This dictionary is suitable for university students and sixth-formers who are beginning a course in the study of language. It covers all the most central terms in the core areas of linguistics (pronunciation, word structure, meaning), and also the key terms encountered in the study of the social, anthropological, psychological and neurological aspects of language. Definitions are brief and clear with a minimum of jargon and in many cases with helpful examples. There are entries for the names of major language families, and there are also brief biographical entries for the major figures in the field, past and present. Particular attention is given to the terminology of traditional grammar, but at the same time the book is up-to-date: it includes the key terms from such recently important areas as language disability, language acquisition by children, conversation and discourse, the linguistic capabilities of apes and the origin and evolution of language.