CHAPTER 3

VERBAL COMMUNICATION

MULTIPLE CHOICE

1. Which of the following is the best example of a speech community?
   1. A sports team
   2. Those who speak American English *
   3. A group of friends
   4. Classmates
   5. Co-workers

Bloom’s: Understanding

A-head: Structure of Language

1. Which of the following is the best example of the use of abstract language?
   1. The net worth of her father is $1,345,874.
   2. Jamie has the same Coach bag in white, tan, black, and red.
   3. The Smith family owns 3 Lamborghinis.
   4. The Smith family owns more cars than Henry Ford
   5. The Smith family is extremely wealthy. *

Bloom’s: Understanding

A-head: Language and Thought

1. When you are at a restaurant and tell the waiter what you want to order, you are using language’s ________function.
   1. instrumental *
   2. persuasive
   3. ritualistic
   4. imaginative
   5. authoritative

Bloom’s: Analyzing

A-head: Functions of Language

1. When your friends offer their arguments to get you to stop texting and driving, they are using language’s ________function.
   1. instrumental
   2. persuasive *
   3. ritualistic
   4. imaginative
   5. authoritative

Bloom’s: Analyzing

A-head: Functions of Language

1. First day of class and your buddy wants to know your class schedule. You tell her how jammed up your days will be. You are using language’s ________function.
   1. regulatory
   2. persuasive
   3. informative *
   4. imaginative
   5. authoritative

Bloom’s: Analyzing

A-head: Functions of Language

1. First day of class and your buddy wants to know your class schedule. You tell her how busy your days will be, but your professor calls you by name and suggests you should be a bit more quiet. Your instructor is using language’s ________function.
   1. regulatory *
   2. persuasive
   3. informative
   4. imaginative
   5. authoritative

Bloom’s: Analyzing

A-head: Functions of Language

1. You and your friends love to engage in word play, especially pun battles. In other words, you enjoy language’s ________function.
   1. regulatory
   2. persuasive
   3. informative
   4. imaginative *
   5. authoritative

Bloom’s: Analyzing

A-head: Functions of Language

1. For an utterance to be a lie, the speaker must offer information; the speaker must believe the information is not true; and the speaker must __________.
   1. have little respect for the listener
   2. intend to deceive or mislead *
   3. make eye contact
   4. disrespect him or herself
   5. have no ethics

Bloom’s: Remembering

A-head: Functions of Language

1. We use small talk to connect us to others in an initial encounter. This is an example of the __________ function of language.
   1. persuasive
   2. instrumental
   3. relational *
   4. regulatory
   5. authoritative

Bloom’s: Understanding

A-head: Functions of Language

1. What is ultimately the function of language?
   1. To express emotion.
   2. To make meaning. *
   3. To be able to engage in social interactions.
   4. To inform others.
   5. To rule others.

Bloom’s: Remembering

A-head: Language and Meaning Making

1. Andrew talks to his friends using abbreviated words and does not always use correct grammar, but when their professor joins their conversation they all speak with more attention to proper grammar. This switch is an example of language having ____________ meaning.
   1. cultural
   2. situational *
   3. ritualistic
   4. social
   5. representational

Bloom’s: Analyzing

A-head: Language and Meaning Making

1. When Andrew’s relatives visit from Chile he speaks with them in their native Spanish. But when his sisters enter the room, he easily moves back to English. This is an example of language having ________ meaning.
   1. cultural *
   2. metaphysical
   3. ritualistic
   4. tie-binding
   5. representational

Bloom’s: Analyzing

A-head: Language and Meaning Making

1. When speakers assume that those who share their culture share their knowledge of a word’s meaning, they are engaging in _____________.
   1. stereotyping
   2. cultural inclusivity
   3. cultural presupposition *
   4. narrowcasting
   5. ethnocentrism

Bloom’s: Remembering

A-head: Language and Meaning Making

1. “I don’t procrastinate; I’m just better at doing work under pressure!” is an example of the use of ___________.
   1. metaphor
   2. positive face-want
   3. negative face-want
   4. abstract language
   5. euphemism *

Bloom’s: Understanding

A-head: Language and Meaning Making

1. ___________ is the rules for the proper construction of phrases and sentences.
   1. Syntax
   2. Grammar *
   3. Lexicography
   4. Articulation
   5. Enunciation

