| Rate of Linguistic Change.
Linguistic changes are usually slow and gradual. The rate of linguistic changes is restricted by the communicative function of language, for a rapid change would have disturbed communication between speakers of different generations. Unlike human society, language undergoes no revolutions or sudden breaks. The slow rate of linguistic change is seen in the gradual spread of new features in language space. But this shouldn’t be understood to mean that the speed of evolution in language is absolutely consistent or that all changes proceed at exactly the same space. At some historical periods linguistic changes grew more intensive and more rapid and at other periods they slowed down and the English language was stabilized.
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