Basic terms and concepts

morphology – the branch of linguistics dealing with the internal structure and formation of words

word, morpheme – two concepts crucial to any morphological investigation

1. the morpheme

structuralist approach

morpheme – the smallest individually meaningful element in the utterances of a language; variety of senses depending on the particular theoretical framework

complex form – a word composed of several morphemes [[[mean]ing]ful]

morphologically simplex form – monomorphemic [mean]

bound morpheme – never occur in isolation, so as to form an independent word (affixes)

free morpheme – can function as an independent word (root)

problems with the approach:

1. empty morphemes – units of form without meaning (par-o-wóz, dw-u piętrowy, malin-a, cran-berry)

2. zero morphemes (ø) – units of meaning without overt formal expression (g.sg. lamp-ø, a cook-ø<to cook)

no post-structuralist interpretation of ‘morpheme’ has met with unanimous recognition from the majority of the linguists (e.g. a word should be the basic unit in morphological analysis; morpheme – phonetic string which can be connected to a linguistic entity outside that string)

2. word and lexeme

word – all the attempts of working out an adequate definition have been largely unsuccessful, ambivalence in the notion of the word:

word-form – a combination of phonetic or orthographic units, potentially constructing a fragment of a larger utterance (matka, kupiła, dziecku, nowe, buty), combination of lexical and grammatical meanings

lexeme – dictionary items, abstract unit, can have several contextual realizations in terms of particular word-forms (MATK-n, KUPI-v, DZIECK-n, NOW-a, BUT-n)

citation-form – it is customary to select one word-form as a citation-form (matka, kupić, dziecko, nowy, but)

3. morpheme and morph

discrepancy between the fixed lexical shape assigned to a given morpheme and the phonetic form it actually assumes within an utterance (e.g. as a part of a word-form)

morph – a textual, context-sensitive realization of a morpheme

allomorph – several distinct morphs that represent the abstract unit of a given morpheme

4. allomorphy

distribution of the allomorphs can be:

1. phonologically conditioned – according to the rules of Polish phonology: a lexeme BUT has two alternating forms: [but] in ‘buty’, oraz [buć] in ‘bucik’, the plural marker [-i] in ‘buty’ has its counterpart [-i] in ‘nogi’, ‘ptaki’

2. morphologically (grammatically) conditioned: pluralization in Polish depends also on the gender of nouns: [-e] in ‘konie’, ‘noce’, [-a] in ‘okna’, ‘serca’, [-ov’je] in ‘panowie’, ‘sędziowie’

3. lexically conditioned: dziecko – dzieci; ptak – ptaszyna

rule of allomorphy – applies to a morpheme or other than phonologically designated set of morphemes, in the immediate environment of a designated morpheme or set of morphemes

4. inflection and derivation

division of the field of morphology

1. derivation – deals with the methods of forming new lexemes from already existing ones

2. inflection – concerns the production of word-forms corresponding to a given lexeme (word-formation); morpho-syntactic categories: number, person, gender, aspect, tense, voice, mood

Some argue that there is no clear distinction between the two but rather a continuum ranging from phenomena which are manifestly inflectional to those ones that are indubitably derivational. Some processes (e.g. adverb-formation in English and Polish) should be regarded as lying at the border-line between inflection and derivation.

6. stem and base

1. inflection

   1. inflectional formatives/affixes

   2. stem – the part of the word-form which remains when all inflectional affixes have been removed [[[płacz]ąc]ego]; can be morphologically complex [[płacz-liw]y]; so-called stem-forming morphemes (-a-, -i-, -e-) [[płak-a]ć], [[pal-i]ć]], [[krzycz-e]ć]

2. derivation

   1. derivational formatives/affixes

   2. base – a lexeme (or morpheme) from which another, complex lexeme is formed

7. inflectional morphology

paradigm – closed set of forms of which, as a rule, only one may fill a particular syntactic slot, word-forms which represent a given lexeme are organized into paradigms

syncretism – naturalization of certain inflectional oppositions within the paradigm (i.e. the ending –a in the ‘kot’ paradigm is used to create 2 cases: gen. and acc. sg.)

cumulative exponents – the element which represents several inflectional categories (i.e. ending –em in ‘kotem’ represents 3 categories: case, number, and gender)

8. creativity and productivity

creativity in the speaker’s way of handling the lexical stock of his native language (word-formation competence) – one is capable of producing a virtually unlimited number of (derived) words; using a finite set of means (base-forms, rules), the speaker is able to produce infinite number of words

productivity – the property of language which allows a native speaker to produce an infinitely large number of sentences; it is a gradable concept, but the degree of productivity is hardly expressive in absolute terms

regularity and rule-governed nature of many derivational phenomena – a native speaker has the ability to form a new word so there must be rules in the language system which allow the formation of the nonce words in a synchronic grammar; however the lexical derivation, in contrast to syntax and phonology, is marked by a considerable degree of idiosyncrasy

WFR – word-formation rules – independent component of the grammar

words:

1. actual words

2. possible, but non existent

3. impossible and non existent

unifix – unique suffix (laugh-ter, hat-red, bishop-ric, ręk-aw)

nonce word – invented on a particular occasion and used only once

9. the place of morphology in the grammar

“Where’s morphology?” (across several components? in the syntax? in the lexicon?)

transformationalist approach – attempts to account for the eerivation of complex words by means of transformation

lexicalist approach – derivational morphology is a part of extended lexicon

10. the lexicon – a list of lexical entries, where idiosyncratic, unpredictable information on each lexeme is provided

Questions about the character of the lexicon.

11. lexicalization and blocking

lexicalization

• whole derivational pattern undergoes lexicalization; consequence of the fact that the particular rule that was involved in derivation of a lexeme ceases to be productive in a language, e.g. expos-ure, enclos-ure, new words are not formed by means of this element in contemporary English; the nouns in –ure have to be listed in the lexicon

• semantic lexicalization: lexicalizations of individual derivatives within an otherwise productive pattern, e.g. transmission comes from transmit, but when used in the sense ‘part of an automobile’ must be considered lexicalized

blocking – nonoccurence of one form due to the existence of another, where both forms in question are “rival” forms in the sense that they are semantically equivalent, e.g. ‘glory’ blocks the derivation of *’gloriosity’ from the adjective ‘glorious’ (but not ‘gloriousnes’)

blocking rule – given a set of “rival” co-functional affixes, the attachment of one such affix blocks the attachment of the remaining affixes to a particular base

Derived Adjectives

I. Relational/Transpositional

Specific nature of those adjectives:

1. Their function is syntactic and consists in category-shift (noun>adjective) with almost no semantic effect.

2. Described in very general terms as ‘pertaining to/connected with N’, more precise meaning is possible to determine only with enough contextual information. The meaning of ‘industrial’ changes in each case: industrial region, -action, -output

3. Separating this category from others is difficult. Two approaches:

   1. minimalist: there are only two major classes of adjectives - relational and qualitative

   2. maximalist: there is a large but not infinite catalog of adjectival functions, ‘relational’ being a kind of residue

4. In English the relational function is usually rendered by methods other than adjectivization

   1. compounding: headache, pipe tobacco, speech organs, thinking process

   2. prepositional construction: organs of speech, process of thinking

5. Powerful limitations to the coining of relational adjectives: (from some (not all) Latinate nouns, BUT small class of native exceptions in -ly: bodily, churchy, fleshly, priestly)

   1. not from nouns that properly belong to the category NA

There are, however instances of adjectivization of nouns with NA suffixes (-ment, -ance/-ence, -ure, -ation) (BUT not of -al, -age, -y) but only in two cases:

• when the noun is not of the structure V+suffix - derived from a verb (ornament, fragment, circumstance, culture, fracture, condition, tradition)

• when the noun derived from a verb (e.g. of the structure V+suffix) has, apart from NA, another, lexicalized meaning: (government, development, accompaniment, conference, residence, adaptation, motivation, organization, civilization)

1. not from nouns that properly belong to the category NE. Both Latinate suffixes of NE (-ity, -y) are “closing morphemes” and don’t allow for any further process of derivation.