Bloom’s: Remembering

A-head: The Structure of Language

1. ___________ is the occurrence and ordering of words and sounds to convey an intended meaning.
   1. Syntax *
   2. Grammar
   3. Lexicography
   4. Articulation
   5. Enunciation

Bloom’s: Remembering

A-head: The Structure of Language

1. People belong to __________, that is, people with whom they regularly interact and speak.
   1. speech communities
   2. language communities
   3. language networks
   4. speech networks *
   5. bounded cultures

Bloom’s: Remembering

A-head: The Structure of Language

1. ___________meaning is a word’s explicit meaning, the one that directly comes to mind when used by a specific speech community. ___________meaning is a word’s more implicit, usually emotionally or culturally enriched meaning.
   1. Denotative/Connotative *
   2. Connotative/Denotative
   3. Implied/Ritual
   4. Ritual/Implied
   5. Presentational/Representational

Bloom’s: Understanding

A-head: Language and Thought

1. The ___________ asserts that the language a speaker uses influences the way he or she thinks.
   1. Theory of Metaphor
   2. Ambiguity Hypothesis
   3. Linguistic Relativity Hypothesis *
   4. Birdwell’s Thesis
   5. McLuhan’s Quandary

Bloom’s: Remembering

A-head: Language and Thought

1. Metaphors are unstated comparisons between things or events that share some feature. But it is important to remember that they not only highlight similarities, they ________.
   1. can often be misleading
   2. are usually used in an effort to deceive
   3. require a certain level of intelligence in their interpretation
   4. mask differences in the compared concepts *
   5. must be universal to be considered true metaphors

Bloom’s: Remembering

A-head: Language and Thought

1. Speaking directly to your friend with little concern for her feelings as you demand that she share her homework answers with you is an example of the use of ________.
   1. negative face-want
   2. positive face-want
   3. bald on-record language *
   4. off-record language
   5. representational speech

Bloom’s: Understanding

A-head: Language and Protecting Self-Identity: Politeness Theory

1. When you think of puppies and babies, you are usually filled with feelings of affection and compassion. This is likely because of the __________ we associate with these words.
2. denotative meaning
3. politeness
4. connotative meaning *
5. euphemisms
6. face wants

Bloom’s: Understanding

A-head: Language and Thought

1. We provide detail and ask questions, fine examples of the __________function of language.
2. relational
3. ritualistic
4. informative *
5. expressive
6. authoritative

Bloom’s: Understanding

A-head: Functions of Language

1. The two types of face wants are ___________
2. horizontal and vertical
3. right and left
4. positive and negative *
5. portrait and landscape
6. one’s own and the other’s

Bloom’s: Remembering

A-head: Language and Protecting Self-Identity: Politeness Theory

1. Offering to take notes for your friend when she misses a day of class is likely to build your _________.
   1. positive face *
   2. negative face
   3. facework
   4. knowledge of the subject
   5. looking glass self-esteem

Bloom’s: Understanding

A-head: Language and Protecting Self-Identity: Politeness Theory

1. There are two language rules of pragmatic competence: first, be clear, and second, _______.
   1. show concern
   2. don’t lie
   3. be polite *
   4. make eye contact
   5. be competent

Bloom’s: Remembering

A-head: Language and Protecting Self-Identity: Politeness Theory

1. When the rules of pragmatic competence conflict, which prevails?
   1. be clear
   2. don’t lie
   3. be polite *
   4. make eye contact
   5. be competent

Bloom’s: Understanding

A-head: Language and Protecting Self-Identity: Politeness Theory

1. The primary difference between a speech community and a speech network is ____________.
   1. people in the same speech network agree on the proper use of a language where people in a speech community don’t
   2. people in the same speech network communicate frequently enough to share a greater understanding of one another *
   3. speech networks are mostly maintained through technology but speech communities employ face-to-face communication
   4. speech networks involve those you are close to but speech communities tend to include people of different viewpoints
   5. speech networks tend to limit cultural expression while speech communities encourage it

