Question 1

_______________ grammars are also known as right-linear grammars, because every rewrite rule can only be of the form A --> B or A --> x B, where x is a terminal element. This produces right-branching tree structures.

A)Type 2
B)Type 3
C)Type 1
D)Type 0
E)Type 4

B

Accepted Answer

The given description matches with Type 3 grammars, which are also known as regular grammars. These grammars have only right-linear or left-linear rewrite rules, and right-linear rules produce right-branching trees. Type 2 grammars have context-free rewrite rules of the form A --> α, where α can be a combination of terminals and non-terminals, and can produce trees with any branching. Type 1 and Type 0 grammars have more complex rules and can produce even more complex tree structures. Type 4 grammars are the simplest, with only a single non-terminal and produce a finite language.

Question 2

Vowels are made by:&#10;A)Closing or restricting some part of the vocal tract at the beginning or the end&#10;B)Modifying the shape of the vocal tract, which remains more or less open while the sound is being produced&#10;C)Putting the front of the tongue on the alveolar ridge&#10;D)Putting the tongue to the middle of the palate&#10;E)Putting the tongue towards the front of the hard part of the roof of the mouth, the palate, near the alveolar ridge

Accepted Answer

Vowels are produced by modifying the shape of the vocal tract, which remains more or less open while the sound is being produced. The other options describe how consonants are produced, not vowels.

Question 3

The peaks of energy at particular frequencies are called:&#10;A)Recursions&#10;B)Formants&#10;C)Allophones&#10;D)Diphthongs&#10;E)Syllables

Accepted Answer

Peaks of energy at particular frequencies in speech signals are called formants. They are produced by the resonant frequencies of the vocal tract and play an important role in speech perception and speech recognition.

Question 4

Nouns are words that are used to:&#10;A)Describe things&#10;B)Describe actions or states, or assertions&#10;C)Name concrete objects and ideas only&#10;D)Name objects and ideas, both concrete and abstract&#10;E)Name abstract objects and ideas only

Accepted Answer

Nouns can name both concrete objects, such as "desk" or "apple," and abstract ideas, such as "happiness" or "justice." They can also be used to describe things, but that is not their primary function. Additionally, while nouns can be used in asserting something, they themselves do not describe actions or states.

Question 5

For Chomsky, E-language linguistics is about:&#10;A)Collecting samples of language and understanding their properties; in particular it is about describing the regularities of a language in the form of a grammar&#10;B)Producing a grammar that describes our knowledge of the language, not the sentences we actually produce&#10;C)What speakers know about their language&#10;D)Linguistic competence&#10;E)Mental phenomena

Accepted Answer

E-language linguistics, according to Chomsky, focuses on the external properties of language, such as collecting samples and describing regularities, rather than internal mental representations or competence.

Question 6

Words can be divided into syllables, and syllables into _________ and_________.&#10;A)Onset; rimes&#10;B)Phrases; clauses&#10;C)Open-class items; closed-class items&#10;D)Rimes; allophones&#10;E)Formants; allophones

Accepted Answer

Onset refers to the initial consonant or consonant blend of a syllable, while rime refers to the vowel sound and any consonants that follow it.

Question 7

In a phrase-structure grammar, there are two main types of symbol: ________________ (consisting of vocabulary items or words), and _________________ (everything else)&#10;A)Classes; non-classes&#10;B)Functional words; non-functional words&#10;C)Functional words; content words&#10;D)Content words; non-content words&#10;E)Terminal elements; non-terminal elements

Accepted Answer

In a phrase-structure grammar, the symbols that represent actual vocabulary items or words are called terminal elements because they appear at the end of a branch in a parse tree. Everything else, such as phrases and other intermediate structures, are called non-terminal elements because they can be further expanded into smaller structures. Therefore, the best choice is E, which refers to the distinction between terminal elements and non-terminal elements.

Question 8

The basic unit of sound in a particular language is a:&#10;A)Formant&#10;B)Subject&#10;C)Phoneme&#10;D)Vowel&#10;E)Consonant

Accepted Answer

The basic unit of sound in a particular language is called a phoneme. It is the smallest unit of sound that can differentiate words in a language. Consonants and vowels are sounds that make up phonemes. Formants are frequencies of sound that determine the quality of vowels, and subject is a grammatical element in a sentence.

Question 9

The study of different types of grammar and the devices that are necessary to produce them is part of the branch of mathematical linguistics or computational theory called:&#10;A)Linguistic theory&#10;B)Automata theory&#10;C)Phonetics&#10;D)Syntax&#10;E)Phonology

Accepted Answer

The study of grammar and the devices used to produce it falls under the purview of automata theory, which deals with the abstract computation models that underlie language structures. Other options like Linguistic Theory, Phonetics, and Phonology may be tangentially related to the study of language and its structures but do not specifically deal with the mathematical modeling of grammatical rules and their execution using abstract computational models. Syntax, while more similar to automata theory than other options, specifically concerns itself with sentence formation and word order, whereas automata theory deals with the broader set of rules that govern language as a whole.

