St. Vincent de Ferrer College of Camarin, Inc.

SVFC Compound,
San Vicente Ferrer St., Area D, Brgy. 178, Camarin, Caloocan City
Telephone Number: 668-25-75; Email address: svfccollegeofficial2001@gmail.com

MIDTERM EXAMINATION IN EL 100 – INTRO TO LINGUISTICS

SEPD (COLLEGE LEVEL)

Name:__________________________________ Date:________
Teacher: _______________________________ Score:_______

I. FILL IN THE BLANKS.

1.-2. ________________ language used by people who are deaf and they use their
____________ to communicate.
3. ________________ studies the structure of language.
4. _________________ are systems of communication and include not just human
language, but, for instance, gesture, music, art and dress as well.
5. ________________ this level focuses on the smallest unit of structure in language, the
phoneme.
6. ________________ the smallest unit of meaning in language.
7. _________________the larger body of sentences – in which a particular structure occur.
8. _________________ concerned less with how grammatical constructions are structured
and more with why they have the structure that they do.
9. _________________ studies involve investigating a language in its present form as it is
currently spoken and written.
10. ________________ examine the historical development of a language, taking into
consideration changes it has undergone over time.
11. _________________ languages whose existence has been established through the
process of linguistic reconstruction.
12. The process of examining languages, grouping them into language families, and
reconstructing ancestral languages is known as the
_________________________________.
13. _______________________ are words that are passed down the family tree as
languages change and develop and have proven extremely important for determining not
just which language are siblings within a language family but what the parent language of
the siblings languages might have looked like.
14. English is thought to have its origin around ___________________, when the Romans
ended their occupation of England.
15. ___________________ is a type of language shift.
 II. Convert the following active voice into passive voice. (page 10 of your
module)

1. The teacher praised him.

2. Alice posted the letter.
3. The police caught the thieves.
4. The fire damaged the building.
5. The wind blew down the trees.

III. ENUMERATION

1.-2. Two (2) structure of language according to Leech. Explain it briefly.

3-4. Two (2) additional function of Language that reflects the fact that language is
influenced by the social and linguistic contexts in which it is used.
5.-9. Five (5) distinct phases of English.

IV. Match the country in the left-hand column with the primary status of
English in that country listed in the right-hand column.

1. Germany a. native language

2. Australia b. second language
3. Ireland c. foreign language
4. Singapore
5. Japan
6. United States
7. England
8. Finland
9. Philippines
10. Korea

V. ESSAY
1. In most legal systems, which is more preferred to use? Is it oral contract or
written contract? Why?

2. Using your own understanding, explain the signs and signifying systems
(semiotic) according by Saussure.

3. Explain the larger context used in this situation using your own words. Interpret it
and analyze how language is structured. Explain who the superordinate is and
subordinate.
Child: I broked it.
Father: That’s ok. Let’s see if we can fix it.
4. What is the difference between prescriptivist and descriptivist approaches to
language study?

5. Differentiate between dialect and language. Give an example to support your

answer.

6. Discuss the following:

a. English as second language

b. English as foreign language
c. English as native language

7. Explain how English and Mandarin Chinese are typologically similar but genetically
different?

8. In many of his writings, John Simon laments that English is in decline. Does this
mean that English is undergoing the process of language death?

9. Differentiate the following and explain it.

a. Old English
b. Middle English
c. Early Modern English