1. -al and -ic (-ical)

Distribution of those formatives is hardly definable in any strict terms. There are some doublets (prism-prismal-prismatic, derm-dermal-dermic-dermatic, tone-tonal-tonic). The choice has been governed by a complex of historical factors.

-ic

1. most words in -y derive in -ic (-y is dropped): diachronic (<diachrony), epidemic, monogamic, geographic, pedagogic(al), hematologic(al), anatomic, theosophic

2. neo-Latin in -ia derive in -ic (-ia is dropped): arrhythmic, encyclopedic, nostalgic, haemophilic (BUT: some of N-ia develop forms by -(i)ac)

3. Greek words in -sis derive in -tic: anabatic, emphatic, mimetic, sclerotic (BUT: oasis, thesis, axis >axial)

4. words in -itis derive in -itic: bronchitic, phlebitic, meningitic

5. words in -ite derive in -itic: anthracitic, selenitic, trilobitic

6. Xism >Xisit >Xistic: idealism-idealist-idealistic, imperialism-imperialist-imperialistic, realism-realist-realistic, moralism-moralist-moralistic (-ism >Ø; +ist; +ic)

7. words ending in -ma or -m derive in -(a)tic (BUT with exclusion of the words in -ism): aromatic (<aroma), asthmatic, dogmatic, schematic, dramatic; idiomatic (<idiom), symptomatic, axiomatic, paradigmatic (BUT: atomic, balsamic, psalmic, rhythmic, panoramic)

8. ethnic names: Arabic, Celtic, Finnic, Germanic, Slavic

-al/-ial

1. synchronically simple Latinate: digital (<digit), tonal, oriental, modal, clausal, orbital

2. nouns ending in -ce ([s] phonetically) take -al and -ial (the allomorphy is difficult to account for): facial, racial, spatial, financial, provincial, gerundial, vestigial, peripheral, industrial

3. nouns ending in -ic(s) (most of them denote various branches of knowledge: arithmetical (<arithmetic), logical, musical, rhetorical; mathematical (<mathematics), metaphysical, tactical (BUT some N-ics take the shape Xic: geriatric, linguistic, semantic)

4. personal nouns in -or (adjectivization of personal substantives is not common in English): ambassadorial, authorial, dictatorial, senatorial, spectatorial

Personal nouns ending in other suffixes do not, as a rule, undergo adjectivizations. BUT: baronial, managerial, presidential, spinsterial , vicarial; even more rare is the suffix -al (without -i-): secretarial (<secretary), parental, cliental, personal

1. if the potential base contains /l/, particularly in final position, -al >-ar: molecular, polar (<pole), scalar, linear, valvar, tonsilar

1. residual types

1. -(i)ac(al) - added only to roots in -ia (but not all of them, and there usually exists a parallel form in -ic): encyclopediac (cf. encyclopedic), haemophiliac, melancholiac, nostalgiac, paranoiac

2. -ary

   • nouns in -ion and -ment (divergent semantics of these adjectives): expansionary, reactionary, elementary, rudimentary (majority have counterparts in -al with slightly different meaning)

   • fully relational from biological terms in -llus, -lla, -llum: bacillary (<bacillus), pupillary, axillary, pabulary, vexillary

3. -ory - divergent semantics, historically from Latin participles in -t or -s. Seem to be related to verbs rather than nouns (‘destined to/serving for/tending to what is denoted by the verb’)

   • -(at)ion nouns derived from verbs in -fy, -ply: classificatory (<classification <classify), satisfactory, implicatory

   • -(at)ion nouns from verbs in -ate: articulatory, vibratory, segragatory

   • -(at)ion nouns from other verbs: confirmatory, declaratory, admissory, exploratory

II. Possessional

Many varieties of the base meaning: ‘having…’ due to variety of base nouns. Nevertheless, they reveal the same underlying relation to the motivating lexeme.

• ‘having…’ (from concrete nouns): lidded, juicy

• ‘characterized/marked by…’ (from abstract nouns: angry, zealous, sentimenta;

• ‘covered with…’: grassy, mossy

• abundance/excess: stony, busty

1. -y: angry, bloody, bony, faulty, fatty, icy, juicy, zesty, spotty, scaly, meaty

There are few derivations that have more than 2 syllables. Rather from everyday words, colloquial contexts. Bisyllabic pattern is effected through the elimination of the base final shwa (in angry <anger).

1. -ed

1. common, concrete nouns (overlaps with -y), but the adjective is rather literary

2. sometimes there is differentiation in specialization (with -y forms): headed (having…) vs. heady (rash, wilful)

3. -ed tends to combine with names of “inalienably possessed” body parts: bearded, fingered, feathered

4. often forms in -ed are used in more complex forms: lame-brained, rosy-cheeked, flat-chested, two-footed, almond-eyed, broad-hipped, cool-headed

5. possessional adjectives from impersonal nouns (not frequent): banded, iced, keyed, lidded, roofed, stemmed, wooded, talented, striped, pebbled

1. -ful

from certain abstract nouns, but not from NE (as they are derived from adjectives already): beautiful, colourful, fearful, tearful, sorrowful, zestful, remorseful, respectful, faithful

1. residual types

1. -ous: courageous, famous, humorous, joyous, mountainous, poisonous, venomous, zealous

2. -able (from abstract nouns): knowledgeable, peaceable, reasonable

3. -ate (Latinate nouns): affectionate, passionate, proportionate

4. adjectives in -al and -(at)is may convey possessional function: emotional, sentimental, angular, aromatic, charismatic

III. Privative

‘not having…’, ‘free from…’, ‘without…’ The privative adjectives may be seen as negative counterparts of certain possessional formations. (doubtful-doubtless, talented-talentless).

1. -less

1. Often in pairs with X-ful (painful-painless, hopeful-hopeless).

2. Attachment is not subject to phonological restrictions on the input forms, but preference for simplex, monosyllabic base forms: lidless, useless, smokeless, keyless, joyless, shapeless.

