PRINCIPLES OF

APPLIED LINGUISTICS
 LINGUISTIC COMPETENCE:

THE UNCONSCIOUS KNOWLEDGE

OF GRAMMAR THAT ALLOWS A SPEAKER TO
USE AND UNDERSTAND A LANGUAGE.
CONTRAST WITH LINGUISTIC
PERFORMANCE.

DESCRIPTIVE GRAMMAR:

THE SYSTEMATIC STUDY AND DESCRIPTION OF

A LANGUAGE. DESCRIPTIVE GRAMMAR
REFERS TO THE STRUCTURE OF A LANGUAGE
AS IT IS ACTUALLY USED BY SPEAKERS AND
WRITERS.
 Prescriptive grammar:
A set of rules and examples dealing with the syntax and
word structures of a language, usually intended as an aid
to the learning of that language. Prescriptive grammar
refers to the structure of a language as certain people
think it should be used.

Universality:
A grammatical rule that is found in all languages
LINGUISTICS Noun

/lɪŋˈɡwɪstɪks/

The scientific study of language and its structure,

including the study of grammar, syntax, and
phonetics. Specific branches of linguistics include
sociolinguistics, dialectology, psycholinguistics,
computational linguistics, comparative linguistics,
and structural linguistics.
 WHAT IS
SEGMENT?
“Syllable is a peak of prominence in the chain of utterance.
If you could measure the acoustic power output of a speaker
as it varies with time, you would find that it goes continually
up and down, forming little peaks and valleys: the peaks are
syllables.

The words lair and here form only one peak each, and so
only one syllable, whereas the words player and newer are
usually pronounced with two peaks and so contain two
syllables. It is thus desirable to distinguish between
a diphthong (which is one syllable) and a sequence of two
vowels (which is two syllables).”
(Charles Barber, The English Language: A Historical Introduction. Cambridge University Press, 2000)
PHONETICS /fəˈnɛtɪks/
noun
The study and classification of speech sounds.

PHONOLOGY /fəˈnɒlədʒi/
noun
The system of contrastive relationships among the
speech sounds that constitute the fundamental
components of a language.
the study of phonological relationships within a
language or between different languages.
MORPHOLOGY /mɔːˈfɒlədʒi/ noun
• the study of the forms of things, in particular.
• a particular form, shape, or structure.

SYNTAX /ˈsɪntaks/ noun

• the arrangement of words and phrases to create
well-formed sentences in a language.
"the syntax of English"
SEMANTICS /sɪˈmantɪks/
noun

the branch of linguistics and logic concerned with

meaning. The two main areas are logical
semantics, concerned with matters such as sense
and reference and presupposition and implication,
and lexical semantics, concerned with the analysis
of word meanings and relations between them.
PRAGMATICS /praɡˈmatɪks/
noun

the branch of linguistics dealing with language in

use and the contexts in which it is used, including
such matters as deixis, the taking of turns in
conversation, text organization, presupposition, and
implicature.

Discourse analysis is sometimes defined as

the analysis of language 'beyond the sentence'.
SUPRASEGMENTAL
/ˌsuːprəsɛɡˈmɛnt(ə)l,ˌsjuː-/

LINGUISTICS
adjective
• denoting a feature of an utterance other than the
consonantal and vocalic components, for
example (in English) stress and intonation.
LINGUISTIC PROCESS - a process involved in human language.

• LINGUISTICS - the scientific study of language

• ASSIMILATION - a linguistic process by which a sound

becomes similar to an adjacent sound (in put-that girl)

• DERIVATION - (descriptive linguistics) the process whereby

new words are formed from existing words or bases by affixation;
"`singer' from `sing' or `undo' from `do' are examples of
derivations“

• DISSIMILATION - a linguistic process by which one of two

similar sounds in a word becomes less like the other (sixth-fifth)
 PHONOLOGY “THE
FUNCTION AND
PATTERNING OF SOUNDS”
NELVIN LICONA
Minimal Pairs

desk disk, fan van

A minimal pair is a pair of words that vary

by only a single sound, usually meaning
sounds that may confuse English learners,
like the /f/ and /v/ in fan and van, or the
/e/ and /ɪ/ in desk and disk
Vowel Sounds

Minimal Pairs /ɪ/ and /i:/ sit seat

Minimal Pairs /e/ and /ɪ/ desk disk
Minimal Pairs /e/ and /eɪ/ wet wait
Minimal Pairs /æ/ and /ʌ/ bat but
Minimal Pairs /əʊ/ and /ɔ:/ so saw
Minimal Pairs /ɒ/ and /əʊ/ not note
Minimal Pairs /æ/ and /e/ bad bed
Minimal Pairs /ɑ:/ and /ɜ:/ fast first
Consonant Sounds
Minimal Pairs /b/ and /v/ berry very
Minimal Pairs /b/ and /p/ buy pie
Minimal Pairs /n/ and /ŋ/ thin thing
Minimal Pairs /l/ and /r/ alive arrive
Minimal Pairs /ʧ/ and /t/ catch cat
Minimal Pairs /s/ and /ʃ/ sea she
Minimal Pairs /f/ and /v/ fan van
Minimal Pairs /f/ and /h/ fat hat
Minimal Pairs /f/ and /θ/ free three
Minimal Pairs /s/ and /θ/ sink think
Minimal Pairs /ð/ and /z/ with whizz
Minimal Pairs /ʤ/ and /z/ page pays
Minimal Pairs /d/ and /ʤ/ bad badge
Initial Consonant Sounds
Minimal Pairs initial /f/ and /p/ fast past
Minimal Pairs initial /k/ and /g/ came game
Minimal Pairs initial /t/ and /d/ two do