Bloom’s: Remembering

A-head: The Structure of Language

1. An up-and-coming singer/guitar player at the local bar belts out her favorite song, obviously enjoying language’s __________ function.
   1. imaginative *
   2. relational
   3. instrumental
   4. persuasive
   5. authoritative

Bloom’s: Analyzing

A-head: The Functions of Language

1. According to the rules of pragmatic competence, ____________.
   1. we need to speak directly all the time
   2. politeness in communication is key *
   3. competence comes from confidence
   4. communication can be unsuccessful without directly stated meaning
   5. clarity is paramount

Bloom’s: Remembering

A-head: Language and Protecting Self-Identity: Politeness Theory

1. A teacher’s ability to control and maintain the attention of his students is an example of ____________.
   1. the informative function of language
   2. making social meaning
   3. the regulatory function of language *
   4. the ladder of abstraction
   5. efficient use of metaphor

Bloom’s: Understanding

A-head: The Functions of Language

1. The difference in the English language between the words home and house is actually a difference in ___________.
   1. situational meaning
   2. connotative meaning *
   3. syntax
   4. little more than spelling
   5. cultural understanding

Bloom’s: Understanding

A-head: Language and Thought

1. Your sister turns to you and says, “Are you as hungry as I am? Why don’t you come to lunch with me?” Her question is a good example of the operation of ___________ in language.
2. positive politeness *
3. negative politeness
4. bald on-record expression
5. euphemism
6. metaphor

Bloom’s: Analyzing

A-head: Language and Protecting Self-Identity: Politeness Theory

1. Your sister turns to you and says, “I know you’re kind of busy and I don’t want to take you away from your homework, but why don’t you come to lunch with me?” Her question is a good example of the operation of ___________ in language.
   1. positive politeness
   2. negative politeness *
   3. bald on-record expression
   4. euphemism
   5. metaphor

Bloom’s: Analyzing

A-head: Language and Protecting Self-Identity: Politeness Theory

1. “Argument is war” is an example of ____________.
2. lying
3. a euphemism
4. syntax
5. a metaphor *
6. abstract speech

Bloom’s: Remembering

A-head: Language and Thought

1. Which of the following is an example of a euphemism?
2. The boss had to let go one of his workers. *
3. After 15 years, the family’s dog died.
4. The boy lied when he told his mom he didn’t eat the cookie.
5. The receptionist was overweight.
6. A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.

Bloom’s: Understanding

A-head: Language and Thought

1. _____ consists of scripted and superficial conversations based on social convention.
2. Abstract language
3. Lying
4. Small talk *
5. Metaphor
6. Situational meaning

Bloom’s: Remembering

A-head: The Functions of Language

1. When a mother tells her teenager that night’s curfew time, she is using language’s _________function.
2. ritualistic
3. imaginative
4. expressive
5. regulatory *
6. authoritative

Bloom’s: Understanding

A-head: The Functions of Language

1. The formal units of language are words and ________.
   1. grammar
   2. motions
   3. articulation
   4. concepts
   5. sounds *

Bloom’s: Remembering

A-head: The Structure of Language

1. When you and a friend converse, you both automatically adjust your vocabularies, rates of speech, vocal patterns, accents, and even gestures to ensure efficient meaning making, just as ____________ Theory would predict.
   1. Communication Accommodation *
   2. Metaphor
   3. Linguistic Sensitivity
   4. Politeness
   5. Syntactic Ambiguity

Bloom’s: Remembering

A-head: Language and Meaning Making

1. Negative politeness, in which speakers expresses their reluctance to impose on hearers is the product of ___________.
   1. negative attitude
   2. negative face-wants *
   3. positive face-wants
   4. bullying
   5. lack of self-esteem

Bloom’s: Remembering

A-head: Language and Protecting Self-Identity: Politeness Theory

1. Languages such as Spanish and German differentiate between male and female nouns. These are examples of languages that engage in the __________ of nouns.
   1. manifestation
   2. attribution
   3. classification
   4. gendering *
   5. differentiation

Bloom’s: Remembering

A-head: Language and Thought

1. Languages such as Spanish and German differentiate between male and female nouns. For example, in Spanish bridge is el puente, a masculine noun. In German, bridge is die Brücke, a feminine noun. As a result, German speakers typically attach more romantic adjectives such as beautiful and elegant to their descriptions of bridges, and Spanish speakers tend to speak of bridges as big and strong. This phenomenon demonstrates the operation of the ________.
   1. Theory of Metaphor
   2. Ambiguity Hypothesis
   3. Linguistic Relativity Hypothesis*
   4. Birdwell’s Thesis
   5. McLuhan’s Quandary

