e. Access to native speakers: The opportunity to interact with native speakers both within and outside of the
classroom is a significant advantage.
10. (1)The experiential mode is totally different from the analytical mode of learning. An experiential approach to
learning may involve a degree of what Johnson (1982) refers to as an ‗in at the deep end strategy‘. Simply
throwing learners into wholly uncontrolled and undirected language use is, of course, as dubious a strategy with
respect to language learning as doing the same with someone who is learning to swim. For this reason,
considerable effort has been devoted by methodologists, material writers, and teachers.
An analytical approach to learning rests on a more or less marked degree of part practice, i. e. , isolating
parts of the whole for explicit study and learning, even if its ultimate goal remains the development of learners‘
ability to put these parts together for integrated, holistic use.
(2). The experiential mode provides a holistic model of the learning process and a multilinear model of adult
development, both of which are consistent with what we know about how people learn, grow, and develop. The
theory is to emphasize the central role that experience plays in the learning process, an emphasis that
distinguishes experiential mode of language learning from other learning theories. The term ―experiential‖ is
used therefore to differentiate experiential mode of language learning both from cognitive learning theories,
which tend to emphasize cognition over affect, and behavioral learning theories that deny any role for
subjective experience in the learning process.
However, simply throwing learners into wholly uncontrolled and undirected language use is, of course, as
dubious a strategy with respect to language learning as doing the same with someone who is learning to swim.
Therefore, this mode of language learning requires the methodologists, material writers, and teachers to
combine two sets of factors. One is the basic insight that language use can serve a significant role in promoting
learning, and the other is the acknowledgement that use of the language needs to be structured in a coherent
and pedagogically manageable way.
(3). An analytical approach to learning emphasizes the explicit study of the language learning a linguistic and
communicative system. It is characteristic of the grammar-translation method, found in the cognitive code
approach, in various CALL exercises, and in form-focus learning activities. It is also present in certain types of
learner training or awareness raising activities involving the explicit analysis by learners of aspects of the
 languages teaching and learning or of their own language production.
Each language manifests a number of structural regularities in areas such as grammar, lexis and
phonology, and also with respect to the ways in which these elements are combined to communicate messages.
The question, therefore, is not whether languages have structural regularities or not, but whether and in which
way explicit attention to such regularities can facilitate the learning of the language.
The main criticism of analytical learning is that declarative knowledge does not necessarily feed through
to the ability to use a language for communicative purposes. In other words, someone may have a good
knowledge of structural regularities of a language without being able to make use of the language with the
spontaneity and fluency which are required in normal communicative situations.
(4). I would combine the two approaches together to learn a foreign language. First, following the analytical mode
of language learning, the basic grammatical knowledge could be captured. Second, with the basic knowledge
of structural regularities of a language, the experiential mode of language learning should be followed.
For example, when I learn how to greet in English, the first thing I should know about is how to
pronounce ―Hello!‖ or ―How are you?‖ and the meaning of the expression. Then the next, I should learn in the
relevant situations. Native speakers may respond to the phatic greeting in a variety of ways depending on the
context and on how well they know about the interlocutor; e. g. ―Fine. And you?‖, ―Can‘t complain. ‖, ―You
know me!‖ are just a few instances from the wide repertoire of native speakers of English.
Through that process, the knowledge of the language which is gained by the analytical approach could
improve the ability to use the language in reality, which can be developed by the experiential approach.
(此题为开放性题目，从如何运用两种语言学习方法来学外语的角度谈即可。)
11. Some major causes that lead to the occurrence of errors in second language acquisition include (a) interference from
the mother tongue, (b) culture, (c) interlingual interference within the target language, (d) overgeneralization, (e) the
learner himself or herself.
(a) Mother tongue interference is found at the level of pronunciation, morphology, syntax, vocabulary and meaning,
and can be predicated by contrasting the grammatical or other systems of the native and target languages.
According to Hagège, interference between L1 and L2 is observed in children as well as in adults. In adults it
is more obvious and increases continuously, as a monolingual person gets older and the structures of his first
language get stronger and impose themselves more and more on any other language the adult wishes to learn.
In contrast, as regards children, interference features will not become permanent unless the child does not have
sufficient exposure to L2. If there is sufficient exposure, then instead of reaching a point where they can no
longer be corrected (as often happens with phonetics features). On the whole, there might be interference from
the L1, particularly for items that are similar, either structurally or semantically.
(b) A speaker who learns a L2 usually cannot be totally involved into the culture of L2. However, as we know,
language is closely related to the culture. Language is an essential and important part of a culture, and culture
has impact upon the language, not only in language changes, but also in language use. A speaker, with L1 as
his native language, often knows much better about his culture, which is related to L1 than he does about L2.
Therefore, with less culture exposure, a speaker is usually more successful in L1 acquisition than L2
acquisition.
(c) Interlingual interference or cross-association occurs when the learner mixes rules and patterns of the target
language and produce hybrid structures.
(d) Overgeneralization is the use of previously available strategies in new situations, i. e. , the application of a
particular pattern or rule of the target language in many other linguistic situations.
(e) L2 learners are usually older when learning their L2. Older learners may have increased inhibition and anxiety
and may find themselves afraid of making errors.
12. (1) Error caused by incomplete knowledge of the rules of the target language or mother tongue interference.
The corresponding Chinese sentence is ―请勿妨碍我的工作‖, the using of ―hinder‖ to replace ―妨碍‖ is
caused by mother tongue interference because the proper word here should be ―disturb‖.
(2) Error caused by incomplete knowledge of the rules of the target language or mother tongue interference.
The answer in Chinese is ―是，当然可以‖。In English, however, we should answer ―No, go ahead. ‖ because
the previous question is ―Would you mind…?‖ If we answer ―Yes‖, that means we do not want this man to do
 the thing he proposed.
(3) Error caused by incomplete knowledge of the rules of the target language or mother tongue interference.
Preposition ―about‖ should be deleted since ―discuss‖ is a transitive verb. We Chinese people always say ―讨
论关于…‖, however it is Chinglish to say ―discuss about sth. ‖.
(4) Mistake caused by lack of attention, carelessness, fatigue.
The correct form of ―catch cold‖ should be ―catch a cold‖. It doesn‘t mean that the speaker does not know the
grammar and the correct but he fails to perform it in real speech.
(5) Error caused by mother tongue interference.
―Impress‖ is an action of animate creatures, the light cannot impress sth. The correct sentence should be: The
film can be impressed by the light.
(6) Error caused by mother tongue interference.
―Describe‖ is an action of animate creatures, the scenery cannot describe sth. and the correct relationship
between ―describe‖ and ―scenery‖ should be: the scenery id the object of the action-describe. Therefore, the
correct sentence should be:
The scenery is too beautiful to be described.
13. It is extremely rare for the learner of an L2 to achieve full native-like competence. Selinker coined the term
―Fossilization‖ to refer to this phenomenon-- non-target forms become fixed in the interlanguage. Many examples
can be found--continued making errors such as the use of simple past instead of simple present--no amount of
grammatical explanation or of error correction had any effect.
14. We have also seen that learners of a second language tend to fossilize. They may be partially fossilized, retaining
certain errors while progressing in other ways, or they may get stuck upon a plateau. The sociological situation of the
learner and of the learner's community in relation to the community that speaks the L2 can have a significant effect
on language learning. There are also other factors which intervene in the process, and which may either induce
fossilization or prevent it. Among the most important variables are:
- affective factors
- amount of exposure - input
- opportunities for expression
- negative feedback - (note - not correction, but signaling incomprehension)
- absence or presence of pressure on communication
 第 12 章 语言与大脑

