Language and Arbitrariness

Questions and Answers

Because language is arbitrary and has no inherent relation to meaning (correct)

Because language is social and serving a particular community

Because language is symbolic and uses different sound symbols

Because language is systematic and has different arrangements

They are inherent in the object or occurrence itself

They are mere signs or figures with no meaning

They are arbitrarily chosen and conventionally accepted to denote objects or meaning (correct)

They are limited to written language only

To establish a strict hierarchy of power

To create confusion and misunderstanding

To permit its members to relate, interact, and cooperate with each other (correct)

To limit cultural development

Its social nature Signup and view all the answers

There can be multiple languages with different meanings Signup and view all the answers

Language is a reflection of thought, but not vice versa Signup and view all the answers

To facilitate communication and intelligibility Signup and view all the answers

Language is a reflection of culture Signup and view all the answers

Study Notes

There is no inherent relation between words and their meanings or the ideas they convey.
The choice of a word to represent a particular thing or idea is purely arbitrary.
Examples: "woman" in English, "aurat" in Urdu, "Zen" in Persian, and "Femine" in French.
If language weren't arbitrary, there would be only one language in the world.

Language is a set of conventional communicative signals used by humans for communication in a community.
Language is a possession of a social group, comprising an indispensable set of rules.
It permits members to relate to each other, interact, and cooperate with each other.
Language is a social institution that nourishes and develops culture and establishes human relations.

Language consists of sound symbols and their graphological counterparts.
These symbols are arbitrarily chosen and conventionally accepted and employed.
Words are not mere signs or figures, but symbols of meaning.
Intelligibility of a language depends on a correct interpretation of these symbols.

Language is symbolic, yet its symbols are arranged in a particular system.
Every language has its system of arrangements, including phonological and grammatical systems.
Within these systems, there are several sub-systems, such as:
- Morphological and syntactic systems
- Systems of plural, mood, aspect, and tense
- Other sub-systems within the grammatical system