The functional, or communicative view of language is the view that language is a vehicle for the expression of functional meaning. British linguistics developed a system of categories based on the communicative needs of the learner and proposed a syllabus based on communicative functions. The functional view not only sees language as linguistic system but also a means for doing things. The semantic and communicativedimensions of language are  more emphasized than the grammatical characteristics, although these are also included.
Here are some of the areas of research in this view of language: sociolinguistics, pragmatics, semantics. The target of language learning is to learn to express communication functions and categories of meaning. Some of the language learning approaches and methods based on this view of language are: Communicative approaches; Functional-notional syllabuses; The Natural Approach。