3. some longer nouns in -ure, -ion, -er/-or (but never derived): featureless, figureless, dimensionless, passionless, flowerless, genderless, numberless, errorless

4. very rarely attaches to personal nouns (BUT: friendless, kingless, queenless, priestless)

5. the limitation above does not apply to kinship terms, where -less is very productive: parentless, fatherless, motherless, childless, brotherless, wifeless, husbandless, sonless

1. -free (may be considered a semi-suffix, newly coined adjectives: sugar-free, tax-free, duty-free, commercial-free, rent-free, drug-free

IV. Similitudinal

1. Most frequent are common nouns denoting concrete objects/substances

2. common personal nouns (characteristic feature of sb’s behaviour, personality (‘in the manner of…’, ‘resembling…’): “Adjectives of Manner

3. names of animals - such adjectives characterize a human being, resemblance is metaphorical

4. As a rule, SA are not formed from abstract nouns, BUT: deathly, dreamlike

1. -like

1. [-personal] base: beastlike, cowlike, pearl-like, snakelike, sunlike, sugarlike, jewel-like

2. [+personal] base: babylike, childlike, friendlike, daughterlike, fatherlike, preistlike, ladylike

3. Typically simplex bases, BUT: loverlike, sailorlike

1. -ly: [+] daughterly, motherly, queenly, knightly; [-] beggarly, cowardly, slovenly, miserly

1. Base forms are, as a rule, personal nouns, typically ending in a coronal consonant.

2. Are eulogistic or dyslogistic (pejorative).

3. Most forms have counterparts within the Xlike type.

1. -y: fluffy, skinny, foamy, chalky, baggy, milky, cottony

From names of objects/substances. Most have both possessional and similitudinal meaning.

1. -ish

1. Many from names of animals: apish, bearish, toadish, tigerish, sheepish, wolfish (“zoonyms”) (seems to be blocked when the noun ends in vowel BUT: monkeyish, puppyish)

2. other adjectives (usually with derogatory shade): foolish, foppish, amateurish, freakish, snobbish, thievish, thuggish, roguish (BUT neutral boyish)

3. This use of -ish should be kept separate from its use in (1) deriving de-adjectival adjectives (reddish) and (2) ethnic/toponymic names (Polish, Turkish)

1. residual types

1. -ed, jandful of old adjectives: arched, clubbed, cupped, forked, hooked, orbed

2. silken, globular/globose

V. Objective/potential (-able)

Examples: removable, disposable, buyable, tryable, doable, adaptable, spoliable, purifiable

Concept of “passive possibility” or potentiality: ‘fit for being V-ed/liable to be V-ed’. The most productive process of English adjectivization (many words are not listed in dictionary and are coined freely and spontaneously by the language-user).

Some forms in -able have to be excluded:

• they are derived from nouns (fashionable, sizeable)

• (although derived from verbs) their meaning is active rather than passive (‘able to V’): changeable, favourable, perishable, suitable, variable

Restrictions:

1. only transitive verbs

2. not verbs that involve an external word-boundary (phrasal verbs)

3. phonological restriction: verbs must not end in syllabic postconsonantal liquid (e.g. double, entitle)

4. certain irregular verbs cannot serve as bases (e.g. feel, choose, bring, leave)

VI. Attenuative

“Adjectival diminutives”; reddish ‘somewhat red/nearing red but not exactly’, oldish ‘in between old and young but closer to the former.

1. –ish (spoken language, coined on the spur of the moment)

1. basic colour terms: blackish, purplish, pinkish, greyish, yellowish

2. high-frequency adjectives that describe properties of objects or people, arranged in gradable antonyms: smallish, biggish; fattish, slimmish, warmish, coolish

3. pairs of antonyms, where only one has an -ish form: lowish, shallowish, poorish (only the negative ones)

4. other adjectives: baldish, dimmish, flattish, sourish, steepish, sickish, waterish (<watery)

5. phonological restriction: -ish cannot be added to bases ending in sibilants (BUT largish)

1. residual types

1. -y: blacky, bleaky, bluey, paly, pinky

2. syntactic means:

   • somewhat…

   • on the… side (fat, tall)

   • sort of…, kind of…

VII. Negative

1. un- (the only native prefix, most productive)

1. simple, lexical, native bases: unaware, unclean, unfair, unfit, unkind, unwise

2. simplex Latinate bases: unable, uncertain, unclear, uncommon, unequal, unjust, unsafe

3. morphologically complex, denominal and deverbal, native and Latinate: unhealthy, untruthful, unstylish, unexceptional, unattractive, unpredictable

4. participial adjectives: unending, unfailing, unknown, unsalted

5. bases that DO NOT form opposites by un-

   • adjectives whose semantic content is negative: bad, stupid, ugly, naughty

   • bases that are strictly monomorphemic and their antonyms are also: good/bad/evil, long/short, hot/cold, large/small, fat/thick/thin, old/young, hard/soft

   • colour adjectives

1. non-: non-random, non-creative, non-abstract, non-industrial, non-obvious

Can be added to almost any adjective. Creates a colourless antonym where the ordinary has negative shade (non-effective, non-grammatical). There are frequent derivations from participal adjectives: non-certified, non-living

1. iN-

Only with Latinate bases. Although not synchronically productive, correct distribution is observed by speakers with accuracy.

1. Four allomorphs

   • im- before labials (m, p, b) (impossible, immoral)

   • il- before l (illegal, illegible, illogical)

   • ir- before r (irrational, irregular, irresponsible)

   • in- elsewhere (inconsistent, insufficient, intolerant, inexplicit)

2. no derivatives from adjectives beginning in in-

3. Usually stress neutral (BUT finite-infinite)

4. Some doublets with un-: inexact/unexact, also: unable-inability, unjust-injustice

1. dis-: discontent, discontinuous, disloyal, disobedient, dissimilar, dissoluble

Latinate adjectives (and nouns)

1. residual types – marginal

1. a(n)- amoral, anorectiv

2. n- none, neither

3. no- no-win situation

4. mis- misbegotten

Derived Nouns

Nomina Actionis – abstract deverbal action nouns

act(ion)/process of V-ing

differences between gerundive nominals (-ing) and other abstract deverbal nominalizations (Chomsky): for some verbs and in certain syntactic contexts, the gerundive nominals cannot be freely replaced by the corresponding derived nominals based on the same stem

these nouns are often found idiosyncratic in terms of their semantics, morphology, and phonology

apart from the abstract NA meaning, a derived nominal can also denote a variety of more concrete ideas (these are less predictable and are to be listed in the lexicon), a NA is productively derived in the first meaning but lexicalized in its other meanings

gerundive nominalization: it is possible to create a gerund from practically any verb in English, g.i. is a borderline phenomenon between inflection and derivation. It’s the only type that does not discriminate between native and Latinate bases

derived nominals: limited (and variable) productivity, Latinate bases only

usually: “foreign base” + “foreign suffix”, but there are sporadic deviations from this structure (flirt-ation, starv-ation, acknowledge-ment, settlement, utter-ance, withdraw-al, upheav-al, cleav-age)

virtually all native verbs can derive corresponding abstract nominals only by –ing attachment (except those subject to conversion)

verbs zero-derived from nouns: (although Latinate, fail to derive NA proper)

noun verb NA

cipher to cipher -

conjecture to conjecture -

lecture to lecture -

occasion to occasion -

1. ø (Conversion)

Quite productive, yet deverbal substantives are much less numerous than denominal verbs.

Semantically: rather a singular, often instantaneous act of V-ing, than a prolonged/repetitious action or process (hence are countable). Gerundive nominalizations is more suitable for the prolonged/repetitious action (to have a swim vs. to like swimming)

1. native bases

Examples: drive, go , fall, jump, knock, move, pass, ride, scan, split, walk

1. non-native; stress and vowel differences

Examples: contrast, decrease, insult, permit, survey, transport

1. non-native; no stress shift

Examples: attack, attempt, defeat, decline, purge, supply, support, visit

1. native [V+Part] or [Part+V] with fronted stress

Examples: overflow (<overflow), uprise (<uprise), blackout (<black out), turnoff (<turn off), outbreak (<break out), intake (<take in)

1. –ation

Most productive of the NA. 5 different shapes on the surface (-ation, -tion, -ion, -ition, -ution).

