HSMC-0101
UNIT-1
NEED & IMPORTANCE OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE
1. Business
2. Education
3. Career
4. Travel
5. Internet & Media
6. Develops connectivity among different people
7. Research & development
8. Language of information technology
9. Global communication
10. Expression known & understood by many/all
Dynamism in English language
Three pillars – Adaptibility, Complexity & growth & Development
● Quality of inheritance
● Constant evolution
● Constant & endless adaptive phenomena
● Change with time
● Adjustment attitude with culture, technological advancements & social interactions
● Quality of owing a psychology
● Meaning shifts
● Slang terms
MYTHS OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE
● To make it impressive
● Tense/ grammar is of ultimate and absolute importance
● Maximum use of hard words
● Uses of slangs makes English language strong
● Mandatory to have foreign accent
CONCEPT OF ROOT WORDS
The root words are the basic blocks of words.
List of root words along with their meaning
There are about 120 identified root words in the English language. These root words are often
derived from Greek and Latin.
How many roots can a word have?
● Simple words have one root, while compound words have two.
● In languages like Latin or Greek, where roots are bound, more than two roots can occur
in a word.
●
USES OF BASES AND AFFIX, MORPHEMES TO DEVELOP ENGLISH
LANGUAGE
In linguistics, a "base" is the core part of a word that holds its primary meaning, while an "affix"
is a letter or group of letters added to the beginning (prefix) or end (suffix) of a base to modify its
meaning, essentially building new words from a foundational base; think of the base "act" and
adding the suffix "-ion" to create "action" where "act" is the base and "-ion" is the affix.
Key points about bases and affixes:
● Base:
● Represents the core meaning of a word.
● Can stand alone as a complete word.
● Can be modified by adding affixes.
Affix:
● A morpheme (meaningful unit) that cannot stand alone and must be attached to a base.
● Includes prefixes (added to the beginning of a word) and suffixes (added to the end of a word).
Example:
● Word: "unhappy"
o Base: "happy"
o Affix: "un-" (prefix)
MORPHEMES- the smallest unit of meaning that a word in a particular language can be divided
into
The word ‘usual’ contains one morpheme but ‘un-usual-ly’ contains three.
ACQUANTANCE OF THE WORDS IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE
Words carry 2 types of meaning in themselves.
Literal meaning
Conceptual meaning
While literal meaning remains stagnant the conceptual meaning keeps evolving as per the uages
by the writer. According the conceptual meaning the words develop acquaintance with each
other.
Sometimes the words seem to be connected with eachother and are often used but in reality they
are completely different.
What are abbreviations in English?
An abbreviation is just a short version of a longer word or a phrase. For example, the word ad is
an abbreviation of advertisement, and the word don’t is an abbreviation of do not. Abbreviations
are prevalent in both speaking and writing. They’re present in most languages as well, so
abbreviations in English aren’t the only ones.
The purpose of abbreviations is to make communication more efficient by using smaller words.
This is most apparent in acronyms, one of the types of abbreviations we discuss below. An
acronym takes the first letter (or letters) of a set of words and adds them together to create a
brand-new word. In this way, an acronym replaces a long string of words with just a single one,
making communication that much easier.
The evolution of abbreviations in English
Abbreviations have a rich history, tracing back to ancient manuscripts and inscriptions. The rise
of the Telegraph in the 19th century marked a significant increase in their use, as quick, concise
messages were crucial.
This trend continued with the introduction of the internet and social media, helping people cope
with the fast pace of modern communication.
Types of abbreviations: What are the 5 abbreviation types?
There are a few different ways to shorten words, and not all of them can be used on every word.
Before we discuss the types of abbreviations individually, here’s a quick list of them so you
know what to expect. We’ll describe how each of these terms is commonly used, but you should
be aware that exact definitions sometimes vary.
1 Clipping: removing entire syllables to make words shorter
Clipping refers to the removal of entire syllables from words, usually from the end. What’s left is
typically one or two syllables that people can still easily recognize. Clipping is so common that
often the abbreviation is much more popular than the full version of the word. It’s also frequently
used with people’s names to create nicknames.
Clipping does not usually require additional punctuation. In formal writing like research papers,
spelling out the entire word is preferred, and clipping is avoided; this often applies to
contractions as well.
Clipping abbreviation examples
● ad (advertisement)
● exam (examination)
● app (application)
● rhino (rhinoceros)
● flu (influenza)
● Liz or Beth (Elizabeth)
2 Contractions: removing certain letters to make words shorter, and sometimes combining two
or more words, with missing letters replaced by an apostrophe
Contractions are one of the most common types of abbreviations. It involves removing individual
letters, instead of entire syllables as in clipping. You might be familiar with contractions that use
the apostrophe, like can’t or you’re, but these aren’t the only contractions.
