This is the first of a sequence of lectures discussing various levels of linguistic analysis. Then we'll look at syntax , which deals with the way that words are combined into phrases and sentences . Finally, we'll take up two aspects of meaning, namely semantics , which deals with how sentences are connected with things in the world outside of language, and pragmatics , which deals with how people use all the levels of language to communicate. The basic concepts in any field are often the most difficult to define, and the concept of word is no exception. Crystal enumerates five tests, mentioning that the first-listed ones are the most reliable, and the most universally applicable.
Most languages lack such word-boundary sound changes entirely.
The spaces criterion is not very general, applying only to languages with writing conventions like those of modern European languages. Notice that this definition does not say anything about meaning. This is appropriate, because words are not the most basic units of linguistic meaning. These definitions suggest many questions. Although not all languages have exactly the same categories of words, they all have words, and almost all share the major categories words come in.