1. (full) –ation, not sensitive to the phonological termination of the base

Examples: formation (<form), derivation, adaptation, condensation, declaration, evocation, declaration, distillation, neutralization

Examples (-ize): characterization (<characterize), diphthongization, demonization, optimization, neutralization, conceptualization, verbalization (excepts: criticize, jeopardize, publicize, recognize, sympathize)

1. truncation –at → ø (verbs in –ate)

Examples: celebration (<celebrate), compensation, imitation, integration, motivation

1. Verbs ending in –fy and –ply (NA in -ication)

Examples: amplification (<amplify), codification, qualification, verification, application (<apply), implication

rule of extension –ation into –cation (to verbs ending in noncoronal cons: labials and velars)

1. –tion – Latinate roots (-scribe, -ceive, -duce, -sume)

Has occasional spelling variants –sion and –cion. (inversion < invert)

Examples: ascription (<ascribe), description, proscription, reception (<receive), reduction (<reduce), resumption (<resume)

1. –ion – Latinate roots (to verbs ending in coronal consonants: liquid and nasals)

Examples: rebellion (<rebel), communion (<commune), adhesion (<adhere), insertion, decision, prevention, connection, coerction

1. –ition, -ution (marginal)

Examples: addition (<add), definition, exposition, competition, repetition, revolution (<revolve), resolution, dissolution, solution

1. –ment

Mildly productive. Seems to be complementary with its chief rival –(at)ion. The suffix is not stressed and is stress-neutral (its attachment does not trigger stress shift). The base verbs have stress on the final syllable (achieve, appoint, derail, employ, BUT: abandon, argue, develop, govern). The NA in
-ment are easily distinguishable from superficially similar nouns which are simplex, underived and usually carry antepenultimate stress (complement, experiment, implement, instrument, ornament, supplement).

1. en-/em- and be- verbs

Examples: embarrassment (<embarrass), embezzlement, employment, endorsement, enforcement, enrollment, enlargement, entertainment; bedazzlement (<bedazzle), beguilement, beseechment, besiegement

BUT: betrayal, bestowal/bestowment

1. The base-final stress principle is violated by a group of –ment derivations that, for phonological reasons, cannot take –(at)ion

Examples (-ish): abolishment, accomplishment, astonishment, establishment, impoverishment

Examples (-(d)ge): acknowledgement, encouragement, envisagement, management

Examples: bamboozlement (<bamboozle), bedevilment, encirclement, enfeeblement, settlement, disheartenment (<dishearten), disillusionment, enlightenment, imprisonment

1. –al

Weakly productive. Semantic regularity: the suffix attaches almost exclusively to resultative-transitive verbs (BUT: arrival). Two conditions: (1) end-stressed verb, (2) the stressed vowel in the base is followed by an optional sonorant, followed by an optional anterior consonant. The verb is usually bi syllabic (BUT: trial < try)

Examples: arrival (<arrive), betrayal, denial, dismissal, dispersal, disposal, perusal, refusal, rehearsal, removal, reversal, revival

BUT: burial (<bury)

1. –ance/–ence [-əns]

Two spelling variants of a single suffix (the distribution is synchronically obscure). Sensitive to the stress pattern of the base verb: end-stressed verb (BUT: entrance <enter, utterance <utter). Does not trigger stress-shift.

Examples: acceptance (<accept), assistance, appearance, guidance, coalescence (<coalesce), convergence, divergence, emergence, existence, interference, occurence

BUT:

1. exceptions of the non triggering stress-shift principle Xfer: conference (<confer), deference, inference, preference, reference

2. exceptions of the non triggering stress-shift principle Xside: residence (<reside), subsidence (<subside)

3. exceptions in other bases: abstinence, coincidence, confidence, reverence

1. –age

Handful of forms. Almost exclusively with monosyllabic verbs. Suffix of Latinate origin, but derivation from both Latinate and native bases. Many lexicalized meanings of the words.

Examples: assemblage (<assemble), carriage, cleavage, coinage, coverage, drainage, leakage, shrinkage, stoppage, storage, tillage, usage

1. –ure

Unproductive suffix, handful of nominalizations. Many lexicalized meanings of the words.

Examples: departure, enclosure, erasure, exposure, failure, seizure

1. –y

Less than a dozen NA forms. Marginal pattern, no sense of looking for conditions on –y attachment. However it’s striking that almost every base ends in /–r/.

1. Examples: delivery, discovery, entry, flattery, injury, inquiry, entreaty (<entreat)

2. the extended –ery (although specializes in nouns belonging to other categories), when added to certain verbs, conveys the NA meaning. At the same time it clearly suggests relatedness to an agentive (forger, mocker, robber; ‘act/behaviour characteristic of an N’) – double motivation.

Examples: forgery (<forge), mockery, robbery

1. Residual types

   1. –t (complaint, constraint, pursuit, flight)

   2. –th (growth)

   3. –acy (conspiracy)

   4. –er (merger)

   5. –ter (laughter)

   6. –ice (service)

   7. vowel modification (sale <sell)

   8. consonant modification (ascent <ascend, descent, receipt, relief)

   9. partial suppletion=mixed modification (choice <choose, loss <lose)

   10. lexical suppletion=NA without a base (contempt <despise, loan <lend, theft <steal)

Nomina Essendi – abstract deadjectival nouns

quality/state of being A

transpositional process – an ADJ is turned into a N precisely for the purpose of changing its word class membership, which is conditioned by the syntax. Unless the product undergoes lexicalization, no specific meaning modification is involved in its derivation.

Semantic limitation: an ADJ must belong to the class of so-called Qualitative Adjective (i.e. name a property, either physical or abstract), and not to the class of Relational Adjectives (the latter do not, as a rule, undergo NE derivation). Almost all English ADJ are qualitative or can be used as such.

1. –ness

Very productive. Can be attached to both Latinate and native bases. Any (non-relational ) ADJ can be turned into NE by this suffix, however, Xness nouns have often rival, almost synonymous counterparts (reduced/suspended effect of blocking). (-ness became a super-formative of sorts)

Is phonologically neutral (induces no segmental modifications and doesn’t trigger stress-shift.

Examples: falseness/falsity, morbidness/morbidity, singularness/singularity, accurateness/accuracy

Many pairs have undergone semantic differentiation (formalness/formality), the Xness forms being usually closer to the categorial value of NE.

1. For large number of ADJ bases, -ness is the sole exponent of the NE, especially the native bases.

Examples (simplex ADJ): frankness, freshness, grimness, openness, sadness, shyness, softness

Examples (complex): carefulness, carelessness, thoughtfulness, shamelessness, childishness, foolishness, orderliness, irksomeness, fearsomeness

1. –ness can be attached to adjectivized participles and “frozen” phrases

Examples: drunkenness, relatedness, black-and-blueness, free-and-easiness

1. –ity (-ty, -y)

Principal Latinate suffix to derive NE. Combines exclusively with Latinate adjectives (BUT: oddity). Triggers stress shift. Every noun in –ity receives stress on the antepenultimate syllable, this causes trisyllabic laxing (=shortening) Examples: divine-divinity [ai-i], serene-serenity [i:-e], profane-profanity [ei-æ], profound-profundity [au-ʌ], BUT: obese-obesity [i:], and IRREGULAR: clear-clarity [iə-æ]

Types of base-endings:

1. –able/-ible

Examples: (-able) acceptability, adaptability, predictability; (-ible) comprehensibility, reversibility; (-ible, morphologically unanalysable, simplex bases) compatibility, feasibility, possibility, visibility

–ability (native verbal roots)

Examples: believability, moveability, washability

BUT: When an adjective in –able is based on a noun rather than a verb, NE nominalization is usually formed by –ness.

