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Introduction to Morphology + Word Formation

The document provides an introduction to morphology, focusing on the structure and formation of words through morphemes, which are the smallest units of meaning. It distinguishes between free and bound morphemes, as well as lexical and function words, and discusses affixes, inflectional and derivational processes, and various methods of word formation such as compounding, borrowing, and blending. Additionally, it covers concepts like allomorphs and retronyms, illustrating how language evolves over time.

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Lê Minh Tiéns
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8 views42 pages

Introduction to Morphology + Word Formation

The document provides an introduction to morphology, focusing on the structure and formation of words through morphemes, which are the smallest units of meaning. It distinguishes between free and bound morphemes, as well as lexical and function words, and discusses affixes, inflectional and derivational processes, and various methods of word formation such as compounding, borrowing, and blending. Additionally, it covers concepts like allomorphs and retronyms, illustrating how language evolves over time.

Uploaded by

Lê Minh Tiéns
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Introduction to

Morphology
+ Word Formation
Instructor: Ta Le Minh Phuoc
What is Morphology?

PHILOSOPHY

philo- sophia
“loving” “wisdom”
Greek origins
What is Morphology?

• Words are constructed of smaller components →

morphemes.

• Morphemes → minimal units of meaning or

grammatical function.

• Morphology → study the architecture of words or

how to form words in a language.


Free vs. Bound morphemes

• Meaningful grammatical units that can stand alone

→ free morphemes.

• Meaningful grammatical units that cannot stand

alone → bound morphemes.

Example: dogs → dog: free morpheme

-s: bound morpheme.


Lexical vs. Function words

• Free morphemes.

• Lexical/content words: open class of words →

including: verbs, nouns, adjectives, adverbs.

• Function/grammatical words: closed class of words

→ including: prepositions , determiners, pronouns,

auxiliary/modal verbs.
ROOTS

Predict
Dogs
Pre- - dict
Dog -s In Latin, dicere:
“Before” “to say”
Root (free)
Root (bound)
A root is the most basic element of a word that
contributes the most to the meaning of a word
(could be either free or bound).
AFFIXES

• An affix is the element that adds extra information


to a word.
• Grammatical information → inflectional affixes.
• New word forming → derivational affixes.
• In English, there are 2 common types of affixes:
prefixes and suffixes. Circumfixes are very rare
(enlighten, enliven, embolden, etc.)
• All affixes are bound.
AFFIXES

Dogs Unhappy

Dog (n) -s Un- happy

Suffix Prefix
(inflectional) (derivational)
+ Inflectional affixes: do not change the word
class of the original word.
+ Derivational affixes: either change or do not
change the class of the original word.
Ex: happy (a) + -ness → happiness
INFLECTIONAL AFFIXES IN ENGLISH

English has 8 inflectional affixes. They are all suffixes:


1/ -s: the plural marker. Ex: The books are on the table.
2/ -’s: the possessive. Ex: This is John’s house.
3/ -s: the third person, present singular. Ex: He comes late.
4/ -er: the comparative. Ex: The weather is hotter here.
5/ -est: the superlative. Ex: She is the coolest.
6/ -ing: the progressive. Ex: I am watching TV.
7/ -ed: the past tense. Ex: She arrived late.
8/ -en: the past participle. Ex: I have written the report.
DERIVATIONAL AFFIXES IN ENGLISH

+ In English, derivational affixes can be prefixes or suffixes.


+ Derivational affixes may or may not change the word class
(part of speech) of the original word.
For examples:
1/ happy + -ness → happiness.

2/ un- + happy → unhappy.


ROOTS VS. STEMS

+ A stem is a form to which affixes can be attached.


+ A stem can be a root or a root plus affixes.
For examples:
1/ dog + -s → dogs
Stem: dog (a root).
2/ friendly + -ness → friendliness
Stem: friendly (a root + an affix).
SUMMARY: MORPHEMES IN ENGLISH

Morphemes

Free morphemes Bound morphemes

Free roots Bound roots Affixes

Lexical Function Inflectional affixes Derivational affixes


words words (only suffixes) (prefixes + suffixes)
ALLOMORPHS

+ Different variants of the same morpheme in different contexts.

+ No functional change.

+ No meaning change.

Examples: The plural –s

Cats → /s/
Allomorphs of
Dogs → /z/ the plural -s
Mice → There is no –s in the form
WORD FORMATION
Etymology

“The study of the origin and history of words


in a language”
Etymology

NIGHTMARE
MARE: In Old English, a mare is a mythological
NIGHT goblin or demon that torments the sleeper into
experiencing terrifying dreams.
Coinage

The creation of entirely new, previously


non-existent words or terms in a language.
Coinage in English

Nylon
Coinage in Vietnamese

Tà tưa Xu cà na
Compounding

Compounding is creating a word with more than one


root.
Compounding

HEART-ATTACK
Compounding

PICK-POCKET
Compounding

CELLPHONE
Compounding

FIRST-AID
Compounding

FINGERPRINT
Foreign word borrowing

Words borrowed from another language (through


trade, travel or conflict).
Ex: tsunami (= from Japanese)
Loan-translation / Calque

A direct translation of a word borrowed from a foreign


language.
Ex: English: spring rolls → Mandarin: 春 卷 (chūn juǎn -
Xuân Quyển)

+ chūn → Spring
+ juǎn → Rolls
Loan-translation / Calque

绿茶
Lǜchá Lục trà Trà xanh
Acronyms

Acronyms are words that are formed from the first letter of more
than one word.
Ex: NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration)
Acronyms vs. Initialisms vs. Abbreviations

asap vs. WTO vs. approx.


+ Acronyms can be pronounced as an independent word. But for

initialisms, each letter must be pronounced separately.

+ Abbreviations are shortened forms of ONE word.


Eponyms

Use a person name to name another thing.


Ex: Marxism
Hypocorisms

Use a nickname that shows affection or


closeness.
Ex: Bill --> Billy
Australia --> Aussie
Clipping

Deleting a section of a word to create a shortened


form.
Ex: dormitory → dorm
Backformation

Form a new word by clipping an affix from a lexical


item.
Ex: editor (n) → edit (v)
Blending

Blending is the process of taking two or more words


(compounding), clipping parts off one or more of the
words, and then combining them.
Ex: stay + vacation → staycation
Conversion

Conversion is the process of changing the word class


of a word without changing its form.
Ex: Put all the valuables in the safe.
Derivation

Forming new words by adding affixes. Affixes can be


prefixes or suffixes.
→ The most common way of forming new words in
English.
Ex: happy (a) → happiness (n)
RETRONYMS

When mentioning the word ‘PHONE’, which image


comes to your mind first?
RETRONYMS

In the past, we can use the word ‘PHONE’ to refer to the above phone but
thanks to the technological development, the word ‘PHONE’ is now used to refer
to more updated versions of phones. How can we call the above phone?
RETRONYMS

ROTARY PHONE
(A new word formed)
RETRONYMS

“RETRONYMS are new words that are used to refer


to an object/concept from the past, the original expression
is no longer used to refer to it now but refer to its newer version.”
WHY IS ‘LIVE MUSIC’ A RETRONYM?

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