Bloom’s: Understanding

A-head: Language and Thought

1. According to the theory of metaphor, __________is/are expressed in a language’s metaphors.
   1. individual biases
   2. class distinctions
   3. cultural reality *
   4. the biases of the linguistic elite
   5. the biases of the cultural elite

Bloom’s: Remembering

A-head: Language and Thought

1. Language signifying concepts, qualities, or ideas is __________.
   1. abstract language *
   2. metaphor
   3. denotative language
   4. connotative language
   5. balanced language

Bloom’s: Remembering

A-head: Language and Thought

1. The linguist ____________ developed the ladder of abstraction to explain how we use various levels of abstraction to make different types of meaning.
   1. George Lakoff
   2. George Herbert Mead
   3. S. I. Hayakawa *
   4. Wilbur Schramm
   5. Marshall McLuhan

Bloom’s: Remembering

A-head: Language and Thought

1. Which of the following sentences best demonstrates the metaphor of Argument as War?
   1. He should listen to his wife’s arguments.
   2. All you two ever do is argue.
   3. He shot down all of my arguments. *
   4. Democracy is based on reasoned argument.
   5. The mongoose is the enemy of the snake.

Bloom’s: Understanding

A-head: Language and Thought

1. ________ is the public self-image that every member of a culture wants to claim for her or himself.
   1. Face *
   2. Dignity
   3. Wellness
   4. Personality
   5. Self-esteem

Bloom’s: Remembering

A-head: Language and Protecting Self-Identity: Politeness Theory

1. We typically use euphemisms because we wish to obey which rule of pragmatic competence?
   1. be clear
   2. don’t lie
   3. be polite *
   4. make eye contact
   5. clarity above all

Bloom’s: Remembering

A-head: Language and Protecting Self-Identity: Politeness Theory

1. Several languages, German, French, and Spanish for example, utilize familiar and formal versions of the pronoun you. American English does not. This is most likely because ___________.
   1. American English is a more modern language
   2. the United States, in general, is less formal when it comes to matters of rank and hierarchy than those countries that use German, French, and Spanish *
   3. as in most things, Americans strive for efficiency
   4. the first Americans consciously wanted to differentiate themselves from Europe and its languages
   5. Americans prefer efficiency over precision, even in speech

Bloom’s: Understanding

A-head: Language and Thought

SHORT ANSWER

1. Why is the sentence “They are hunting dogs” ambiguous? Explain its two possible meanings and construct less ambiguous sentences to convey more clearly those two meanings.

Main theme: The sentence is grammatically correct but its syntax renders it unclear.

Answer must have: The two meanings—the dogs in question are specifically bred for hunting and people are actively hunting dogs.

Answer may have: Mention of syntactic ambiguity and recognition that in the first instance hunting is used as an adjective and in the second it is used as a verb.

A-head: The Structure of Language

1. You want to tell your friends about the boat trip you took over Spring Break. Build a ladder of abstraction with at least three levels, including the most concrete and most abstract, indicating how you would tell your story.

Main theme: We use various levels of abstraction to make different types of meaning.

Answer must include: Idea that most concrete words/descriptions are at the ladder’s bottom and the most abstract at the top. Word/description choices must be correct in their indicated levels of abstraction and concreteness.

Answer may include: Commentary in intentional use of abstractness to mask meaning.

A-head: Language and Thought

1. Linguist Iman Tohidian, when discussing the Linguistic Relativity Hypothesis, says “language not only shapes the way reality is perceived but reality can also shape language.” She stresses, however, that “language does influence thought and perception of reality but language does not govern thought or reality.” What does she mean by “language influences thought” but “does not govern” it?

Main theme: The relationship between language and thought/reality is relational, not causal.

Answer must include: Recognition that language can influence thought, just as thought can influence language.

Answer may include: Examples from different cultures/languages.

