Mini-Lesson
The Language Levels
OCR expects confident use of the language levels to analyse texts. They are a systematic toolkit: name a precise feature , use accurate terminology and explain its effect in context.
You will cover phonology and graphology, lexis and semantics, grammar and morphology, pragmatics and discourse. Press Start .
Levels · overview
The toolkit of levels
The language levels are the layers you examine in any text. Strong OCR responses move across several and link feature to function .
Phonology & prosodics — sound, stress, rhythm, intonation.Graphology — layout, typography, colour, images.Lexis & semantics — words and meaning.Grammar & morphology — building and combining words.Pragmatics — implied meaning in context.Discourse — the organisation of whole texts.
Assessment tip: label plus effect, always tied to context, audience and purpose.
Level · lexis & semantics
Lexis and semantics
Lexis is vocabulary; semantics is meaning. Core tools:
Denotation (literal) vs connotation (associations).Semantic field — words linked by meaning.Figurative language — metaphor, simile, personification, hyperbole.Register-marking lexis — jargon, colloquialism, slang, formality.
Relationships: synonymy, antonymy and hyponymy help you describe meaning precisely.
Quick check
Which level?
? A poem repeats words from the same group: harvest, seed, furrow, plough. This cluster of meaning-linked words is a:
Semantic field ✅
Prosodic feature ❌
Inflection ❌
Adjacency pair ❌
Level · grammar
Grammar and morphology
Morphology studies word-building from morphemes ; grammar studies how words combine.
Word classes: noun, verb, adjective, adverb, pronoun, preposition, determiner, conjunction.Inflectional morphology — same class, changed form (cats, walked ).Derivational morphology — new word, often new class (happiness, unkind ).Sentence functions: declarative, interrogative, imperative, exclamative; main and subordinate clauses.
Watch: a determiner is a distinct word class, not an adjective.
Quick check
Sentence function
? A poster reads Recycle now and Save your planet. These verb-first commands are examples of which sentence function?
Imperative ✅
Declarative ❌
Interrogative ❌
Exclamative ❌
Sort it
Sort each feature to its level
Tap a feature, then tap the level it belongs to.
Level · pragmatics
Pragmatics
Pragmatics is meaning in context — what is implied, not just stated.
Grice's cooperative principle and maxims of quantity, quality, relation and manner; flouting a maxim creates implicature .Face and politeness (Brown & Levinson): positive face, negative face, face-threatening acts.Deixis — context-pointing words (here, now, you ).
Attribute: maxims = Grice; face and politeness = Brown & Levinson.
Level · discourse
Discourse
Discourse is how whole texts and interactions are structured and held together.
Cohesion — reference, lexical repetition, conjunctions, ellipsis.Coherence — overall sense to the reader.In talk: adjacency pairs , turn-taking , openings and closings.
Exam skill: discourse structure explains how a text leads its reader from start to finish.
Match it
Match each level to its focus
Tap a level on the left, then its focus on the right.
Quick check
Which level?
? In a transcript, a greeting is answered by a greeting: Hiya / Alright? This predictable paired exchange is a:
Adjacency pair (discourse) ✅
Morpheme ❌
Semantic field ❌
Determiner ❌
Recap
The big ideas to take away
Levels: phonology/graphology, lexis & semantics, grammar & morphology, pragmatics, discourse
Method: feature, terminology, effect in context
Semantics: denotation vs connotation; semantic field; figurative language
Morphology: inflectional (same class) vs derivational (new class)
Pragmatics: Grice's maxims; Brown & Levinson's face; deixis
Discourse: cohesion, coherence, adjacency pairs, turn-taking
You now have the full OCR levels toolkit for any text. Press Finish to see your score.
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