2.2.1.2. Prefixation

Prefixation was a productive way of building new words in OE.

Prefixes were widely used with verbs but were far less productive with other parts of speech. Verbs were derived from a single root with the help of different prefixes:

ān – ‘go’ faran – 'travel'

ā-ān – 'go away' ā-faran – ‘travel’

be-ān – 'go round' tō-faran – 'disperse'

fore-ān – 'precede' for-faran – 'intercept'

ofer-ān – 'traverse' forþ-faran – 'die'

e-ān – 'go', 'go away' e-faran – 'attack', etc.

The most frequent, and probably the most productive, OE prefixes were: ā-, be-, for-, fore-, e-, ofer-, un-. Of these only un- was common with nouns and adjectives, the rest were mainly verb prefixes.

Prefixes

The prefix ā- meaning 'out of, 'from' is found, for instance, in the verbs ārīsan 'arise', āwacan 'awake', āberan 'sustain', ābysian 'occupy'. A productive prefix.

A different prefix ā- (connected with the adverb ā 'always')derives generalizing pronouns and adverbs from interrogative ones,e.g.: āhwær 'everywhere' (from hwær 'where'), āhwæþer 'either'(from hwæþer 'which of the two').

The same prefix followed by tbe prefix i- yields *āi- > æ-(with mutation), æ-, like ā-, derives generalizing pronouns and adverbs from interrogative ones: æhwæþer 'either', æhwilc 'every', æhwær 'anywhere'.

The prefix be- (cf. the adverb bi ’near’ and the preposition bi 'by') is added to substantives and verbs. Sometimes it preserves its original meaning 'around', sometimes its meaning is weakened. E. g.: beān 'go around', 'adore', behōn 'hang with', besettan 'besiege', bewēpan 'lament', beþencan 'think over', beniman 'deprive', behēafdian 'behead'.

The prefix for- expresses destruction or loss: fordōn 'destroy', forweorþan ‘perish’.

The prefix e- expresses either collectivity or perfection of an faction: efēra 'fellow-traveller', efylc 'troop' (cf. folc 'people'), emynd 'mind', esēon 'see'.

The prefix mis- means negation or bad quality: mislīcian 'displease', misdæd 'misdeed'.

The prefix of- has a reinforcing meaning: ofslēan 'kill', oftēon 'take away'.

The prefix on- (corresponding to German ent-, emp-, as in enltassen, empfangen) means change or separation: onbindan 'unbind', fonlūcan 'unlock'. In some cases its meaning is weakened, as in onfōn 'accept', ondrædan 'dread'.

The prefix to- expresses destruction: tōbrecan 'break', tōteran ‘tear'.

The prefix un- has a negative meaning: uncuþ 'unknown'. Sometimes it means 'bad': undæd ''misdeed'. A productive prefix.

The prefix wan- also has a negative meaning: wanhāl 'unwell'.

2.2.2. Composition

Composition is widely used in OE. There are compound nouns, adjectives, and, in lesser number, verbs.

Compound nouns can be formed by joining:

(1) “noun + noun”: æfentīd ‘evening time’, oldsmiþ ‘goldsmith’;

(2) “adjective + noun”: cwicseolfor ‘quicksilver’.

Compound adjectives can be formed by joining:

1. “noun + adjective”: wīn-sæd ‘satiated with wine’;

2. adjective + adjective: wīd-cūþ: ‘widely known’;

3. “adjective + noun”: blīþ-heort ‘happy-hearted’, læd-mod ‘glad-minded’.

Sometimes the first component takes the form of the genitive case, as Mōnandæ (literally ‘Moon’s day’) ‘Monday’, Tīwesdæ (literally ‘Tiw’s, the war god’s, day’) ‘Tuesday’, Wednesday ‘Woden’s day’, ‘Wednesday’, þunresdæ (Thunor’s, the god of thunder’s, day) ‘Thursday’, Friedæ (Friya’s day) ‘Friday’, Sæternesdæ (‘Saturn’s day’) ‘Saturday’, Sunnandæ (‘Sun’s day’) ‘Sunday’, Enlaland (‘Angles’ land’) ‘England’, Francnaland (‘Franks’ land’) ‘France’, witenaemōt (‘wise men’s assembly’) ‘State council’, Snotinahām (‘home of Snot’s descendants’) ‘Nottingham’, Oxenaford (‘oxen’s ford’) ‘Oxford’, dæesēae (‘day’s eye’) ‘daisy’.

Compound verbs are rare. An example is efenþrōwian ‘sympathize’ (literally: ‘suffer together’).

The remarkable capacity of OE for derivation and word-composition is manifested in numerous words formed with the help of several methods: un-wis-dōm ‘folly’ – un- - negative prefix, wis – adjective-stem (NE wise), dōm – noun-stem turning into a suffix; þēaw-fæst-nes ‘discipline’ – þēaw n ‘custom’, fæst adj ‘firm’ (NE fast), -nes - suffix.