Terms Which are Briefly Explain
Paradigmatic
Synchrony
Diachrony
Form substance
Langue
Parole
Competence performance
Briefly explain each concept with examples:
- Paradigmatic:
- Explanation: Paradigmatic relations refer to the relationships among linguistic elements when they can be substituted for one another based on shared characteristics or features within the same category.
- Example: In English, the words “big,” “large,” and “huge” share a paradigmatic relationship as they can be used interchangeably to convey similar meanings within the category of size.
- Synchrony:
- Explanation: Synchrony is the study of a language at a specific point in time, focusing on its structure and elements without considering historical changes.
- Example: Analyzing the present-day grammatical structures of English sentences, such as subject-verb-object order, illustrates synchrony by examining language features at a specific moment.
- Diachrony:
- Explanation: Diachrony involves studying language change and evolution over time, considering historical developments and shifts in linguistic elements.
- Example: Examining how the Old English word “cniht” evolved into the modern English “knight” illustrates diachrony by tracing changes in pronunciation and spelling over centuries.
- Langue:
- Explanation: Langue refers to the underlying system or structure of a language, representing the abstract, shared knowledge of grammar and rules within a linguistic community.
- Example: The grammatical rules governing English word order, such as subject-verb-object, exemplify aspects of langue that speakers intuitively follow.
- Parole:
- Explanation: Parole refers to the actual instances of language use by individuals, representing the dynamic and individualized manifestations of the underlying language system.
- Example: Each time a person speaks a sentence like “I saw a movie yesterday,” it is an example of parole—individual language use in a specific context.
- Competence:
- Explanation: Competence is the implicit knowledge of a language’s grammar and rules, representing an individual’s underlying mental capacity for language.
- Example: A speaker’s competence in Spanish includes their ability to conjugate verbs, form correct sentence structures, and understand grammatical nuances.
- Performance:
- Explanation: Performance refers to the actual use of language in specific instances, considering the observable behavior of individuals as they communicate.
- Example: If a speaker makes a slip of the tongue, saying “I goed to the store” instead of “I went,” it represents a performance error influenced by real-time factors.
