The fourth edition of General Linguistics provides a comprehensive and accessible introduction to linguistics. The book

• semantics and pragmatics
• dialect and style
• phonetics and phonology
• morphology and syntax, with reference both to traditional and current theories
• comparative-historical linguistics and linguistic typology
• linguistics' relation to other disciplines
• the practical application of linguistics
• the 2,500 years of linguistic thought that lies behind what we do and think today