12.1 复习笔记

本章要点：
1. Methods in the study of the brain and evidences for lateralization
研究大脑的方法和脑功能侧化的证据
2. Aphasia
失语症
3. Psycholinguistic research methods
心理语言学的研究方法
4. Linguistics and language processing
语言学和语言处理

本章考点：
神经语言学，心理语言学，失语症。

本章内容索引：
I. Neurolinguistics
1. Definition
2. The structure and function of the human brain
3. Methods in the study of the brain and evidences for lateralization
(1) Autopsy studies
(2) Methods to study the brain
(3) Methods to examine the behaviour associated with the brain
4. Aphasia
(1) Broca‘s aphasia
(2) Wernicke‘s aphasia
(3) Acquired dyslexia
II. Psycholinguistics
1. Definition
2. Psycholinguistic research methods
(1) Field work
(2) Experimental methods
3. Linguistics and language processing
(1) Phonetics and phonology
(2) Morphological processing
(3) Syntax
4. Psycholinguistic modeling

I. Neurolinguistics I. 神经语言学
1. Definition 1. 定义
【考点：名词解释】 神经语言学是对大脑与语言之间
Neurolinguistics is the study of the relationship between 的关系所进行的研究。包括对大脑结构
brain and language. It includes research into how the structure 如何影响语言学习、语言是如何存储在
of the brain influences language learning，how and in which 大脑中的，存储在大脑的哪一个部位、
parts of the brain language is stored，and how damage to the 大脑的损伤是如何影响语言运用能力
brain affects the ability to use language. 等问题的研究。
2. The structure and function of the human brain 2. 人脑的结构和功能
It is within the human cortex that the secrets of language 只有在人的脑皮层中才能找到语
representation and processing are to be found. 言表征和处理的秘密。
3. Methods in the study of the brain and evidences for 3. 研究大脑的方法和脑功能侧化的证
lateralization 据
(1) Autopsy studies
The technique is used to examine the brain after the (1)尸体解剖研究
patient‘s death in order to find the relationship between the 该技术用来在病人死后来检查其
area of brain damage and the type of disorder the patient 大脑，以找出大脑受损部位和病人在活
displayed while alive. 着的时候所呈现出来的紊乱类型之间
(2) Methods to study the brain 的关系。
It has been found that when subjects speak，much blood (2)研究大脑的方法
flows to the left hemisphere of the cortex and to Broca‘s area 人们已经发现当受试者说话的时
in particular. When subjects read，much blood flows to the
候，大量血液流进脑皮层的左半球，尤
occipital lobe，to the angular gyrus，and to other areas of the
其是布罗卡区。当受试者阅读的时候，
left hemisphere.
These observations support the view that the left 大量血液流人了扰骨突出部位、角形脑
hemisphere is primarily responsible for language and that 回和左半球的其他区域。
there are specific language areas within the left hemisphere.
这些观察结果证实了大脑左半球
(3) Methods to examine the behaviour associated with the
主要负责语言且左脑半球内存在特定
brain
语言区的观点。
Dichotic listening. Dichotic listening is a technique in
(3)考查与大脑相关行为的方法
which stimuli either linguistic or non—linguistic are presented
双耳分听：一种通过耳机将语言或
through head phones to the left and right ears to determine the
非语言刺激送到左右耳以决定各种认
lateralization of various cognitive functions.
知功能的大脑侧化的技术。
Split brain studies. The experiments that investigate the
裂脑试验：研究通过外科手术损坏
effects of surgically severing the corpus callosum on cognition
胼胝体对认知的影响的试验被称裂脑
are referred to as split brain studies.
试验。

