Diploma in TESOL

by
Distance Learning
UNIT 2: SEMANTICS/LANGUAGE AWARENESS

Module 1 (1 of 4)

 Basic terminology and concepts:

(i) Form and Function
(ii) Lexical Meaning: denotation, connotation, synonym, antonym,
hyponym, polyseme, homonym
(i) Collocation

 Verbs:
(i) Time and Tense
(ii) Present Tenses
(iii) Past Tenses
(iv) Futurity
(v) Conditionals and Hypothetical Meaning

 Advice on academic writing:

(i) In-text acknowledgement of sources
(ii) Compiling the end of module bibliography
(iii) Assessment criteria
FORM AND FUNCTION

Self-check 1

What do you understand by the terms form and function?

Self-check 2 The match between form and function

There’s no one-to-one match between form and function. Look at this

sentence:
“The window is open.”

Taken out of context it looks like a simple affirmative statement. But if we look
at the following responses to it, we may understand it differently.

1. Go back to sleep, will you.

2. My job’s stacking boxes, mate.
3. By Jove, Holmes! It was the gardener!
(adapted from Cook 1989)

What’s the context in each case?

What’s the function in each case? That is, what effect does the speaker
intend to have on the listener? For example, looking back at the first
statement, what is the speaker doing by saying the words, “The window is
open.”

LEXICAL MEANING

The definitions below are taken from Longman dictionary of Language

Teaching and Applied Linguistics. (Some of the text is adapted from McCarthy -
1990)

Denotation

“that part of the meaning of a word or phrase that relates it to phenomena in

the real world or in a fictional or possible world.
For example, the denotation of the English word bird is a two-legged, winged,
egg-laying, warm-blooded creature with a beak. In a meaning system
denotative meaning may be regarded as the central meaning”

Unit 2 1 Module 1
Connotation

“the additional meaning that a word or phrase has beyond its central
meaning. (see denotation)”

This meaning show people’s associations, or positive or negative emotions

and attitudes towards what the word or phrase refers to.
Some connotations may be shared by groups of similar cultural backgrounds,
sex or age. The word “bird”, for example, was used by UK males during the
1970’s to refer to a young woman.

Good dictionaries provide labelled information about the connotation of

words. For example, Longman Dictionary of English Language and Culture:
For the word “bird” the first definition is a denotative one:

“a creature with wings and feathers which can usu. fly in the air”

The second entry for “bird” is a connotative one:

…. BrE sl, becoming old-fash A young woman (usu. considered offensive

to women) Who was that bird I saw you with last night?

Labels used in this dictionary to describe “bird”

BrE = British English. The dictionary indicates that this connotation is
restricted to Britain.
Sl = “slang - very informal, rarely used in writing, used especially in the
private language of particular social groups”
Old-fash = “old-fashioned – no longer common, used mainly by older people”

Self-check 3

Look at the labels used in your dictionary. Are there clear explanations of
what the labels mean?

Write denotative and connotative definitions for the following lexis (with labels
where appropriate)
cool (adj) bitch (n) cheers (interj)

Check your definitions with those in your dictionary.

What would be the advantages of doing this sort of task with your students?

Unit 2 2 Module 1
Words are often defined by reference to their similarities or differences
with other words

Synonym

“a word which has the same, or nearly the same, meaning as another word”

Words rarely, if ever, have exactly the same meaning. Among factors which
distinguish words are:

a) Two words may be close in meaning but they not may not collocate
with the same items. We can say:
The baby began/started to cry.
But not:
*I turned the key in the ignition and my car began straight away.

b) Words may have different syntactic behaviour. We can say:

The plane leaves/departs from Gatwick, not Heathrow.
We left the house at six.
But not:
*We departed the house at six.

c) Often one word is more appropriate than another in a particular situation

or context.
eg write / correspond - one is more formal. There are also differences
between speech and writing, technical and non-technical English etc.

Self-check 4

Are the following pairs of items exact synonyms which can be interchanged in
all contexts? If possible, create example sentences where the words cannot
be interchanged.

consider / regard
pavement / sidewalk
exit / way out
spud / potato

Unit 2 3 Module 1
Antonym

“a word which is opposite in meaning to another word”

These can be:

Ungradable eg alive and dead
Gradable eg hot and cold (they are opposites but there are degrees between
them: warm, cool etc)
Words may have different opposites in different contexts:
Light bag ….. heavy bag
Light wind …. strong wind
Light colours …. dark colours.

Self-check 5

What are the possible opposites of the words “hard” and “high” in these
phrases? Which has the most contextual variation?

high marks, high opinion, high building, high price, high temperature,
high winds.

Hard exam, hard chair, hard journey, hard work, hard person, hard drugs.

