Word formation

Word Ignatius Joseph N. Estroga, MA-Eng

Liceo de Cagayan University, Philippines

http://grammar.about.com/

Formation

Word Formation

In linguistics, the ways in which new words are made on the basis of other words or morphemes. Also called derivational morphology.

Word-formation can denote either a state or a process, and it can be viewed either diachronically or synchronically.

Diachronic linguistics

The study of a language through different periods in history.

Synchronic linguistics

The study of a language at one period in time (usually the present).

Diachronic linguistics and Synchronic linguistics are the two main temporal dimensions of language study introduced by Swiss linguist Ferdinand de Saussure in Course in General Linguistics (1916).

Word Formation

Compounding

compound adjective

Two or more words that act as a single idea to modify a noun Ex. a part-time employee

a high-speed chase As a general rule, the words in a compound adjective are hyphenated when they come before a noun but not when they come after

Ex. a well-known actor (√)

The actor is well known (x) Also, compound adjectives formed with an adverb ending in -ly are usually not hyphenated.

Ex. rapidly changing

violently swirled

compound adjectiveexercise

"If nothing else works, a total pig-headed unwillingness to look facts in the face will see us through.“

"The general was meeting someone for dinner at an out-of-the-way restaurant, not in the suburb of Nanterre, but close by."(Robert Ludlum, The Bourne Identity. Richard Marek Publishers, 1980)

"A well-developed sense of humor is the pole that adds balance to your steps as you walk the tightrope of life."(William Arthur Ward)

"In the 19th century, before the science of archaeology became well developed, the Ottomans laid out the brick and concrete city that stands today."

exerciseWrite 10 compound adjectives and present them in class

compound noun

Two or more nouns combined to form a single noun.Ex. grapefruit juice sister-in-law

schoolteacherA compounded noun whose form no longer clearly reveals its origin (such as bonfire or marshall) is sometimes called anamalgamated compound. Many place names (or toponyms) are amalgamated compounds: e.g., Norwich (north + village) and Sussex (south + Saxons).

compound nounexercise

The whole idea started with a parent who wanted to do a fundraiser for the snowboarding team at Nevada Union.

"Alas, the poor speechwriter. I knew him well."(Ted Sorensen, quoted by Bradley H. Patterson in To Serve the President: Continuity and Innovation in the White House Staff. Brookings Institution, 2008)

"As for me, except for the occasional heart attack, I feel as young as I ever did.“ Robert Benchley

"Some movie stars wear their sunglasses even in church. They're afraid God might recognize them and ask for autographs.“ (Fred Allen)

exerciseWrite 10 compound nouns and present them in class

compound verb

Two or more words combined to form a single verb. Compounds are written as either one word or two hyphenated words

Ex. stir fry

sleep walk

brainwash

was playing

would have been playing

rhyming compound

A compound word that contains rhymingelements, such as blackjack, fuddy duddy, pooper-scooper, and voodoo.

rhyming compound

"What would the English language be without Georgie-Porgie, tootsy-wootsy, razzle-dazzle, heebie-jeebies, walkie-talkie, nitty-gritty, and polly-wolly-doodle? . . . We barely notice the presence of rhyme in picnic, humdrum, humbug, hobnob, and tidbit: the humor of their inner form has worn off."(Anatoly Liberman, Word Origins: Etymology for Everyone. Oxford Univ. Press, 2009)

"For all the hullabaloo surrounding the 'mobile gaming revolution' there are few games that really tailor themselves well to the medium."(Toby Moses, "Extraction: Project Outbreak." The Observber, Nov. 26, 2011)

"Look out helter skelterShe's coming down fastYes she isYes she is coming down fast."(John Lennon and Paul McCartney, "Helter Skelter")

Affixation

Affixation

In the process of adding an affix to a word to create either;

(a)a different form of that word (e.g., bird → birds), or

(b)(b) a new word with a different meaning (bind →binder).

The two primary kinds of affixation are prefixation (the addition of a prefix) and suffixation (the addition of a suffix).

Blending

Blending

A word formed by merging the sounds and meanings of two or more other words or word parts. Also known as a portmanteau word.

One common type of blend is a full word followed by a word part (called a splinter), as in motorcade (motor + cavalcade).

Blending

biopic (biography + picture)

camcorder (camera + recorder)

chexting (cheating + texting)

docudrama (documentary + drama)

electrocute (electricity + execute)

emoticon (emote + icon)

faction (fact + fiction)

flare (flame + glare)

flirtationship (flirting + relationship)

guitarthritis (guitar + arthritis)

infotainment (information + entertainment)

sexcapade (sex + escapade)

sexploitation (sex + exploitation)

sitcom (situation + comedy)

slanguage (slang + language)

sportscast (sports + broadcast)

staycation (stay home + vacation)

telegenic (television + photogenic)

textpectation (text message + expectation)

workaholic (work + alcoholic)

Derivation

Derivation

The process of creating a new word out of an old word, usually by adding a prefix or a suffix. Adjective:derivational. Linguist Geert Booij notes that one criterion for

distinguishing derivation and inflection "is that derivation may feed inflection, but not vice versa. Derivation applies to the stem-forms of words, without their inflectional endings, and creates new, more complex stems to which inflectional rules can be applied" (The Grammar of Words, 2005).

