6. Patterned means of word-formation: derivation, compounding.

Word-formation – the process of forming words by combining root and affixal morphemes according to certain patterns specific for the language (derivation, composition, conversion), or without any outward means of word formation (conversion, semantic derivation). So, to the patterned means of word-formation we refer: derivation and compounding.

Derivation consists of two processes: affixation and conversion.

The process of affixation consists of coining a new word by adding an affix or several affixes to a root morpheme. The role of the affix in this procedure is very important and therefore it’s necessary to learn some facts about the main types of affixes.

An affix is a type of morpheme, affixes are classified into the same two large groups as words: native and borrowed. Affixes are also divided into prefixes and into suffixes. So there are process of prefixation and affixation. Prefixes are such particles that can be prefixed to full words. Native prefixes have developed out of independent words; there is a small number of them: a-, be-, mid-, fore-, mis- etc. Prefixes of foreign origin have come into the language ready-made: Auto-, Demi-, Mono-, Multi-, Semi-, Post- etc.A suffix is a derivative final element, which is or was productive in forming new words.It has semantic value, but doesn’t occur as an independent speech use.

Conversion consists of making a new word from some existing word by changing the category of a part of speech, the morphemic shape of the original word remaining unchanged. The new word has a meaning which differs from that of the original one though it can more or less be easily associated with it.

The two categories of parts of speech especially affected by conversion are nouns and verbs. Verbs made from nouns are the most numerous amongst the words produced by conversion: *to hand, to back, to face, to eye, to mouth, to nose, to dog, to wolf, to monkey, to screen, to room, to floor, to honeymoon and many others.

Nouns are frequently made from verbs: do (event, incident), go (energy), make, run, find, catch, cut, walk, worry, show, move etc.

Compounding is the type of word-building in which new words are produced by combining two or more stems, it is one of the most productive types in the modern English.

Characteristics of compounds:

1. Coordinative vs. subordinative.

Coordinative – we can put “and”. Both words are equal.

Ex. super-duper, hoity-toity (напыщенный)

Subordinative – words are not equal. We have the main part and the characteristic.

Ex. schoolboy, black-tie (офиц.), wife-beater (борцовка), sweatshop (мастерская).

2. Proper vs. derivational.

1) Proper – no derivation(no affixes, but can be linking el.)

Ex. kiss curl (завлекалочка), hoity-toity, black-tie, sweatshop, rooftop (высокий).

2) Derivational – has any affix or backformation

Ex. blue-eyed boy, dropouter (чел., брош.работу или учебу), house-trained (хор.натренир.)

3) Shortening compound(contracted) – Ex. TV-set, T-shirt, e-mail

4) Syntactic compound(phrase) - Ex. forget-me-not, mother-in-law

3. Idiomatic (sweatshop, slave driver (тиран) vs. non-idiomatic (kiss curl, rooftop)

Some more Types: 1) Without a connecting element ( headache, heartbreak),

2) With a vowel or consonant as a linking element(speedometer, craftsman)

3) With a preposition or conjunction as a linking element (down-and-out (в ужасном положении, опустошенный) son-in-law).