Composition

2. Сomposition is the way of wordbuilding when a word is formed by joining two or more stems to form one word. The structural unity of a compound word depends on the following factors:

- the unity of stress,

- spelling,

- semantic unity,

- unity of morphological and syntactical functioning.

These are characteristics of compounds in all languages. For English some of these factors are not reliable. As a rule, English compounds have one uniting stress on the first component: hat-cover, best-seller. We can also have a double stress in English compouns, with the main stress on the first component and with a secondary stress on the second component: blood-vessel. The main stress can also be on the second component: snow-white, sky-blue. Besides, the stress may be phonological and help to differentiate the meaning of compounds: overwork – overwork, bookcase – bookcase.

Spelling in English compounds is not reliable as well. English compounds can have different spelling even in the same text: war-ship can be spelt through a hyphen, with a break or solidly.

The semantic unity of English compounds may be different. There are compounds in which the meaning of the whole is not a sum of meanings of its components: ghostwrite, skinhead, braindrain. There are componds the meaning of which is deduced from the meaning of the components: to blood-transfuse, airbus, astrodynamics.

English compounds have the unity of morphological and syntactical functioning. They are used in a a sentence as one part of it and only one component changes grammatically: These girls are chatter-boxes. The compound chatter-boxes is a predicative here and only the second component changes grammatically.

There are two characteristic features of English compounds:

• both components in an English compound are free stems. They can be used as words with a distinctive meaning of theit own. The sound pattern will be the same except for the stresses: green-house – теплица and green house – дом, выкрашенный в зеленый цвет;

• English compouns have mostly a two-stem pattern: railroad, homework.

Compounds in English can be formed not only by means of composition but also by means of:

-reduplication: too-too – sentimental, toy-boy – gigolo, shock-frock – bare-bosomed cocktail dress;

-conversion from word-groups: to micky-mouse, can-do, make-up;

-back formation from compound nouns or word-groups: to baby-sit from baby-sitter, to fingerprint from finger-printing;

-analogy: lie-in on the analogy with sit-in, brawn-drain on the analogy with brain-drain;

contrast: brain-gain in contrast to brain-drain.

There are different classifications of English compounds:

1. According to the parts of speech compounds are subdivided into:

• nouns: baby-moon, globe-trotter;

• adjectives: free-for-all, power-happy;

• verbs: to henpeck, to honeymoon;

• adverbs: downdeep, headfirst;

• prepositions: into, within;

• numerals: fifty-five.

According to the way components are joined together compounds are subdivided into:

• neutral, which are formed by joining together two stems without any joining morphemes: ball-point, to window-shop;

• morphological where components are joined by a linking element: astrospace, handicraft, sportsman;

• syntactical where the components are joined by means of stems: here-and-now, free-for-all, do-or-die.