A lot of contractions use punctuation to show that a word has been shortened, usually a period or
apostrophe. Formal titles often use a period to form a contraction, such as Dr. for doctor, and
months often do the same, like Jan. for January (which also incorporates clipping).
Contractions are also normal when writing addresses,
like St. for Street or Apt. for Apartment. Typically abbreviations are used for proper names in
addresses, whereas they are not used to replace words used generically. For example,
it’s incorrect to write, “What st. do you live on?”
Not all contractions use punctuation, however. For example, cm for centimeter does not use any
punctuation, while in stands for inches. The punctuation used with a unit of measurement is
related to the style being followed, so always double-check the proper way to write a contraction
if you are uncertain.
It’s also worth noting that some contractions use letters that aren’t even in the original word. For
example, the contraction lbs. for the unit of mass pounds uses letters from the outdated Latin
word libra.
Contraction abbreviation examples
● can’t (cannot)
● could’ve (could have)
● it’s (it is or it has)
● I’ll (I will)
● Mr. and Mrs. (Mister and Missus)
● Dr. (doctor)
● Jan. (January)
● Ave. (Avenue)
● Apt. (Apartment)
● pt (pint)
● in (inch)
● lbs (pounds)
● ft (foot or feet)
3 Initialism: combining the first letters of multiple words, with the result pronounced as
individual letters
An initialism is simply the use of initials—using the first letter of a word to represent the entire
word. Initialism is quite common for names, both of people and organizations, as a way to
shorten long strings of words, especially in writing. For example, the author of The Lord of the
Rings, John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, is more popularly known as J. R. R. Tolkien.
When speaking, pronounce initialisms by saying the name of each letter. This is the primary
difference between initialisms and acronyms, with acronyms pronounced like words.
Initialisms may or may not use periods after the letters. Traditionally periods have been used to
signal an abbreviation, such as U.S.A., but more modern writing tends to abandon the periods for
the sake of brevity, as in USA.
If initials are used to abbreviate the entire name of a person, do not use periods; for example, if
you’re abbreviating Martin Luther King, use MLK, not M. L. K.
Initialism abbreviation examples
● FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigation)
● UFO (Unidentified Flying Object)
● CEO (Chief Executive Officer)
● CCTV (Closed Circuit TeleVision)
● FDR (Franklin Delano Roosevelt)
● MBA (Master of Business Administration)
● FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)
4 Acronyms: combining the first letters of multiple words, with the result pronounced as a new
word
Just like initialism, acronyms combine the first letters of multiple words. However, the big
difference is that these letters are pronounced together like a brand-new word, instead of saying
each letter separately.
Abbreviations in English use acronyms more than you might think. For example, did you know
the word laser is an acronym for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation?
Acronyms like laser are used so often, people tend to forget the words they’re supposed to
represent.
Acronyms can be either capitalized or lowercase, depending on the word. If you’re unsure about
which form to use, consult a dictionary.
Acronym abbreviation examples
● PIN (Personal Identification Number)
● NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration)
● RAM (Random Access Memory)
● scuba (Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus)
● radar (RAdio Detection And Ranging)
● zip code (Zone Improvement Plan code)
5 Textese (online slang): a modern form of communication that uses individual letters, numbers,
and symbols to reduce typing time
Last is the most recent addition to the types of abbreviations: online slang, or textese as it’s
commonly known. Textese was born out of a need to speed up typing time on computers, mobile
phones, and similar devices. The idea is to use minimal characters to represent words so you can
send a message faster, such as typing U instead of you.
Textese is a broad term that covers any kind of typed communication, from phone texting
to email acronyms. Textese draws on the other types of abbreviations, sometimes using initialism
(irl for in real life), sometimes using contractions (bc for because), and sometimes inventing
entirely new words by combining letters and numbers based on sounds (gr8 for great).
Because it’s a type of slang, there are no real grammar or formality rules—the more you practice
it, the faster you learn it.
Textese abbreviation examples
● lol (laugh out loud)
● btw (by the way)
● imo (in my opinion)
● idk (I don’t know)
● wat (what)
● bc (because)
● wknd (weekend)
IMPORTANT CONCEPTUAL QUESTIONS
1. What is the role of root words in the English speaking approach of a
common man?
2. Why do we need prefixes and suffixes in English language?
3. Mention 5 root words mention their origin and create 6 words from it 3 by
using prefix and 3 by using suffix.
4. How does the root words develop aquataince in English language?
5. How do we create standard abbreviations of common words?
6. Which feature of synonyms makes the usage of synonyms complex?
7. Define base, morphemes and affix.
8. Identify base, morphemes and affix from the given words.
9. What is the usefuleness of adaptatibility in eng language?
10. Explain with example how the English words adapted, grew and
developed with time.
11. Explain how English language has the ability of owing the psychology.
12. Define the role of morphemes, prefix and suffix in root words/English
langauge.
13. Explain the relevance of abbreviations in English language.
14. Mention the benefits, uses, strength of abbreviations.