4. Aphasia
4. 失语症
【考点：名词解释】
失语症是指由血管问题、肿瘤、事
Aphasia refers to a number of acquired language
故等造成的脑损害引起的一系列习得
disorders due to the cerebral lesions caused by vascular
性语言紊乱。
problems，a tumour，an accident and so on.
(1)布罗卡失语症(非流利性失语症)
(1) Broca‘s aphasia (non-fluent aphasia)
在音位方面，布罗卡失语症的言语
Phonologically，the speech of Broca‘s aphasics is very
halting and lack of normal sentence intonation. 非常不连贯，而且缺乏正常的句子语
Syntactically ， Broca‘s aphasics produce telegraphic 调。
speech, i. e. they omit the functional words that we would be 在句法上，布罗卡失语症产生了电
likely to omit when we write a telegram and besides，they tend 文言语，即他们会省略我们在写电报时
to omit in flectional affixes such as-ing. and. -ed in words such
会省略的功能词，另外，他们往往会省
as reading and worked. They often show difficulty judging the
grammaticality of sentences. 略屈折词缀，如省略reading和worked中
的-ing 和-ed。他们经常在判断句子的
(2) Wernicke‘s aphasia (fluent aphasia) 语法性中表现出困难。
The patients can speak very fluently with normal (2)韦尼克失语症(流利性失语症)
pronunciation and intonation and correct word order but often 病人能够非常流利地说出正常的
with little semantic meaning. They often have great difficulty 发音、语调和正确的词序，但却往往没
in comprehending a speech. 有多少语义意义。他们通常在理解言语
【考点：对比两种失语症】 上有很大的困难。
①In the case of non-fluent aphasia，form is compromised 对比上述两种失语症：
but the content of language remains relatively intact.
①在非流利性失语症中，形式打了
②In contrast, fluent aphasia is characterized by a rapid
flow of form with little content. 折扣，但语言内容相对保持完整。
②相反，流利性失语症的特点是形
(3) Acquired dyslexia 式流畅却没有多少内容。
① Definition (3)习得性失读症
Damage in and around the angular gyrus of the parietal ① 定义
lobe often causes the impairment of reading and writing 体壁突出部位的角形脑回及其周
ability，which is often referred to as acquired dyslexia. 围的损伤经常造成阅读和书写能力上
的障碍，这种现象通常被称为习得性失
读症。
② Types ② 类别
a. Phonological dyslexia is a type of acquired dyslexia in a. 音位失读症是一种病人似乎失
which the patient seems to have lost the ability to use 去了运用语音拼写规则能力的习得性
spelling-to-sound rules. Surface dyslexia is the opposite of 失读症。表层失读症与音位失读症相
phonological dyslexia. 反。
b. Surface dyslexia, the patient with which seem unable b. 表层失读症的病人似乎不能整
to recognize words as wholes but must process all words 体地识别词汇，而是必须通过一套语音
through a set of spelling-to-sound rules. 拼写的规则来处理所有的词。

