Give me a glass of water!
is grammatical, but it would not be appropriate if the speaker wanted to be
polite. A request such as:
May I have a glass of water, please?
would be more appropriate.
see also grammatical1,2,correct,communicative competenceappropriate word method n
see cloze test
appropriation n
in second language learning, the processes by which language learners
make the characteristics of one language and culture their own by adapting
it to their own needs and interests. For example the ways in which speakers
of Singapore and Malaysian English have made this variety of English
distinctive and unique through incorporating features from Chinese, as
with the use of a final sentence particle “lah” in informal speech, as in “ My
turn to pay for lunch today lah!”.
approximant n
a sound produced by the approach of one articulator towards another but
without the vocal tract being narrowed so much that a turbulent airstream
is produced. English /r, l, y, w/ are approximants and can be further sub-
divided into semivowels or glides (/y/ and /w/) and liquids (/l/ and /r/).
approximative system n
see interlanguage
a priori syllabus n
in language teaching, a distinction is sometimes made between two kinds
of syllabuses. A syllabus prepared in advance of a course, and used as a
basis for developing classroom activities, may be referred to as an a priori
syllabus. This may be contrasted with a syllabus which is not developed
in advance but which is prepared after a course is taught, as a “record” of
the language and activities used in the course (an a posteriori syllabus). And
an a posteriori syllabus is sometimes called a retrospective syllabus.
see also syllabus
aptitude n
see language aptitude
aptitude test n
see language aptitude test
aptitude test