Contrastive Linguistics

What is the primary focus of Contrastive Linguistics?

Contrastive Linguistics systematically compares languages to identify their similarities and differences at every level of linguistic structure.

Name three levels of linguistic structure studied in Contrastive Linguistics.

Phonology, morphology, syntax.

What are the two main approaches to Contrastive Linguistics?

Theoretical and applied.

What is the purpose of the theoretical approach in Contrastive Linguistics?

To expand linguistic theory through cross-linguistic comparisons and focus on abstract models and linguistic universals.

How is the applied approach in Contrastive Linguistics used?

To solve practical issues in language-related fields, such as language teaching and translation.

What is a minimal pair in phonology?

Two words that differ by only one sound in the same position and have different meanings.

Give an example of a minimal pair in English.

/pæt/ ("pat") vs. /bæt/ ("bat").

What are allophones?

Phonetically distinct variants of the same phoneme that do not change meaning.

What is phonotactics?

The rules governing permissible sound combinations in a language.

How does English handle word stress compared to Polish?

English has variable stress (e.g., "photograph" as noun vs. verb), while Polish has fixed penultimate stress (e.g., "kochamy").

What is a key difference in vowel systems between English and Polish?

English has more diphthongs, while Polish includes nasal vowels.

What is the primary assessment method for the Contrastive Linguistics course?

Final written exam (100%), including multiple-choice and open-ended questions.

What are the four main topics covered in Month 1 of the course?

Phonological differences, morphological categories and classification, borrowings, and language contact.

What is the focus of Month 2 in the course structure?

Lexicalization, semantic and syntactic structures in contrastive perspective, pragmatics.

What is the role of Contrastive Linguistics in language learning?

Predicts learner errors caused by L1 interference and enhances awareness of cross-linguistic patterns.

How does Contrastive Linguistics contribute to translation?

Ensures semantic and pragmatic accuracy and preserves style, register, and culturally specific expressions.

What is Error Analysis in Contrastive Linguistics?

Examination of learner errors to understand underlying causes, such as L1 interference or overgeneralization.

What is Universal Grammar in the context of Contrastive Linguistics?

Exploration of innate grammatical principles across languages.

What is an example of a phonological error Polish speakers might make in English?

Substituting /θ/ or /ð/ with [t] or [d], as in "think" pronounced as [tɪŋk].

What is the phenomenon where Polish speakers might insert vowels to break up consonant clusters in English?

Phonotactic adaptation.

What are the three main morphological classifications of languages?

Analytic (Isolating), Synthetic (Fusional), Agglutinative.

What is a morpheme?

The smallest unit of meaning or grammatical function in a language.

What is the difference between free and bound morphemes?

Free morphemes can stand alone (e.g., "dog"), while bound morphemes must attach to a root (e.g., "-s").

What are the two main types of morphemes?

Lexical morphemes (carry meaning) and grammatical morphemes (serve grammatical purposes).

What is the difference between derivational and inflectional morphemes?

Derivational morphemes change meaning or word class (e.g., "-ness"), while inflectional morphemes modify a word to indicate grammatical information (e.g., "-s" for plural).

What are the four types of affixation?

Prefixation, suffixation, infixation, circumfixation.

What is compounding in morphology?

Combining free morphemes into one word (e.g., "laptop").

What is blending in morphology?

Combining parts of two or more words (e.g., "smog" from "smoke" + "fog").

What is reduplication?

Repeating all or part of a morpheme (e.g., "bye-bye").

What is conversion (zero derivation)?

Changing a word's grammatical category without adding a morpheme (e.g., "text" as a noun and verb).

What type of morphology does English primarily exhibit?

Analytic/weakly inflectional.

What type of morphology does Polish primarily exhibit?

Synthetic/highly inflectional.

What are the inflectional categories for nouns in Polish?

Case (7), number, gender.

What are the inflectional categories for verbs in Polish?

Person, number, gender, tense, aspect.

What is the primary difference in transparency of meaning between English and Polish morphology?

Polish morphology is usually more transparent and regular.

What role does inflection play in Polish syntax?

Inflection carries grammatical relations, allowing for flexible word order.

Is the affix "-ly" in English inflectional or derivational?

Derivational.

What are the two meanings of the prefix "dis-" in English?

Negation/reversal (e.g., "disconnect") and intensification (e.g., "disgraceful").

What morphological process is involved in the word "exam" (from "examination")?

Clipping.

Provide an example of compounding in Polish.

"piorunochron" (lightning conductor, from "piorun" + "chronić").

What is lexicalization?

