Deck 2: Communicating Verbally

Question 1

The four functions of language include all of the following EXCEPT the

A) instrumental.
B) analytical.
C) creative.
D) structural.

Answer 1

D

Question 2

A coffee advertisement claims that "Good coffee is like friendship; rich and warm and strong." The advertisers are using a simile.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

The social function of verbal communication is the use of language to engage in critical thinking to evaluate and critique issues or ideas.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

Meaning is

A) whatever message someone is trying to convey.
B) how a message is interpreted by another.
C) the conveyed message and its interpretation by another.
D) the verbal content of a message.

Question 5

If you want to improve your verbal communication, you should avoid asking the other person, "What did you mean?"

Question 6

Which of the following is the best example of alliteration?

A) Alice's aunt ate apples and acorns around August.
B) After the blow, his head swelled like a basketball.
C) Far from true, his statement was a blatant falsehood.
D) So tiny was he that his shoes could fit a child.

Question 7

What kind of figurative language was the teacher using when she said, "The universe is a large pizza in which just one of the pepperonis is our galaxy surrounded by many others"?

A) simile
B) alliteration
C) reductionism
D) metaphor

Question 8

The two processes for interpreting messages are denotation meaning and connotation meaning.

Question 9

When your teacher tells you that your term paper is due in three weeks, your teacher is using which function of language in communication?

A) structural
B) analytical
C) creative
D) instrumental

Question 10

Language that denigrates people on the basis of their gender is known as racist language.

Question 11

Building your vocabulary can improve your verbal communication.

Question 12

When a relative is lunching with you and says, "I have to go to the little girl's room," she is using jargon.

Question 13

Because listeners daydream, speakers need to say a message in more than one way by using all of the following strategies EXCEPT

A) repetition.
B) review.
C) preview.
D) implementation.

Question 14

The agreed-upon meaning of a word, the one generally found in the dictionary, is known as the denotative meaning.

Question 15

Which of the following is the best example of a simile?

A) The sunset was disturbed by the contrail of a passing jet.
B) Her face brightened like a beacon when he complimented her.
C) The corners of her mouth curved upward in happiness.
D) His strength was not in athletics but in math and science.

Question 16

Verbal communication includes a number of rules including rules of place.

Question 17

When you use acronyms and abbreviations in tweeting and texting, you are using an ancient rhetorical canon or principle called

A) inventio.
B) elocutio.
C) dispositio.
D) pathos.

Question 18

Language is

A) the only way we can communicate with each other.
B) the code we use to communicate with each other.
C) the expression of thought through gesture.
D) the dictionary meaning of words.

Question 19

Using language to convey meaning is known as verbal communication.

Question 20

Verbal communication is

A) the use of bodily movement as messages.
B) the conversion of thought into words.
C) the use of facial expression to convey meaning.
D) the use of language to convey meaning.

Question 21

Turn taking is most commonly exhibited in which communication situation?

A) a vigorous argument
B) a conversation
C) a classroom lecture
D) a public speech

Question 22

An effective speaker should

A) have to say something just once.
B) have little need for visual aids.
C) focus on just one method to support an argument.
D) summarize the message before finishing.

Question 23

The connotative meaning of a word could include all of the following EXCEPT

A) the feelings it evokes.
B) its dictionary definition.
C) experiences associated with it.
D) figures of speech that help describe it.

Question 24

The use of an array of rhetorical devices is characteristic of the ________ function of verbal communication.

A) instrumental
B) creative
C) analytical
D) social

Question 25

Effective communicators follow

A) the same communication rules regardless of where they are.
B) the same communication rules regardless of who is present.
C) communication rules that vary with place and who is there.
D) their own communication rules that challenge the norm.

Question 26

Examples of the analytical function of language include all of the following EXCEPT

A) researching an issue for understanding.
B) evaluating an issue for weakness and strengths.
C) recommending solutions to problems.
D) restating the issue in figurative language.

Question 27

Saying "hi" to an acquaintance on the sidewalk and expecting only a "hi" in return is a form of communication called

A) phatic communication.
B) interpersonal communication.
C) intrapersonal communication.
D) social communication.

Question 28

When Blake was a young child, he and his grandfather were involved in a boating accident. Blake's negative reaction when he hears the word boat is an example of

A) connotative meaning.
B) denotative meaning.
C) neologism.
D) translation.

Question 29

Instrumental language usually

A) lacks descriptiveness.
B) presents a point in an indirect manner.
C) functions as a tool to get something done.
D) is driven by creativity.

Question 30

In which situation below can you be most casual about your language?

A) asking directions from a well-dressed stranger at the airport
B) telling your own young children how to use the computer
C) at the dinner table with relatives during a religious holiday
D) with your best friends on a vacation

Question 31

Rules of engagement refer to rules about all of the following EXCEPT

A) initiating communication.
B) terminating communication.
C) conducting communication.
D) interfering with communication.

Question 32

The social function of language

A) provides instructions to others.
B) activates imagination to make stories exciting.
C) examines and critiques ideas.
D) creates and supports relationships.

Question 33

"Trouble talk" is a social function of communication characterized by

A) figuring out a solution to an immediate problem.
B) complaining about problems without really expecting any solution.
C) brainstorming solutions to a problem without choosing one.
D) talking about and solving a problem.