Hyponym

“a relationship between two words, in which the meaning of one of the words
includes the meaning of the other word”

Vehicle

Van car lorry bus etc

In this hierarchical tree-type diagram, ‘vehicle’ is the superordinate term. ‘car’

is a hyponym of ‘vehicle’. Van, car, lorry etc are co-hyponyms.

Polyseme

A word “having two or more closely-related meanings”

eg ‘foot’ in:
He hurt his foot.
She stood at the foot of the stairs.
The foot is the lowest part of the stairs just as the foot is the lowest part of the
human body.

Unit 2 4 Module 1
Homonym

“words which are written in the same way and sound alike but which have
different meanings”

eg ‘lie’ in:
Lie down on the mat.
Don’t lie to me!

Self-check 6

Think of other examples of the same word with different meanings.

COLLOCATION

“Knowledge of collocation is knowledge of what words are most likely to occur

together”
(McCarthy - 1990)

Self-check 7

Do the following task.

(from McCarthy - 1990)

Unit 2 5 Module 1
Self-check 8

(from McCarthy - 1990)

Self-check 9

Look at the following recently published teaching materials. Would you use
them with your advanced students? Would you adapt them in any way?

Unit 2 6 Module 1
 (from “Initiatives”)

Unit 2 7 Module 1
Unit 2 8 Module 1
 (from “Clockwise Upper Intermediate”)
Self-check 10

Take some of the typical collocations in English from the task above and try
to translate them into another language you know, and/or into your students´
L1. Do the collocations translate exactly? What teaching/learning implications
does this have?

Unit 2 9 Module 1
Self-check 11

Dictionaries vary in the quality of the information they give on collocation.

(from McCarthy 1990)

Unit 2 10 Module 1
TIME AND TENSE

One of the main concerns in teaching English grammar at the moment is to

make it clear to students that there is no one-to-one relation between time
and tense. Broughton writes “Here is the crux of much confusion about the
English tense system. We have the concepts of time; past, present and
future. We also use past, present and future to talk about tenses and thereby
encourage the false assumption that the present tenses refer only to the
present time, and the past tenses refer only to the past time etc. This, of
course, is not so - as in: “I sail tonight, I am sailing tomorrow”. (Penguin
English Grammar)

Self-check 12

Can you give examples of the following situations?

Present continuous for future reference:

I’m sailing tomorrow

Present simple for future reference:

Present simple for past reference:

Past tense for future reference:

Past tense with present reference:

Unit 2 11 Module 1
PRESENT TENSES

Present Simple

Self-check 13

Match these examples with the uses given below.

1. A cork floats
2. Richard Gere, who plays a “baddy” in this film, goes to ….
3. The train leaves at ….
4. I usually go by train.
5. I’ll ask him when I see him.
6. Now, he picks up his racket and looks across at his trainer ….

(a) Habitual present, used to talk about habits, repeated actions and states
covering the long-term present. Often includes a frequency adverbial.
(b)Timeless present.
(c) Present simple for fixed future e.g. timetabled events (see section on
“Futurity”)
(d) Narrative, summaries, newspaper headlines, when an author uses the
present simple to give greater reality.
(e) Subordinate clauses (particularly after if and when) that refer to the future.
(f) Commentary, demonstrations, series of events.

PAST TENSES

Self-check 14

Read Lewis Ch 9. Do you think his concept of “remoteness” is useful when

looking at the uses of the past simple form?

Look at the following materials. The heading is “past tenses for distance from
reality”. Is this “distance from reality” the same concept as Lewis’s
“remoteness”?

Unit 2 12 Module 1
 (from “Initiatives”)

Unit 2 13 Module 1
Self-check 15

Look at the following two sets of teaching materials taken from Intermediate
level course books.

The first text has probably been written for the purposes of language
teaching. How do we know? How old do you think this book is? Why are the
second materials more realistic?

Do you think the second materials make clear to the learner when we use
different past forms?

Compare three past tenses for stages in a narrative.

Past simple
One event after another
He drove up to the house and jumped out.
Activities together
We had breakfast and talked about it.
Past continuous
One activity “containing” a shorter one
I was working in Berlin when we met.
A “long” activity leading up to an event
It was raining. A car slowed down and stopped.
Past perfect
Earlier events.
I hadn’t seen him for years but I recognised him
immediately.
When I got to the door, I realised I’d forgotten my keys.

Unit 2 Module 1
 (from “Discoveries 2”)

Unit 2 Module 1
 (from “Clockwise Intermediate”)

Unit 2 Module 1
FUTURITY

Some grammar books say that we form the simple future tense with the
modal verb will; others say that English has no future tenses. What is clear,
and what must be made clear to learners, is that future time can be
expressed using a variety of verb structures. The choice of verb structure
depends on meaning and context. How the speaker/writer “sees” the action or
event being talked/written about is of paramount importance.