Examples: comfortableness, peaceableness, seasonableness

1. –al, -ar, -ic (the latter: alternation [k~s]) Semantic restriction: many Latinate adjectives of this group are relational. Therefore in their relational meanings, these adjectives do not form NE (polarity of an electrical circuit, but not *polarity of a bear)

Examples: brutality (<brutal), confidentiality, cordiality, impartiality, lethality, informality, universality; familiarity (<familiar), jocularity, linearity, popularity, regularity, similarity, peculiarity; syllabicity (<syllabic), authenticity, domesticity, eccentricity, historicity, toxicity

1. –ive (often linguistic terms)

Examples: collectivity, creativity, passivity, perfectivity, reflexivity, transitivity

1. –ile

Examples: agility (<agile), docility, fertility, fragility, futility, hostility, sterility, versatility

1. –ous In this case, -ity is quite productive, yet, -ness is more productive and –ness derivatives are never blocked by –ity. Many nominalizations in –ity undergo a largely unpredictable, lexically governed rule of truncation, which deletes –ous in some forms. Therefore there are 2 groups.

1. –ous > -osity

Examples: curiosity, fabulosity, generosity, luminosity, mosntrosity, pomposity

1. –ous > Ø

Examples: ambiguity, congruity, mendacity, obnoxity, vacuity

1. on monomorphemic, Latinate bases

Examples: avidity (<avid), density, falsity, purity, rigidity, stupidity, verbosity

1. Many other NE in –ity can be assigned to this category only on semantic grounds.

Examples: fidelity (faithfulness, accuracy), debility (weakness)

* truncation of variety of base-final sequences

Examples: necessity (<necessary), identity (<identical)

Variants of the NE suffix:

1. –ity suffix occasionally appears to be reduced to –ty (not productive, appears in adjectives ending in –l or –n)

Examples: certainty, cruelty, frailty, novelty, loyalty, safety, sovereignty, subtlety, surety, nicety, naivety; IRREGULAR: sobriety (<sober)

1. reduced to –y (which actually is difficult + ty – this is the reason of the lack of spirantization of t>s)

Examples: difficulty (<difficult), honesty, modesty

1. –cy (not a regular pattern of affixation)

Examples: normalcy, bankruptcy

1. –(anc)y/-(enc)y

Added to Latinate ADJ on –ant/-ent.

Problematic:

1. The form of the suffix is difficult to determine synchronically. Two interpretations: (1) the basic phonological shape of the suffix is /si/, which, added to the adjective in its final /t/ has been dropped (2) the formative is represented underlying as a glide /y/, changed into /i/ and then to /ī/ in the course of phonological derivation, so that it may trigger the process of spirantization (t>s) stem-finally.

2. not all ADJ in –ant/-ent take this suffix, some of them take –ance/-ence instead

Examples: elegance, exuberance, fragrance, importance, reluctance; absence, innocence, intelligence, patience, sentience (<sentient)

1. The abstract nominalizations of this kind, having the verbal stem (double motivation: both verbal and adjectival), can often be interpreted as both NE and NA: persist >persistent >persistence (= 1. persisting 2. being persistent); resist >resistant >resistance (= 1. resisting, 2. being resistant)

2. derivational doublets – rival nominalizations of the type Xce and Xcy (the former being more commonly used today, the latter tend to have secondary, idiosyncratic meanings)

Examples: complacence/-y, consistence/-y, vehemence/-y, abundance/-y, flamboyance/-y

Regular derivations (abstract noun doesn’t contain a verbal stem):

1. –ant>-ancy

Examples: discrepancy, militancy, redundancy, vacancy

1. –ent>-ency

Examples: adjacency, ardency, decency, efficiency, frequency, urgency

1. –(ac)y;

The form is not transparent synchronically: either (1) /si/ is added to words in /it, ət/, and [t] is dropped; or (2) see –(anc)y/-(enc)y (/y/ glide)

Base-endings: -ate (e.g. delicate-delicacy). However, not all forms in –ate lend themselves to the process. No more than a dozen –(ac)y NE, while ADJ in –ate go into hundreds. Morphological constraints:

1. The base must be a synchronically unanalyzable, simplex adjective.

Examples: accuracy (<accurate), adequacy, delicacy, intimacy, intricacy, privacy, legitimacy, literacy

1. The base must be Latinate and underived; excluded are:

1. ‘moderate’ type adjectives – these are unanalyzable, yet related (by conversion) to phonologically indentical verbs. NE are formed by –ness are possible and also NA may often be used in the function of NE.

Examples: moderate (A, V)> moderateness (NE) and moderation (NA); articulate (A, V)> articulateness (NE) and articulation (NA); appropriate>, deliberate>; ALSO: consider >considerate >considerateness

BUT: animacy (<animate A, V), degeneracy, legitimacy

1. ‘proportionate’ type adjectives – derived from nouns

Examples: affection >affectionate >affectionateness, passion >passionate >passionateness, proportion >proportionate >proportionateness

1. –(it)ude

Marginal and completely unproductive. Latinate, loan words assignable to the NE class only by virtue of their semantics. No base exists to such nouns as: fortitude, plenitude, rectitude, solitude.

1. However, less than 10 abstract nouns of the Xitude form may be analyzed and synchronically motivated. These are of limited usage, often jocular (and –ness is preferred):

Examples: aptitude (aptness), exactitude (exactness), promptitude (promptness)

Examples (truncation): certitude (cert[ain] >certainty), gratitude (grate[ful] >gratefulness), similitude (simil[ar] >similarity).

1. when the base ends in –t or –it, the suffix may be viewed as reduced to –ude

Examples: decrepitude (<decrepit), (in)finitude, quietude

1. –ism

Marginal, Latinate. Alternation [k>s] base-finally. No other NE suffix seems to combine with adjectives from this class.

1. Not all abstract nouns in –ism belong to this group. There are such instances, where it seems like the direction of the derivation is reverse, e.g. pessimism >pessimistic.

2. Base-ending –ic

Examples: cynicism (<cynic[al]), eroticism, esotericism, exoticism, lyricism, romanticism

1. residual types

1. –ion

precision <precise (no verb related to precise). However, when there is a verb related to the ADJ, situation is more complicated: abstract-V >abstraction, abstract-A >abstractness. In this case the former is deverbal NA, the latter, deadjectival NE – with difference in meaning.

1. –th (remnants)

Examples: depth, length, strength, warmth, width (vowel change), height (<high), youth (<young)

1. –hood (native)

Examples: adulthood, falsehood (falseness), idlehood (idleness), likelihood, livelihood

1. –dom – 1 example: freedom (<free)

2. suppletive realization (lexical blocking)

newness vs. age (*oldness)

Subject nominalizations

Two types:

1. Names of Agents (Nomina Agentis): speaker, singer, traveller [+human]

2. Names of Instruments (Nomina Instrumenti), cooker, eraser, transmitter [–human]

The two types reveal a great deal of underlying functional and formal uniformity and can be viewed as representing a single derivational category. Arguments:

1. the same main suffixes (EN: –er)

2. Numerous instances of individual nominalizations that are polysemous (have both meanings). Examples: printer (drukarz, drukarka), receiver (odbiorca, odbiornik), washer, collector, conductor, protector (pl. przewodnik – guide, guide book, conductor).

