In this core textbook, Laurie Bauer's engaging style brings linguistics to life and introduces readers to the fundamentals of the subject. Each essential area of linguistics is dealt with in turn, thereby providing readers with a clear and comprehensive overview of all the core topics, including semantics, syntax, phonology and pragmatics. Alongside definitions of key terms and explanations of how various issues slot together, this text also empowers readers by teaching them how to apply their knowledge to new data. Richly illustrated with examples from multiple languages and packed with interactive activities, this user-friendly book helps readers to master the basics and sets them up for further study in the field. This is an invaluable resource for those studying linguistics for the very first time. Equally, it provides a firm reference point for those with more experience in the field.

*A fresh and engaging take on English grammar, exploring the subject as an intellectual challenge and aiming to reinvigorate interest in a traditionally dry field *grammar is a major part of any course on English language and linguistics and also is a topic of wide general interest; both authors are experienced in addressing these groups *the overall concept of seeing grammar as a set of puzzles and not a set of rules and the irreverent engaging style sets it apart from other titles

This book provides a lively introduction to the study of language for students without prior experience in linguistics. It addresses the core areas of language study answering questions such as: * Where does language come from? * Why don't we all talk the same? * Who needs grammar? This is an excellent textbook for basic introductory courses and for students who are non-majors. It will be accessible and enjoyable for a variety of students.

Laurie Bauer has expertly crafted a compendium of essential things for linguistics students to know - from the IPA chart to the Saussurean dichotomies, this book will be the constant companion of anyone undertaking studies of linguistics. Part reference work, part revision guide, and with tables providing summary information on some 300 languages, the book provides a new learning tool as a supplement to your usual textbooks.

This volume offers a valuable overview of recent research into the semantic aspects of complex words through different theoretical frameworks. Contributions by experts in the field, both morphologists and psycholinguists, identify crucial areas of research, present alternative and complementary approaches to their examination from the current level of knowledge, and indicate perspectives of research into the semantics of complex words by raising important questions that need to be investigated in order to get a more comprehensive picture of the field. Recent decades have seen both extensive and intensive development of various theories of word-formation, however, the semantic aspects of complex words have, with a few notable exceptions, been rather neglected. This volume fills that gap by offering articles written by leading experts in the field from various theoretical backgrounds.

*A fresh and engaging take on English grammar, exploring the subject as an intellectual challenge and aiming to reinvigorate interest in a traditionally dry field *grammar is a major part of any course on English language and linguistics and also is a topic of wide general interest; both authors are experienced in addressing these groups *the overall concept of seeing grammar as a set of puzzles and not a set of rules and the irreverent engaging style sets it apart from other titles

Routledge Language Workbooks are practical introductions to specific areas of language for absolute beginners. They provide comprehensive coverage of the area as well as a basis for further study. Language Workbooks can be used for independent study or as part of a taught class. Vocabulary: * covers issues such as the power of words to influence our perceptions * looks at the origins of words from English and other languages * explores the relationships between the meanings and shapes of words * examines the correlation of different kinds of words with different style levels * uses striking and entertaining examples to make fundamental points about the words we use * lays the groundwork for further study in morphology, lexical semantics, historical linguistics and lexicography.

Examines the ways language has changed in the twentieth century. It concentrates on standard English and takes a historical rather than sociolinguistic view of the changes which have occurred.

Routledge Language Workbooks are practical introductions to specific areas of language for absolute beginners. They provide comprehensive coverage of the area as well as a basis for further study. Language Workbooks can be used for independent study or as part of a taught class.
Vocabulary:
* covers issues such as the power of words to influence our perceptions
* looks at the origins of words from English and other languages
* explores the relationships between the meanings and shapes of words
* examines the correlation of different kinds of words with different style levels
* uses striking and entertaining examples to make fundamental points about the words we use
* lays the groundwork for further study in morphology, lexical semantics, historical linguistics and lexicography.

eBook available with sample pages: 0203026055

This book presents a comprehensive, data-rich, theory-neutral description of English word formation, including inflection and derivation, compounding, conversion, and such minor processes as subtractive morphology. It also offers analyses of the theoretical challenges these phenomena present. It is the first to make systematic use of large linguistic corpora, including the Corpus of Contemporary American English, the British National Corpus, and the American National Corpus by which, for example, the authors are able to measure the productivity of different patterns and to trace semantic developments as they happen. After setting out their methodology and theoretical assumptions, the authors describe word formation and inflection in contemporary English. They give equal weight to form and meaning and cover nominalizations, agentive forms, comparatives, root and synthetic compounds, as well as more recondite topics such as the abstract noun-forming suffixes -hood, -dom, and -ship, neoclassical compounds, and the morphology of numbers. They examine the relations between orthography and phonological form. While their focus is on contemporary morphology, they trace the history of phenomena wherever doing so helps to understand and explain current form and function. The final part of the book shows how the data assembled within it bear on current theoretical issues and reveal new lines of research. This outstanding book will interest all scholars and students of English and of linguistic morphology more generally.

