The Five Main Components Of Language

1069 Words3 Pages

Components of Language Language, according to Owens (2012, p. 6), “can be defined as a socially shared code or conventional system for representing concepts through the use of arbitrary symbols and rule-governed combinations of those symbols”. Language is thought to be a complex system; however, it can be broken down into three different components. These three components consist of content, form, and use. Within these three components, language has five main components which includes semantics, morphology, phonology, syntax, and pragmatics (Owens, 2012, p. 18). Content in language includes the main component of semantics. Semantics is the set of rules that provide meaning to words or content to word combinations. Semantics can be mutually exclusive or they can overlap. The symbols and words that are used represent our concepts or ideas about reality instead of reality itself. The meaning of words encompasses two …show more content…

The three components of language consist of content, form, and use. These components are then made up of the five main components of language which are made up of semantics, morphology, phonology, syntax, and pragmatics (Owens, 2012, p. 18). Each of these main components provides its own sets of rules. Semantics rules provide meanings to words or content to a combination of words (Owens, 2012, p. 23). The smaller units of words are known as morphemes. Morphemes can be both free and bound depending on if the word can stand alone or not. Morphemes can also be derivational morphemes if they include either a prefix or suffix (Owens, 2012, p. 21). Phonology pertains to the sounds that letters make when in a certain sequence order. Syntax rules involve the structure of words and sentences. Lastly, pragmatics is how one uses language to communicate. When these rules are not followed, communicating with others will not be

Show More
Related

  • Analysis of Persuasive Symbols in Ronald Reagan's The Space Shuttle "Challenger" Tragedy Address

    1293 Words  | 3 Pages

    First, a brief background in the three dimensions of language discussed throughout this paper. The functional, semantic, or thematic dimensions of language as previously mentioned are often used in parallel with each other. Due, to this fact it is important to be able to identify them as they take place and differentiate between these dimensions i...

    Read More

  • Nature And Nurture: The Phonological Components Of Language

    971 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the early stage of human life, an infant who is in their mother’s womb has already experienced communicating their language through actions by responding to their mother’s voice by kicking. Hence communicating their language will then expand from just limited actions to words as they develop throughout the years. And the four structural Language components; phonology, semantics, grammar and pragmatics will be involved during the stages of their language development and these components are significantly supported by the roles of nature and nurture. Fellowes & Oakley (2014, p. 21) ‘The phonological component of language comprises the various sounds that are used in speaking.

    Read More

  • Ebonics is Not a Seperate Language but Improper Form of English

    2951 Words  | 6 Pages

    Language is defined as a "system of words formed from such combinations and patterns, used by the people of a particular country or by a group of people with a shared history or set of traditions (Microsoft Bookshelf. 1996-1997 edition)." Ebonics is a form of communication of feelings, thoughts, opinions and ideas at is being used by ou...

    Read More

  • Language functions as told through figure skating: What skating can teach us about language.

    1609 Words  | 4 Pages

    From the most basic of functions like recognition and storage to the complexities of discourse and cultural expression, language functions are an integral and pervasive component of the human experience. In these pages I have sought to describe the operation of the six language functions through the analogy of a figure skater and a dancer. Each skill builds upon the next to weave the intricate set of skills and abilities that humans have uniquely developed to share information and each other’s experiences of the world.

    Read More

  • Spanish Language Metaphors

    727 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the field of Modern Languages and Linguistics, words are of great importance. A language’s phonology (study of how sounds are organized and used), morphology (study of the form and structure of words), syntax (study of the rules that govern sentence structure), semantics (study of meaning of words, sentences, and expressions), pragmatics (study of aspects of meaning and language use and context), and phonetics (study of human speech sounds) all play an important part in everyday life. These have a major impact in understanding the intent of what is spoken or heard. Due to the importance of communication, literary elements such as metaphors (which are defined as a figure of speech in which a word or phrase literally denoting one kind of object or idea that is used in place of another to suggest a likeness between them), takes on greater cultural significance. This is especially true of the Spanish language.

    Read More

  • Summary Of Atoms Of Language By Mark Baker

    1335 Words  | 3 Pages

    How can it be that something so uniquely human and commonplace in our everyday existence as language, could transcend the limits of our immediate understanding? We all know how to speak and comprehend at least one language, but defining what we actually know about that language an infinitely more demanding process. How can a child without previous knowledge of the construction and concepts of language be born into the world with an innate ability to apprehend any dialect? Mark Baker, in his book The Atoms of Language, seeks to address these unsettling questions, proposing as a solution, a set of underlying linguistic ingredients, which interact to generate the wide variety of languages we see today.

