SupraEnglish
Adults
Adults/Unit 10: Linguistics

Vocabulary

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Linguistics

"Study of language."

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Etymology

"Word origin."

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Dialect

"Local version."

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Accent

"Pronunciation sound."

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Prefix

"Word start."

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Suffix

"Word end."

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Fluency

"Flow."

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Translation

"One language to another."

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Vocabulary

"Word bank."

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Grammar

"Rules."

Article

Where Words Come From

English is a thief. It stole words from Latin, Greek, French, and German. Understanding "Etymology" (word history) explains why English spelling is so crazy.

Prefixes and Suffixes "Un-believ-able." "Pre-historic." "Auto-mobile." If you know the parts, you can guess the meaning of new words. Note: "Philo" (love) + "Sophia" (wisdom) = Philosophy.

Borrowed Words "Sushi" (Japanese), "Kindergarten" (German), "Entrepreneur" (French). English absorbs everything. It is a "Mongrel" language.

Slang Evolution Language changes fast. "Cool" became "Sick" became "Lit." If you don't update your database, you sound like a grandpa.

Discussion

Questions

  • 1Does your language borrow words from English?
  • 2Is English spelling difficult?
  • 3Do you like learning grammar?
  • 4What is your favorite English word?
  • 5Should we simplify spelling?

Further Discussion

  • 1Will everyone speak English one day?
  • 2Do languages shape how we think?
  • 3Why do languages die?

Practice

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1.

The study of where words come from is...

2.

A part added to the beginning of a word (like 'un' or 'pre') is a...

3.

The scientific study of language and its structure is...

4.

A particular form of a language that is peculiar to a specific region or social group constitutes a...

5.

A distinctive mode of pronunciation of a language, especially one associated with a particular nation, locality, or social class is an...

6.

A morpheme added at the end of a word to form a derivative is a...

7.

The quality or condition of being fluent, in particular constitutes...

8.

The process of translating words or text from one language into another is...

9.

The body of words used in a particular language is...

10.

The whole system and structure of a language or of languages in general constitutes...

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