1、Classification of English Vocabulary,ContentsI. Classification by origin: native words, loan words II. Classification by level of usage: common, literary (archaic and poetical), colloquial, slang, technical, jargonIII. Classification by notion: function (or structural) words and content (or full) wo
2、rds,1,08词汇学week 2 Classification of English vocabulary,Characteristics1) Mainly of Anglo-Saxon origin 2) Mostly monosyllabic3) Forming the basic stock of the E vocabulary, including auxiliary verbs, numerals, pronoun, prepositions, conjunctions, etc.4) High frequency in daily use: 70 to 90%5) Mostly
3、 essential to daily life, e.g. sun, moon, rain, night, morning, here, there, horse, dog, tree, flower, head, hand, foot, big, small, red, white, live, eat, work, etc,By origin : native words,2,08词汇学week 2 Classification of English vocabulary,6) National character: known to all native speakers, natur
4、alized in usage, conforming to native E accent and spelling 7) Stability: small number dropped off or entering the basic stock, e.g.arrow, bow (dropped off); machine, bus, car, computer (entering)8) Strong word forming power, e.g. handful, handy, handily, handbag, handball, handwriting9) Active in c
5、ollocation, e.g.at first hand 第一手地, 直接地hand in handto show ones hand 摊牌to play into sbs hands 故意使得利，为谋 利 (Nearly 90 set phrases with hand as head word in them are found in one dictionary.),By origin : native words,3,08词汇学week 2 Classification of English vocabulary,Characteristics 1. Appearing to ove
6、rshadow the native words: About 80% of the entries in an average dictionary are of foreign origin. 2. Overshadowed by native words considering the frequencies of use: 7090% of the words, counted every time used, are of the native origin.Nine most frequently used words: and, be, have, it, of, the, to
7、, will, you,By origin : native words,4,08词汇学week 2 Classification of English vocabulary,08词汇学week 2 Classification of English vocabulary,II. Classification By Level of Usage,Common wordsLiterary (archaic and poetical) wordsColloquial wordsSlang wordsTechnical words,By Level of Usage: Common and Lite
8、rary words,1. Common or popular words connected with the ordinary things or activities making up the biggest part of the vocabulary with its core as the basic word stock stylistically neutral and hence appropriate in both formal and informal writing and speech 2. Literary (archaic and poetical) word
9、s: chiefly used in writing, formal and elevated in style,1) Words identical in reference but different in style occurring in the same passage:“a Minister of the Crown may foresee the advantages of his policy and outline it to his colleagues but in presenting it to Parliament he may visualize the fir
10、st and adumbrate the second.”foresee, outline: common words appropriate in talking or writing to ones colleaguesvisualize, adumbrate: literary words used on formal occasions,Comparing the common and the literary word,7,08词汇学week 2 Classification of English vocabulary,2) Two sentences same in meaning
11、 but different in style:Feeling fatigued, Tom retired early.Tome went to bed early because he felt tired. 3) A short list of two kinds of words: adumbrate / outline albeit / thoughcast / throw edifice / buildingendeavor / try locate / findmatrimony / marriage purchase / buy,Comparing the common and
12、the literary word,8,08词汇学week 2 Classification of English vocabulary,4) Special effects of literary words used in ordinary conversation: pretentious or jocular, e.g.Do not open the portal. (Dont open the door.)Have you perused the paper thin morning? (Have you read the paper this morning?)Apprise me
13、 of the result of your deliberation. (Please tell me your decision.),Comparing the common and the literary word,9,08词汇学week 2 Classification of English vocabulary,Archaic words: words no longer in common use, although still retained for poetry, business letters legal documents, religious speeches an
14、d prose, e.g. abed (in bed); behold (see); belike (probable); natheless (nevertheless); perchance (by chance, possibly); quoth (say),Two types of literary words: archaic and poetic,10,08词汇学week 2 Classification of English vocabulary,Obsolete words: words out of use because things named by them have
15、completely disappeared from social life, e.g. chaise: any of various light, open carriages, often with a collapsible hood, especially a two-wheeled carriage drawn by one horse landau: a four-wheeled carriage with front and back passenger seats that face each other and a roof in two sections that can
16、 be lowered or detached Victoria: A low, light four-wheeled carriage for two with a folding top and an elevated drivers seat in front. curricle: a light, open, two-wheeled carriage, drawn by two horses abreast. gig: a light, two-wheeled carriage drawn by one horseAll are horse-drawn vehicles in the
17、19th century.,Distinguishing archaic and obsolete ( dead) words,11,08词汇学week 2 Classification of English vocabulary,II. By Level of Usage,12,08词汇学week 2 Classification of English vocabulary,1. Poetical words: traditionally used only in poetry, e.g. array: outfit, dress; the deep: the seastead: horse
