Language Classification and Morphology Concepts

The video tutorial explains morphemes, the smallest units of meaning in language, using the word 'inconceivable' as an example. It explores different language approaches to morphemes, ranging from isolating languages like Chinese to polysynthetic languages like Algonquian. The tutorial discusses the complexity of these languages and how children might find polysynthetic languages easier to learn due to redundancy. It also highlights challenges in classifying languages, noting that many don't fit neatly into categories.

What is the smallest unit of meaning in a language called?

• Phoneme

• Morpheme

• Syllable

• Lexeme

In the word 'inconceivable', which morpheme indicates negation?

• con-

• in-

• ceive

• -able

What is the primary difference between analytic and synthetic languages?

• Analytic languages use more prefixes.

• Synthetic languages use fewer suffixes.

• Synthetic languages have more separate words.

• Analytic languages have more separate words.

What does the spectrum from analytic to synthetic languages represent?

• The speed of language evolution

• The approach to handling morphemes

• The complexity of language grammar

• The number of words in a language

Which of the following is an example of an isolating language?

• Inuktitut

• Spanish

• Chinese

• Turkish

What is a characteristic of agglutinative languages?

• They use separate words for each morpheme.

• They have no prefixes or suffixes.

• They combine morphemes into long words.

• They use inflection to change word meaning.

What is a common feature of isolating languages?

• They have complex inflectional systems.

• They use many prefixes and suffixes.

• They combine morphemes into long words.

• Each morpheme is a separate word.

What does the term 'agglutinative' share its Latin roots with?

• Separate

• Mix

• Divide

• Glue

In fusional languages, what is unique about the morphemes added to words?

• They do not change the word's meaning.

• They affect the existing parts of the word.

• They are always at the end of the word.

• They are separate words.

What does the '-o' in the Spanish word 'hablo' signify?

• First person, plural, past

• Second person, singular, future

• First person, singular, present

• Third person, plural, past