Fully updated and revised, this popular text now contains a chapter on language usage which introduces pragmatics, metaphor, speech and writing, and discourse analysis, a section on sign language, a glossary of key terms, and an expanded further reading section. Trask also addresses issues such as the uniqueness of the human language, language and meaning, variation in language, change in language, learning a first language and attitudes toward language. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.