It is complicated to determine whether two related ways of speaking should be considered different languages or dialects of the same language. Explain why it is complicated, with examples from at least two specific situations (i.e., two different pairs of language varieties). In the real world (rather than in the minds of linguists), what factors tend to weigh most heavily in this determination? 

A child’s production of the plural of mouse as mouses is an example of a(n) _____________.

In Turkish, [abakus] means ‘an abacus.’ How do you say ‘in an abacus’?

Use the data below from Tagalog, a language of the Philippines, for the next several questions. [kahon] ‘box’ [daʔiŋ] ‘to complain’ [datiŋ] ‘to arrive’ [daraʔiŋ] ‘will complain’ [daratiŋ] ‘will arrive’ [marami] ‘many’ [ʔumagos] ‘to flow’ [dami] ‘amount’ [marumi] ‘dirty’ [dumi] ‘dirt’ [kaʔon] ‘to fetch’ [humagos] ‘to paint’  

The phoneme /k/ is pronounced differently in the word skin and the word kin. The two pronunciations differ in ______________.

Speakers of the Cockney variety of London English tend to say [mæf] for the word mouth, pronouncing the vowel as a(n) [vowel1], while most speakers from the United States would generally say [mɑʊθ], pronouncing the vowel as a(n) [vowel2].

If the adult form has [z] at the end of a word, how does Suzie pronounce it? (Enter the IPA symbol in the blank.)

See the videos of the signs for ‘sunrise’ and ‘sunset’ in ASL linked below: SUNRISE SUNSET In which parameter do these two signs differ?

Short Answer: Language Acquisition and Language Variation For all of the following short answer questions, you may be relatively brief: these are not long essay questions. However, where you are asked to give examples, reasons, or pieces of evidence, write at least one sentence for each, rather than just a word or phrase. Give enough explanation that your answers could be understood by someone who doesn’t have any background in linguistics.

Mini-Final on Phonetics, Phonology, Morphology, and Syntax