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一、Explain-the-fllowing-terms

1． Categorization

Categorization is the process of classifying our experiences into different categories based 【答案】

on commonalities and differences. There are three levels in categories: the basic level，the superordinate level ，and the subordinate level.

2． Interlanguage

【答案】 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^ native language. For example, when the Chinese student is learning English, he may make errors like “to touch the society”.

3． Performatives

【答案】 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． Corpus

【答案】 Corpus is a collection of linguistic data , either compiled as written texts or as a transcription of recorded speech. The main purpose of a corpus is to verify a hypothesis about language~~for example , to determine how the application of a particular sound , word , or syntactic construction varies.

5． Contrastive analysis

【答案】 Contrastive analysis 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.

6． grammatical word

【答案】 It refers to those which mainly work for constructing group , phrase , clause , clause complex , or even text , such as , conjunctions , prepositions , articles , and pronouns. Grammatical words serve to link together different content parts. So they are also known as Function Words.

7． Achievement test

【答案】 Achievement test is a test which measures how much of a language someone has learned

with reference to a particular course of study or program of instruction.

8． Arbitrariness

【答案】 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/.

二、Essay-question

9． MORPHEME is defined as the smallest unit in terms of relationship between expression and content. Then is morpheme a grammatical concept or a semantic one? What is its relation to phoneme? Can a morpheme and a phoneme form an organic whole?

【答案】 As a matter of fact, morpheme is both a grammatical concept and a semantic one. for instance , we can recognize that English word-forms such as talks , talker , talked and talking must consist of one element talk , and a number of other elements such as -s , -er , -ed , -ing. All these elements are described as morphemes. The definition of morpheme is “the smallest unit of language in terms of the relationship between expression and content”. We would say that the word reopened in the sentence The pglice reopened the investigation consists of three morphemes. One minimal unit of meaning is open, another minimal unit of meaning is re- （meaning again） , and a minimal unit of grammatical function is -ed （indicating past tense） . Therefore, we are in a position to conclude that those which can stand by themselves as single words , e.g. open , are semantic concepts , and those which cannot normally stand alone, but which are typically attached to another form, e.g. re-, -ist, -ed, -s , are grammatical concepts.

As we know , each one of the meaning-distinguishing sounds in a language is described as a phoneme. An essential property of a phoneme is that it functions contrastively. If we substitute one sound for another in a word and there is a change of meaning, then the two sounds represent different phonemes.

The relation between morpheme and phoneme is also of two fold feature , viz. one-to-one , one-to-more. As with the former type, one-to-one, re- is the kind of morpheme that always consists of two phonemesas for the latter type, one-to-more relation, a typical example would be the plural morpheme that follows a noun or a

verb. after a noun can be pronounced in three ways ,

viz. and as in locks, bags, and watches; after a verb can also be pronounced in three ways,

viz. and as in stops, drags, and catches.

Seen from an integrative perspective, a morpheme and a phoneme, indeed, can form an organic whole , as the number of the sound of each morpheme cannot be unlimited.

10．Is it possible to separate semantics and pragmatics? Why or why not? What are the implications of your answer for second language teaching?

【答案】 Though both semantics and pragmatics have to do with the meaning of language, and link language to the world , we think it is possible to separate semantics and pragmatics in linguistic study. Semantics is the study of literal meaning of linguistic expressions, particularly meaning of words, phrases and sentences. In using the term sense rather than reference, the focus of semantics is on the way people relate words to each other within the framework of their language. Pragmatics starts from the observation that people use language to accomplish many kinds of acts, broadly known as speech acts thus it is the study of how to do things with words or of the meaning of language in context. This kind of

meaning in pragmatics usually refers to as speaker‟s meaning , utterance meaning , or contextual meaning. Its interpretation depends more on who the speaker of the sentence is, who the hearer is, when and where it is used. Thus the distinction between semantics and pragmatics is clear: the former is more closely related to the words used , the more constant , inherent side of meanings ; the latter is more closely related to the context, the more indeterminate side, or something extra.

The first implication for second language study involves the appropriate use of the target language. The teaching of a foreign language in a classroom involves two types of instruction: one is informational and analytical and can be diagrammed on the axis of general semantic information about the language. But language learning also has a crucially important skill component, which involves the development of the ability to use the language, actively through speaking and writing and passively through listening and reading. This is the pragmatic turn in second language teaching. The language use should be analyzed in relation to the context of communication, and that language teaching and learning should focus on the appropriate use of the target language, oral and written, according to situational and wider social context.

The second implication is concerned with vocabulary learning and translation. The learning of second language‟s vocabularies involves the understanding and memory of their meanings. Since the differences between the first and second language‟s culture , there may be no corresponding meaning underlying the same sayings. Teachers should explain the different usage or implication of the target language‟s items. This is of much importance for cross-cultural translation practices.

11．How are affixes classified?

【答案】 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 formal 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”.

12．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 von 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.

【答案】 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