本書是專為介紹台灣大學語言學課程。其目的是激勵學生，激發他們對語言的興趣，以及瞭解語言的本質並融入他們的生活中。比大多數的語言學教科書篇幅更短、更易於閱讀，但有更多的內容是直接關係到學生在台灣的生活，如國語，台語和原住民的南島語的例子。書中的練習題可讓學生檢查他們的學習成效。

Thomas Nash taught in the Department of English Language and Literature, Fu Jen Catholic University, from 1983 to 2009. He served as department head from 1993 to 1999 and taught introductory linguistics as well as a range of courses in applied linguistics and English. He has degrees in anthropology and language teaching and learning from Humboldt State, California, and the University of Hawaii-Manoa. He now works as an editor and translator.

Chapter 1 – What Are We Talking About?PROPERTIES OF LANGUAGEDisplacementA Series of LevelsProductivityConventionalityDiscreteness and ContrastsSocial Behavior and Cultural TransmissionChangeGestureWHAT ARE WE GOING TO STUDY?PRACTICAL USES OF LINGUISTICSTHE PRESENTATION OF LINGUISTIC EXAMPLESSUMMARY: What Are We Talking About?ACTIVITIESChapter 2 – PsycholinguisticsFOUR PRESSURES ON LANGUAGEBe ClearBe ProcessibleBe Quick and EasyBe ExpressiveUNIVERSAL OPERATING PRINCIPLESA. Pay attention to the ends of wordsB. There are elements of language, grammatical markers, which show the relationsbetween wordsC. Avoid exceptionsD. Basic elements of meaning should be marked openly and clearlyE. The use of grammatical markers should make senseGRAMMAR GROWSCOMPREHENSION OF SPEECHSPEECH PRODUCTIONGESTURESUMMARY: PsycholinguisticsACTIVITIESChapter 3 – SociolinguisticsTHE SOCIOLINGUISTIC VIEWMUTUAL INTELLIGIBILITYVARIETIES OF LANGUAGELANGUAGE AND SOCIAL GENDERPOLITENESSA Cross-cultural ComparisonComplimentsSUMMARY: SociolinguisticsACTIVITIESYour Language(s)Chapter 4 – Phonetics and PhonologyPHONETICSConsonantsVowelsSyllablesSuprasegmentals: Elements of Sound that Interact with Syllables and Longer UnitsPHONOLOGYInteraction between Phonology and Other Parts of GrammarSUMMARY: Phonetics and phonologyACTIVITIESChapter 5 – MorphologyBASIC CONCEPTSDERIVATIONAL MORPHOLOGYINFLECTIONAL MORPHOLOGYInflections on NounsInflections on VerbsAgreement and GovernmentTypes of Inflectional MorphologyMappingINTERACTION BETWEEN MORPHOLOGY AND PHONOLOGYWORDS THAT GO TOGETHER: COLLOCATIONSSUMMARY: MorphologyACTIVITIESChapter 6 – SyntaxWORD CLASSESNounsVerbsAdjectivesAdverbsAdpositionsPHRASES AND HEADSHead-initial and Head-final LanguagesHead-marking and Dependent-markingCLAUSES AND SENTENCESOther Ways of Creating Complex SentencesCONSTITUENTSSYNTACTIC RELATIONSSYNTACTIC PROCESSESThe PassiveThe CausativeOther ProcessesSUMMARY: SyntaxACTIVITIESChapter 7 – Semantics, Pragmatics, and DiscourseTHOUGHTMAPPING MEANING ONTO LANGUAGEWORD MEANINGFeaturesFROM WORDS TO LONGER EXPRESSIONSPrototypes, Stereotypes, and Relational MeaningReference and SensePRAGMATICS AND DISCOURSEMARKEDNESSSUMMARY: Semantics, Pragmatics, & DiscourseACTIVITIESChapter 8 – Language ChangeSOUND CHANGEMORPHOLOGICAL AND SYNTACTIC CHANGEWORD CHANGEHISTORICAL LINGUISTICSSUMMARY: Language ChangeACTIVITIESChapter 9 – Writing and LanguageTYPES OF WRITING SYSTEMSMorphosyllabarySyllabaryAbjadAlphabetAbugidaHangulHOW WRITING REPRESENTS LANGUAGEDIFFERENCES BETWEEN WRITING AND LANGUAGE AND SPEECHWriting Systems, Scripts, and OrthographiesRate of ChangePhysical ExistenceFeatures of Writing Unrelated to SpeechSocial AspectsDependence on TechnologySUMMARY: Writing and LanguageACTIVITIESReview Questions on Each ChapterProject DescriptionsReferencesIndex