Wednesday, May 29, 2019

Register

In sociolinguistics, register refers to the variety of language used in communication. The terms acrolect, mesolect and basilect represent different varieties of language. Acrolect represents the most prestigious, mesolect an intermediate variety, and basilect the least prestigious. The language which a speaker uses can vary from one situation to another.

The sentence "I don't understand" can be pronounced with different registers. In the most formal register, the word-final /t/ of don't is pronounced. In a less formal register, the final segment of don't is pronounced with a /d/, and in the least formal register, the /t/ is deleted. In this case, the final consonant becomes the nasal.

The term register is often used in sociolinguistics. Numerous registers can be identified in language. The terms acrolect, mesolect and basilect express different varieties of language. However, speakers may use different varieties in different situations.

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