3. Transition from personal agents, through ‘impersonal agents’, to real Instrumentals; and borderline cases

Other semantic functions for the suffix –er: ‘lover’ denotes rather an Experiencer or a Patient. Single thematic role might be regarded as the deep source of these two (sub)categories (i.e. Subject).

I. Agentive nominalizations

One who (professionally, habitually) V-es.

Formed very productively, from a vast majority of verbs. Not sensitive to any major syntactico-semantic distinctions within its verbal input (transitive: murder >murderer, intransitive: dream >dreamer). Some limitations, however, do exist:

1. only verbs which denote an activity that is observable either visibly or audibly (BUT: dreamer, thinker)

2. not derived from verbs that don’t allow of the transformation of an active statement into a passive sentence (no Agentives from ‘belong’, ‘cost’, ‘weigh’).

3. not derived from modal verbs, be, and have, and also from ‘quasi-copulas’: appear, become, grow, seem, turn.

4. derivation is blocked in case of verbs which are themselves derived from primary agent nouns (e.g. to doctor, to fool)

1. –er

Very productive, added frequently to recently coined verbs (facebooker).

1. Majority of bases are transitive (either optional or obligatory). An obligatory transitive verb cannot be made into an –er noun unless its obligatory object is included

Examples: maker of coffee/coffee-maker (not *maker), doer of deeds/deed-doer (not *doer), teller of stories/story-teller (not *teller) (BUT the Maker=God)

1. Among intransitive verbs only those which refer to either protracted or repeated action can form
   –er nouns

Examples: sleeper, dreamer BUT: Some intransitive verbs do not combine with –er (e.g. *dier, *faller, *disappearer)

1. The verbs are usually synchronically native, monosyllabic verbs

Examples: baker, buyer, drinker, driver, eater, mover, preacher, rider, speaker, swimmer, teacher

Lack of –er nominalizations in some such verbs

(due to blocking), e.g. from get (receiver), know (connoisseur), see (on-looker), steal (thief) (although blocking does not operate in absolute fashion)

(due to creating misleading homophones) let (*letter), meet (*meeter and metre), leave (*leaver and lever), shut (*shutter) (BUT: drawer who draws and drawer – furniture)

‘irregular’ verbs are very seldom found in combination with -er

1. Bisyllabic verb forms appear: beginner, follower, wanderer

BUT: when the base ends in a syllabic liquid, attachment of –er usually leads to the loss of one syllable in the derivative

Examples: traveller [trævlə] <travel [træv l̩], cobbler <cobble

Latinate (bisyllabic) bases are not frequent: accuser, commander, composer, defender, perjurer, publisher, producer

1. Group of longer words from –ize bases: apologizer, moralizer, organizer, populariser, rationaliser

1. –or

1. Virtually all bases are Latinate (BUT: sailor).

2. Bases end in –ate. –or may trigger stress shift onto the –ate syllable preceding the suffix.

Examples: agitator, collaborator, creator, coordinator, imitator, innovator, narrator, operator, mediator, perpetrator, translator, prevaricator

1. other Latinate nouns

Examples: actor (<act), contributor, conqueror, inheritor, inspector, investor, director, possessor, elector, governor, prosecutor, distributor

1. allomorphic extensions in a few Agents: commentator (<comment, Ø>at), competitor (<compete), compositor (<compose, Ø>it)

2. phonological alternations: successor <succeed

3. Backformation in the case of edit <editor.

1. –ant/-ent

Latinate bases. Two classes of Agentives:

1. those items whose related verb is of the form X+ate (TRUNCATION: -ate>Ø before -ant)

Examples: officiant, negociant, celebrant, emigrant, litigant, participant

1. those whose related verb is unsuffixed (TRUNCATION of –y before –ant: occupant <occupy) (EXTENSION: Ø>k applicant <apply) (original ə is deleted in verbs like register> registrant)

Examples: descendent, complainant, assailant, assistant, consultant, disputant, informant, servant

1. –ent nouns – small group. Stress shift and a change of vowel.

Examples: adherent, correspondent, president, resident, respondent

In some cases base may be the subject to extra modifications: opponent <oppose, student <study

1. –ee

Usually Patientive nouns, but some examples of Agentives also: adaptee, attendee, embarkee, escapee, knockee, mergee, meetee, resignee, retiree, standee, waitee. No systematic conditions, why other suffixes were not added to those bases. In a few examples blocking prevents adding –er (e.g. *adapter, *knocker, *merger, *waiter), but on the whole it is difficult to explain this phenomenon (especially when there exist instances of polysemy, e.g. printer).

1. Ø (conversion)

Mildly productive. Examples: coach, cook, guide, judge.

Majority of derivations result in fairly colloquial or even derogatory nouns. Examples: bore, flirt, sneak, sponge, spy. Not being neutral in meaning, nouns are not rivals of suffixal Agentive nouns.

Conversion is likely to be used with certain phrasal verbs (with characteristic fore-stress). Examples: drop-in, drop-out, go-between, look-out, show-off, stand-by.

1. residual types

1. –al (arrival)

2. –ar (liar, beggar, burglar)

3. –ist (rapist, typist)

4. –ian (guardian)

5. –ive (detective, executive, representative)

6. assassin <assassinate (backformation)

7. forms of participle + ADJ can be viewed as Agents (the starving, those agreeing, one considering)

8. ‘semantic’ or ‘lexical’ Agent nouns (lexical exceptions): simplex, not derivable nouns which are liable to undergo conversion. Examples: thief (>to thieve), doctor (>to doctor), king (>to king), pilot (>to pilot). These cannot be neglected from morphological investigation, because of instance of blocking.

9. If a broader definition of Agent is accepted (a person having an active role in a relation), there are also Agentive nouns derived from nouns: (in –er) farmer (<farm), gardener, potter, astronomer, philosopher; (in –ist) artist, cartoonist, novelist, violinist; (in –ian) logician, magician, musician, mathematician, phonetician

10. –ist derived from nouns in –ism (‘adherent to a particular religion, theory, ideology’)

Examples: atheist, hedonist, imperialist, realist, Marxist, Darwinist, Buddhist

II. Instrumental nominalizations

An instrument (tool, machine) that V-es. Medium of action. [+ material] Usually coined on transitive verbs, though intransitive aren’t completely forbidden (e.g. buzzer)

Problems:

1. names of instruments that are not derived but are primary, lexical nouns (axe, comb, knife, needle, pen, spoon – native; abacus, lens, syringe – Latinate) – they are not a subject of morphological analysis, yet their impact on derivation cannot be ignored

2. a huge number of so-called neo-classical compounds: morphologically complex, though not derived from a verb by the usual method of suffixation but are made from forms of Greek/Latin origin (telescope, telephone, gastroscope, periscope, microscope)

3. names of Instruments are sometimes hardly distinguishable from other categories like names of Substance (Material) (lubricant, deodorant, flavouring, detergent, soap)

4. Locatives (machines so big that it seems rather a place than an object/instrument)

1. -er

Most productive. Combines with transitive verbs of native and Latinate origin.

