ELEMENTS OF A COMMUNICATION
refers to delivering messages without words. It includes the
Lexical Component
- The lexical or verbal component of communication refers
to the word or chain of words used to create meaning.
Lexical components are words, parts of words, phrasal
verbs, collocations, idioms, and sentence frames.
- When using verbal or lexical communication you should
choose words carefully. to make the right impression.
Using the right words is paramount in enhancing your
message or in being understood, the reason it is important
to understand the lexical component of communication.
1. Words
- are a unique meaningful component of speech. Words
may be used alone or with others to form a sentence.
- Examples: woman, collect, animals, flying, plants, sick
2. Parts of words
- denote a single letter, a prefix, or a suffix added to words.
- Examples: s in animals, ly in timely, un in untold, ence in
difference, er in speaker, ed in patented
3. Phrasal verbs
- are verbs followed by a preposition or an adverb adverb
- Examples: point out (to direct attention to something) The
teacher pointed out the glitch in their programming, fill out
(to complete a form) Please do not forget to fill out the
evaluation form, pass away (to die) He passed away last
year., clamp down on (to strictly prevent something) The
barangay officials decided to clamp down on the sidewalk
vendors. dress up (to wear elegant clothes)
4. Collocations
- are a pair or group of words paired habitually, that they
sound correct together.
- Examples: major problem (a big problem) His absence
created a major problem., strong coffee (coffee with a
strong flavor or strong caffeine) Espresso is an example of
a strong coffee., heavy drinker (somebody who consumes
more than recommended) My father is a heavy drinker.,
keep in mind (to remember something or someone)
Always keep me in mind.
5. Sentence
- frames are a group of words that provide a structure or a
skeleton for a complete sentence.
- Examples: Acknowledging ideas
My idea is similar to/related to ___________’s idea. I
agree with ___________ that ___________.
Predicting I hypothesize that ___________. Based on
___________ I infer that ___________.
Paraphrasing So, you are saying that ___________.
What I hear you saying is ___________. Holding the floor
As I was saying ___________. What I was trying to say
was ___________.
Individual reporting I discovered from ___________ that
___________. ___________ pointed out to me that
___________.
Non- lexical Component
You have learned the importance of the non-lexical component of
communication from previous lessons. Understanding the proper
use of non-lexical or nonverbal communication is an advantage for
you as a communicator.
The non-lexical or nonverbal component of communication
following:
1. Body language - is a kind of non-lexical communication where
you express ideas or messages using your body. It includes
gestures, facial expressions, eye contact, and body stance.
● Gestures are usually, hand or head movements that
indicate a specific meaning or support an idea so you can
better persuade your audience.
Examples: The "okay sign." You can do this sign by
joining your thumb and forefinger in a circle. The
remaining fingers should be straight. Generally, we
understand this gesture to mean everything is fine or what
you did was good. But this gesture has different meanings
in some countries, like Iran, Brazil, and Europe; this is an
obscene gesture or an insult, especially if the three
remaining fingers are separated.
The nod. You can do this by tilting your head up and
down. Generally, this gesture is an expression of
approval, but in Bulgaria, when the head is shaken quickly,
it means that the person doing it is asking you to move
along with the topic.
● Facial expressions are body language using facial
muscles. Even without uttering a word, you can transmit
your thoughts to others via facial expressions. It usually
shows emotions such as anger, surprise, contempt etc.
There are four techniques for managing facial
expressions:
1. Intensify. This technique involves using exaggerated
facial muscles to show strong emotions.
Example: A real estate agent closing a deal with a client
might smile broadly with raised eyebrows. She intensifies
her facial expression to show strong emotion, happiness
2. De-intensify. This technique involves controlling your
feelings because you might hurt someone, or you do not
want people to notice how you feel.
Example: An employee recently promoted might smile
less or look less happy if he finds out about the demotion
of his colleague. He is de-intensifying his feelings.
3. Neutralize. This technique involves not showing any
feelings while talking to somebody.
Example: A boss is reprimanding an employee because
the project did not turn out well. This employee may
neutralize his expression by not showing any facial
expression.
4. Mask. This technique involves wanting to convince
somebody to do something; when we ask a favor from that
person; or when we do not want to hurt his feelings.
Example: A salesperson is negotiating sponsorship for an
event. He might look absorbed and keen while listening to
the person he is talking with, but deep inside, he is not
interested in the product.
2. Proxemics - Proxemics, as coined by Hall[i], refers to the study
of people's use of space as à special elaboration of culture. In
non-lexical communication, it is your nearness or closeness to the
audience. It is how you, as a speaker, use space when you
communicate. Consciously or unconsciously, you create a personal:
personal space when you interact or communicate with people.
According to Burgoon (1978), personal space is the "invisible,
variable volume of space surrounding an individual that defines that
individual's preferred distance from others
There are four proxemics zones, according to Hall (1966): the environmental conditions, then the receiver will not
intimate zone (0"-1.5"), the personal zone (1.5"-4"); the social understand, therefore, cannot adjust or adapt.
zone (4"-12"); and the public zone (12"- infinity). Each defines and
identifies the person or audience you communicate with. From the start of this chapter, we have reiterated the importance of
3. Paralanguage - is a kind of non-lexical component of non-lexical communication. This component of communication is
communication, that you use everyday, sometimes consciously and more noticeable than the lexical component. Verbal or lexical
other times unconsciously. It alter the meaning and reflects your communication is just a small part of the communication flow,
impression of the person you are talking with also hints at the role therefore, you should not limit your development to only the lexical
and experiences you had with that person. or verbal component of communication.
There are three groups of paralanguages:
1. Vocal characterizers include the vocal aspect of the following The lexical component may have the structure of the message
actions yawning, whispering, snoring, yelling, laughing, smiling, you would like to convey, but the non-lexical component
crying, moaning, groaning, sucking, sneezing, sighing, and hiccups. greatly supports and makes (when used correctly) the spoken
Examples: When you see that most of your audience is yawning, it language clear.
may mean they are bored or uninterested. Whispering to your
friend while somebody is speaking may mean you are negatively
commenting about the speaker.
2. Vocal qualifiers include tone, tempo, rhythm, pitch, volume,
intensity, and extent.
Examples: Speaking fast in a high pitch may mean that you are
being defensive or you are lying. Speaking in a sing-song beat may
mean that you are nervous.
3. Vocal segregates include sounds like "uh-uh", "mmm", "uh", and
even silent pauses.
Examples: "uh-uh" may mean disapproval. "mmm" may mean you
do not believe what the speaker said.

