Which term denotes the underlying knowledge of a language, as opposed to actual performance in real communication?

• A. Language Competence
• B. Language performance
• C. Passive terms
• D. Inflectional Fixed Morphemes

Answer: (A)

Language competence is the underlying knowledge of a language—the mental grammar, rules, and vocabulary a speaker has internalized. It represents what you could understand and produce in principle, even when you’re not actively speaking. For example, you know that the past tense of go is went, and that promptly producing perfectly formed sentences relies on this internal knowledge.

Language performance is how you actually use language in real situations. It can be influenced by memory, attention, fatigue, and context, leading to hesitations, errors, or simpler forms in real communication.

The other terms don’t describe this general knowledge. Passive terms and inflectional fixed morphemes refer to specific concepts within language, not the broad knowledge that underlies all actual use.