Final Consonant Sounds

Minimal Pairs final /k/ and /g/ back bag

Minimal Pairs final /m/ and /n/ am an
Minimal Pairs final /t/ and /d/ hat had
THE PRODUCTION OF
SPEECH SOUNDS
BY MR. LICONA
VOWELS
•CARDINAL
/miːt/

/ʃuː/
/tel/

/ʃɜːrt/ /kɔːl/

/ɑːrt/
/kɑːp/
THREE IMPORTANT LIPS`S SHAPES
AND POSITIONS
ENGLISH
SHORT
VOWELS
LET US KEEP ON
PRACTICING:
DIPHTHONGS
TRIPHTHONGS
LET´S PRACTICE!!!
NOUNS AND VERBS
SUBCLASSES AND
FEATURES
BY MR. LICONA
Nouns accounts for their ability to take
a possessive suffix, to function as a
subject, direct object, and indirect
object as well as their occurrence after
an article or an adjective.
 Count nouns are the ones that go through an
inflectional process in order to change their main
properties, from singular to plural.
Example:
Singular noun plural noun after an inflectional process:

toy toys
kiss kisses
car-s

free morpheme (root)

bound morpheme (affix)
On the other hand, nouns that cannot be
pluralized and represent a big quantity are
called Mass nouns (Non- count); this is due to
the lack of the inflectional process that most
of nouns have.

Example:
water
blood
It is important not to forget that some
specific of study can modify mass
nouns based on their lexical necessity.

Example: (Literature)

The waters of this beautiful world.

Some nouns have some exceptions; these are
called irregular nouns because they can function
as singular and plural without having any
inflectional process.

Singular plural

homework homework
luggage luggage
There are some other irregular nouns
that change their written form because
an inflectional process called infixation
(suppletion or internal change).
Example:

Singular plural
mouse mice
tooth teeth
Nouns can also be proper and common; these
distinctions occur due to the necessity of
differentiating between a unique referent and a
much more complicated meaning.
For example:

When someone utters the question; what is the

name of your wife? The person who was being
asked will immediately understand the unique
referent of the noun being requested.
Her name is Maria. Proper
But, when someone asks; do you like to read
books? The person being requested will
understand a much more complex meaning for
the requested noun.

The person will be thinking about which ones?

Romantic, horror, fiction, or others; this happens
because common nouns are general, and they
are complex because they represent an
enormous amount of elements.
A common different for both is that proper
nouns are always written with capital letter and
common nouns are always in lower case.

It is also important to know that proper nouns

cannot be attached to a determiner, for
example:

The Honduras which is prescriptively incorrect;

the proper noun is just Honduras.
Some grammatical features
for nouns are:

Person
Number
Gender
Case
Person and number refer to the grammatical
agreement between subject and verb as well as
the inflectional process of nouns, for example:
When using the verb “be” in one statement, the
subject must agree with its action:

I
You (be) smart.
She

Three girls were the smartest in math this term.

 It is relevant to remember that when talking
about number, collective nouns play an
important usage because they express a
plural form, but they are singular.

Example: family collective noun

My family does not want to visit this country.

When using correlative conjunctions nouns can be
either singular or plural; the speaker´s perception
will determine its usage.

Example:

Either the girls or the boy has to go.

Either the girls or the boy have to go.
Neither the girls nor the boy has to go.
Neither the girls nor the boy have to go.
According to Edward Sapir said, “All
grammars leak.”

None of you guys has to go to school. Prescriptive grammar

None of you guys have to go to school. Descriptive grammar

Singular indefinite noun phrases: (gender)

Each/ every male

Case
It refers to the grammatical function of noun
phrases in sentences.

Subject case (nominative) I go for a walk.

Object case (direct (accusative) indirect (dative))

I gave her to him.

Possessive case (determiner/pronoun) the car of

the girl/ her car/ hers
 Definiteness and specificity
Carlitos is trying to find a book, the one he
Specific
read last week.

Indefinite (a)
Non specific Carlitos wants to buy a book in order to
read it in his free time.

Definite (the) Carlitos said that the book he bought was

amazing.
Verbs

It is important to know that the verb is known as

the main action that is given to the subject in a
sentence; it is also the simple predicate of a
verbal phrase.

Verbs are classified on transitive and intransitive

(transitivity).
Transitive verbs are the ones that need a
direct object (NP) to complete the meaning
of the sentence.

Example: Carlos visits Honduras every year.

A specific feature of transitive verbs is that
they can be written in passive voice as well,
for example:

Honduras is visited by Carlos every year.

