• Who is speaking (friends, teacher-student, boss-employee)

• Where they are speaking (classroom, office, party)

• Why they are speaking (to give information, to persuade, to joke)

a. Formal Register

b. Informal Register

c. Technical/Professional Register

What is register in language?

It refers to the linguistic variation that occurs according to the context and the group of people with whom we communicate. In other words, we use different forms of language depending on the situation we are in.

Types of register

Formal and informal register:

Formal register is used in serious or professional situations, such as in a business meeting or a speech.

Informal register is used in everyday conversations with friends or family.

Occupational register:

This type of register is related to specific professions.

For example, doctors use technical terms in their professional communication that an ordinary person does not always understand.

Situational register:

It depends on the place and occasion.

We do not speak the same way in church as we do at a party.

Technical or specialized register:

Used within specific groups with their own language.

An example is the language of programmers, who use words such as bug, coding, debugging, etc.

• Physical context: where it occurs

• Linguistic context: words that come before and after the language.

• Social context: cultural background

• Formal: Use of structured language.

• Informal: More relaxed and spontaneous language.

• Technical: Use of specialized terms

• Literary: Creative and expressive language.

• Accent and pronunciation

• Vocabulary choice

• Grammar and sentence structure

Example: In Russian, there are two different words for the color blue (голубой – light blue, синий – dark blue), which may influence how people perceive the color.

Contextual Influences

• Social status

• Age differences

• Cultural background

• Professional roles

• Educational level

Within specialized jargon, there is a type of language called jargon. This term refers to technical words or expressions used by people in the same field or profession.

Example:

In the medical setting, a doctor may say:

“The patient needs a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug to treat tendonitis.”

This type of language is understandable to other physicians, but not necessarily to someone outside the healthcare field.

Importance of the record in communication:

Proper use of register allows for more effective and contextually appropriate communication. Knowing how to change register helps us to express ourselves correctly in different situations, whether in a professional, academic or social environment.