    Read More

  • Phonology, Morpholology, Syntax And Pragmatics

    1371 Words  | 3 Pages

    Linguistic knowledge mainly consists of four parts, and they are Phonology, Morphology, Syntax and Pragmatics. Phonology forms systems and patterns, which allows speakers to produce sounds in order to make meaningful sentence. For example, nt always appears in the middle or at the end of the words but not at the beginning. Morphology studies how words are formed as well as their relationship to other words in the language you know, which allows you to know the internal structure and the category of the word. For example, “undesirability” has four morphemes: un + desire + able + ity. Syntax refers to rules that are used to form a sentence. We have some fixed rules to determine the structure of a sentence such as “S+V+O”. In order to attain the certain effect, however, the sentence structure can change. For example, “I cannot do this thing” can be changed into “Do this thing I cannot” to emphasis the degree of rejection by the word “cannot”. Pragmatics mainly concerned with the use of language in social contexts. For example, “Turn left and you will find the post

    Read More

  • Sexism in Language

    2513 Words  | 6 Pages

    Language refers to the method that humans use to communicate, either through speech or written. It consists of the use of the word in a structured and conventional way. Language has been referred to as ‘our means of classifying and ordering the world; our means of manipulating reality’. In structure and in its use, we bring the world into realisation and if it is inherently inaccurate, then we are misled. Dale Spender, 1980.Language has power that allows us to make sense out of the reality we live in.

    Read More

  • Language and Brain

    1338 Words  | 3 Pages

    In the last few decades, the notion of language and brain has been highlighted in different scientific fields such as: neurology, cognitive science, linguistics biology, technology and finally education.

    Read More

  • Analysis of Semantics and Pragmatics in Two Texts

    1481 Words  | 3 Pages

    Semantics can be defined as the study of "meaning" of lexical words and expressions independently of context. Where pragmatics is the process of recognising the "invisible meaning" of lexical items and expressions; taking into account the speaker's/ addressee's intention, the status of hearer/ receiver and the actual situation.

    Read More

  • Children Language Acquisition

    693 Words  | 2 Pages

    Finegan, Edward,."Language :its structure and use" Edward Finegan, David Blair and Peter Collins. 2nd ed. N.S.W : Harcourt, Brace & Co., c1997

    Read More

  • Words and Morphemes

    1476 Words  | 3 Pages

    Words and Morphemes The Morpheme In order to describe the form of the linguistic expressions (phrases, sentences, texts) in a language, we must describe how those complex expressions are built from smaller parts, until ultimately we which the atoms of linguistic form. The term morpheme is used to refer to an atom of linguistic form. Most languages have a word, like the English word 'word', that appears at first to refer to precisely the sorts of minimal linguistic objects we have in mind. But there are two reasons to reject 'word' as the label for the minimal unit of linguistic form.

    Read More

  • Piaget's Theory Of Language Development

    2212 Words  | 5 Pages

    Language is a part of our everyday lives, and we can describe the meaning of language in many ways. As suggested in Gee and Hayes (2011, p.6 ) people can view language as something in our minds or something existing in our world in the form of speech, audio recordings, and writings or we can view language as a way of communicating with a group of people. Language can be used to express our emotions, make sense of our mental and abstract thoughts and assists us in communicating with others around us. Language is of vital importance for children to enable them to succeed in school and everyday life. Everyone uses both oral and written language. Language developed as a common ability amongst human beings with the change

    Read More

  • The Features of Written Language and Speech

    596 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Features of Written Language and Speech In English language there are two different ways of actually presenting language. These are written language and speech. These two factors of speech both include many different features between themselves. These features are mostly opposite to each other as they are completely different ways of presenting language. Written language is structured into paragraphs unlike general speech which is hardly thought about before being said and is flowing naturally.

    Read More

  • Importance Of Language Essay

    1530 Words  | 4 Pages

    Language is nothing but a media which expresses feelings, ideas, experiences and even pains properly to others. Cultural background is the origin of language. Language is one of the channels which promote human relations and human affections. Language always unites the people and sometimes language itself diverse the people. Without the language we cannot imagine the existence of human beings on the earth. Language is a system of words that people used to express thoughts, feelings each other. The word ‘language’ derived from Latin “lingua” which means ‘tongue, speech’. The word sometimes used to refer to codes, ciphers and other kind of communication systems. For example computer programming.

    Read More

More about The Five Main Components Of Language

Open Document