It is important to remember that sentences
that have more than two NPs can be written
in active or passive voice.

When talking about intransitive verbs, these

can be defined as the ones where the direct
object is not needed, for example:

Sophie left.
Albertito runs.
Some verbs can be transitive or
intransitive because of their causative
meaning.

Example:
Santos broke the computer.
The computer is broken.
Some grammatical categories of verbs are:
Mood: speakers’ attitude toward what he or she is
saying.

Indicative (assertiveness)

Expressing a request: I want you to tell her the truth.

Expressing a command: You will get home at 7.

Subjunctive: request and wishes
• I requested that she be on time
daily.
• It is important that everyone get
paid.
Imperative: direct commands
• Come for dinner.
• Open the door.
Tense: the grammatical shift
between present, past, and future.

Aspect is the grammatical

expression of the internal time
structure of an event or situation.
 PHRASE
STRUCTURE
BY MR. LICONA
 WHAT IS A PHRASE
STRUCTURE?
• IT IS THE DIVISION OF A SENTENCE INTO PARTS, AND THE
DIVISION OF THOSE PARTS INTO SUBPARTS.

• A CAT BURIED A LARGE BONE.

 THE SUBSTITUTION
TEXT
• IT THE GRAMMATICAL ABILITY OF SUBSTITUTING WORDS AND
PHRASES BASED ON THE SPEAKER´S NECESSITY.

• ONE OF MY KIDS HAS A HORRIBLE COLD.

 CONJOINABILITY
• IT IS GRAMMATICAL FUNCTION TO
JOIN PHRASES.
 MOVEMENT
• IT IS THE GRAMMATICAL FUNCTION THE
ALLOWS UNITS TO CHANGE POSITIONS
WITHOUT ALTERING THE MEANING OF THE
STATEMENT.
• I WANT TO GO TO THE PARK IF IT DOES NOT RAIN.

• MY NEIGHBOR EDDIE MOWED THE SIDEWALK LATE LAST NIGHT.

 THE ANTECEDENT FOR A PRO-FORM AND
INTERNAL STRUCTURES

• THIS GRAMMATICAL FUNCTION PERMITS GRAMMAR USERS

TO SUBSTITUTE UNITS BY OTHERS BASED ON THEIR
BACKGROUNDS.
• THE MOST INTELLIGENT BOY IN CLASS HAS GOTTEN A NEW
CAR BECAUSE OF HIS GREAT SCHOOL RECORDS, AND HE
FEELS LIKE IT IS ONE OF THE BEST GIFTS HE HAD EVER
RECEIVED.
 PHRASAL
CATEGORIES
• NOUN PHRASE

• VERB PHRASE

• ADJECTIVE PHRASE

• PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE
 A NOTATION FOR PHRASE
STRUCTURE/TREES AND
FUNCTIONS
• SVC

THE GIRL EATS COOKIES.

 TREES AND AMBIGUITY
• WHAT IS AMBIGUITY?
IT IS THE QUALITY OF BEING OPEN TO MORE THAN ONE INTERPRETATION;
INEXACTNESS.

I RODE A BLACK HORSE IN RED PAJAMAS.

I KILLED THE KING WITH THE KNIFE.

• EASY READING: “I USED A KNIFE FOR THE

KILLING”

• HARDER READING: “KING HOLDING A KNIFE”

UNDERSTANDING 1: “I USED A
KNIFE FOR THE KILLING”

I KILLED THE KING WITH THE KNIFE.

 UNDERSTANDING 2 “THE KING WAS
HOLDING A KNIFE WHEN I KILLED HIM.”

I KILLED THE KING WITH THE KNIFE.

 Ñ=N-BAR
• WE NEED TO BREAK UP OUR NP RULE;
INSTEAD OF – NP: (D) (ADJP+) N (PP+)

• WE HAVE: – NP: (D) N′ – N′ : ADJP N′ – N′

: N′ PP – N′ : N (PP)
 Ñ=N-BAR

SOME DELICIOUS APPLES

SOME OF THE BEST GIRLS

THE FEW GOOD STUDENTS

 VERB PHRASES
• V
• VNP
• V PP
• V NP PP
• V AP
• V+AP+PP
• V+NP+NP
• V+Q
 V-BAR

• AGAIN, IT LOOKS LIKE WE NEED TO BREAK OUR RULE INTO PARTS

USING V′ (FOR WHICH DO SO CAN SUBSTITUTE).

• VP: (ADVP+) V ({NP/CP}) (PP+) (ADVP+)

• TO: – VP: V′ – V′ : ADVP V′ – V′ : V′ PP – V′ : V′ ADVP – V′ : V ({NP/CP})

 V=V-BAR

SANTOS WILL BE SEEING HIS SISTER.

 PHRASAL VERBS

SHE LOOKED AT THE DOOR.

 NEGATION

SHE DID NOT PLAY WITH HER TOYS.

 WH-QUESTIONS

WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?

IMPERATIVES

OPEN THE DOOR.

 EXISTENTIAL THERE
SENTENCES

THERE MAY BE A FROG IN MY SOUP.