Examines the ways language has changed in the twentieth century. It concentrates on standard English and takes a historical rather than sociolinguistic view of the changes which have occurred.

Questions About Language sets out to answer, in a readable yet insightful format, a series of vital questions about language, some of which language specialists are regularly asked, and some of which are so surprising that only the specialists think about them. In this handy guide, sixteen language experts answer challenging questions about language, from What makes a language a language? to Do people swear because they don't know enough words? Illustrating the complexity of human language, and the way in which we use it, the twelve chapters each end with a section on further reading for anyone interested in following up on the topic. Covering core questions about language, this is essential reading for both students new to language and linguistics and the interested general reader.

Are compounds words or phrases - or are they neither or both? How should we classify compounds? How can we deal with the fact that the relationship between the elements of sugar pill ('pill made of sugar') is different from that in sea-sickness pill ('pill to prevent sea-sickness')? Are compounds a linguistic universal? How much do languages vary in the way their compounds work? Why do we need compounds, when there are other ways of creating the same meanings? Are so-called neoclassical compounds like photograph really compounds? Based on more than forty years' research, this controversial new book sets out to answer these and many other questions.

This volume offers a valuable overview of recent research into the semantic aspects of complex words through different theoretical frameworks. Contributions by experts in the field, both morphologists and psycholinguists, identify crucial areas of research, present alternative and complementary approaches to their examination from the current level of knowledge, and indicate perspectives of research into the semantics of complex words by raising important questions that need to be investigated in order to get a more comprehensive picture of the field. Recent decades have seen both extensive and intensive development of various theories of word-formation, however, the semantic aspects of complex words have, with a few notable exceptions, been rather neglected. This volume fills that gap by offering articles written by leading experts in the field from various theoretical backgrounds.

Why are there more English words ending in -ness than ending in -ity? What is it about some endings that makes them more widely usable than others? Can we measure the differences in the facility with which the various affixes are used? Does the difference in facility reflect a difference in the way we treat words containing these affixes in the brain? These are the questions examined in this book. Morphological productivity has, over the centuries, been a major factor in providing the huge vocabulary of English and remains one of the most contested areas in the study of word-formation and structure. This book takes an eclectic approach to the topic, applying the findings for morphology to syntax and phonology. Bringing together the results of twenty years' work in the field, it provides new insights and considers a wide range of linguistic and psycholinguistic evidence.

This highly accessible book presents an overview of English morphology for all those involved in the English-language teaching industry. For non-native learners, the ability to recognize and produce new words in appropriate circumstances is a challenging task, and knowledge of the word-building system of English is essential to effective language learning. This book clearly explains the morphology of English from the point of view of the non-native learner and shows how teachers and professors can instruct EFL students successfully with effective materials. Covering the scope of the task of teaching English morphology specifically to non-native learners of English, bestselling authors Bauer and Nation provide a range of strategies and tactics for straightforward instruction, and demonstrate how teachers of English as a foreign language can easily integrate learning of the morphological system into their language courses. This book helps teachers and learners make sensible decisions about where to focus deliberate attention, what to be careful about, and what not to be concerned about. It offers a range of shortcuts, tips and tricks for teaching, and gives detailed practical information on topics including: Sound and spelling Possessives Comparative and superlative Past tense and past participle Making nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs and words with prefixes Learned word-formation. This book is essential and practical reading for graduate students on English-language teaching courses, preservice teachers, consultants, practitioners, researchers and scholars in ELT.

Questions About Language sets out to answer, in a readable yet insightful format, a series of vital questions about language, some of which language specialists are regularly asked, and some of which are so surprising that only the specialists think about them. In this handy guide, sixteen language experts answer challenging questions about language, from What makes a language a language? to Do people swear because they don't know enough words? Illustrating the complexity of human language, and the way in which we use it, the twelve chapters each end with a section on further reading for anyone interested in following up on the topic. Covering core questions about language, this is essential reading for both students new to language and linguistics and the interested general reader.

