Word-formation formation of nouns
To describe people we add -ar, -er, -or to the end of the verbs and -ist, -ianto the end of nouns or verbs making all necessary spelling changes:
to lie – liar; to rob – robber; to create – creator; to type – typist; music – musician.
Nouns formed from verbs:
-age to break - breakage -ion to confuse – confusion
-al to propose – proposal -ment to amuse – amusement
-ance to annoy – annoyance -sion to suspend – suspension
-ation to organise – organisation -sis to analyse – analysis
-ence to prefer – preference -tion to direct – direction
-y to perjure – perjury
Nouns formed from adjectives:
-ance tolerant – tolerance -iness happy - happiness
-cy fluent – fluency -ity popular - popularity
-ence obedient – obedience -ment content - contentment
-ion desperate – desperation -ty royal - royalty
-y honest – honesty
Exercise 1. Make nouns from the following words:
employ instruct lonely
post portray reluctant
except translate excellent
expand injure intelligent
accept refer accurate
publish apologize excited
develop examine fragile
combine pollute regular
drive judge stupid
inspire use isolate
Exercise 2. Fill in the right form of the words in brackets.
The 1) _____ (long) of the journey was beginning to cause a lot of 2) _____ (frustrate) for everyone involved. Unfortunately, father got the blame, as he had been responsible for the 3) _____ (organize) of the trip. 4) _____ (impatient) had begun to set in when we realized we’d been given the wrong 5) _____ (direct) by a well-meaning pedestrian. What is more, father’s 6) _____ (popular) was not increased by his 7) _____ (insist) that we stop every hour or so to observe the scenery. The trip to France, he’d said, would broaden our horizons and provide us with both 8) _____ (amuse) and 9) _____ (educate). However, in 10) _____ (real) it turned out to be a waste of time and effort. It was then that we made the 11) _____ (decide) never to listen to one of father’s 12) _____ (propose) again.
Exercise 3.Makenouns from the words in brackets to complete the conversations. Use these suffixes:-ation -er -ition -ment -ness -or -tion
1 A: Who's that man by the window?
B: That’s Mr. Hardy. He's a ____________ at my son's school. (teach)
2 A: Little Sally's always making up stories about giants and fairies. B: Yes, she's got a wonderful ____________. (imagine)
3 A: Can you see that woman over there?
B: Yes. What about her?
A: She's married to a famous film ____________. (direct)
4 A: James is entering a chess____________. (compete) B: I hope he wins.
5 A: He was trying to hide his ____________. (embarrass) B: Poor Peter!
6 A: We've just received an ____________to Jane's party. (invite) B: Great! When is it?
7 A: Has Angela recovered from her ____________? (ill) B: Yes, she's feeling a lot better, thank you.
8 A: Which ____________ stars in the film? (act) B: Tom Cruise.
9 A: What do you think this book's about?
B: Why don't you read the ____________to find out? (introduce)
10 A: Is there anything else I can do?
B: No, I'll be fine now. Thank you so much for your ____________. (kind)
Exercise 4. Supply the right adjectives, using such suffixes as:
-able, - ful, -ic, - ive, - ant, - ible, - ian, - ish, -ly, - ous.
I’m attracted by this scheme. I find it very attractive.
A class of forty can be managed. It’s just about _____________.
I know I hesitated before agreeing. I couldn’t help being _____________.
I don’t know where you find all that energy. You’re awfully _____________.
This piece of furniture was made in the reign of the queen Victoria. It’s _____________.
I don’t know how to describe the colour of the sky. It’s almost red, sort of _____________.
I’ve never met anyone who boasts as she does. She’s extremely _____________.
What level of radiation can be permitted? How mush radiation is _____________?
The story is full of humour. I’ve rarely read anything that’s so _____________.
Exercise 5. Supply the right adjectives using such negative prefixes as: un-, in-, il-, im-, dis-, ir- and pre-, which doesn’t create opposites .
The coast line is not regular in shape. It is quite irregular.
This arrangement isn't strictly legal. Some people would regard it as _____________ .
