Are you looking for a genuine introduction to the linguistics of English that provides a broad overview of the subject that sustains students' interest and avoids excessive detail? Introducing English Linguistics accomplishes this goal in two ways. First, it takes a top-down approach to language, beginning with the largest unit of linguistic structure, the text, and working its way down through successively smaller structures (sentences, words, and finally speech sounds). The advantage of presenting language this way is that students are first given the larger picture - they study language in context - and then see how the smaller pieces of language are a consequence of the larger goals of linguistic communication. Second, the book does not contain invented examples, as is the case with most comparable texts, but instead takes its sample materials from the major computerised databases of spoken and written English, giving students a more realistic view of language.

Genuinely introductory - no prior knowledge of linguistics is assumed Students have continual access to the meaning of key terms they encounter throughout the text Each chapter concludes with a series of study questions and exercises, enabling students to test their understanding of each topic before they move on to the next

1. The study of language; 2. The development of English; 3. The social context of English; 4. The structure of English texts; 5. English syntax; 6. English words: structure and meaning; 7. The sounds of English.