ESL, EFL Glossary: terminology for language teachers.

 

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Glossary of terms relevent to the ESL profession. This glossary includes terms related to English, ESL, EFL, grammar, TESOL, TEFL, pedagogy, and jobs. This glossary is a living glossary; Suggestions for new terms or better definitions are welcome.


Accuracy

acquisition

acquisition-learning hypothesis

active voice

additive bilingualism

adjective clause

adverbial clause

affective feedback

affective filter

affective filter hypothesis

appositive

approach

articles

audiolingual method

aural learner

automatic processing

 

Behavioralism

bottom-up

 

Caretaker talk

chunk

clause

CELTA

CLT

cognitive feedback

collocates

communicative approach

comprehensible input

concordance

conditional

content-centered eduation

critical period hypothesis

 

Dangling participle

de-lexicalized words

designer methods

direct method

 

EAP

EFL

embedded questions

error correction

ESL

ESOL

ESP

extrinsic motivation

 

 

Faulty parallelism

first conditional

fluency

fossilization

functional English

functional syllabus

 

G

gerund

get it right from the beginning

get it right in the end

grammar translation method

grammatical morphemes

 

H

 

Innatism

input hypothesis

instrumental motivation

interactionism

interlanguage

integrative motivation

intrinsic motivation

 

Just listen

 

K

 

L1

L2

learner-centered

learning

lexical approach

lexical phrase

lexis

limited bilingualism

listen for the gist

 

Method

midnight run

misplaced modifier

modals

monitor hypothesis

monitor model

 

Natural order hypothesis

nonrestrictive clauses

noun clause

 

O

 

Participle

passive voice

past participle

perfect participle

phrasal verb

polyword

present participle

pragmatic competence

privates

 

Q

 

Realia

recruiter

recruitment fee

rejoinder

restrictive clause

 

Say what you mean

second conditional

sheltered instruction

silent way

skimming

split infinitive

structural syllabus

STT

student-centered

subjunctive mood

subordinate clause

subtractive bilingualism

syllabus

 

Task

task-based learning

teacher-centered

teacher talk

teach what is teachable

TESL

TESOL

third conditional

TOEIC
TOEFL

top-down

total physical response

TPR

TTT

 

Universal grammar

use

usage

 

VESL

visual learners

 

W

 

Zero conditional

 

 This glossary has been compiled from a variety of sources both in print and on-line, but the following five resources have been particularly insightful:

Brown, D. (1994), Teaching by Principles, Prentice Hall Regents.

Brown, D. (1994), Principles of Language Learning and Teaching, Prentice Hall Regents.

Lewis, Michael (1993), The Lexical Approach, Hove: Language Teaching Publications.

Lightbrown, P. and Spada, N. (1993), How Languages are Learned, Oxford University Press.

Nattinger, J. and DeCarrico, J. (1992),  Lexical phrases and Language Teaching, Oxford University Press.