Self-check 16

Verb structures that can express future time.

a) will + base form

We often use will to express the following functions. Give an example
phrase for each function.

example
Offer
Offer
Promise
Threat
Talk about plans and intentions

NB shall is sometimes used with I and we. Can you think of some
examples?

When does the speaker use the following forms: b) – f)? Give some examples
for each.

b) be going to + base form

c) present progressive

Unit 2 Module 1
d) present simple

e) will + progressive infinitive

f) be + infinitive

Self-check 17

Do the following exercises from Proficiency Masterclass and check your

answers from the Teacher’s Book, given in the Key.
Having done these revision exercises, do you think students would be able to
use the different forms in the appropriate situation, to convey the exact
meaning?

Unit 2 Module 1
 (from “Proficiency Masterclass”)

Unit 2 19 Module 1
CONDITIONALS AND HYPOTHETICAL MEANING

Self-check 18

“Foreign learners are often taught that there are three kinds of conditional
sentence…. This is largely correct, but does not fully describe the normal
patterns of tense in conditional clauses” (Collins Cobuild -1990)

How many types of conditional sentences do you teach your learners? At

what stage of their learning (pre-intermediate, advanced?) do you introduce
them? Do you introduce one type at a time, or introduce two together and
contrast them?

In the space below, complete Task b, then do Task c, thinking about the form
and function of each sentence you produce.

Unit 2 Module 1
 (from “Initiatives”)

Unit 2 21 Module 1
Self-check 19

Many of the examples of conditionals in Task 1 came from more formal,

written sources. We use conditional constructions, however, in everyday
spoken functional language.

eg Offer: If that’s too heavy for you, I’ll help you carry it.

Think of some more functions (with examples) which are realised by using
conditional constructions.

ADVICE ON ACADEMIC WRITING

(i) In-text acknowledgement of sources

If you are familiar with in-text referencing from other degree courses or
professional courses you have undertaken, please feel free to use the
method most familiar to you. The only stipulation would be consistency.
Whichever method you choose to use, please be consistent.

If you are unfamiliar with this technique, here is one method you might like to
use:

It is now generally accepted that the target of native-speaker pronunciation is

unachievable for the vast majority of learners of a second language
(Hewings, 2004: 13).

So we see:

open brackets
author
comma
year of publication
page of quote
close brackets

Unit 2 22 Module 1
(ii) Compiling the end of module bibliography/references

Your in-text references should then appear in the end of module bibliography.
As the same source may be referred to in more than one task in the module,
it is sufficient to create an end of module bibliography or list of references,
rather than a separate bibliography for each task.

Once again, whilst it is vital that sources be acknowledged to avoid the

serious issue of plagiarism, the format you choose is much less important.
We recommend that if you are already familiar with a method from your
previous studies, use that. The only rule would once again be,
“be consistent!”

You must, however, be sure to include:

Author (family name and initial(s))

Date of publication
Book title
Place of publication
Publisher

For example:

Hewings, M. (2004). Pronunciation Practice Activities. (Cambridge:

Cambridge University Press).

(iii) Assessment criteria

It is important that in setting tasks for assessment, our learners are fully
aware of the criteria by which their submissions will be assessed. Each task
in this course as assessed individually, using the criterion referenced marking
scheme on the next page. The marks for each task will then be averaged to
produce a final module grade. This appears on the final feedback sheet (as
on page 26).

Unit 2 23 Module 1
UNIT 2: SEMANTICS/LANGUAGE AWARENESS

Module 1 (1 of 4)

KEY TO SELF-CHECKS

Self-check 1

Sample responses:

Form. “The means by which an element of language is expressed in speech

or writing” (Longman Dictionary of Language Teaching and Applied
Linguistics)

“A function on the other hand is some king of communicative act: it is the

use of language to achieve a purpose, usually involving interaction between
at least two people. Examples would be suggesting, promising, apologising,
greeting. Very often functions are ‘binary’; that is to say, the performance of
one implies a certain response or set of responses which take the form of
another, complementary function. Suggestions or invitations, for example, are
typically followed by acceptance or rejection; greeting by acknowledgement
or further greeting; and so on. ‘Unitary’ functions may occur on their own –
informing, for example – with no necessary expected response. However,
whether a specific instance of a function is binary or unitary would, of course,
depend on its actual context”. (Ur 1992)

Self-check 2

1. Go back to sleep, will you.

2. My job’s stacking boxes, mate.
3. By Jove, Holmes! It was the gardener!

Besides being a simple statement, “The window is open.” may also be asking
a spouse or partner to get up and close the window (1); it may protesting that
this is not the addressee’s job – the speaker should close it – of find someone
else to do so (2); or it may be making a key observation (3). Of course, both
the intonation and the speaking context are very important, and these are not
given in the written transcriptions of speech.

