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Episode1:AGeneralSurveyofWord1.Word---Awordisaminimalfreeformofalanguagethathasagivensoundandmeaningandsyntacticfunction.2.Vocabulary---Vocabularyismostcommonlyusedtorefertothesumtotalofallthewordsofalanguage.Itcanalsorefertoallthewordsofagivendialect,agivenbook,agivensubjectandallthewordspossessedbyanindividualpersonaswellasallthewordscurrentinaparticularperiodoftimeinhistory.ThegeneralestimateofthepresentdayEnglishvocabularyisover2millionwords.3.Contentword(notionalword)---denoteclearnotionsandthusareknownasnotionalwords.Theyincludenouns,verbs,adjectives,adverbsandnumerals.4.Borrowedwords(loanwords,borrowing)---wordstakenoverfromforeignlanguageareknownasborrowedwordsorloanwordsorborrowingsinsimpleterms.Accordingtothedegreeofassimilationandmannerofborrowing,wecanbringtheloanwordsunder4classes:Denizens,Aliens,translationloans,Semanticloans5.Semanticloans---arenotborrowedwithreferencetotheform,buttheirmeaningareborrowedfromanotherlanguage.Inotherwords,Englishhasborrowedanewmeaningforanexistingwordinlanguage.e.g.stupidolddump6.Reference–therelationshipbetweenlanguageandtheworld.Bymeansofreference,aspeakerindicateswhichthingsintheworld(includingpersons)arebeingtalkedabout.Thereferenceofawordtoathingoutsidethelanguageisarbitraryandconventional.Thisconnectionistheresultofgeneralizationandabstraction.Althoughreferenceisabstract,yetwiththehelpofcontext,itcanrefertosomethingspecific.7.Concept–whichbeyondlanguageistheresultofhumancognitionreflectingtheobjectiveworldinthehumanmind.Itisn’taffectedbylanguage.Meaningandconceptarecloselyconnectedbutnotidentical.Meaningbelongstolanguage,soisrestrictedtolanguageuse.Aconceptcanhaveasmanyreferringexpressionsastherearelanguagesintheworld.8.Sense---denotestherelationshipinsidethelanguage.Everywordthathasmeaninghassense.Thesenseofanexpressionisitsplaceinasystemofsemanticrelationshipswithotherexpressionsinthelanguage.1.Whatistheimportanceofbasicwordstock?Thebasicwordstockisthefoundationofthevocabularyaccumulatedovercenturiesandformsthecommoncoreofthelanguage,whichhasfivecharacteristics:allnationalcharacter,stability,productivity,polysemy,collocability.2.Whatarethecharacteristicsofassociativemeaning?Associativemeaningisthesecondarymeaningsupplementedtotheconceptualmeaning.Itisopen-endedandindeterminate.Itisliabletotheinfluenceofsuchfactorsasculture,experience,religion,geographicalregion,classbackground,education,etc.3.TellbrieflyaboutMartinJoos’theFiveClocks?Itsuggestsfivedegreesofformality:frozen,formal,consultative,casualandintimate.4.Whatisthedifferencebetweenlexicalmeaningandgrammaticalmeaning?Unlikelexicalmeaning,differentlexicalitems,whichhavedifferentlexicalmeanings,mayhavethesamegrammaticalmeaning.Ontheotherhand,thesamewordmayhavedifferentgrammaticalmeanings.Functionalwords,thoughhavinglittlelexicalmeaning,possessstronggrammaticalmeaningwhereascontentwordshavebothmeanings,andlexicalmeaninginpartial.Lexicalandgrammaticalmeaningsmakeuptheword-meaning.Itisknownthatgrammaticalmeaningsurfacesonlyinuse.Butlexicalmeaningisconstantinallthecontentwordswithinorwithoutcontextasitisrelatedtothenotionthatthewordconveys.Episode2:MainCharacteristicsofEnglishVocabulary1.TheIndo-EuropeanLanguageFamily---itisassumedthattheworldhasapproximately3,000(someputit5,000)languages,whichcanbegroupedintoroughly300languagefamiliesonthebasisofsimilaritiesintheirbasicwordstockandgrammar.ItismadeupofmostofthelanguageofEurope,theNeraEast,andIndiaEasternset:Balto-Slavic,Indo-Iranian,ArmenianandAlbanianWesternset:Celtic,Italic,Hellenic,Germanic.2.OldEnglish(450-1150)---The1stpeopleknowntoinhabitEnglandwereCelts,thelanguagewasCeltic.ThesecondlanguagewastheLatinoftheRomanLegions.AftertheRomans,theGermanictribescalledangles,SaxonsandJutesandtheirlanguage,Anglo-SaxondominatedandblottedouttheCeltic.NowpeoplerefertoAnglo-SaxonasoldEnglish.OldEnglishhasavocabularyofabout50,000to60,000words.ItwasahighlyinflectedlanguagejustlikemodernGerman.3.NormanConquest---theNormansinvadedEnglandfromFrancein1066.theNormanConqueststartedacontinualflowofFrenchwordsintoEnglish.NormanFrenchbecamethepolitespeech.75%ofthemarestillinusetoday.Thesituationof3languages(French,English,Latin)existingsimultaneouslycontinuedforoveracentury..4.Renaissance---IntheearlyperiodofmodernEnglish,EuropesawanewupsurgeoflearningancientGreekandRomanclassics.ThisisknowninhistoryastheRenaissance.LatinandGreekwererecognizedasthelanguageoftheWesternworld’sgreatliteraryheritageandofgreatscholarship.5.Revivingarchaicwords---wordsorformsthatwereonceincommonusebutarenowrestrictedonlytospecializedorlimiteduse.Theyarefoundmainlyinolderpoems,legaldocumentandreligiouswritingorspeech.6.ModernEnglish(1150-1500)---ModernEnglishbeganwiththeestablishmentofprintinginEnglish.Wordendingsweremostlylostwithjustafewexceptions.ModernEnglishisconsideredtobeananalyticlanguage.1.WhydowesayEnglishisaheavyborrower?Pleasejustifyit.Englishisaheavyborrowerandhasadoptedwordsfromallothermajorlanguagesoftheworld.ItisestimatedthatEnglishborrowingsconstitute80%ofthemodernEnglishvocabulary.