Is English full of lonely words? | Linguistic tricks for learning words

Is English full of lonely words? | Linguistic tricks for learning words

In this brilliantly nerdy episode, Christina and Dominic explore those English words that seem to stand all on their own, with no linguistic parents or children in sight. But wait—are they really that isolated? Discover unexpected word families and the hidden building blocks of language. Learn why “annual” sounds fancier than “yearly,” why mnemonics are your best friend, and how to decode big, scary words like “misinterpretation”.


Would you wear a ballgown or a costume to a “fancy dress” party?


Is “understand” really about standing under something?


What are the best tricks for learning vocabulary in a foreign language?


(Please post your favourite mnemonics in the comments!)


Dominic and Christina compare English and German words like “Handschuh” (hand-shoe = glove) and “Armbanduhr” (bracelet-clock = watch) and conclude that if you know where to look, words can reveal a whole hidden network of meaning.



Full episode transcript available here:


https://www.tu-chemnitz.de/phil/english/sections/edling/sciencecommunication/podcast-transcripts.php#Episode14



Read the complete book for free here:


Consociation and Dissociation: An Empirical Study of Word-Family Integration in English and German. By Christina Sanchez. www.doi.org/10.24053/9783823373841.



Mentioned in this episode:


“How anyone (including YOU) can read German” by RobWords (Rob Watts). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VebSZrHmsI4.



Remembering the Kanji by James W. Heisig. https://hep.ph.liv.ac.uk/~payne/sgfSigmaThing/James%20W.%20Heisig%20-%20Remembering%20Kanji%204%BA%20Edition%20-%20Vol%201.pdf.




Det här avsnittet är hämtat från ett öppet RSS-flöde och publiceras inte av Podme. Det kan innehålla reklam.

Avsnitt(24)

How much can you say with 100 words? | Phrasebooks as keys to new languages

How much can you say with 100 words? | Phrasebooks as keys to new languages

In this travel-ready episode of Linguistics Behind the Scenes, Christina and Dominic ask a deceptively simple question: if you could learn only 100 words of a language, which ones would you choose?- W...

25 Juni 39min

What can laughter teach us about language? | Cartoons and fun stories in linguistics

What can laughter teach us about language? | Cartoons and fun stories in linguistics

In this animated episode of Linguistics Behind the Scenes, Christina and Dominic explore how creative cartoons, comic strips and children’s shows can teach us about language, communication, cognition ...

8 Maj 49min

What is a "salad salad"? | Copies, quotes, and plagiarism

What is a "salad salad"? | Copies, quotes, and plagiarism

In this duplicative (but never dull) episode of Linguistics Behind the Scenes, Christinaand Dominic explore the fascinating world of copying – from plagiarism tophotocopies, and from fairy tales to “s...

27 Mars 38min

Can a robotic arm lose face? | The linguistics of politeness

Can a robotic arm lose face? | The linguistics of politeness

In this futuristic episode of Linguistics Behind the Scenes, Christina and Dominic investigate how we talk to machines – and what our language reveals about the way we see them.- Do we treat AI and ro...

20 Feb 1h

Does punctuation matter? | To hyphenate or not to hyphenate

Does punctuation matter? | To hyphenate or not to hyphenate

In this episode, Christina and Dominic make a point of exploring the tiny dots and lines that we find in writing. They uncover the history, humor, and hidden powers of punctuation marks – especially t...

3 Feb 44min

Are you working hard or hardly working? | Adverbs and data visualization

Are you working hard or hardly working? | Adverbs and data visualization

In this adverbially adventurous episode of Linguistics Behind the Scenes, Christina and Dominic dig deep into one of grammar’s dustiest drawers: the adverb category, which combines such different word...

12 Dec 202535min

What’s in a name? | How naming customs differ around the world

What’s in a name? | How naming customs differ around the world

In this episode, Christina and Dominic tackle the fascinating – and sometimes funny – ways names reflect identity, culture, and even fashion trends.- Can names have meaning, or do they just point to p...

2 Nov 202539min

Are cooking recipes about YOU and ME? | Cookbook linguistics

Are cooking recipes about YOU and ME? | Cookbook linguistics

In this deliciously geeky episode of Linguistics Behind the Scenes, Christina and Dominic trace the evolution of recipes as both instructions and stories, discussing how language, food, and emotion ar...

30 Sep 202552min

Populärt inom Vetenskap

p3-dystopia
dumma-manniskor
allt-du-velat-veta
kapitalet-en-podd-om-ekonomi
svd-nyhetsartiklar
medicinvetarna
rss-kriminologerna
bildningspodden
sexet
rss-spraket
dumforklarat
rss-ufobortom-rimligt-tvivel
det-morka-psyket
halsorevolutionen
paranormalt-med-caroline-giertz
rss-vetenskapsradion-2
vetenskapsradion
rss-vetenskapsradion
pojkmottagningen
ufo-sverige