Word Formation in English

1. Word Formation in English

2. Conversion • Conversion is a main type of word-formation assigning the base to a different word class with no change of form. For example, the verb release is converted to the noun release.

3. In the English language conversion is unusually prominent as a word-formation process.

4. There are two kinds of conversion: full conversion and partial conversion. • Full conversion is conversion of an adjective into a noun which has all features of a noun.

5. Partial conversion is conversion, where a word of one word class appears in a function which is characteristic of another word class.

6. Conversion to noun: • There are two types of conversion to noun. • 1) De-verbal • This type includes the following kinds. • The de-verbal nouns may be used:

7. 1)to denote the state of mind or • sensation. • Desire: • v. To long for, to wish • n. strong longing, earnest wish • dismay: • v. To fill with dismay • n. strong feeling of fear and • hopelessness

8. b) to denote an event or activity: attempt v: to try, to make a start • at doing something • n. effort to do something. • Fall: v. To come or go down • freely • n. act of falling

9. Release: v. To allow to go, to set • free. • n. releasing or being released. • Search: v. To examine, to look • carefully at. • n. act of searching

10. swim: v. To move the body through • water by using arms, legs, • fins, the tail, etc. • n. act or period of swimming • The deverbal nouns of this kind are used dynamically.

11. c) as object of the given verb: • Catch: • Her husband was a good catch ( that which is caught). They say he’s got a fortune in the bank.

12. d) as subject of the given verb: • bore: • He became a bore( one that causes boredom) at last. • cheat: • A cheat is a person who cheats.

13. e) as instrument of the given verb: • cover: • put the cover ( something with which to cover things) on the kettle and the water will boil.

14. Wrench: where is your wrench (spanner)?

15. f) as manner of the given verb: • walk: • I can know him at once by his walk • ( manner of walking).

16. lie: • the lie ( the way or position in which something lies) of the land.

17. g) as place of the given verb: • divide: • a period marking the divide. • (something that divides, especially watershed between two eras of American history.)

18. rise: • He sat at the top of a small rise ( an upward slope; small hill). • turn: • Take a turn to the right, please. A path full of twists and turns ( a place at which something turns, turns off or turns back.

19. 2) De-adjectival: • This conversion can be explained in terms of a fixed adjective plus noun phrase from which the noun has been ellipted.

20. Typical examples are: • I’d like two pints of bitter, please. ( type of beer) • They ‘re running in the final. ( • the final race) • As a foot-baller, he is a natural. ( a naturally skilled player)

21. Daily( daily newspaper) • Comic (comic actor) • Regular ( regular customer) • Roast( roast beef) • Young marrieds ( married people)

22. Annual ( annual book or magazine) • Bimonthly ( bimonthly magazine) • Biweekly ( biweekly magazine) • Weekly ( weekly magazine) • Monthly ( monthly magazine) • Perennial ( perennial plant)

23. Conversion to verb: • There are two types of conversion to verb. • Denominal: • This type has seven kinds. • A) to put in N: • Bottle: to put into a bottle • Corner: to put into a difficult position

24. B) to give N or to provide with N… • coat: to give a coat to • commission: to give a • commission to • mask: to give a mask to

25. C) to deprive of N: • core: to remove the core from • skin: to take the skin off • peel: to take the skin off fruit, • vegetables etc.

26. D) to do with N; • knife: to cut or stab with a knife • brake: to stop by means of a • brake • finger: to touch with the fingers

27. E) to be or act as N with respect: • father: to act as a father to • nurse: to act as a nurse to • pilot: to act as a pilot to

28. F) to make or change…into N: • cash: to change into cash • group: to make into a group

29. G) to send or go by N: • mail: to send by mail • telegraph: to send news, etc. • by telegraph • bicycle: to go by bicycle • boat: to travel by motor-car

30. canoe: • to travel by canoe • Most of the verbs in this type are transitive verbs, with the exception of a few words.

31. 2) De-adjectival: • This type has two kinds: • (transitive verb) to make adj. or to make more adj. • Calm: to make calm • Dirty: to make or become • dirty

32. This type can be used as transitive verbs and intransitive verbs: • Don’t dirty your hands. • White shoes dirty very easily

33. b)(intransitive verb) to become adj. • Dry: to become dry • Empty: to become empty • Narrow: to become narrow • Yellow: to become yellow

34. Grey: to become grey • Blue: to become blue • This kind can also be used as transitive verbs and intransitive verbs: • Dry your wet hands.

35. Sometimes a phrasal verb is derived from an adjective by the addition of a particle: • Smooth out: to make smooth

36. Calm down: to become calm • Sober up: to become sober

37. Sometimes a verb is derived from an adjective plus a suffix: • Blacken: to become black • Black: to make black

38. C. Conversion to adjective: This category has only one type. Denominal: A brick garage: The garage is brick.

39. Minor categories of conversion: • There are three less minor categories of conversion, chiefly used informally. • 1)Conversion to nouns: • This type has three kinds.

40. A) conversion from closed-system words to nouns. There are two postulated major word classes in the English language: open class and closed class. An open class is one whose membership is in principle indefinite or unlimited, whereas a closed class is one whose membership is fixed or limited.

41. New items are constantly being added to the open class, as new ideas, inventions, etc, appear. Nouns, verbs, adjective and adverbs are open-class items. New items are not regularly added to the closed class as they are in the case of open-class items. Pronouns, prepositions, conjunctions, articles, etc. are all closed-system words.

42. Examples are: But(i.e. the word but) contains three letters. His speech contains too many ifs and buts. It tells you about the how and the why of flight.

43. B)Conversion from affixes to • nouns: • Very occasionally, an affix may be converted to nouns, e.g. • This is the age of isms

44. C) Conversion from phrases to nouns: • Phrases or combinations of more than one word, may sometimes be reduced to noun status by conversion, e.g. • Whenever I gamble, my horse is one of the also-rans. ( one of the horses which also ran but was not among the winners.)

45. 2)Conversion to verbs • This conversion is conversion from closed-class words and non-lexical items to verbs. It is chiefly used informally: • They downed tools in protest.

46. 3)Conversion to adjectives: • This conversion is the conversion from phrases to adjectives. • An up-in-the-air feeling: I feel very up in the air ( with reference to cheerful spirits)

47. Conversion may be reclassified into three types according to the same word-classes; the change of secondary word class—nouns, the change of secondary word class---verbs and the change of secondary word class---adjectives.

48. The change of secondary word class---nouns: This type has four kinds. 1) noncount nouns- count nouns: a) a unit of N: Two coffees ( two cups of coffee) Two sugars ( two lumps of sugar)

49. b)a kind of N: Some paints are more lasting than others. This is a better bread than the one I baked yesterday.

50. c) an instance of N: ( with abstract nouns) May I ask a favour of you? The difficulties of English grammar; A home truth ( a fact about someone which is unpleasant for him but true.) Small kindnesses A miserable failure A great injustice