18、; morn: morning 2. Words both archaic and poetical pronominal forms (most commonly found): thou (you, singular and subjective case), thee (you, singular and objective case), thy (your), thine (yours), ye (you, plural) Other words: aught (anything), betwixt (between), naught (nothing), main (mainland
19、), vale (valley), yon (over there),II. By Level of Usage,Two types of literary words: archaic and poetic,2.5.4 A poem using poetic words:Behold her, single in the field, Yon solitary Highland lass!Reaping and singing by herself;Stop here, or gently pass!Alone she cuts and binds the grain, And sings
20、a melancholy strain;O listen! For the vale profoundIs overflowing with the sound. W. Wordsworth: The Solitary Reaper (the first stanza),II. By Level of Usage,13,08词汇学week 2 Classification of English vocabulary,Colloquial words: used mainly in speaking to colleagues or friends and in informal writing
21、s Two pairs of sentences illustrating the difference between the use of literary and colloquial words and that between common and colloquial words:1) Feeling fatigued, Tom retired early. (Literary)1) Tom felt so dog-tired he hit the sack early. (Colloquial) 2) John was dismissed for petty thieving.
22、(Common)2) John was fired for petty thieving. (Colloquial),By Level of Usage: Colloquial words,14,08词汇学week 2 Classification of English vocabulary,Slang words: words of a vigorous, colourful, factitious, or taboo nature, invented for specific occasions, or uses, or derived from the unconventional us
23、e of the standard vocabulary, e.g. buzz（打电话）, knockout 引人注目的人或物, nuthouse 精神病院, play hooky逃学 Distinguishing the slang and the colloquial words: Slang words are usually found in colloquial speech. Colloquial words are used on informal occasions, whereas slang words are not unless the speakers are on
24、intimate terms. Slang words used to be considered low and vulgar.,By Level of Usage: Slang words,15,08词汇学week 2 Classification of English vocabulary,Characteristics used in various special fields with function partly to denote things or processes which have no names in ordinary English and partly to
25、 increase precision in nomenclature (术语), such as electron, psychoanalysis mostly Latin or Greek in origin (actually as part of literary words) most remaining essentially foreign to outsiders, even to educated native speakers,By Level of Usage: Technical words,16,08词汇学week 2 Classification of Englis
26、h vocabulary,Discussing the use of technical words Examples Dr. Brown: Good morning, Mr. Smith. Can I take your coat? Awful weather, isnt it”? Do sit down, Cigarette? Dr. Smith: No, I dont smoke. Thank you. Dr. Brown: Well, Ive been looking into your enquiry about the corrosion trouble youve been ge
27、tting in the control valve. I think we have the answer. The most probable cause of corrosion at a metal-metal junction immersed in an ionized fluid is electrolytic.,By Level of Usage: Technical words,17,08词汇学week 2 Classification of English vocabulary,Discussion Four technical words found: corrosion
28、, control valve, metal-to metal junction, electrolytic This is everyday conversation. The use of the four words here indicates that technical words may also be used in everyday communication when it comes to a special subject. Proper use of technical words makes the speech precise and brief. Without
29、 using the word corrosion, for instance, wordy expressions like the process of eating into or wearing away gradually or by rusting or by the action of chemicals would have to used instead.,By Level of Usage: Technical words,18,08词汇学week 2 Classification of English vocabulary,By notion: function (or
30、structural) words and content (or full) words,Compare function words and content words Function words include categories of words like determiners, conjunctions, prepositions, auxiliaries, etc., which tend to be shorter than content words in spelling. Function words primarily serve as grammatical si
31、gnals or functional markers（功能标记）whereas content words are used to name objects, qualities, actions processes or states. (3) A function word does not have much lexical meaning, some having no lexical meaning at all, whereas a contend word has an independent lexical meaning. (4) Function words belong
32、 to the closed set whereas contend words the open set.,19,08词汇学week 2 Classification of English vocabulary,The closed set words are limited in number while the open unlimited The closed set words are stable and used by people of all occupations at all times, while the open active and going with chan
33、ging fashions and ideas 3) The closed set words have a much higher frequency in use while the open much lower 4) The closed set words seldom create new items or having existing items dropped out of use, while the open behaving in just the opposite ways,About close set and open set words,20,08词汇学week 2 Classification of English vocabulary,
