Formation of the verbs of «Bring up", "Make out" Type
The number of compound verbs is not great in English. It is not even clear whether verbal composition exists in present-day English, though such verbs as "outgrow", "overflow", "stand up", "black list", "white - wash'' - are often called compound verbs. Some scientists treat outgrow and overflow as unquestionable compounds though they admit that the type is not productive. The Oxford Dictionary on the other hand, defines out and over as prefixes used both for verbs and nouns. This approach classifies "outgrow" and "overflow" as derivatives, which seems convincing.
But a great number of composite verbs is a characteristic feature of today's English. These are usually monosyllabic verbs, such as bear, blow, break, bring, call, carry, cast, catch, come, cut, do, draw, drive, fall, keep, lay, east, hold, look, let, make, play, pull, put, ride, run, sell, send, set, shake, sit, speak, stand, strike, take, throw, turn, walk, work, write, etc.
To these verbs such elements are added: about, across, along, around, away, back, by, down, of, on, over, round, through, up - which are written separately with verbs, are stressed and form with verbs an inseparable semantic unity.
e.g. carry out, come across, get up, point out
Such verbs are called "verbs with postpositions". They are usually used in colloquial speech. Very often they have synonyms among manysyllabic verbs, mainly borrowed.
to fall out - to quarrel
to make up - to reconcile
to blow out- explode
to pick out - to choose
to fall back - retreat
to get back - to return
Shortening of Words
It consists in substituting a part for the whole. The spoken and the written forms of the English language have each their own patterns of shortening.
As a type of word-building, shortening (also called clipping or curtailment), goes back as far as the 15th century. It has grown more and more productive ever since. It becomes especially marked in many European languages in the 20th century, and it is especially intense in English.
Newly shortened words appear continuously: to dub (double), mike (microphone), vac (vacuum cleaner), TV (television).
fan - fanatic
fancy - fantasy
miss - mistrees
In both types the clipped forms (doc, exam, chap, fan) exist in the language alongside with their respective prototypes. Shortening produces new words in the same part of speech.
Abbreviations
During World War I and later there appeared and became popular to call countries, governmental, social and military, industrial and trade organizations not by their full names but by initial abbreviations, derived from writing: the USSR, the UNO.
There are two ways of reading such abbreviations:
1. As a succession of the alphabetical readings of the constituent letters
e.g. Y.C.L. (Young Communist League), CPSU, BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation), p.m. (prime minister), SOS
2. As a succession of sounds denoted by the constituent letters, i.e. as if the abbreviations were ordinary words: UNESCO, NАТО.
Words belonging to this group are often isolated from the prototypes.
As to their way of shortening abbreviations are subdivided into 2 groups:
1. Initial abbreviations: SOS
2. Combined shortened compound words (they consist of initial letters of the first word or words and a certain form of the second words): A-terror, H-bang; U - stands for upper classes in such combinations: U-pronunciation, U-language, non-U is its opposite, so non-U speakers are those whose speech habits show that they do not belong to the upper classes.
All kinds of shortening are very productive in present day English. They are especially numerous in colloquial speech. Shortened words assimilate in the language and undergo all word-changes.
e.g. No increase for MP's.
The manager okeyed the decision.
Sound Interchange
Sound interchange is such a way of forming new words when some sound or sounds in the root are changed.
e.g. life - to live
food - to feed
speak – speech
It is non-productive now. It mау be either the interchange of vowels or consonants or combinative interchange of vowels and consonants at the same time.
e.g. rise – raise
house - to house
use - to use
practice - to practice
breathe - breath
deep - depth
Blending
This is the way of creating new words which consists in blending separate parts of two words into one, while the primary meaning of both words is partially preserved:
e
.g.
hurry
shine
smoke
hustle
shimmer
smog
bustle glimmer fog
m
otor
flash
electricity
motel
flush
electrocute
hotel blush execute