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.
- Empiricist linguistics is concerned with:
- Which two features of Chomsky's definition of grammar are drawn from mathematics? A. Complexity B. Abstraction C. Transformation D. Generation
- 'Potato' is a sixteenth-century borrowing into English from:
- Which term refers to a sound or sound cluster associated with a particular meaning?
- When stable bilinguals use English as a link language alongside their first language in defined contexts, English performs which function?
- Which of the following statements about 'performance' in linguistic theory are true? A. It is analogous to Saussure's langue. B. It is the specific utterances of speakers in actual situations. C. It is the innate gramma…
- Statement I: Linguists, interested in the scientific study of language, approach it dispassionately. Statement II: Linguists are necessarily polyglots who bring their own biases.
- Arrange the following brain areas in the order in which they are involved in hearing, understanding and then saying a word: A. Arcuate fasciculus B. Broca's area (anterior speech cortex) C. Motor cortex D. Wernicke's ar…
- The loss of a vowel within a word is called:
- Who founded the Survey of English Usage?
- Assertion (A): English is now a subject that makes learners subtle, tough-minded readers. Reason (R): Students study the historical and ontological status of texts.
- How does a metaphor differ from a simile?
- 'Nice day again, isn't it?' is an example of:
- Which two of the following words came into English from Czech? A. Pistol B. Robot C. Sauna D. Coach
- Match List I with List II: List I: Word List II: Source A. Caste I. Old Norse B. Beef II. German C. Blunder III. Portuguese D. Flak IV. French
- Which two meanings are admissible for 'You do not know how good oysters taste'? A. How good oysters are to eat B. How oysters taste when cooked C. What oysters taste when they eat D. How good oysters (good ones) taste t…
- The ability of language to refer to things not present in the immediate environment is called:
- Which of the following statements about pidgins and creoles are true? A. A pidgin becomes a creole and then a first language. B. A creole begins as a pidgin and becomes a first language. C. A pidgin is simple but rule-g…
- Match List I with List II: List I: English word List II: Source language A. Mongoose I. Tamil B. Loot II. Malayalam C. Curry III. Hindi D. Betel IV. Marathi
- Which best explains 'paralanguage'?
- Which two statements apply to 'metalanguage'? A. It is a technical language describing the properties of language. B. It is a 'first-order' language. C. It is a 'second-order' language that replaces a first-order langua…
- Which statement about Saussure's langue and parole is correct?
- Who proposed the terms 'competence' and 'performance'?
- Assertion (A): Signs are never neutral or innocent. Reason (R): Signs are organised into systems that convey meaning in all cases.
- Which statement defines the scope of semiotics?
- Match List I with List II: List I: Linguist List II: Concept A. Paul Grice I. Language death B. Edward Sapir II. The linguistic sign C. Ferdinand de Saussure III. Linguistic relativity D. Nancy Dorian IV. The cooperativ…
- Who coined 'the medium is the message'?
- Which two statements are admissible about 'Hari wrote a poem on the mountains'? A. It shows lexical ambiguity. B. It shows structural ambiguity. C. It has two deep structures. D. It has two surface structures.