Exercise on spelling pronunciation Before doing this ...

Contemporary Linguistics: An Introduction, 5th edition, Chapter 7: Exercises, 1

Exercise on spelling pronunciation

Before doing this exercise, you should have read the section on spelling pronunciation.

1. Place names are often subject to spelling pronunciation. Transcribe your pronunciation of the following words and then compare your pronunciation with that recommended by a good dictionary. Do you think any of your pronunciations qualify as spelling pronunciations?

a) Worcestershire b) Thames c) Edinburgh (Scotland; compare Edinburgh, Texas) d) Cannes (France) e) Newfoundland

Contemporary Linguistics: An Introduction, 5th edition, Chapter 7: Exercises, 2

Exercise on semantic change

Before doing this exercise, you should have read the section on [semantic change].

1. All of the following English words at one time had meanings that are

quite different from their current ones. Identify each of these semantic

changes as an instance of narrowing, broadening, amelioration,

pejoration, weakening, or shift.

Word

Earlier meaning

a) moody

`brave'

b) uncouth

`unknown'

c) aunt

`father's sister'

d) butcher

`one who slaughters goats'

e) witch

`male or female sorcerer'

f)

sly

`skillful'

g) accident

`an event'

h) argue

`make clear'

i)

carry

`transport by cart'

j)

grumble

`murmur, make low sounds'

k) shrewd

`depraved, wicked'

l)

praise

`set a value on'

m) ordeal

`trial by torture'

n) picture

`a painted likeness'

o) seduce

`persuade someone to desert his or her duty'

p) box

`a small container made of boxwood'

q) baggage `a worthless person'

r)

virtue

`qualities one expected of a man'

s) myth

`story'

t)

undertaker `one who undertakes'

u) hussy

`housewife'

v) astonish `strike by thunder'

w) write

`scratch'

x) quell

`kill'

Contemporary Linguistics: An Introduction, 5th edition, Chapter 7: Exercises, 3

Exercise on reconstruction

Before doing this exercise, you should have read the section on reconstruction in [naturalness].

1. Proto-Oceanic

Examine the data from Oceanic languages below, and:

i)

Make a list of correspondences of consonants among the four

languages.

ii) Write the protoforms for each word.

iii) Justify your choice of protoform on the basis of principles you have learned about.

Maori

a) pou

b) tapu

c) tai

d) takere

e) hono

f)

marama

g) kaho

Hawaiian pou kapu kani kaele hono malama

Samoan pou tapu tai taele fono malama

aho

aso

Fijian bou tabu tai takele vono malama

kaso

Gloss `post' `forbidden' `cry' `keel' `stay, sit' `light, moon, dawn' `thatch'

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