4. Presuppositions - A presupposition is an assumption of

something you believe is implied in an utterance; it happens even
without confirmation. For successful communication, the context of
the utterance must be appropriate. A presupposition should be
mutually known or assumed by the speaker and the addressee.

Why do we have presuppositions? Presuppositions are linguistic

shorthand. When you use them, you lessen the words you say.
There is no need to explain every detail of the meaning of what you
are communicating. If there are no presuppositions, every idea you
try to communicate will be lengthy, entailing much time to send
something.
Examples: Gianni no longer enjoys dancing.
Presupposition: Gianni once enjoyed dancing. Jerych regrets
buying Ana's car.
Presupposition: Ana sold her car to Jerych. If I were a man, then I
would be a hunk.
Presupposition: The person is a woman.

5. Cultural and environmental conditions

- Culture, as defined by Merriam-Webster, refers to the
beliefs, customs, arts, etc., of a particular society, group,
place, or time. Since each nation or group has a unique
set of cultural traits, these may affect communication
between people from different countries. As an aspect of
nonverbal communication, environmental conditions refer
to the strength of the influence of various factors in a
particular place or time. The environment may
communicate nonverbal messages to a person, and how
this person interprets the messages may affect how he
would act.
- If the cultural and environmental conditions communicate
codes that the receiver can understand, then the receiver
can easily adjust or adapt. But if the receiver cannot
decode the message sent by the cultural and