Question 10

Which of the following describes the acoustic detail of speech sounds and how they are articulated?&#10;A)Allophones&#10;B)Phonology&#10;C)Phonetics&#10;D)Formants&#10;E)Acoustics

Accepted Answer

Phonetics is the branch of linguistics that deals with the physical properties of speech sounds and how they are produced, transmitted and perceived. It focuses on the articulatory, acoustic and auditory aspects of speech sounds. Allophones refer to the variations in speech sounds that are not distinctive enough to change the meaning of words, while phonology is the study of the sound patterns and rules that govern how sounds are combined into words. Formants are frequency bands that are enhanced by the vocal tract during speech production, and acoustics is the study of sound waves and their properties. Phonetics specifically deals with the acoustic detail of speech sounds and their articulation.

Question 11

Function words include:&#10;A)Determiners, conjunctions, prepositions, and pronouns&#10;B)Prepositions and pronouns only&#10;C)Determiners and conjunctions only&#10;D)Nouns, adjectives, verbs, and most adverbs&#10;E)Adverbs and verbs only

Accepted Answer

The answer of Function words include:&#10;A)Determiners, conjunctions, prepositions, and pronouns&#10;B)Prepositions...

Question 12

Words are divided into rhythmic units called:&#10;A)Consonants&#10;B)Minimal pairs&#10;C)Phonemes&#10;D)Syllables&#10;E)Dialects

Accepted Answer

The answer of Words are divided into rhythmic units called:&#10;A)Consonants&#10;B)Minimal...

Question 13

Fricatives are formed by:&#10;A)Constricting the airstream so that air rushes through with a hissing sound (e.g., &#34;f&#34;, &#34;v&#34;, &#34;s&#34;)&#10;B)A combination of a brief stopping of the airstream followed by a constriction (e.g., &#34;w&#34;, &#34;x&#34;)&#10;C)Allowing air to flow around the tongue as it touches the alveolar ridge (e.g., &#34;l&#34;, &#34;r&#34;)&#10;D)Allowing air to flow out through the nose to produce nasal sounds (e.g., &#34;m&#34;, &#34;n&#34;)&#10;E)Interrupting airflow completely for a short time (e.g., &#34;p&#34;, &#34;b&#34;, &#34;t&#34;, &#34;d&#34;)

Accepted Answer

The answer of Fricatives are formed by:&#10;A)Constricting the airstream so...

Question 14

What occurs when a rule uses a version of itself in its definition?&#10;A)Parsing&#10;B)Diphthongs&#10;C)Automations&#10;D)Recursion&#10;E)Traces

Accepted Answer

The answer of What occurs when a rule uses a...

Question 15

Constriction of the larynx at the glottis produces a:&#10;A)Palatal sound&#10;B)Voiceless glottal fricative&#10;C)Postalveolar sound&#10;D)Voiced glottal fricative&#10;E)Velar

Accepted Answer

The answer of Constriction of the larynx at the glottis...

Question 16

The contrasting features needed to describe sounds are known as:&#10;A)Suprasegmental features&#10;B)Articulation features&#10;C)Binding features&#10;D)Embedded features&#10;E)Distinctive features

Accepted Answer

The answer of The contrasting features needed to describe sounds...

Question 17

The place where the vocal tract is closed or constricted is known as the:&#10;A)Place of voicing&#10;B)Manner of articulation&#10;C)Place of articulation&#10;D)Manner of voicing&#10;E)Place of linguistic performance

Accepted Answer

The answer of The place where the vocal tract is...

Question 18

The term &#34;minimal pairs&#34; is used for two words in a language that:&#10;A)Differ by just one sound&#10;B)Are not exactly the same, but are somewhat similar in meaning&#10;C)Mean the same until one letter is added&#10;D)Are different until one letter is added to make them the same&#10;E)Differ completely in sound but mean the same

Accepted Answer

The answer of The term &#34;minimal pairs&#34; is used for...

Question 19

The &#34;p&#34; sound in &#34;pin&#34; is said to be_____________, and that in &#34;spin&#34;______________.&#10;A)Articulatory; auditory&#10;B)Stressed; unstressed&#10;C)Unaspirated; aspirated&#10;D)Aspirated; unaspirated&#10;E)Unstressed; stressed

Accepted Answer

The answer of The &#34;p&#34; sound in &#34;pin&#34; is said...

Question 20

Auditory phonetics emphasizes:&#10;A)How sounds are perceived&#10;B)How sound is produced&#10;C)The frequency of sound&#10;D)The pitch of sound&#10;E)How sounds are shaped by the vocal tract

Accepted Answer

The answer of Auditory phonetics emphasizes:&#10;A)How sounds are perceived&#10;B)How sound...

Deck 2: Describing Language