English Language A-Level
English Language A-Level glossary
23 key terms for English Language A-Level, A to Z, each linked to the topic pages that use it.
A
- Amelioration
- A process of semantic change where a word's meaning becomes more positive over time.Pearson Edexcel
C
- Code-switching
- The practice of alternating between two or more languages or varieties of language in conversation.Pearson Edexcel
D
- Descriptivism
- An objective approach to language that focuses on describing how language is actually used by speakers, without judging it as correct or incorrect.Pearson Edexcel
- Dialect Levelling
- The process by which language forms of different parts of the country converge and become more similar over time, with the loss of regional features.Pearson Edexcel
- Discourse Marker
- Words or phrases used to organize speech or writing, manage the flow of conversation, or express attitude (e.g., 'however', 'so', 'right then').Pearson Edexcel
I
- Idiolect
- The unique linguistic fingerprint of an individual speaker.Pearson Edexcel
- Influential Power
- Power used to persuade and influence others without formal authority.Pearson Edexcel
- Instrumental Power
- Power used to maintain and enforce authority, often backed by legal or institutional sanctions.Pearson Edexcel
- Isogloss
- A line on a map marking the boundary between two regions which differ with respect to a particular linguistic feature.Pearson Edexcel
M
- Morphology
- The study of the internal structure of words and how they are formed from smaller units of meaning (morphemes).Pearson Edexcel
- Multimodal
- A text that uses more than one mode of communication (e.g., combining written text, images, and layout).Pearson Edexcel
P
- Pejoration
- A process of semantic change where a word's meaning becomes more negative over time.Pearson Edexcel
- Prescriptivism
- The belief that there is a 'correct' and 'incorrect' way to use language, often based on standard English grammar and historical rules.Pearson Edexcel
R
- Received Pronunciation (RP)
- The prestige accent of British English, historically associated with public schools, Oxford/Cambridge, and the BBC.Pearson Edexcel
- Register
- A variety of language associated with a particular situation of use, often defined by its level of formality (e.g., formal, informal, frozen, intimate).Pearson Edexcel
S
- Semantic Amelioration
- When a word develops a more positive meaning over time.Pearson Edexcel
- Semantic Field
- A group of words that are related in meaning and belong to the same conceptual area.Pearson Edexcel
- Semantic Pejoration
- When a word develops a more negative meaning over time.Pearson Edexcel
- Sociolect
- A variety of language associated with a particular social group (e.g., based on age, class, or occupation).Pearson Edexcel
- Standard English
- The dialect of English associated with formal education, government, and publishing.Pearson Edexcel
- Standardisation
- The historical process by which a conventional form of a language is established and maintained, often through dictionaries, grammar books, and education.Pearson Edexcel
- Syntax
- The rules governing the arrangement of words and phrases to create well-formed sentences in a language.Pearson Edexcel
- Synthetic Personalisation
- The process of addressing mass audiences as though they were individuals through inclusive language (e.g., 'you', 'we').Pearson Edexcel
Where these terms come from
Each definition is one we publish on a English Language A-Level topic page or study guide. Open a term to see how each exam board words it and which topic it belongs to. For the full course, go to English Language revision or the glossary for every subject.
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