LANGUAGE: COMMUNICATING
WITH WORDS
Interpersonal Communication
Communication Studies Department
San Jose State University
Dr. Marquita L. Byrd
WHAT IS LANGUAGE?
A brush that we use to paint our picture of realty
 Symbol system recognized by a speech
community
 Means of triggering meaning in another.

RULES OF LANGUAGE
1. Semantic Rules
2. Syntactic codes
3. Pragmatic
4. Grammatical
5. Phonological
TRIANGLE OF MEANING
Thing
Communicator
Cat
Thought
THREE ASSUMPTIONS ABOUT LANGUAGE
Map is not the territory
 The word is not the same
 Meanings are in people not words

MEANINGS
Denotative: dictionary how the speech
community uses a word
 Connotative: personal meanings

Mother: denotative
 Mother :connotative

LANGUAGE BARRIERS
Allness: Etc. There is always someone who knows
something that you don’t
Static Evaluation:
Dating: past, present future, when
Fact inference confusion: Speaking inference as if it is a
fact.
Labeling: Jr. is retarded, Jr. seems delayed in his
learning
Polarization: Opposites in thought and languageHyphen
Generalizations: Superscript S1, S2, S3
TIME AND PLACE AND RELATIONSHIP
Change the way you talk
 Generational differences
 Language itself changes: selfie, photobomb
texting, sexting, the net, surfing, chill
 Gay
 Dyke
 Change by Geography
 Soda, pop, soda water
flavor strawberry may be called red
Rubbernecker, lookie lou

WORD EQUIVOCATION
Euphemisms
Linguistic ambiguity
Emotive language
DEROGATORY LANGUAGE
Fag
Nigger sand dollar
Dyke
Rag head
Geezer
Breeder
Chink
Pigs
Nigger
White boy
Poor cracker
Zebra
Greaser
Whore
BYPASSING
Think they understand each other
Using same words but different meanings
GUIDELINES
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Words clear
Appropriate
Concrete
Reflect who I am talking to and the context
To me rather than is
Respect uniqueness
Try to grow