Question 34

In which situation below should you be most careful about your language choices?

A) a beer party before a game with friends
B) an interview for an important job
C) a study session with a group of other students
D) an informal gathering during the lunch hour at work

Question 35

Conflict management is

A) using language to resolve issues between individuals and groups.
B) serving as a referee between individuals in a dispute.
C) winning an argument by being a competent communicator.
D) using words to express one's view in a conflict.

Question 36

The analytical function of verbal ability is used to

A) evaluate ideas.
B) build relationships.
C) motivate others.
D) stir the imagination.

Question 37

Which of the following statements about language is FALSE?

A) Language is an imperfect means of communication.
B) The thoughts that one person encodes never exactly match what the other decodes.
C) Language often requires interpretation or clarification.
D) Encoded messages are generally decoded accurately.

Question 38

New concepts require new words, referred to as

A) conceptualizations.
B) neologisms.
C) semantics.
D) metaconcepts.

Question 39

A modern example of the language creativity function would be

A) job directives posted by supervisors on a company's website.
B) acronyms and abbreviations used in texting.
C) software used to quickly scan archived documents.
D) people complaining in the comments section of an online publication.

Question 40

Which item below is a denotative meaning of a word?

A) A mouse is a tiny creature that scares people because of its unexpected movement.
B) A mouse is a four-legged mammal classified as a rodent.
C) A mouse can produce a litter of young about every 19 days.
D) A mouse is a furry little animal much beloved as a stuffed toy.

Question 41

An author finds this note from the textbook editor: "AU: OK to KT list at EOC?" The editor is using

A) jargon.
B) slang.
C) similes.
D) code switching.

Question 42

Using the term "friendly fire" to refer to an American soldier killed by another American soldier is to use

A) slang.
B) a euphemism.
C) profanity.
D) an ambiguity.

Question 43

In order to avoid offending people, journalists are expected to

A) mention age, race, or ethnicity only if it is important to the story.
B) specify a person's race and sexual orientation unless told otherwise.
C) omit any references to race or ethnicity from their stories.
D) mention race, age, and gender if it supports their employer's political agenda.

Question 44

Which of the following is NOT a suggested approach to the use of racist language in communication?

A) People in a particular racial group should get to decide what people outside that group call them.
B) One possible way to reduce racial jokes is to quit laughing at them.
C) An aggressive stance for reducing racial jokes is to ask the person to quit using them.
D) Even if it means losing your job, you should tell your boss to quit telling racist jokes.

Question 45

Which statement below is an example of sexism in language?

A) It's okay to use man-linked words like freshman; everyone knows what you mean.
B) We can no longer use language that assumes all members of a category like lawyers, physicians, professors, and soldiers are male.
C) The Women's Policy Institute champions the interests of women throughout the country.
D) Women continue to get paid less than men working in the same fields and on similar tasks.

Question 46

When the physician tells the patient that she has a tumor the size of a grape, the physician is using what language strategy for clarification?

A) professional jargon
B) a figure of speech
C) slang
D) an unlikely comparison

Question 47

To use words that are open to multiple interpretations is to use

A) ambiguous language.
B) euphemistic language.
C) simplistic language.
D) colorful language.

Question 48

Which item below best illustrates the use of concrete language?

A) He had black hair, brown eyes, bronze complexion, and a pleasant smile.
B) She was a real beauty.
C) He was a handsome dude with an attractive personality.
D) She was ugly as a mud fence.

Question 49

Politicians who answer questions without giving any specific details are using

A) jargon.
B) euphemisms.
C) overused expressions.
D) ambiguous words.

Question 50

Observations are

A) words and statements that are specific rather than abstract or vague.
B) descriptions of what you directly saw, touched, tasted, smelled, or heard.
C) conclusions based on some evidence.
D) relationships that help listeners remember.

Question 51

Some people refer to their noon meal as dinner and their evening meal as supper; others have dinner at night. These are examples of what language characteristic?

A) connotations
B) denotations
C) jargon
D) regionalisms

Question 52

Strategies for improving verbal communication include all of the following EXCEPT

A) building your vocabulary.
B) describing without judgment.
C) defining your terms.
D) correcting others.

Question 53

An excellent strategy to increase accurate communication is to state in your own words what you think the other person meant, a strategy called

A) repetition.
B) paraphrasing.
C) explaining.
D) arguing.

Question 54

Which item below best illustrates the concept of code switching?

A) a navy vet who talks one way with his shipmates but quite another way when interviewing for a civilian job
B) a child who speaks one way at age three but quite another way at the age of five
C) a Jamaican who speaks patois at home and at work
D) a woman who speaks the same way to her kids as to her husband

Question 55

Which of the following observations is NOT credible?

A) Older people in the United States may be less tolerant of profanity than are younger people.
B) In general, men use profanity more than women do, especially in public.
C) Profanity is so common currently that once-forbidden words have practically lost their impact.
D) The Internet is the one place where profanity can be used openly with no prohibitions.

Question 56

The definition "informal, casual language used among equals" refers to

A) clichés.
B) hyperbole.
C) slang.
D) profanity.