英语词汇学复习提纲

英语词汇学复习提纲

英语词汇学复习提纲

Chapter 1 Terms1. word2. vocabulary3. common words4.

literary words5. colloquial words6. slang words7. technical words

Questions1. What are the fundamental features of the basic word

stock?2. How are English words classified?3. What are the

differences between function words and content words?4. What

are the main reasons for the rapid growth of present-day English

vocabulary? Important statements 1. The histiory of the English

langague begins with the conquest and settlement of what is

now England by the Angles, Saxons and the Jutes from about 450

AD.2. The Transitional period from Old English to Modern English

is known as Middle English, which is characterized by the strong

influence of French following the Norman Conquest in 1066.3. In

the early stages of Modern English the Renaissance brought

great changes to the English vocabulary.4. The heavy borrowing

made the English vocabulary extremely rich and heterogeneous.

Chapter 2 Terms1. morpheme2. Allomorphe3. free morpheme4.

bound morpheme5. root6. affix7. hybrid Questions1. How are

English morphemes classified?2. How are Englihs words classified

on the morphemic level? Important Statements1. What is usually

considered a single word in English may be composed of one or

more morphemes.2. The allomorphs of a morpheme do not differ

in meaning or function but show a slight difference in sound.3.

Morphemes are important in the word-building process because

the two most central and productive word-formation processes,

compounding and affixation, are related to morphemes. Chapter

3 Terms1. partial conversion2. complete conversion Questions1.

What are the three major processes of word-formation?2. Why are the criteria of a compound relative? Important Statements1.

There are varioius ways of forming words, but by and large, the

various processes can be classified on the basis of frequency of

usage, into major or minor processes.2. Any rule of word

formation is of limited productivity in the sense that not all words

which result from the applicationn of the rule are acceptable; they

are freely acceptable only when they have gained an

institutional currency in the language.3. Prefixes modify the

lexical meaning of the base. They do not genearlly alter the word-class of the base.4. Suffixes usually change the word-class of the

base. Chapter 4 Terms1. blending2. back-formation3. clipp ing4.

neoclassical formation Questions1. What are the differences

between initialisms and acronyms? Important Statements1. On

the whole, clipped words are used in less formal situations than

their full-length equivalents.2. Most of the blends are related to

daily life.3. The majority of backformed words are verbs.4.

Reduplicatives are characterized by being rhymed or alliterated.5.

The majority of neoclassical formations are scientific and

technical.6. Genuine coinage is rare.7. Some new words are

coined by analogy. Chapter 5 Terms1. motivation2. denotative

meaning3. connotative meaning4. stylistic meaning5. affective

meaning Questions1. What is the relationship between word

form and its senses?2. What are the main types of word meaning?

Important Statements1. The test of a genuinely onomatopeic

word is its intelligibility to a foreigner who has no knowledge of

the language in question.2. Denotative meaning is the central

factor in linguistic communication.3. Lexical meaning is dominant

in content words, whereas grammatical meaning is dominant in

funciton words. Chapter 6 Terms1. radiation2. concatination3.

prima ry meanin4. central meaning5. perfect homonyms6. homophones7. homographs Important Statements1. One-meaning words are very rare. They are very often scientific

terms.2. It may be said that polysemy is the rule and monosemy

is the exception.3. In some cases, the primary meaning and the

central meaning coincide.4. Polysemic words and homonymous

words are not only good candidates for humor, they can also

produce other effects such as irony or heightened dramatic

power. Chapter 7Terms1. complete synonyms2. relative

synonyms3. hyponymy4. marked member5. unmarked member

Questions1. In what respects do synonymous words differ?

Important Statements1. An agreement in denotation is the most

important criterion of synonymy.2. Two words are

totally synonymous only if they are fully identical in meaning

and interchangeable in any context without the slightest

alteration in connotative, affective and stylistic meanings.3. It is

important to note that two forces militate against complete

synonymy: vagueness of word meaning,and connotative, stylistic

and affective meanings that cluster around words.4. In most