Language and Linguistics – Previous Year Questions
118 questions from past UGC NET English papers, each with the correct answer. Open any question for its explanation.
- What is the space between the vocal folds called?
- Arrange the manners of articulation of English consonants by degree of stricture, from greatest to least: A. Close approximation B. Intermittent closure C. Complete closure with sudden release D. Complete closure with s…
- Which of the following is a functional morpheme?
- Match List I with List II: List I: Level List II: Concern A. Phonology I. Word systems of languages B. Morphology II. Sentence structure of languages C. Syntax III. Meaning D. Semantics IV. Sound systems of languages
- Arrange the words in ascending order of number of syllables: A. demonstrate B. orange C. girl D. agriculture E. relativity
- Which definition of a social variety of language is INCORRECT?
- Which statements about voiced and voiceless sounds are correct? A. All twenty vowels of English are voiced. B. With the vocal cords apart, voiceless sounds are produced. C. Rapid opening and closing of the vocal cords p…
- Assertion (A): All modern languages have words whose pronunciation echoes natural sounds. Reason (R): Early humans imitated sounds such as 'caw-caw' and 'coo-coo' and used them for the objects even when absent.
- In an English initial cluster of three consonants, the first is always:
- According to Saussure, what is the minimum number of persons needed to complete the speaking-circuit?
- Which Mughal ruler had infants raised in silence, with the result that they produced no speech?
- Who said that Sanskrit is 'more perfect than the Greek, more copious than the Latin, and more exquisitely refined than either'?
- If the glide is distinct enough to be heard, the vowel + glide will be treated as:
- The study of how humans acquire language and use it to speak and understand is called:
- The line 'Thou still unravish'd bride of quietness' presents which rhetorical figure?
- Identify the correct statements concerning the respective genre: A. An epistle is a letter-form literary genre. B. An epigraph is an inscription on a tomb. C. An epigram is a short, witty poem. D. An epitaph is a formal…
- Match List I with List II: List I: Term List II: Meaning A. Antonomasia I. Writings of doubtful authenticity B. Antiphrasis II. Using an epithet or title in place of a proper name C. Apocrypha III. A narrative of the mi…
- Which of the following statements are correct about litotes? A. It contains understatement for emphasis. B. It is not the opposite of hyperbole. C. It is used with laconic intentions. D. It is used with ironic intention…
- When was the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) developed and promulgated?
- The Grammar Translation Method in English language teaching stresses:
- Identify the correct statements about langue and parole: A. Langue is the abstract system of a language — its grammar. B. Parole is language actually produced by users, following langue. C. Langue is language produced b…
- The functional–communicative approach in English language teaching is in opposition to:
- Who used 'social fact' and 'collective consciousness' with reference to language? A. Franz Boas B. Leonard Bloomfield C. Émile Durkheim D. Noam Chomsky E. Ferdinand de Saussure
- Who wrote History of the European Languages?
- Match List I with List II: List I: Term List II: Meaning A. Langue I. Meaning conveyed (concept) B. Parole II. Socially shared language system C. Signifier III. Speech D. Signified IV. Word (sound-image)
- Which of the following are true of the 'abstract poem'? A. The term was coined by Edith Sitwell. B. Its words are chosen for their sound. C. Its words are chosen for imagery and symbolism. D. The term was coined by W. H…
- Match List I with List II: List I: Theory List II: Theorist A. Polysystem theory I. Ernst-August Gutt B. Relevance theory (in translation) II. Hans J. Vermeer C. Skopos theory III. Itamar Even-Zohar D. Covert translatio…
- Wittgenstein's view that the limits of language are the limits of thought means that: A. the structure of language defines its meaning B. intended meaning defines the structure of language C. what can be meaningfully sa…
- Phonetics deals with: A. the production of speech sounds B. the reception of speech sounds C. the transmission of speech sounds D. the patterning of speech sounds E. word formation
- Match List I with List II: List I: Item List II: Related term / author A. The Language Instinct I. Steven Pinker B. Reflections on Language II. Noam Chomsky C. A variety serving a specialised function in a multilingual…