It is not possible. Don't ask me to do the _______________.
Such a situation is barely imaginable. It's quite _______________.
Bob's not very capable. He's _____________ of making sound decisions.
I doubt she is literate. She can't read or write. She is an _____________ woman.
This scheme isn’t very practical. In fact, it’s quite _____________.
I can’t trust him. He is not always honest. He is said to be _____________.
Sometimes she doesn’t behave in a responsible manner. She is quite _____________.
The fish hasn’t been cooked enough. It is _____________.
This dates before the war. It is _____________.
Exercise 6.Change the underlinednounsintoadjectivesby adding one of the suffixes given. Follow the example.- ic; - y; -ate; -ent; -ous; -ive; -ing; - ed;
Example: John is full of affectionfor his wife. – John is anaffectionatehusband.
1. I think my elder sister is like a sunthat warms everyone.
I think my elder sister has a _______ disposition.
2. Jake’s enthusiasm about fishing never irritates his wife.
Jake is an _______ fisherman but it never irritates his wife.
3. Charles’s ambition has always been to make a good career in business.
Charles is very _______ about his career in business.
4. Real friendship means cooperation in everything.
Try to be _______ with your friends in everything you do together.
5. It is usually difficult for weak-willed people to make a decision.
Weak-willed people are usually not _______.
6. Amanda flirtswith all the men she meets. Amanda is very _______.
7. Robert’s embarrassmentwhen he first met Andrea’s parents was easy to notice.
In a situation like that most young men would feel _______.
8. Jealousy always makes people suffer. _______ people are usually always very unhappy.
9. While bringing up children parents need a lot of patience.
It is very difficult for parents to be _______ when their children behave badly.
10. It seems that your friend’s mood changes very often. Your friend seems to be a ________ fellow.
Exercise 7. Read the text below. Use the word given in capitals at the end of each line to form a word that fits in the space in the same line. There is an example at the beginning (0).
Dogs
Dogs are said to be man's best friend.
They display a great deal of (0) loyaltytowardsLOYAL
their (1) _______. OWN
As well as providing (2) _______ they also provide (3) COMPANION
_______ for people and their homes. However, not all dogs PROTECT
are the same. They have their own (4)_______. PERSONAL
Some dogs are (5) _______ and have to attend classes to change OBEDIENT
their (6) _______. Their masters have to learn to punish their pets BEHAVE
for the bad behavior and to praise them for the good one.
Exercise 8.For questions 1-6, read the text below. Use the word given in capitals at the end of each line to form a word that fits in the space in the same line. There is an example at the beginning (0).Famine
(0) Hunger is one of the most serious problems facing the developingHUNGRY
world. Famine and drought are partly to blame, but civil war has
also contributed to the (1) _______ situation. Large charity organizations DISASTER
try to (2)_______ problem. RELIEF
They collect (3) _______ from people in order to buy food, clothes DONATE
and (4) _______ supplies. MEDICINE
However, (5) _______ of these goods is not always easy. DISTRIBUTER
When a country is at war, supplies often (6) _______ before APPEAR
they reach their destination and many people continue to go hungry.
Exercise 9.You are going to read sentences. Some words are missing. Use the words in the right column to form the words that fit in the gaps (1-10). Write your answers on the lines. There is an example at the beginning (0).
0 How do they show their ___________________. intelligent
1. Sherlock Holmes was one of the world's most famous _______________. detect
2. He looked very ______________________________________________. surprise
3. The ship was badly ___________________________________________. damage
4. What an ______________________________________________ story! amuse
5. His ______________________________ to stop annoyed the policeman. refuse
6. What is your __________________________________________ salary? month
7. The town is full of tourists and other ____________________________. visit
8. Some forms of exercise can be ________________________________. risk
9. They got __________________________________________ yesterday. marry
10. The ending of the detective novel seemed highly _________________. probable
Exercise 10.For questions 1-15, read the text below. Use the word given in capitals at the end of each line to form a word that fits in the space in the same line.