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Linguistics:Glossary
From ConstructedLanguages
Contents |
[edit] A
abjad:
- A writing system which uses characters to represent consonants but does not indicate the vowels. Examples include Arabic and Hebrew.
abugida:
- A writing system that use symbols to represent a consonant and vowel combination where the vowel is changed or deleted by the use of diacritics. Mostly synonymical to the term alphasyllabary.
affix:
- A bound morpheme that must be put onto another morpheme. For example, "-ed" or "un-".
agent:
- The noun which in a transitive verb is imposing the verb upon the other.
allomorph:
- Two or more morphemes that are different but means the same within a language.
allophone:
- Two or more sounds that are different but considered the same within a language.
alphabet:
- A writing system that uses separate symbols to represent consonants and vowels.
alphasyllabary:
- A writing system that use symbols to represent a consonant and vowel combination where the vowel is changed or deleted by the use of diacritics. Mostly synonymical to the term abugida.
ambitransitive:
- A class of verb that can be either transitive or intransitive. For example, "eat" optionally takesa direct object: "I eat daily" (intransitive) vs "I do not eat meat" (transitive). Note that though ergative verbs are ambitransitive, a single definition could only refer to an unergative verb.
apocopic:
- A word form used in Italian and other languages in which the word is lacking the final sound or syllable.
a posteriori:
- A conlang that is created on a basis of a pre-existing language or languages.
a priori:
- A conlang that is created from scratch without using pre-existing languages to derive words.
[edit] B
back-formation:
- A word formed by removing an apparent or real affix from an older term. For example, the noun "pea" arose because the final /z/ sound in "pease" sounded like a plural suffix. Similarly, the verb "edit" is a back-formation from the earlier noun "editor". This is not to be confused with clipping which simple shortens a word without changing meaning or part of speech.
[edit] C
calque:
- A borrowing by way of a word-for-word or morpheme-for-morpheme translation.
clitic:
- A morpheme that has the meaning like a word and acts as an affix but can go on phrase level rather than individual words.
[edit] D
diacritic:
- A minor addition or alteration of a grapheme to change its pronunciation, stress or meaning.
[edit] E
[edit] F
[edit] G
grammar:
- The rules that govern how a language can put word together in order to form sentences.
grapheme:
- The smallest written unit within a writing system. It may be an individual letter, or a single stroke which composes many letters, or even a diacritic.
[edit] H
[edit] I
[edit] J
[edit] K
[edit] L
liquid:
- A class of consonants containing lateral consonants and rhotics.
[edit] M
morpheme:
- Smallest unit of meaning within a language. Can be an entire free word or affixes placed upon the word. For example, "wolf", "-ed" or "ex-".
[edit] N
[edit] O
object:
- The noun which is being acted upon by another noun which is the subject of a transitive verb.
[edit] P
phoneme:
- The smallest unit of sound within a language.
phonetics:
- The study of sounds in human speech, or of the equivalent aspects of signs in sign language.
phonotactics:
- The rules that govern the possible native syllable structures of a language.
[edit] Q
[edit] R
[edit] S
semantics:
- The study of meaning of words.
syllabary:
- A writing system that use one symbol to represent a syllable, most commonly a consonant and a vowel and where the symbols have no relationship with one another.
syllable:
- A unit of speech that consist of a central core, typically a vowel sourrunded by consonants.
[edit] T
[edit] U
[edit] V
verb:
- A word that describes an action or state.
[edit] W
word:
- A unit of meaning that is free in its entirety and may be composed of one or more morphemes. A words typically has a main stress placed somewhere within it.