The process whereby a conceptual meaning or semantic content becomes encoded in a single lexical item (word or idiom).

How does English typically express aspect?

Periphrastically (e.g., "was reading," "has eaten").

How does Polish typically lexicalize aspect?

Through verb prefixes (e.g., "czytać" → "przeczytać").

How is motion and direction encoded in English?

Path is encoded in particles (e.g., "run out," "go in").

How is motion and direction lexicalized in Polish?

Path is lexicalized through verb prefixes (e.g., "wybiec," "dojść").

What is the difference in lexicalizing degree and evaluation between English and Polish?

English is often analytic (e.g., "more interesting"), while Polish encodes it morphologically (e.g., "duży" → "największy").

How is negation lexicalized in English?

Irregular negative prefixes (e.g., "un-," "in-," "dis-").

How is negation lexicalized in Polish?

Highly productive and regular negation with "nie-" (e.g., "niesprawiedliwy").

What is the difference in category change between English and Polish?

English uses conversion (e.g., "text" → "to text"), while Polish requires overt morphology (e.g., "czytać" → "czytanie").

How are semantic roles expressed in English?

By prepositions (e.g., "with," "to," "for").

How are semantic roles encoded in Polish?

In case morphology (e.g., "dom" → "domu" → "domem").

What are satellite-framed languages?

Languages where path is encoded in particles or prefixes (e.g., English, Polish, German).

What are verb-framed languages?

Languages where path is encoded in the verb (e.g., Spanish, Japanese, French).

What is semantic structure?

The organization of meaning components within a linguistic unit, including their relations and internal hierarchy.

What is the role of thematic roles in semantic structures?

They describe the roles participants play in an event (e.g., AGENT, THEME, EXPERIENCER).

What is Natural Semantic Metalanguage (NSM)?

A theory proposing that all languages share a small set of semantic primes (irreducible meanings) that can explicate complex meanings.

Who proposed the NSM theory?

Anna Wierzbicka.

What are semantic primes in NSM?

Irreducible meanings (e.g., "I," "you," "want," "know," "do") that are universal across languages.

What is WordNet?

A lexical database showing how words are connected by meaning in English.

What is plWordNet?

A lexical database for Polish, similar to WordNet, showing semantic connections between words.

What is a borrowing in linguistics?

A linguistic unit taken from a donor language and incorporated into a recipient language due to language contact.

What are some examples of English borrowings in Polish related to gaming?

"zlevelować postać" (to level up a character), "dive’ować bota" (to dive a bot).

What are the four main reasons for borrowing?

Lexical gaps, prestige/social status, cultural contact, bilingualism/code-switching.

What are the two levels of integration for borrowings in Polish?

Low integration (unchanged forms) and higher integration (inflectional integration).

Provide an example of a low-integration borrowing in Polish.

"support," "deadline," "server."

Provide an example of a higher-integration borrowing in Polish.

"support**em**," "server**ów**," "deadline**em**."

How does Polish adapt English borrowings morphologically?

By deriving verbs using **-ować** (e.g., "backupować," "targetować").

How does Polish handle aspect in borrowings?

By adding verbal prefixes to signal aspect and completion (e.g., "zlevelować," "zdeployować").

What are hybrid constructions in the context of borrowings?

Combinations of English lexemes with Polish syntax (e.g., "Jesteśmy na **callu** z klientem").

What is a structural calque?

A direct translation of a foreign phrase or structure (e.g., "pozostaniemy w kontakcie" ← "stay in touch").

What is semantic borrowing?

When meanings shift under the influence of another language (e.g., "dokładnie" as a discourse marker ← "exactly").

What sociolinguistic factors influence the outcome of language contact?

Language prestige, speaker attitudes, degree of bilingualism, domains of use.

What are pidgins and creoles?

Pidgins are simplified contact languages, while creoles are pidgins that have developed into full languages (e.g., Haitian Creole).

What are some examples of hybrid constructions in Polish?

"Złapiemy się potem na **evencie**," "Ten plik się nie **uploaduje**."

What is the role of bilingualism in borrowing?

Bilingual speakers gradually introduce borrowings through code-switching.

What domains are most affected by English borrowings in Polish?

IT, business, gaming, social media.

What is the purpose of using **-ować** in Polish borrowings?

To derive verbs from English bases (e.g., "backupować dane").

What is an example of a semantic shift in Polish due to English influence?

"Ten build jest solidny" (This build is solid), "Ten projekt dowozi" (This project delivers).

How does language contact drive language change?

Through the introduction of new words, meanings, and structures, influenced by sociolinguistic factors.

