M
machine translationn
the use of a translation program to translate text without human input in
the translation process. Although great progress has been made in this field
in recent decades, machine translated text still varies greatly in quality,
mostly depending on the complexity of the source text, and is seldom
adequate for publication without human intervention to correct errors of
grammar, meaning, and style.
macroskillsn
see microskills
macrosociolinguisticsn
sociolinguistic research that deals with sociological or social psychological
phenomena, and which studies language use in society as a whole, including
the study of language maintenance and language loss.
see also microsociolinguistics
macro-structuren
in writing, the topic and overall organization of a text as compared with the
details or microstructureof a passage.
main clausen
see dependent clause
main idean
in a composition, the central thought or topic, often identical with the
topic sentenceof the composition.
mainstreamingnmainstreamv
the entry into a regular school programme (i.e. mainstream programme) of
students for whom the language spoken in that school is a second language.
In many countries where there are significant numbers of immigrant stu-
dents for whom English is a second language, school ESL programmes
seek to prepare students to enter mainstream classes, that is classes where
English is the medium of instruction in the content areas.
maintenance bilingual educationn
see bilingual education