11.Word formation.Affixation.

Word-formation is the system of derivative types of words and the process of creating new words from material, available in the language after certain structural and semantic formulas and patterns. A distinction is made between two principal types of word-formation: word-derivation and word-composition. The basic ways of forming words in word derivation are affixation and conversion. Affixation is the formation of a new word with the help of affixes (f.e. heartless; overdo). Conversion is the formation of a new word by bringing a stem of this word into a different formal paradigm (f.e. a private, to paper). The basic form of the original and the basic form of the derived words are homonymous.

Affixation – the addition of the affix, is a a basic means of forming words in English. It has been productive in all periods of the history of English.

Linguists distinguish three types of affixes: 1. An affix that is attached to the front of its base is called a prefix, whereas 2. an affix attached to the end of the base is called a suffix.

Both types of affix occur in English Far less common than prefixes or suffixes infixes - a type of affix that occurs within a base of a word to express such notions as tense, number, or gender. English has no system of infixes.

In Modern English suffixation is characteristic of noun and adjective formation, while prefixation is typical of verb formation. As a rule prefixes modify the lexical meaning of stems to which they are added. The prefixes of derivatives usually join the part of speech the unprefixed word belongs: usual – unusual.

The suffix does not only modify the lexical meaning of the stem it is added to, but the word itself is usually transferred to another part of speech: e.g. care-careless.

The process of affixation consists in coining a new word by adding an affix or several affixes to some root-morpheme. Affixation is generally defined as the formation of word by adding derivational affixes to different types of bases.

Suffixes and prefixes may be classified along different lines. The logical classification of suffixes is according to:

1. their origin: from etymological point of view suffixes are subdivided into 2 main classes:

native (-er, -ness, -dom) and borrowed (latin: -ant,-ent,-ible,-able; romanic: -age,-ment,-tion; greek: -ist,-ism,-ism).

2. meaning: -er – doer of the action: worker;

   • ess – denote gender: lion-lioness;

   • -ence/-ance – abstract meaning: importance;

   • -dom + -age – collectivity: kingdom.etc.

3. Suffixes part of speech they form:

   • noun-forming suffixes: -er, -ness, -ment, -th, -hood, -ing.

   • Adjective-forming suffixes: -ful, -less, -y, -ish, -en, -ly.

   • Verb-forming suffixes: -en (redden, darken)

4. Productivity. By productive suffixes we mean the ability of being used to form new occasional or potential words which take part in deriving new words in this particular period of languge development.

The best way to identify productive affixes is to look for them among neologisms. Well most productive suffixes are: noun forming - -er, -ness, -ing, -ism, -ist, -ance, -ancy; adjective forming - -ish, -able, -ion, -edd, -less; adverb forming - -ly; verb forming - -ize, -ise, -ate. By non-productive affixes we mean affixes which are not able to form new words in the period in question. Non-productive affixes are recognized as separate morphemes and posess clear-cut semantic characteristics. ( non-productive suffixes are: noun forming - -hood, -ship, adjective forming - -ful, -some, verb forming - -en. An affix may lose its productivity and then become productive again in the process of word formation. For ex. non-prod. noun forming suffixes –dom, -ship centuries ago were considered as productive. The adjective forming suffix –ish which leaves no doubt to its productivity nowadays has regained it after having been non-prod. for many centuries. The productivity of an affix shouldn’t be confused with its frequency of occurrence. The frequency of occurrence is understood as the existence in the vocabulary of a great number of words containing an affix in question. An affix may occur in hundreds of words but if it isn’t used to form new words it isn’t productive. For ex. adjective forming suffix –ful (beautiful, trustful) is met in hundreds of adjectives but no new words seem to be built with its help. So it’s non-productive.

The logical classification of prefixes. They are characterized according their origin-native and borrowed. 1) be-, mis-(name), un-(selfish), over-(do). 2) latin – pre-, ultra. Greec – anti-, sym. French – en-. Also they classified according their meaning. 1)negative (in, mis, un, non). 2)pr of time and order (after, post, proto) 3)pr of repetitions (re) 4)location (extra, trance, super). 4)size and degree meaning (mega, super, ultra). The main а ща зк is to change the lexical meaning.