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Linguistics Practice Sheet
Introduction
Linguistics is the scientific study of language. It is a branch of knowledge that examines how language is structured, how it is used, and how it changes over time. Linguists study the sounds of language, the meaning of words, and how words are put together to create sentences.
Sounds of Language
In linguistics, the sounds of language are called phonemes. Phonemes are the smallest units of sound that make up a language. For example, the English language has 44 phonemes.
To practice recognizing phonemes, try saying the following words out loud and listen to the sounds:
Notice how the sounds of the words are different. The phonemes in the word “cat” are not the same as the phonemes in the word “dog”.
Meaning of Words
In linguistics, the meaning of words is called semantics. Semantics is the study of how words are used to convey meaning.
To practice understanding the meaning of words, try completing the following sentences:
- The sky is ___________.
- I am ___________.
- The ocean is ___________.
The answers to these sentences are:
1. The sky is blue.
2. I am happy.
3. The ocean is vast.
Sentence Structure
In linguistics, the way words are put together to create sentences is called syntax. Syntax is the study of how words, phrases, and clauses are combined to form sentences.
To practice understanding sentence structure, try rewriting the following sentences in different ways:
- The dog barked.
- She ate the sandwich.
Answers:
1. The dog made a noise.
2. The sandwich was consumed by her.