II. 心理语言学
II. Psycholinguistics 1. 定义
1. Definition 心理语言学是对语言进行处理的
【考点：名词解释】 研究。它涉及语言理解和生产的过程。
Psycholinguistics is the study of language processing. it
is concerned with the processes of language comprehension 2. 心理语言学的研究方法
and production. (1) 实地调查
2. Psycholinguistic research methods 由于语言处理并不涉及可观察的
(1) Field work 物质事件，而是涉及无法直接观察和测
Since language processing does not involve observable 量的心理计算和表征。因此，心理语言
physical events. but rather involves mental computations and 学家必须从可观察的行为中进行推理。
representations that cannot be observed and measured 因而，对像口误这样的行为进行科学分
directly，psycholinguists have to infer from the observable 析就成为了最早最有影响的研究语言
behaviour. Thus the scientific analysis of such behaviour as 处理的方法之一。
slip of tongue becomes one of the earliest and most influential
ways to study language processing. (2) 实验方法
(2) Experimental methods ① 词汇确定法：词汇确定任务是
①Lexical Decision. Lexical decision task is a kind of 心理语言学家用来研究词汇接触的一
experiments psycholinguists employ to investigate lexical 种试验。在这个任务中，为参与者提供
access. In this task，a participant sees a string of letters and is 一串字母，并要求他判定这个字母串是
required to decide whether the string is a word or not. 不是一个词。
②启动试验：第一，呈现启动词，
②The priming experiment. First，the prime is presented， 通常不要求或不记录对此的反应。第
to which no response is usually required or recorded. Second， 二，呈现目标词，对此，要求参与者作
the target is presented，to which the participant is required to 出某种反应，同时记录下作出该反应的
give some response(e. g. by naming the word or deciding
时间。然后比较在启动条件下对目标词
whether the string is a word)and the time taken to make this
response is recorded. The times to respond to the target in the 作出反应的时间与没有启动剌激或呈
priming condition are then compared with a condition in 现不同启动刺激条件下所用的时间进。
which no priming stimulus or a different priming stimulus was
presented.
③ 限时阅读试验：限时阅读试验
③ Timed-reading experiments. A timed-reading 是用于研究句子处理困难的决定因素
experiment is a technique that is used to study the 的一种技巧。该实验的一个基本设想是:
determinants of sentence processing difficulty. The underlying
句子处理越困难，所花的时间就越长。
assumption of the experiment is that the more difficult
sentence processing is，the longer it should take. One of the 常用的限时阅读试验的方法之一就是
commonly used timed-reading experimental methods is the 按键法。
bar-pressing paradigm. ④ 眼动试验：对不那么常见的词
的注视时间要长一些，注视的点通常集
④ Eye movement experiments. This technique has
revealed that fixation times are typically longer for less 中在实义词。困难的句子结构引起更长
frequent words，and the points of fixation are typically centred 的注视时间和更多的回复性快速扫视。
on content words. Difficult sentence structures create longer 因此，注视持续时间是在阅读中信息处
fixation time as well as many more regressive saccades. Thus
理难度的一个量度。
fixation duration is one index of the difficulty of information
processing during reading. ⑤ 事件相关电位试验：ERP试验显
示，句子处理是即时的、在线的。在阅
⑤Event-related potential experiment. ERP experiments 读句子的时候，我们不是在等到整个词
have shown that sentence processing is immediate and online.
When reading a sentence we do not wait until the entire string 串完结的时候，而是在其逐渐展开的同
is complete，but rather constantly building interpretations of 时不断对其进行解读的。
the sentence as it unfolds. Whenever what is presented to us
contradicts our expectations based on our ongoing
interpretative processes，a negative voltage is observed.
3. 语言学和语言处理
3. Linguistics and language processing
心理语言学研究已经揭示：声音结
Psycholinguistic studies have revealed that many of the
构分析、词结构分析和句子。结构分析
concepts and principles employed in the analysis of sound
中所运用的许多概念和原则在语言处
structure，word structure，and sentence structure also play a
理中也起作用。
role in language processing.
(1) 语音学和音位学
(1) Phonetics and phonology
音节在言语感知中起着重要的作
The syllable plays an important role in speech perception.
用。
(2) Morphological processing
(2) 形态处理
① Selectional restrictions. Research shows that
① 选择限制：研究显示，对词缀
knowledge of the selectional restrictions of affixes does indeed
选择限制的了解的确是词汇处理系统
form part of the word-processing system.
的一部分。
② Hierarchical structure. Priming experiments shows
② 等级结构：启动试验表明，我
that our representation of complex words is organized in terms
们对复杂词的表征是根据等级形态结
of hierarchical morphological structure.
构来组织的。
(3) 句法
(3) Syntax
有两种证据来源在探索句子处理
Two sources of evidence have been very important in the
exploration of the principles of modularity of sentence 模块性原则中非常重要。它们是花园小
processing. They are garden path sentences and sentence 径句和句子歧义。
ambiguity. ① 花园小径句：花园小径句误导
① Garden path sentences x : A garden path sentence
句法处理器，将其引人一个进行错误分
misleads the syntactic parser and takes it down the garden path
to the wrong analysis. One of the most famous examples of 析的花园小径。下面是最著名的一个花
garden path sentence is as below： 园小径句的例子:
The horse raced past the barn fell. The horse raced past the barn fell.
It is found in eye movement studies that subjects show
more regressive saccades and longer fixation times for garden 眼动试验中，受试者显示出更多的
path sentences. 回复性快速扫视，而且在花园小径句上
②Sentence ambiguity：The study of sentence ambiguity 的注视时间较长。
has also contributed to how syntactic processing is ② 句子歧义：对于句子歧义的研
accomplished. In processing a sentence ， we create all
究也有助于了解句子处理是如何完成
representations possible and then discard the ones that are
either incorrect or unnecessary. 的。在句子处理中， 我们会创造所有
可能的表征，然后排除那些不正确或不
必要的。
4. Psycholinguistic modeling 4. 心理语言学模式
Levelt‘s model of speech production 列维特的言语生产模式
Following Levelt(1989)，we may distinguish four stages 四个生产阶段: 概念化、形成、发
of production：conceptualizing，formulating，articulating，
音和自我监控。
and self-monitoring. 首先，我们必须对所希望交流的内
First ， we must conceptualize what we wish to 容概念化。
communicate.
其次，我们在构成工具中将这个想
Second，we formulate this thought into linguistic plan in
the Formulator. It contains grammatical and phonological 法构入语言计划，其中包含了语法和音
process and draws upon the lexicon. 位过程，以及词汇的运用。
第三，信息由构成工具传向发音
Third，the information is passed to the Articulator from
器，这实际上就产生了话语。
Formulator which actually produces the utterance.
Finally，we monitor our speech，to assess whether it is 最后，我们监测我们的言语， 确
what we intended to say and how we intended to say it. 定它是否就是我们想要说的以及我们
打算如何去说它。
 12.2 课后习题详解