What is the difference between a pidgin and a creole?

A pidgin is a simplified contact language, while a creole is a pidgin that has become a full, stable language.

What is contrastive syntax?

The comparison of languages to identify structural similarities/differences, transfer effects, translation difficulties, and language-specific grammatical patterns.

What are the three main approaches to comparing syntax?

Contrastive Linguistics, Linguistic Typology, Generative Syntax.

What are some key contrastive differences between languages?

Basic word order, head directionality, subject expression, question formation, inversion, case and agreement, information structure, word-order flexibility.

What are the three most common basic word orders?

SVO, SOV, VSO.

What is head directionality?

The position of the head (main element) in a phrase relative to its dependents (e.g., verb in a verb phrase, noun in a noun phrase).

What is a null subject (pro-drop) language?

A language that allows subject pronouns to be omitted (e.g., Polish, Spanish).

What is the difference between wh-fronting and wh-in-situ?

Wh-fronting moves the wh-word to the front of the sentence (e.g., English "What did you buy?"), while wh-in-situ leaves it in place (e.g., Mandarin "Nǐ mǎi le shénme?").

What is an example of a head-initial language?

English.

What is an example of a head-final language?

Japanese.

How does Polish mark the subject and object in a sentence?

Through case marking (nominative for subject, accusative for object).

How does Japanese mark the subject and object in a sentence?

Through particles (e.g., "-ga" for subject, "-o" for object).

What is the word order in a typical English sentence?

SVO (Subject-Verb-Object).

What is the word order in a typical Japanese sentence?

SOV (Subject-Object-Verb).

What is the word order in a typical Arabic sentence?

VSO (Verb-Subject-Object).

What is the word order in a typical Polish sentence?

Flexible, but often SVO (e.g., "Jan zjadł jabłko" or "Jabłko zjadł Jan").

What is do-support in English questions?

The use of the auxiliary "do" to form questions (e.g., "Did you see it?").

How do Polish wh-questions differ from English wh-questions?

Polish does not use do-support or subject-auxiliary inversion (e.g., "Co kupiłeś?" vs. "What did you buy?").

What is V2 (verb-second) word order?

A word order rule where the finite verb appears in the second position in main clauses (e.g., German "Hast du den Film gesehen?").

What is the role of case marking in languages like Polish and Russian?

Case marking indicates grammatical roles (e.g., subject, object) independently of word order, allowing for flexible word order.

How does French form yes/no questions?

Through subject-verb inversion (e.g., "As-tu vu ce film?") or using "est-ce que" (e.g., "Est-ce que tu as vu ce film?").

What is Universal Grammar (UG)?

A theory proposing that human languages are constrained by shared cognitive principles, including general properties and parameters of variation.

What are the two main components of Universal Grammar?

Principles (general properties) and parameters (points of variation).

What is an example of a parameter in UG?

Null-subject vs. non-null-subject.

Why might the null-subject parameter be useful?

It helps classify languages based on whether they allow subject omission (e.g., Polish/Spanish vs. English).

Why might the null-subject parameter be too simple?

It ignores nuances like context-specific null subjects or discourse-pragmatic factors.

What is contrastive pragmatics?

The comparison of how languages express requests, apologies, refusals, compliments, disagreement, politeness, and social hierarchy.

What are the key concepts in contrastive pragmatics?

Politeness hierarchy, face orientation, formulaic routines, contextualization cues.

What is politeness hierarchy?

How strongly a language reflects age, rank, status, or institutional role.

What is face in pragmatics?

A person’s public social self-image, including positive face (desire to be liked) and negative face (desire for autonomy).

What is an example of a positive face threat?

Criticism or disagreement (e.g., "Nobody liked your idea").

What is an example of a negative face threat?

Requests or orders (e.g., "You must help me today").

What are formulaic routines?

Fixed or semi-fixed expressions for socially recognizable situations (e.g., "Itadakimasu" in Japanese before eating).

How do European and Asian pragmatics differ in refusal?

European contexts often use explicit but softened refusals, while Asian contexts often use indirect, delayed, or implied refusals.

What is a parallel corpus?

A corpus containing texts in two or more languages that are translations of each other, aligned at the sentence or word level.

What are the four types of corpora?

Monolingual, multilingual, parallel, comparable.

What is an example of a parallel corpus?

Europarl (European Parliament proceedings in 20+ languages).

What are the key features of parallel corpora?

Sentence- or word-level alignment, high-quality translations, used in linguistic analysis and machine translation.

What are the applications of parallel corpora?

