Surveys some basic issues of modern linguistics and the theory of language teaching. Examines the notion of creativity in human language, a concept regarded here as basic to any linguistic description and as fundamental to all pedagogical applications of linguistics. (Text is in French.) (Author)

Discusses the relationship between traditional synonym theory and two perspectives of interlinguistics: contrastive lexical analysis and languages in contact research. The goal and methods of each are described briefly, and a new synonym conceptualization is proposed that better fits synchronic dynamics than the traditional theory. Examples from…

A review of the development and interaction of research involving second language contrastive analysis, error analysis, and interlanguage demonstrates how different assumptions and theoretical preconceptions have affected the results of such research, and the degree to which the research areas have drawn on the other areas. (39 references) (CB)

Discusses the different theoretical perspectives concerning input data to second-language (L2) learners, and examines the learners contributions to input and the interactions between what learners take in themselves and what is given to them. (58 references) (GLR)

Analysis of English articles use patterns found the definite article (DA) used far less than in other European languages. Generic DA use is rare in English, generally only used where the head noun has already been referred to or is contextually unique. Otherwise, the indefinite article, a possessive, or plural of the noun without an article must…

A theoretical discussion is offered on whether the subjunctive in the Romance languages is by nature thematic, as suggested in previous studies. English and Spanish samples are used to test the hypothesis; one conclusion is that the subjunctive seems to offer speaker-related information and may express the intensity of the speaker's involvement.…

A model for assessing communicative ability is presented that is prompted by the fact that most error analysts in the past concentrated on morphemic and syntactic levels. It is suggested that emphasis must shift from acquisition of linguistic competence per se to communicative competence. (23 references) (LB)

Major approaches of describing or examining linguistic data from a potential target language (input) are analyzed for adequacy in addressing the concerns of second language learning theory. Suggestions are made for making the best of these varied concepts of input and for reformulation of a unified concept. (MSE)

A discussion of the relevance of applied linguistics to language teaching looks at recent developments in the field, the relationship of theory and practice in language teaching and learning, common perceptions of applied linguistics' relationship to language instruction, and linguistics' role in finding solutions in the classroom. (MSE)

Two concerns are addressed: the growing interest in process-oriented approaches to language learning, and the search for a nonparticulate linguistics of the type hinted at by Halliday and given some credibility by the findings of neuroscience. Focus is on somatic phenomena such as tone of voice, body language, and certain schemas. (15 references)…

Recent knowledge about the system of gender assignment in French is examined to suggest theoretical reasons why English speakers are so rarely successful in mastering the French gender assignment system for inanimate nouns. Morphological, phonetic, and semantic rules shed light on the system. (14 references) (Author/LB)

Examines three experimental studies deriving from contrastive analysis predictions and error analysis insights into deviances from expected target language forms. Each of these studies predate the Interlanguage hypothesis. (CB)