1. What is neurolinguistics and what does it study?

2 What distinguishes the human brain from a non-human brain?
3. Give names to each component of the human brain indicated by numbers in the following figure.
4. Describe the major symptoms of Broca‘s aphasia，Wernicke‘s aphasia，and acquired dyslexia.
5. What are the relative advantages and disadvantages of the techniques used to investigate the brain in terms of ethics,
cost, intrusiveness and type of information yielded.
6. What is psycholinguistics and what does it studies?
7. What does each of the following slips of tongue reveal about the process of language production?
a. "You've tasted two worms. "
b. "It crawls through the fax. "
c. "You hissed my mystery lecture. "
d. to gap the bridge
e. cuss and kiddle
8. What experiments would you devise to address the following questions?
a) Are semantically abstract words easier to process than semantically concrete ones?
b) Are simple sentences easier to understand than complex ones?
c) Do people read words from beginning to end?
9. Read the following garden path sentences twice at a day's interval and see whether the interpretation of the second
reading is the same as that of the first one.
a) Fat people eat accumulates.
b) The dog that I had really loved bones.
c). The old man the boat.
d). We painted the wall with cracks.
10. Do morphological structures plays a substantial role in word recognition?
11. Describe Levelt‘s speech production model in your own words.

参考答案
1. Neulinguistics is the study of two related areas: language disorders and the relationship between the brain and
language. It includes research into how the brain is structured and what function each part of the brain performs, how
and in which parts of the brain language is stored, and how damage to the brain affects the ability to use language.
2. It is the cerebral cortex that distinguishes the human brain from a non-human brain. The cerebral cortex is the
decision-making organ of the body and storehouse of memory. It receives messages from all the sensory organs and
initiates all voluntary actions. It is the cerebral cortex that accounts for the human distinctness in the animal world
and it is within the human cortex that the secrets of language representation and processing are to be found. Animals,
reptiles and amphibians, for example, have no cortex at all.
3. 1) Frontal lobe 2) Centual sulcus. 3) Parietal lobe. 4) Wernicke's area. 5) Angular gyrus.
6) Occipital lobe 7) Cerebellum 8) Temporal lobe. 9) Broca's area. 10) Lateral fissure
4. (1) Broca‘s aphasia displays several characteristics. Phonologically, the speech of Broca‘s aphasics is very halting and
lack of normal sentence intonation. That is to say, patients have great difficulty in accurately producing the needed
phonemes to say a word. When they say, they say very slowly and have a lot of hesitation. Syntactically, Broca‘s
aphasics produce telegraphic speech, i. e. they omit the functional words that we would be likely to omit when we
write a telegram and besides, they tend to omit inflectional affixes such as –ing, and –ed in words such as
―reading‖ and ―worked‖. They often show difficulty judging the grammaticality of sentences.
(2) Unlike Broca‘s aphasics, Wernicke‘s aphasics are generally unaware of their deficit. Patients cannot express
themselves because they cannot understand what they have just said and use that understanding in the planning of
what to say next. Wernicke‘s aphasics also show reading and writing deficits comparable to their deficits in
speaking and listening. The written production of Wernicke‘s aphasics is formally very good with correct spelling
and handwriting, but like their speaking, makes little sense. Reading comprehension is also severely impaired in
Wernicke‘s aphasia. Patients can see the letters and words, but cannot make any sense of them.
(3) There are two types of acquired dyslexia: phonological dyslexia and surface dyslexia. Phonological dyslexia is a
type of acquired dyslexia in which the patient seems to have lost the ability to use spelling-to-sound rules. Patients
suffering from phonological dyslexia can only read words that they have seen before. When asked to read an
unknown word, they will either say nothing or produce a known word which is similar to the word they are asked
to read. Surface dyslexia is the opposite of phonological dyslexia. Patients suffering from surface dyslexia seem
unable to recognize words as wholes but must process all words through a set of spelling-to-sound rules. They do
 not have any problem in reading the regularly word such as ―hat‖. If asked to read irregularly spelled words, they
will apply regular rules and produce the incorrect form and assign it a meaning that is appropriate to their incorrect
pronunciation.
5. In SAT the patient is asked to count out aloud while sodium amytal is injected into an artery carrying blood to one side
of the brain. If this is the hemisphere used in speech，the patient loses all track of his counting and experiences severe
language difficulties for several minutes. If it is not, the patient can resume normal counting a1most immediately
after the injection. Though effective，the test is of risk.
CT scanning uses a narrow beam of X-ray to create brain images that take the form of a series of brain slices.
That makes it possible for the researchers to look inside a living brain. It is very useful in identifying brain lesions
and tumours，though the image that CT scanning provides is static.
PET, however，makes it possible to study the brain in action. It has been found that when subjects speak，much
blood flows to the left hemisphere of the cortex and to Broca‘s area in particular. When subjects read，much blood
flows to the occipital lobe，to the angular gyrus，and to other areas of the left hemisphere. These observations support
the view that the left hemisphere is primarily responsible for language and that there are specific language areas
within the left hemisphere.
6. Psycholinguistics is the study of psychological states and mental activity associated with the use of language. It
concerns the representation of language in the mind, the planning, production, perception, and comprehension of
speech, and the language acquisition.
7. a. shift of the initial phoneme of the two words (You‘ve wasted two terms).
b. shift of the first two phonemes of the two words (it falls through the cracks)
c. shift of the initial phoneme of the two words (You missed my history lecture. )
d. exchange of the word order ( to bridge the gap)
e. shift of the first two phonemes of the two words (kiss and cuddle)
8. a) Time-reading experiments
b) Eye movement experiments.
c) Event-related potential experiment.
9. a) The first interpretation of the sentence is that ―eat‖ is the verb of the sentence while the correct interpretation is that
―accumulate‖
b) First eye of the sentence is that I had really loved bones, while the correct interpretation should be that my dog
really loved bones.
c) The first understanding of the sentence is that the man and the boat, but the correct understanding should be the old
is a man on the boat.
d) The first understanding of the sentence is that we used the cracks to paint wall, but the real meaning should be that
we painted the wall and the wall was built with cracks.
10. Morphological structures do plays a substantial role in word recognition. In the recognition of multimorphemic
words, which are composed of two or more morphemes are automatically activated. Priming experiments show that
when a subject is exposed to a multimorphemic word such as boyish, the activation of that word in the mind
automatically activates the lexical entry for its root boy, which results in its showing a faster response time as the
target in a lexical decision task.
11. In Levelt‘s model of speech production, we may find that there are four stages in producing speech.
First, we must be clear about what we want to communicate and conceptualize them.
Second, we organize and formulate our thoughts and ideas, and try to find a linguistic way to express them.
Grammatical encoding and phonetic plan are involved in this process.
Third, the linguistic information is processed in Articulator. In this step, we actually produce the utterance.
Finally, we monitor our speech, checking whether it makes sense and whether it is what we intended to say.
 12.3 考研真题与典型题详解

