Language语言思维导图

refers to the defining properties of human language that distinguish it from any animal system of communication

 refers to the ability that people have in making and comprehending indefinitely large quantities of sentences in their native language

Arbitrariness refers to the phenomenon that there is no motivated relationship between a linguistic form and its meaning

 Symbol refers to something such as an object, word, or sound that represents something else by association or convention

 Discreteness refers to the phenomenon that the sounds in a language are meaningfully distinct

 Displacement refers to the fact that human language can be used to talk about things that are not in the immediate situations of its users

The organization of language into two levels, one of sounds, the other of meaning, is known as duality of structure

 Culture transmission refers to the fact that language is passed on from one generation to the next through teaching and learning, rather than by inheritance

 Interchangeability means that any human being can be both a producer and a receiver of messages

Language is a system of arbitrary vocal symbols used for human communication. This definition has captured the main features of language.

1) Productivity. 

2) Discreteness.

3) Displacement

4) Arbitrariness.

5) Cultural transmission

6) Duality of structure.

7) Interchangeability

Halliday uses the following terms to refer to the initial functions of children’s language

Adult language has three functional components as following