Types of Content

Intended Audience Linguistic Features Example

Register Communicated
Strangers or General
persons in socially information;
Use of standard language; Conversation
Formal formal situations carefully screen
complete sentences between
such as at thoughts and
ceremonies feelings
Acquaintances, General
Use of standard and non-
peers, colleagues information and Conversations
Casual standard features. Use of
and people who non-personal between school
(Informal) slangs, colloquialisms and
are not close thoughts and friends
ellipsis
friends feelings
Incomplete sentences and
Conversations
Very close ellipsis; slangs; coded language
between a mother
acquaintances and Personal thoughts (example nicknames, terms of
Intimate and daughter or
relatives/family and feelings endearment) and specialized
between best
members vocabulary; greater reliance on
friends
non-verbal elements
Innermost
thoughts, Use of standard and non-
Self-talk and
Private Intra-personal: Self impressions, standard features. Use of slangs
musings
reflections and and ellipsis
feelings to oneself
Can be
appropriate to Standard Prayers,
Can be appropriate
communicate May possess standard and non- Creeds, Legal
Frozen for formal and
general standard features of language documents, Print
informal situations
information or Media
personal thought
Can be appropriate
for formal and Teacher-student
Appropriate for
informal discourse May possess standard and non- conversations,
general
in which the standard features of language. Doctor-patient
Consultative information or
listener is expected May involve non-verbal conversation,
personal
to give continuous elements Business
information
feedback to the transactions
speaker