I. Fill in the blanks

1. Psycholinguistics is a branch of linguistics which is the study of psychological aspects of language. As an
interdisciplinary academic field，it investigates the following major subjects: ____ , ____ and ____.
2. Two sources of evidence have been very important in the exploration of the principles of modularity of sentence
processing. They are ____ ____ ____and____ ___.

II. Short answer questions

1. What is garden path sentence？(南开大学 2009 研)
2. What are experimental research methods of the psychological linguistics?
3. How do psycholinguistic investigations of language differ from theoretical linguistic investigations?
4. Consider the following slips of the tongue. What does each reveal about the process of language production?
(1) They laked across the swim.
(2) The spy was gound and bagged.
(3) I will zee you in the bark.
5. "I know what I want to say, but I can't find the word. " What implication does this phenomenon have for the language
and thought controversy?
6. Since 1949, great changes have taken place in China. Yet, the Chinese language has changed relatively little in terms
of its basic syntax and phonology although some vocabulary changes, such as in forms of address, e. g. tongzhi (同志),
xiaojie (小姐), and xiansheng (先生), have occurred. How does this fact (that the world view of a people has changed
radically but the language has changed little) relate to the claim that knowing and using a particular language shapes
one's world view?

III. Essay questions

1. In informal speech, people often omit sentence subjects because they are commonly understood. What are the omitted
subjects in the following two sentences? Why do people know that these are the correct subjects? (南京大学 2008 研)
a. Hope you like everything here.
b. Just imagine what has just happened here.
2．Describe the major symptoms of Broca‘s aphasia，Wernicke‘s aphasia，and acquired dyslexia.
3. Please briefly answer the following question IN ABOUT 500 WORDS: (四川大学 2010 研)
Anthropological linguists E. Sapir and B. Whorf claim that the language a people use shapes
their perspective of perception, which in turn shapes their thought. The key notions of their famous ―Sapir-Whorfian
Hypothesis‖ include ―language determinism‖ and ―language relativity‖. Do you know anything about the notions of
theirs? If you do, what is your opinion on it? Please briefly express your ideas in a passage.