1. Native verb is usually simplex

Examples: blotter, booster, copier, freezer, heater, grinder, knocker, opener, printer, toaster

1. Latinate forms are usually of the structure: prefix + root

Examples: decoder (<de-code-r), computer, propeller, recorder, receiver, eraser, developer

1. complex ‘causative’ verbs, which are transitive, are likely to develop instrumental nominalizations

Examples: (verbs usually of Xize form) atomizer, fertilizer, stabilizer; (Xify) amplifier; (enX) enlarger

1. IN in –er are common as second elements in compounds

Examples: home-freezer, chest-freezer, ice-cream-freezer, screw-driver, record-player

1. –or

Rival of the –er suffix, yet its use is heavily restricted: the only bases are verbs ending in –ate. –ate is not truncated, in contrast to Agentive (participant <participate) and Patientive (evacuant <evacuate)

Examples: accelerator, calculator, detonator, generator, elevator, radiator; BUT (rotor <rotate)

Several other, prefixal Latinate verbs not ending in –ate take –or rather than –er (maybe due to a dissimulatory effect of -e- in almost every root.

Examples: collector, compressor, injector, inhibitor, processor, reflector, refractor

1. –ant/-ent

Language of science and technology. Most are not Instrumental sensu stricto but rather denote Substances related to the base verb.

1. –ate bases

Examples: contaminant (<contaminate), fumigant, lubricant, saturant, denaturant

1. disparate bases

Examples: absorbent, solvent, pollutant, propellant (-ent), repallant (-ent)

1. –ing

Many bases are zero-derived from nouns.

Examples: coating, covering, dressing, flavouring, filling

1. Residual types

1. –le/-el (stopple <stop, tradle <tread, spindle <spin) – the productivity had ceased about 1400

2. NA sometimes functions as an Instrument in its secondary meaning (resistance, adjustment)

3. zero-derivation (cover)

4. deliberate word-manufacturing rather than word-formation (acronyms: laser, radar, telex) (‘to lase’ was coined by backformation)

Sometimes a morphologically simplex (‘lexical’) Instrument serves as a base for so-called ‘Instrumental’ verb, derived by conversion:

Examples: to filter (<filter), to hammer, to stone, to telephone.

Sometimes there is no tangible synchronic evidence for postulating whichever direction of motivation:

Examples: saw, whistle

Instances of lexical correspondences between a verb and an Instrumental

Examples: dig-spade, brook-sweeper, shot-gun, ting-bell.

Object nominalizations

Verbs should be transitive (b/c object).

I. Patientive nominalizations

‘Passive nouns’, ‘sb who has been V-ed’. Semantically connected to Agentive nominalizations, are in a way converse of the Agents (employer-employee). Nouns derived from verbs taking human object.

1. –ee

The only productive means of coining Patientives in English. This suffix originates as a loan from Old French and was originally a legalistic suffix. Now it is often playful and whimsical in tone. The verb base should allow human object. Uniform stress pattern – the suffix receiver primary stress (obligatory stress shift). With exceptions in some variants of English.

1. direct objects (‘person who is/has been V-ed’)

Examples: appointee, examinee, expelee, interviewee, trainee

1. indirect objects (‘person to whom sth is/has been V-ed’)

Examples: addressee, dedicatee, payee, promisee, grantee

1. Nouns with both meanings: transferee (sb to whom sth is transferred/sb who is transferred)

2. nouns motivated by ‘prepositional adverbs’: experimentee (to experiment on sb), flirtee (to flirt with sb)

The suffix is added directly to the verb root. Verbs in –ate undergo truncation (assassinee, evacuee, liberee, nominee) (BUT: allocatee, dedicatee, educatee – where the verb must be preserved to prevent phonological rule of softening: *allocee [æləsi:])

1. Residual types

1. conversion

• without changes: recruit <recruit

• with stress shift (in case of Latinate verbs of the structure prefix + root): convert, discard, prevent, suspect

1. –ant: arrestant, insurant

2. –ary: depositary/depositee

3. denominal: prisoner (‘person who has been imprisoned)

4. deadjectivized participles (participal adjectives): those employed (= the employees)

II. Objective/Resultative nominalizations

Sometimes called Perfective nominalizations. ‘sth which is/has been V-ed’. Nouns derived from certain verbs followed by inanimate objects. Objective nouns denote inanimate, mostly concrete things. Sometimes are indistinguishable from NA (e.g. translation: ‘the process of translating’ or ‘the product of the action of translating’).

1. Ø conversion – the only definable type of object nominalizations

1. from native verbs: award, blend, catch, drink, find, gain

2. Latinate verbs: deposit, design, charge (=price)

3. Latinate verbs of the structure pref + root; the conversion is accompanied by stress-fronting: construct, import, imprint, insert, present, refund, reject

4. native verb+particle; accompanied by stress-shift: castoff (<cast off), cutout, handout, printout, tearout, input (<put in), intake

1. residual types

1. within the NA class

Examples: (-ing) drawing, painting, recording; (-(at)ion) acquisition, description, publication; (-ment) attachment, payment, replacement, statement; (-ure) enclosure

* transcript (apart from transcription) is an instance of Object/Resultative form derived by back-formation. (also insert/insertion, mix/mixture, appendix/appendage)

1. some O/R nouns tend to appear usually in the plural: eats, preserves, supplies, findings, savings, writings

2. pairs not relatable by any regular process of morphology: give-gift, lend-loan

III. Collective names

‘group of persons/things named by the base’. Usually the base is a noun, but the CN are exceptionally relatable to adjectives (youth-young). No collective nominalizations from the names of animals in English (like ‘ptactwo’ in Polish). Many primary, underived verbs have the collective meaning (clergy, flock, herd, mob, society).

The suffixes have frequently additional functions other than collectivity. The category overlaps semantically with other categories (e.g. ‘quality/state of being N’).

1. –(e)ry

Weak synchronic productivity, yet number of typical formations. –ry is reduced form of –ery occuring chiefly after an unstressed syllable ending in d, t, l, n, sh. Both personal and impersonal nouns.

1. personal –ry: citizenry, merchantry, peasantry, yeomanry

2. impersonal –ry: gadgetry, jewell(e)ry

3. impersonal –ery: crockery, machinery, pottery, spicery

1. –dom

More productive, typically found in colloquial language. Name of groups, communities of individuals and not things. More popular, however, meaning of the suffix is ‘status, condition of…”.

Examples: artistdom, bachelordom, fandom, pauperdom, scholardom, studentdom, teacherdom

1. –age

Not synchronically productive.

1. personal: baronage, clientage, pupilage, readerage

2. impersonal: branchage, flowerage, fruitage, leafage (foliage underived), pipage

3. Has also the meaning of ‘the total measure of units’: acreage, amperage, mileage, tonnage, voltage, ohmage, footage, yardage, pundage

1. residual types

1. –ship: companionship, readership, membership, partnership, leadership (not productive) Its usual function is ‘state/condition of being N’, thus ‘membership’ is of ambiguous meaning.

2. –cy : colonelcy, generalcy, marshalcy

3. –ty: laity, nobility, royalty

4. –ing (collective meaning is secondary): clothing, housing, masting, rooting, walling

IV. Female names

Rare in English, also in case of names of animals (BUT: lioness, tigress, vixen, she-wolf). Scarcity of the instances on the one hand and number of morphological means, on the other. Factors external to the language system (social convention).

