MTTC Elementary Education DETAILED SUMMARY

sentence while "To store went I" would not be acceptable English. Semantic ANSWER Not only does the grammatical structure of our language provide the needed clues for understanding, we also have a wealth of figurative language and rich description that adds color and nuance to our communication. Semantics refers to the ways in which a language conveys meaning.3 It is our understanding of semantics that allows us to recognize that someone who is "green with envy" has not changed hue, or that "having cold feet" has less to do with the appendage at the end of our legs and more to do with our anxiety about a new experience. Because semantics moves beyond the literal meaning of words and is culture-dependent, this is among the most difficult aspects of language for individuals who are not native speakers and even those who speak the same language but come from different cultures and convey meaning using words in unique ways. Anyone who has attempted to converse with a teenager in his own vernacular can appreciate the importance of sharing a semantic base for communicating clearly. Pragmatics ANSWER Pragmatics' refers to the ways the members of the speech community achieve their goals using language."4 The way we speak to our parents is