参考答案及解析
I. Fill in the blanks
1. acquisition，comprehension, production
(心理语言学作为语言学的一个分支，是从心理学的角度来研究语言，主要包括语言习得，语言理解和语言产生。)
2. garden path sentences, sentence ambiguity
(有两种证据来源在探索句子处理模块性原则中非常重要。它们是花园小径句和句子歧义。)
II. Short answer questions
1. A garden path sentence is a sentence for which the responder's most intuitive interpretation is an incorrect one,
ultimately luring them into an improper parse and it is used in psycholinguistics to illustrate that, while reading,
human beings process language one word at a time. For example, in this sentence "The horse raced past the barn fell",
the reader usually starts to parse this as an ordinary active intransitive sentence, but stumbles when reaching the word
"fell". At this point, the reader is forced to backtrack and look for other possible structures. It may take some rereading
to realize that "raced past the barn" is in fact a reduced relative clause with a passive participle, implying that "fell" is
the main verb. The correct reading is then: "The horse (that was) raced past the barn fell". The sentence can be parsed
 in other ways as well: A British reader accustomed to "fell" being a noun (meaning "mountain") may reach the end and
still treat "raced' as the verb and "barn fell" as "the fell by or at the barn". This example hinges on the ambiguity of the
lexical category of the word "raced": it can be either a past-tense verb or a passive participle.
(本题主要考查学生根据特例来阐述对花园路径小句含义的理解。)
2. Though slips of the tongue provide rich imformation about speech prodution,they are naturally occurring events.
Researchers have no control over when and where they will occur and have simply to wait for them. Thus,
researchers have to devise special experimental methods by which they can control the cirvumstances in which
language is processed. These methords include lexical decision and priming that are used to study how words are
organised, assessed and represented in the mind,and timed-reading experiment and eye movement experiment that
are used to study how sentences are processed and event-related potential experiment. (心理语言学的研究方法中
的实验研究方法有五种，如果是论述题，就必须对这五种方法进行详细的解释。)
3. There are two possible directions of study in psycholinguistics. One is that we may use language as a way of
explaining psycholinguistic theories and processes, for example, the role of language as it influences memory,
perception, attention and learning. And it is for this that the term psycholinguistics is sometimes used. The other is
that we may study the effects of psychological constraints on the use of language, for example, how memory
limitations affect speech production and comprehension. It is the latter which has provided the main focus of interest
in linguistics, where the subject is basically regarded as the study of the mental processes underlying the planning,
production, perception and comprehension of speech.
4. (1) Exchange
(2) Deletion (gound-ground)
(3) Shift (zee, bark-see, park)
5. According to Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis, language system forms thought or is necessary for thought. What we are
thinking determines what we are trying to say. However, the actual phenomenon that occurs like ―I know what I want
to say, but I can‘t find the word. ‖ obviously poses challenge to this idea. Because we already have the thought before
we get the language.
6. The fact that the world view of a people has changed radically but the language has changed little shows that there are
theoretical problem in the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis. If the strong version—linguistic determinism is true, then language
determines thought, there will be no thought without language. However, in fact, the development of thought is not
synchronized with that of language. Therefore, as Berlin and Kay have proposed, there must be some basic constraints
that limit the way in which thought is coded in language.
III. Essay questions
1. The omitted subject in sentence a is ―I‖, and the omitted subject in sentence b is usually ―You‖.
This is a matter of sentence comprehension in language comprehension. Psycholinguists have proposed
principles interpreting sentence comprehension with respect to the grammatical constraints. The most popular
principle is ―Minimal attachment‖ which defines ―structurally simpler‖, and it claims that structural simplicity guides
all initial analyses in sentence comprehension. In this view, the sentence processor constructs a single analysis of a
sentence and attempts to interpret it. The first analysis is the one that requires the fewest applications of grammatical
rules to attach each incoming word into the structure being built; it is the automatic consequence of an effort to get
some analysis constructed as soon as possible. In the first sentence, when ―hope‖ as a verb is used to express the
speaker‘s desire and expectation for something to happen, it conveys the will of the speaker. So, the subject of ―hope‖
is usually the speaker her/himself and can be omitted when the two are talking to each other. When the speaker is
making a statement and using ―hope‖ to express other‘s will, the subject will not be omitted. Therefore, according to
―minimal attachment‖ principle, when the hearer interprets this sentence, they automatically interpret ―I‖ – the speaker,
as the subject of ―hope‖. Sentence b can be said to be an imperative sentence which is a sentence that gives advice or
instructions or that expresses a request or a command. This instruction or request is always aimed to the hearer or the
reader, so the subject of an imperative is always ―you‖. When the hearer interpret this sentence, he/she will interpret
the verb ―imagine‖ as a request or advice through which the speaker tries to make he/she involved in this action, so it
is easier for he/she to consider ―you‖ as the subject.
Context is another important factor for people to understand the subjects. The subjects will be more clear in
particular context although they are omitted.
 (本题可从心理语言学中语言的理解的角度进行分析。根据心理语言学的一些理论，人们在理解句子的时候会
遵循结构简单化的规则，因此，在此题中，人们最倾向于把―我‖当作第一句的主语，而把―你‖当作第二句的主
语。)
2．参见“12. 2 课后习题详解题 4” 。
3. Whorf attended some linguistic courses given by Sapir at Yale University and found particular resonance between his
own ideas and those of Sapir. This experience and his study of Hopi, an American Indian language, helped him
develop his unique understanding of linguistic relativity, which is widely known as the SAPIR —WHORF
HYPOTHESES. What this hypothesis suggests is like this: our language helps mould our way of thinking and,
consequently, different languages may probably express our unique ways of understanding the world. Following this
argument, two important points could be captured in this theory. On the one hand, language may determine our
thinking patterns; on the other, similarity between languages is relative. For two different speech communities, the
greater their structural differentiation is, the more diverse their conceptualization of the world will be. For this reason,
this hypothesis has alternatively been referred to as ―language determinism‖ and ―language relativity‖.
Nowadays few people would possibly tend to accept the original form of this theory completely. Consequently,
two versions of the Sapir—Whorf hypothesis have been developed, a strong version and a weak version. The strong
version of the theory refers to the claim the original hypothesis suggests, emphasizing the decisive role of language
as the shaper of our thinking patterns. The weak version of this hypothesis, however, is a modified type of its original
theory, suggesting that there is a correlation between language, culture, and thought, but the cross-cultural differences
thus produced in our ways of thinking are relative, rather than categorical.
If we go over the literature concerning the hypothesis, we'll soon discover that it has aroused a lively
controversy. While some researchers claim to have found reliable evidence to justify its validity, others suggest to
have obtained enough counter-evidence to jeopardize its feasibility. Facing a situation like this, we must be careful
and do not rush to any hasty conclusion before we really obtain some reliable evidence to support or reject the
hypothesis.
Here are two examples taken to show the complexity and controversy of the theory. One is quoted from Hopi,
an American Native language spoken in Arizona; the other is taken from Dugum Dani, a Papuan language spoken in
the central highlands of Irian Jaya. As far as the former is concerned, it serves as a good example to show how
languages may differ from each other, possibly providing some positive evidence to support the hypothesis. On the
other hand, by looking at the basic color word system in Dani language from an evolutionary perspective, we‘ll have
an opportunity to get to know that linguistic relativity may equally meet some cross-cultural counter examples, a
challenge to the theory hence formed.
Recent developments in linguistics predict that linguistic studies in the new century will become more fruitful if
an evolutionary, cognitive, and interdisciplinary perspective is taken in its theoretic pursuit. Meanwhile, additional
evidence has been collected to convincingly show the momentum and feasibility of the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis in
dealing with linguistic differences from exotic cultures. These new changes not only bring more vitality to linguistic
science but also call for more eclecticism in its theorizing. Following this line of argument, it seems still premature to
completely reject the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis.
i
F.de Saussure索绪尔(1857-1913)瑞士著名的语言学家，现代语言学之父。他的《普通语言学教程》是一部划时代的著作。索诸尔在书中提出了新的理论
①区分了语言(Langue)和言语(Parole)；②区分共时和历时；③使用所指和能指；④创建系统理论；⑤符号学、音位学及其他。
ii
Noam Chomsky 诺姆·乔姆斯基(1928-)美国当代一位有巨大影响的语言学家。乔姆斯基学说产生于 20 世纪 50 年代中期。乔氏以创新精神提出了“转换生
成语法”。