Machine translation, domain-specific translation, cross-lingual information retrieval, bilingual lexicon extraction.

What are alignment challenges in parallel corpora?

Ambiguity, structural differences, idiomatic expressions, omissions/additions.

What can be analyzed in parallel corpora?

Translation shifts, syntactic differences, lexical choices, cultural nuances, idiomatic expressions, semantic scope.

Contrastive linguistics is primarily concerned with:

Comparing two or more languages systematically

What is NOT a typical goal of contrastive linguistics?

Discovering universal cognitive principles through language comparison

A contrastive analysis of English and Polish can be conducted at:

Multiple linguistic levels simultaneously

Which area of applied linguistics benefits directly from contrastive analysis?

All of the above

A learner says: “I have 20 years.” instead of “I am 20 years old.” This error is most likely due to:

Transfer from the first language

Phonology studies:

Sound systems

A phoneme is:

The smallest unit of sound that distinguishes meaning

Which pair demonstrates a phonemic contrast?

bat / pat

The term phonemic inventory refers to:

All sounds that distinguish meaning in a language

Which English consonant cluster would likely cause difficulty for speakers of languages with stricter phonotactic constraints?

/spl/

The fact that English permits street but some languages do not permit similar clusters is an example of:

Phonotactic constraints

A language that does not permit word-initial consonant clusters may adapt English school as:

eschool

Which statement is considered a phonological universal?

All languages distinguish vowels and consonants.

The contrast between ship and sheep illustrates:

Phonemic vowel distinction

A morpheme is:

The smallest meaningful or grammatical unit

Which language type relies heavily on word order and has little inflection?

Analytic

Which language is classified as predominantly agglutinative?

Turkish

Which language is presented as a synthetic/fusional language?

Polish

Which of the following is a free morpheme?

dog

Which of the following is a bound morpheme?

re-

In the word unhappiness, the prefix un- is:

Derivational

In the word walked, the suffix -ed is:

Inflectional

Examine the following forms: English: unhappiness, Polish: nie-szczęś-liwość

Both contain derivational morphemes that create new lexical meanings.

Which statement about agglutinative languages is most accurate?

Each morpheme tends to express one grammatical function.

Which process is illustrated by: unhappy, rewrite, nieprawda?

Prefixation

The English expression fan-bloody-tastic is an example of:

Infixation

A borrowing is:

A linguistic item transferred from one language to another

Which factor frequently motivates borrowing?

All of the above

Which example shows relatively low integration into Polish?

deadline

Which example shows high grammatical integration into Polish?

supportem

The Polish verb backupować demonstrates:

Morphological adaptation of a borrowing

The expression: “Zrobimy później research.” (We’ll do research later.) is best classified as:

Hybrid construction

The expression: “Zboostować post” (To boost a post) illustrates:

Aspectual prefixation applied to a borrowing

Lexicalization refers to:

Encoding conceptual meaning into lexical items

According to Talmy, lexicalization involves:

Compressing meaning into linguistic form

Which pair best illustrates lexicalization differences in motion?

run out / wybiec

English commonly expresses aspect through:

Periphrastic constructions

Polish commonly lexicalizes aspect through:

Verb prefixes

Which pair best illustrates aspectual lexicalization in Polish?

czytać / przeczytać

English often encodes path in:

Particles

Which language is classified as predominantly SOV?

Japanese

Which language is presented as having relatively flexible word order?

Polish

Compare: English: I am going home. Polish: Idę do domu. This contrast illustrates:

Null-subject parameter

A language that allows omission of subject pronouns is:

Pro-drop

Which language from the course is NOT pro-drop?

English

Which sentence illustrates wh-fronting?

What did John buy?

Compare: English: What did you buy? Mandarin: You bought what? This contrast illustrates:

Different question-formation strategies

Contrastive pragmatics investigates differences in:

All of the above

A lecturer says: “Could you perhaps send me the document when you have a moment?” This utterance primarily demonstrates:

Negative politeness

A researcher wants to compare English originals and Polish translations sentence by sentence. Which resource is most appropriate?

Parallel corpus

The use of Japanese titles such as -san, -sensei, and -sama primarily signals:

Honorific and social relationships

Which statement best characterizes a common contrast between many European and East Asian politeness systems discussed in class?

East Asian languages tend to place greater emphasis on hierarchy, honorifics, and indirectness.

A Korean student uses a more formal speech level when speaking to an older lecturer than when speaking to a classmate. This is primarily an example of:

Register variation based on social hierarchy

Which scenario best illustrates the concept of face orientation?

Avoiding public criticism in order to protect another person’s social image.