Derivation

"Derivational morphology studies the principles governing the construction of new words, without reference to the specific grammatical role a word might play in a sentence. In the formation of drinkable from drink, or disinfect from infect, for example, we see the formation of new words, each with its own grammatical properties."

Derivation

Derivation versus InflectionMorphology may be divided into 

derivation--rules that form a new word out of old words, like duckfeathers and unkissable, and

inflection --rules that modify a word to fit its role in a sentence, what language teachers call conjugation and declension."

Changes to Meaning and Word Class: Prefixes and Suffixes"Derivational prefixes do not normally alter the word class of the base word; that is, a prefix is added to a noun to form a new noun with a different meaning:

patient: outpatient group: subgroup trial: retrial

Derivational suffixes, on the other hand, usually change both the meaning and the word class; that is, a suffix is often added to a verb or adjective to form a new noun with a different meaning:

adjective--dark: darkness verb--agree: agreement noun--friend: friendship"

Etymology

Etymology

Etymology is the scientific study of the origin of words. This etymological study improves your vocabulary. The strong vocabulary gives you a more challenging and rewarding job. greater self-confidence in speaking and in writing.

improved comprehension in all your reading. success in your studies.

Etymology

The etymology of a word refers to its origin and historical development: that is, its earliest known use, its transmission from one language to another, and its changes in form and meaning. Etymology is also the term for the branch of linguistics that studies word histories.

Borrowing

Borrowing

The majority of the words used in modern English have been borrowed from other languages. Although most of our vocabulary comes from Latin and Greek (often by way of other European languages), English has borrowed words from more than 300 different languages around the world.

Borrowing

futon (from the Japanese word for "bedclothes, bedding")

gorilla (Greek Gorillai, a tribe of hairy women, perhaps of African origin)

hamster (Middle High German hamastra)

kangaroo (Aboriginal language of Guugu Yimidhirr, gangurru , referring to a species of kangaroo)

kink (Dutch, "twist in a rope")

Borrowing

moccasin (Native American Indian, Virginia Algonquian, akin to Powhatanmäkäsn and Ojibwa makisin)

molasses (Portuguese melaços, from Late Latin mellceum, from Latin mel, "honey")

muscle (Latin musculus, "mouse")slogan (alteration of Scots slogorne, "battle cry")

smorgasbord (Swedish, literally "bread and butter table")

whiskey (Old Irish uisce, "water," and bethad, "of life")

Clipping or Shortening

Clipping or Shortening

Some new words are simply shortened forms of existing words

Ex. indie from independentexam from examinationflu from influenzafax from facsimile.

Imitation of Sounds

Imitation of Sounds

Words are also created

by onomatopoeia, naming things by imitating the sounds that are associated with them: 

Ex. boo, bow-wow, tinkle, click.

first-sister principle

first-sister principle

In compounding, the principle that the "first sister" to the right of a verb is moved by transformation to the left of the verb. (The "first sister" is the position immediately adjacent to the verb.)

The first-sister principle (FSP) was proposed by Thomas Roeper and Muffy Siegel in "A Lexical Transformation for Verbal Compounds" (Linguistic Inquiry 9, 1978): "All verbal compounds are formed by incorporation of a word in first sister position of the verb.“

Examples hand-built  factory-built  hand-built in a factory  factory-built by hand

Similative

similative

In morphology, a construction expressing sameness or similarity of manner or being, such as the compounds dead loss and ice cold.

Similitive meanings may also be conveyed by -like and other suffixes. These suffixes are sometimes called extenders.

similative

"During the show, to the jesting and prompting of clowns, an elephant of snow-white complexion performed humiliating and belittling tasks, and as he did, not unexpectedly, his 'whiteness' left a white mark on everything he touched.“

"There is a marked distinction between what we believe to be true and what is truth, as there is an ocean-wide difference between reason and reasoning.“

"His skin was the color of uncooked fish, and his small, rat-like eyes had to them the irritated squint of a newborn."

Exercises

Exercises

In Exercise 1, you must change the words given into new adjectives, adverbs, or verbs by

adding the prefix or suffix that best suits the context. http://www.tolearnenglish.com

Exercises

Exercise 2- Oscar Wilde Paragraph

Words can have a number of forms in English depending on what part of speech is used. These related words are content words and will vary in noun, verb, adjective and adverb forms.

Exercises

Noun Verb Adjective AdverbLife live lively livelyCompetition compete competitive competitively

Group Exercises

Noun Verb Adjective Adverb