Unit 2 24 Module 1
Self-check 6

Homonyms:
Stick - what you do with glue / a small piece of wood.
Shed – a little hut / to lose hair or skin.
Can, try, scale etc

Suggested Reading

McCarthy 1990 ch 2
Thornbury ch 3, and 10

Self-check 12

Present simple for future reference:

We leave on Saturday

Present continuous for future reference:

We’re sailing tomorrow

Present simple for past reference:

He comes up to me and says ……

Past tense for future reference:

He felt that he was going to lose his temper.
What would you do if you were offered the job?

Past tense with present reference:

Could you pass the pepper, please.
I didn’t know you were working here.

Self-check 13

1.b) 2.d) 3.c) 4.a) 5.e) 6.f)

Self-check 14

Unit 2 25 Module 1
The first text only contains instances of the past simple. The second shows
that in typical narratives a variety of past forms are used: past simple, past
continuous, and past perfect.

Suggested Reading

Thornbury ch 16
Lewis ch 8, 9

Self-check 16

a) will + base form

We often use will to express the following functions. Give an example phrase
for each function

Example

Prediction The weather will get much warmer in the next few years

Offer I’ll drive if you map-read.

Promise I promise I’ll stop smoking tomorrow!

Threat I’ll resign if I don’t get a pay rise.

Talk about plans and intentions (particularly when decision is made at the
time of speaking) I’ll leave tomorrow

Shall I/we …? Can be used to ask for instructions and decisions, and to make
offers and suggestions.
Examples:
What on earth shall we do?
What day shall we meet up?
Shall I come and pick you up?
Shall we eat at home tonight?

b) be going to + base form

Going to tends to report decisions already made.

We use this structure to talk about plans, decisions, and firm intentions.
“This form is used if, at the moment of speaking, the speaker has evidence
for the future event. That evidence may be either external (clouds or a tickle
in the nose) or internal (a plan or decision):

Unit 2 26 Module 1
It’s going to rain
I’m going to sneeze.
I’m not going to tell you.” (Lewis 1986)
c) present progressive

We tend to use the present progressive when talking about personal

arrangements and plans that have already been made. People are likely to
use progressive forms for an action which is “in progress” (cf “progressive
aspect”) The time, date or place is often mentioned in the interaction.

What are you doing this evening? I’m having a drink with Tom.
We’re moving house next month.

d) present simple.

“This form will be appropriate for events in Future Time when the speaker
sees the future event as occurring quite independently of his understanding,
perception, volition etc. The event is determined by what the speaker sees as
an external force majeure. This may be natural, or an appropriate timetable-
making body:

Christmas day falls on a Thursday this year.

What time does the sun rise next Saturday?
Arsenal play away next weekend.
We leave at 4 o’clock tomorrow afternoon”
(Lewis - 1986)

e) will + progressive infinitive

This may be used for activities that will be in progress at a specific time in the
future.
This time next year I’ll be sailing round the Black Sea.
I can’t meet you for lunch tomorrow because I’ll be having a meeting with the
new team.
Good luck with the exam. We’ll be thinking of you.

f) be + infinitive

We can talk about the future by saying that something is to happen. It is

rather formal and occurs more often in writing (eg newspapers) than in
speech.
The president is to visit Houston next week.
The meeting is to be held at head office.

Unit 2 27 Module 1
Self-check 17

(from “Proficiency Masterclass” Teacher´s Book)

Unit 2 28 Module 1
Suggested Reading

Lewis, 1986 ch 17
Thornbury ch 20

Self-check 18

Zero Condition: (b) present tense (don’t worry about aspect here) Result:
Present tense.

First: Condition: (d) present tense. Result: future tense (note will + base
form, and be + going to are used here)

Second Condition: (a) past simple tense. Result: would / might / could etc

Third Condition: (e) past perfect. Result: would have

Mixed Condition: past perfect. Result: depends on meaning.

Phrases
If it doesn’t rain on Sunday, we’ll be able to go bird watching. (First)

If you hadn’t frightened the wolf, it wouldn’t’ve attacked you. (Third)

If I knew what type of snake it was, I would tell you. (Second)

If Joe passes his exams, he’ll be a vet. (First)

NB Would is not only used in conditional sentences. Consult your grammar

for other uses of would.

Self-check 19

eg

Offer: If that’s too heavy for you, I’ll help you carry it.
Threat: If you don’t stop doing that, I’m going to scream.
Wishing: If I weighed three kilogrammes less, I’d feel much healthier.
Promise: If you eat all your vegetables, I’ll get you an ice-cream.
Advice: If you leave now, you’ll get home before the rush hour.
Persuade: If you come to the opera with me, I’m sure you’ll enjoy it!

Unit 2 29 Module 1
Suggested Reading

Condition and Contrast - Leech and Svartvik 1975 208 – 216

Thornbury 1997 ch 21

Unit 2 30 Module 1