Welcome to the flashcards tool for ‘The Study of Language, 5 th edition’, Chapter 19 This is designed as a simple supplementary resource for this textbook, and aims to help students grasp the meaning of the core essential terms within the book. Each term will appear on its own, and you can then click to check the definition. Click or press [space] to begin.

speech community [ click for answer ] term:

a group of people who share a set of norms and expectations regarding the use of language [ click for next term ] definition:

idiolect [ click for answer ] term:

the personal dialect of an individual speaker [ click for next term ] definition:

linguistic variable [ click for answer ] term:

a feature of language use that distinguishes one group of speakers from another [ click for next term ] definition:

social dialect [ click for answer ] term:

a variety of a language with features that differ according to the social status (e.g. middle class or working class) of the speaker [ click for next term ] definition:

social variable [ click for answer ] term:

a factor such as working class or middle class that is used to identify one group of speakers as different from another [ click for next term ] definition:

sociolect [ click for answer ] term:

social dialect, a variety of a language that is strongly associated with one social group (e.g. working-class speech) [ click for next term ] definition:

sociolinguistics [ click for answer ] term:

the study of the relationship between language and society [ click for next term ] definition:

postvocalic [ click for answer ] term:

used after a vowel [ click for next term ] definition:

social marker [ click for answer ] term:

a linguistic feature that marks the speaker as a member of a particular social group [ click for next term ] definition:

speech style [ click for answer ] term:

a way of speaking that is either formal/careful or informal/casual [ click for next slide ] definition:

style-shifting [ click for answer ] term:

changing speech style from formal to informal or vice versa [ click for next term ] definition:

covert prestige [ click for answer ] term:

the status of a speech style or feature as having positive value, but which is “hidden” or not valued similarly among the larger community, in contrast to overt prestige [ click for next term ] definition:

overt prestige [ click for answer ] term:

status that is generally recognized as “better” or more positively valued in the larger community, in contrast to covert prestige [ click to exit ] definition:

prestige [ click for answer ] term:

higher status [ click for next term ] definition:

convergence [ click for answer ] term:

adopting a speech style that attempts to reduce social distance by using forms that are similar to those used by the person being talked to, as a type of speech accommodation, in contrast to divergence [ click for next term ] definition:

divergence [ click for answer ] term:

adopting a speech style that emphasizes social distance by using forms that are different from those used by the person being talked to, as a form of speech accommodation, in contrast to convergence [ click for next term ] definition:

register [ click for answer ] term:

a conventional way of using language that is appropriate in a specific situation, occupation or topic, characterized by the use of special jargon [ click for next term ] definition:

speech accommodation [ click for answer ] term:

modifying speech style toward (convergence) or away from (divergence) the perceived style of the person being talked to [ click for next term ] definition:

jargon [ click for answer ] term:

special technical vocabulary associated with a specific activity or topic as part of a register [ click for next term ] definition:

slang [ click for answer ] term:

words or phrases used instead of more conventional forms by those who are typically outside established higher status groups (e.g. bucks for dollars) [ click for next term ] definition:

AAVE [ click for answer ] term:

African American Vernacular English [ click for next term ] definition:

African American English (AAE) [ click for answer ] term:

a social dialect used by many African Americans in different regions of the USA [ click for next term ] definition:

African American Vernacular English (AAVE) [ click for answer ] term:

the casual speech style used by many African Americans as a vernacular [ click for next term ] definition:

taboo terms [ click for answer ] term:

words or phrases that are avoided in formal speech, but are used in swearing, for example (e.g. fuck, shit) [ click for next term ] definition:

vernacular [ click for answer ] term:

a social dialect with low prestige spoken by a lower- status group, with marked differences from the standard language [ click to exit ] definition: