The shorter a linguistic expression is, the more likely it is will be associated with familiarity and high frequency of occurrence. The longer a linguistic expression is, the more likely it is will be associated with unfamiliarity and low frequency of occurrence.
Standardized
The shorter a linguistic expression is, the more likely it is will be associated with familiarity and high frequency of occurrence. The longer a linguistic expression is, the more likely it is will be associated with unfamiliarity and low frequency of occurrence.
Keywords
iconicity, complexity, length, formality, register, frequency
Domain
morphology, syntax, semantics
Type
implication
Status
achronic
Quality
statistical
Basis
experiment on 194 students, native speakers of Finnish and Swedish, in Östman 1989
