Language Register

The term register was first used by the philosopher Thomas Reid as part of a general movement in linguistics to distinguish the role of participants, situation, and purpose in the use of language. The concept of register has frequently been used in the fields of critical linguistics and textual stylistics. These particular areas of linguistics focus on both spoken and written texts and typically define the term register as the distinctive style of a writer, newspaper, or speaker. This would include the regular patterns of language use that become routine or habitualized until over time they become synonymous with the person, field, or institution they represent. Such regularities of language use establish varieties or registers of language that can readily be identified and referenced. For ...