1. –ess – the only productive suffix, usage is limited. Examples: adulteress, hostess, empress, sorceress, stewardess. Not uniform from a phonological point of view:

1. suffix is added to an unchanged stem (host-ess)

2. in cases of base-noun in-er/-er the final shwa is deleted (waiter-waitress, actor-actress)

3. base noun ending in –er-er, one of the –er is dropped (murderer-murderess) HAPLOLOGY

Some other forms are nonce or facetious: professoress, teacheress, authoress, paintess

1. residual types

1. –trix (counterpart of –tor): executrix, interlocutrix, prosecutrix, testatrix (legal language)

2. –ine: hero-heroine (isolated pair from Greek)

3. –ette: usherette, chaufferette, darmerette

4. she-

5. compounding (woman, lady): woman teacher, lady doctor/policewoman

Derived verbs

Two basic areas of meaning

1. ‘be’ (N, A, V)

   1. [stative: ‘be…’]

   2. causative: ‘become…’

   3. inchoative: ‘cause to be…’

   4. reversative: ‘cause to be no longer…’

2. ‘have’ (N)

   1. [possessive: ‘have…’]

   2. [acquisitive: ‘come to have…’]

   3. ornative: ‘cause to have…’

   4. privative: ‘cause no longer to have…’

3. repetitive (V)

I. Causative

‘make A’. The product are transitive verbs (which is important, because the verbs are often undistinguishable from inchoative verbs, but the latter are intransitive).

Restrictions on the input:

1. adjectives must be qualitative

2. cannot be complex in -ful, - able, -some, -less, -y, un- etc.

1. –en: deaden, sadden, broaden, weaken, blacken, harden, darken, sharpen, shorten

phonological constraint in the adjective (native)

1. monosyllabic

2. must end in obstruent preceded by optional sonorant (C V [+sonor -nasal] O) (BUT: dampen) (lengthen and strengthen are irregular denominal verbs in place of *longen and *strongen)

1. Ø conversion

1. native bases, especially ending in a vowel or sonorant: dirty, dry, empty, ready, slow, calm, clean, cool, clear, near, open, thin

2. also those ending in obstruents: brisk, wet, black, loose, rough (although some of them have counterparts in –en: blacken, loosen, roughen)

3. Latinate in –ate (with change [-it]>[-eit]): animate, approximate, legitimate, subordinate

1. –ize

Polysyllabic Latinate bases ending in (sonorant l, r, m, n):

1. –al: formalize, generalize, legalize, industrialize, nationalize, neutralize (truncation –al: fraternize)

2. –an: Americanize, anglicanize, humanize, Christianize, urbanize

3. –ar: familiarize, polarize, popularize, secularize, velarize, vulgarize

4. –ic: eroticize, fanaticize, plasticize, publicize, rhythmicize, rusticize (truncation –ic: aromatize)

5. –ile (minor group): fertilize (<fertile), mobilize, senilize, sterilize

6. Other Latinate base forms (seldom): concretize, immunize, liquidize, modernize, tranquilize (truncation: feminize <feminine, sensitize<sensitive)

7. very rare native bases: slenderize, tenderize

8. denominal motivation of some forms: fluidize, crystalize, vaporize, unionize, categorize

1. –ify

Small number of –ify verbs are analyzable and have de-adjectival motivation. Triggers stress-shift (on the antepenultimate syllable)

1. Latinate: amplify, falsity, purify, intensify, simplify

2. native: happify, jollify, prettify, tipsify, uglify (final /i/ of the base is dropped before –ify)

1. –ate

1. Latinate: activate, domesticate, passivate, rusticate, validate

2. forms that differ from corresponding adjectives: brief>abbreviate, complex>complicate, different>differentiate, furious>infuriate, lucid>elucidate, neccessary>necessitate

3. verbs related to numerals: duplicate, triplicate

1. eN-: enapt, embitter, endear, enfeeble, engross, ennoble, enrich, ensure

2. eN-…-en (derivational curiosity): embrighten, embolden, enfasten, engladden, engolden, enliven

3. residual types

1. be- (native, literary): becalm, bedim, befoul, belittle, benumb

2. vocalic modification: full>fill, hot>heat

3. irregular Latinate: base>debase, mean>demean, long>prolong, strange>estrange

4. irregular instances of “lexical suppletion”: easy>facilitate, heavy>aggravate, free>liberate

5. syntactic constructions: make easy, set free

II. Inchoative (-en and Ø)

No specialized formative for this function. This derivational phenomenon is severely limited. Input: qualitative adjectives, output: intransitive verbs tat denote a change of state.

1. syntactic construction: turn pale, grow old, go mad, come loose, fall ill

2. causative verbs in –en can be used in the I meaning: sadden, broaden (BUT NOT: quieten)

3. causative verbs in Ø: dirty, dry, empty (BUT NOT: free)

4. often used with a particle: slow down, calm down, sober up

III. Reversative

De-verbal and de-adjectival motivation. Semantic connection to causative verbs.

1. un-: unbend, unbind, unpack, unfasten, unlearn, unfold, unswear, unweave, untwist, unwind

native, base is transitive and resultative (never with durative verbs like: play, sing, smoke, swim, wait)

N>V>deV: button>button>unbutton, unblock, unclasp, unveil, unlock, unlid, unlace

1. dis-: disaffiliate, disorganize, disqualify, disunite, disengage, disenthrone

Lainate verbs beginning with a vowel.

1. de-

1. de-adjectival, causative Latinate verbs in –ize: dechristianize, demoralize, decentralize, decolonize, delocalize, demilitarize, deurbanize, demobilize, denationalize, denaturalize

2. Latinate in –ate (occasionally): deactivate, deconsecrate, deescalate, decontaminate, deregulate

3. other types (very rare): decompress, decondition, decontrol, deobstruct, deregister, deselect

IV. Ornative

Based usually on concrete nouns.

1. Ø conversion: bed, colour, mask, label, ornament, salt, varnish, document, tar, supplement

2. –ize and –ate: alcoholize, aromatize, nicotinize, vitaminize, camphorate, chlorinate, vaccinate (also pairs: oxygenize/oxygenate, sulfurize/sulfurate)

V. Privative

Denominal. Two groups:

1. “privative”: ‘deprive of…’, ‘free from…’ (unmask, disarm)

2. “ablative”: ‘remove from…’ (unhook, disbar)

1. de-: debug, deflea, defoam, desalt, destarch, degrease, dehair (short, monosyllabic nouns)

sometimes parasynthetic, prefixal-suffixal: de[caffein]ate, de[acid]ify, de[odor]ize

1. Ø conversion: scale (fish), shell, skin, husk (corn), weed

2. residual types

1. un-: uncap, unlead, unburden, unsex

2. dis-: discourage, dishonour, dismast (obsolete and rare forms)

3. be- behead

VI. Repetitive (re-)

Three basic meanings:

1. the result is imperfect or unattained and the repetition is to change or improve the inadequate result: rearrange, repack, retype

2. the result has come undone, the repetition is to restore the previous state: retie, repack

3. “to achieve result again”: re-enter, republish, reuse, resubscribe

derived from some intransitive verbs: reawaken, re-enter, re-marry, re-emerge (result-oriented semantics)