A-head: Language and Thought

1. Identify a speech network to which you belong. What makes it a true speech network and how does your communication differ when interacting with members from that group as opposed to the larger speech community to which you may belong?

Main theme: Although speech communities are composed of others who speak the same language and agree on the “proper” and “improper” use of language, speech networks are composed of others with whom we regularly interact and speak.

Answer must include: Idea that because members of a speech network frequently communicate and cooperatively make meaning, they build and share a specific common language, and because of that, they build and share a greater understanding of one another. Selected group must conform to this description and examples of in-network communication must be accurate, for example, specialized language, special nick-names, etc.

Answer may include: Discussion of how meaning is more efficiently and idiosyncratically made in close speech networks.

A-head: Structure of Language

1. Each of the words domicile, house, and home, while similar in meaning, produces not only a different thought, but different types of thought. Why? Identify 2 words that, while also similar in meaning, produce markedly different thought or types of thought.

Main theme: Words’ connotative and denotative meanings generate different meanings and responses.

Answer must include: Distinction between denotative and connotative meaning and two words that are denotatively similar but connotatively different, for example a woman’s husband and a woman’s partner or job and career.

Answer may include: Discussion of context as an aid in interpretation.

A-head: Language and Thought

ESSAY

1. Explain the Linguistic Relativity Hypothesis and what it says about the relationship between language and thought. Then give examples of the Linguistic Relativity Hypothesis and how it might operate in speech communities and in speech networks.

Main theme: Language and thought are related, and the differences personal connections between speech networks and speech communities will play out in the languages each uses.

Answer must have: Accurate understanding of Linguistic Relativity Hypothesis, speech communities, and speech networks and the offered examples must demonstrate more idiosyncratic language/thought connections for speech networks than for speech communities.

Answer may have: Discussion of role of culture and context.

A-head: Language and Thought

1. When the two language rules of pragmatic competence conflict, be polite takes priority over be clear. Please provide an example of a situation where these two rules might conflict and offer a solution to this conflict can be resolved. Hint: the solution resides in politeness theory.

Main theme: Be polite dominates be clear because, as politeness theory argues, we work constantly to appear competent and be liked.

Answer must have: Recognition of politeness theory’s assertion that in a conversation it is more important to avoid offense than to achieve clarity because most times the actual communication of important ideas is secondary to reaffirming and strengthening relationships. Offered example must include discussion of positive and negative face-wants.

Answer may have: Discussion of facework and face-threatening acts.

A-head: Language and Protecting Self-Identity: Politeness Theory

1. Metaphors make unstated comparisons between things or events that share some feature, but they also mask differences in the compared concepts. Take the metaphors of ARGUMENT AS WAR and ARGUMENT AS DANCE and explain what similarities they highlight and what dissimilarities they mask. Be sure to offer examples of the metaphors you believe operate in these ways.

Main theme: Metaphors highlight similarities and mask differences and, as such, shape thought.

Answer must include: Accurate understanding of operation of metaphors to highlight and mask. The offered metaphors must fit that understanding.

Answer may include: Recognition that metaphors express deep cultural realities.

A-head: Language and Thought

1. Your text identifies 8 functions of language. Name and describe each one, then imagine a typical Monday during the semester in which you make use of all 8 before you sit down to dinner. Using the functions you identified, describe the events/conversations you may have engaged in to get you from first ring of your alarm clock to the dinner table.

Main theme: We use language in almost all of our encounters with the social world. It is an essential part of being human; it is integral to how we behave. It is our primary means of interaction with one another.

Answer must have: Correct list and description of the 8 functions of language. Events/conversations must fit the listed function.

Answer may have: Discussion of the use of language to control meaning making.

A-head: Functions of Language

1. Differentiate between situational, social, and cultural meaning. Then explain how euphemism might play a beneficial role when we hope to convey situational, social, and cultural meaning. Make sure to offer an example of the use of euphemism in each instance.

Main theme: Euphemism can be quite helpful in navigating different communication situations, especially as we find ourselves in different situations, different social settings, and in meeting the expectations of our culture.

Answer must have: Correct definition/explanation of situational, social, and cultural meaning, correct understanding of the operation of euphemism, and the offered examples must fit that understanding.

Answer may have: Discussion of politeness and face.

A-head: Language and Meaning Making