This volume presents a data-rich description of English inflection and word-formation. Based on large corpora including the Corpus of Contemporary American English and the British national Corpus, it is the first comprehensive treatment of contemporary English morphology that includes both inflection and word-formation. It covers not only well-studied topics such as compounding, conversion, and the inflection and derivation of nouns and verbs, but also areas that have received less scholarly attention, such as the formation of adjectives, locatives, negatives, evaluatives, neoclassical compounds and blends, among many other topics. Equal wieght is given to form and meaning. The volume also contains sections devoted to phonological and orthographics aspects of morphology and to combinatorial and paradigmatic properties of English morphology. It ends with a series of chapters that assess the implications of English morphology for morphological theory, discussing topics such as stratification, blocking and comprtition, the analysis of conversion, and the relationship between inflection and derivation. Winner of the 2015 Bloomfield Book Award and written by three outstanding scholars, this outstanding book will interest all scholars and students of English and of linguistic morphology more generally.

Are compounds words or phrases - or are they neither or both? How should we classify compounds? How can we deal with the fact that the relationship between the elements of sugar pill ('pill made of sugar') is different from that in sea-sickness pill ('pill to prevent sea-sickness')? Are compounds a linguistic universal? How much do languages vary in the way their compounds work? Why do we need compounds, when there are other ways of creating the same meanings? Are so-called neoclassical compounds like photograph really compounds? Based on more than forty years' research, this controversial new book sets out to answer these and many other questions.

Lexicology is about words, their meanings and the relationships between them, their origins and their structure. It combines the study of derivational morphology with lexical semantics. This textbook explores the history, meanings and structure of words, the way they are collected in dictionaries and the way they are stored in our minds. It goes beyond examining the morphological structure of words to examine the way words are spelt and the way they sound. At every stage, the book focuses not only on description, but also on the puzzles that words present. Supported by numerous examples, exercises, discussion questions, suggestions for further reading and a glossary, this is an accessible and lively guide to the linguistic study of English through the consideration of words.

Laurie Bauer has expertly crafted a compendium of essential things for linguistics students to know - from the IPA chart to the Saussurean dichotomies, this book will be the constant companion of anyone undertaking studies of linguistics. Part reference work, part revision guide, and with tables providing summary information on some 300 languages, the book provides a new learning tool as a supplement to your usual textbooks.

Morphological productivity has, over the centuries, been a major factor in providing the huge vocabulary of English and remains one of the most contested areas in the study of word formation and structure. This book takes an eclectic approach to the topic, applying the findings for morphology to syntax and phonology. Bringing together the results of twenty years' work in the field, it provides new insights and considers a wide range of linguistic and psycholinguistic evidence.

This highly accessible book presents an overview of English morphology for all those involved in the English-language teaching industry. For non-native learners, the ability to recognize and produce new words in appropriate circumstances is a challenging task, and knowledge of the word-building system of English is essential to effective language learning. This book clearly explains the morphology of English from the point of view of the non-native learner and shows how teachers and professors can instruct EFL students successfully with effective materials. Covering the scope of the task of teaching English morphology specifically to non-native learners of English, bestselling authors Bauer and Nation provide a range of strategies and tactics for straightforward instruction, and demonstrate how teachers of English as a foreign language can easily integrate learning of the morphological system into their language courses. This book helps teachers and learners make sensible decisions about where to focus deliberate attention, what to be careful about, and what not to be concerned about. It offers a range of shortcuts, tips and tricks for teaching, and gives detailed practical information on topics including: Sound and spelling Possessives Comparative and superlative Past tense and past participle Making nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs and words with prefixes Learned word-formation. This book is essential and practical reading for graduate students on English-language teaching courses, preservice teachers, consultants, practitioners, researchers and scholars in ELT.

Although the illustrative material is drawn principally from English, general points are illustrated with a variety of languages to provide a new perspective on a confused and often controversial field of study.

A newly expanded and updated edition of one of the best-selling introductions to linguistic morphology -- the study and description of word formations in languages -- that deals with inflection, derivation, and compounding, the system of word-forming elements and processes in a language. Basic concepts are introduced, with an abundance of examples from a range of familiar and exotic languages, followed by a discussion of, among other topics, the definition of word-form, productivity, inflection versus derivation, and the position of morphology to phonology -- the science of speech sounds, especially the history and theory of sound changes in a language. Along with two new chapters discussing morphology and the brain and how morphology arises, changes, and disappears, this new edition includes exercises and a glossary of key terms.