Key Terms and Definitions: A Multimodal Glossary

One of the first steps in familiarizing and integrating ourselves with a knowledge domain or discipline is to learn its language. This page provides a table of contents linking each term on this page to its definition. In time we expect this list to expand and include more terminology useful to instructors seeking to create classroom environments more welcoming and inclusive for multilingual and international students. The terms on this page relate to areas such as education, World Englishes, linguistics, second language acquisition, and TESOL.

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

A

Accent

Accommodation

Acculturation

Affective Filter

B

BICS and CALP

C

Code-switching

Content-Based Instruction (CBI)

Contrastive Analysis

Creoles and Pidgins

Critical Period Hypothesis

D

Dialect

E

English as a Foreign Language (EFL)

English as a Second Language (ESL)

English for Specific Purposes (ESP)

English as a Lingua Franca (ELF)

English Language Learner (ELL)

Episode Hypothesis

Errors and Mistakes

Experiential Language Learning

F

Fossilization

I

Interaction Hypothesis

Interlanguage

International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA)

O

Overgeneralization

P

P-L-A-C-E

Pragmatics

S

Second Language Acquisition (SLA)

Semantics

Semiotics

Silent Period

T

Theme-Based Instruction

Transfer

U

U-Shaped Course of Development

Universal Grammar

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