iii
International Phonetic Association (IPA) 国际语音学会由一批欧洲语音学家(保尔.帕西(1859-1940)等)为促进语音学研究于1886年成立的组织。1889
年该学会发表国际音标表 (International Phonetic Alphabet)，其经修订和扩充的形式成为当今广泛使用的语音转写系统。

iv约翰·弗斯 （1890-1960）英国语言学家，伦敦学派的创始人，是 20 世纪 40～60 年代英国语言学界的中心人物。他在语言学上有两项独特见解：一是根

据言语背景和上下文来寻求意义 ，二是用一套新方法来描写语言节律。他坚持谈语言不能不谈人生和文化，分析语言不能撇开意义。他的创见后来编成

《 1934～1951 年论文集》和《1952～1959 年论文集》。

v
Leech利奇(1936-)英国当代著名语言学家。利奇从功能主义角度，将意义分为七种:(1)概念意义(conceptual meaning);(2) 联想意义(associative
meaning)，其可进一步分为:内涵意义(connotative meaning)；社会意义(social meaning);情感意义(affective meaning);反映意义(reflected meaning);

搭配意义(collocated meaning); (3)主位意义(thematic meaning)。

vi
奥斯汀首先区分了两种不同类型的句子，叙述句(constative)和施为句(performative)。叙述句是用来说明、报告或描绘事物的句子，而施为句则是用来完成某
种行为的。施为句具有两个特点: ①它们并不描述，"报告"或"说明"任何事物，它们不存在真假的问题;②说这句话本身构成了一个行为。叙述句在某种意义上
也是一种施为句。为使"言"成功地有所"为"，即通过言语成功地实施某一行为。
vii Received Pronunciation(RP)标准发音指英国英语地域上中性的口音，历史上源自宫廷和公学中说的有声望的英语。RP 在语言学
上并不比任何其他口音高级或低级，但是这种口音常与社会中教育程度较高的阶层相联系，在描写英国英语或向外国人教这种
方言时也最常引用为规范。近年来 RP 不再享有原先高声望的社会地位。在许多人(特别是年轻一代) 眼里，有地域特点的口音
更有吸引人之处。当今的状况显然处于急剧变化之中。
viii
M.A.K.Halliday 韩礼德(1925-)英国当代著名语言学家。系统功能语法(systemic functional grammar)的创始人。韩礼德对语
言学的主要贡献是在继承以弗斯为首的伦敦学派理论的基础上，建立和发展了系统功能语法(systemic-functional grammar) 学
派。具体地分为两个阶段:阶和范畴语法(scale and category grammar)阶段和系统语法(systemic grammar) 阶段。
ix
language acquisition device 语言习得机制在生成语言学里，指人类固有的获得第一语言的能力。乔姆斯基(Chomsky)认为，人类与生俱有掌握自然语
言系统的能力。这一能力系统能力系人脑先天的内在结构----普遍语法所决定的。其示意图如下:语言输入一 L.A. D→语言输出。语言习得机制(LAD)主
要由三部分组成:假设产生机制(hypothesis-make device)、语言普遍性(linguistic universal)、和一个评估程序(evaluation procedure)。
x Garden path sentence 是心里语言学的一个术语，它来自一个英文俗语 led one up the garden path，意思是欺骗，哄骗，所以花园小
径句指的是语言的歧义现象，如―The horse raced past the barn fell.‖字面是―马跑过谷仓跌倒‖，但实际的意思是―跑过谷仓的马跌
倒了‖。再如―The old man the boat.‖字面意思―老人和船‖，实际意思是“老年人是这艘船的船员”。