Affixation in modern english

A new words are needed with regard to adverbal derivatives. Adeverbal derivative is not fundamentally different from a cpd whose first member is a verb stem, so as in the case of denominal suffixes, a great number of meanings are possible. In practice, however, the possibilities are much restricted. Deverbal suffixes express grammatical functions than semantic concepts, and the usual implicatio

ns are «act, fact, instance of…» (arrival, quidanse, warning), sometimes «state of…» (starvation, bewilderment), «agent» (personal or impersonal: baker, eraser, disinfectant), «personal object» (direct or indirect, only with – ee, transferee, draftee), «object of result» (breakade, savings), «plase» (settlement, brewery, lodgings). Similar considerations apply to derivation by a zero morpheme (pickpocket, blackaut, look).

2.5 The valency of affixes and stems

Another essential feature of affixes that should not be overlooked is their combining power or valency, i.e. the types of types of the stems with which they they occur.

We have already seen that not all combinations of existing morphemes are actually used. This, unhappy, untrue and unattractive are quite regular combinations, while seemingly analogous unsad, unfalse, un-pretty seems unusual. The possibility of particular stem taking a particular affix depends on phonomor-phological, morphological and semantic factors. The suffix ance – ence, for instance, occurs onli after b, t, d, dz, v, l, r, m, n,: disturbance, insistence, indepence, but not after s or z: condensation, organization.

It is of course impossible to describe the whole system. To make our point clear we shall take adjectives as an example. The adjective-forming suffixes are mostly attached to noun stems. They are: – ed (barbed), – en (golden), – ful (careful), – less (careless), – ly (soldierly), – like (childlike), – y (hearty) and some others. The highly productive suffix-able can be combined with noun stems and verbal stems alike (clubbable). It is especially frequent in the pattern in the pattern un – + verbal stem + able (unbearable). Sometimes it is even attached to phrases producing compound derivatives (unbrushoffable, ungetatable). These characteristics are of great importance both structurally and semantically.

Their structural significance is clear if we realize that to describe the system of a given vocabulary one must know the typical patterns on which its words are coined. To achieve this it is necessary not only to know the morphemes of which they consist but also to reveal their recurrent+ regular combinations and the relationship existing between them. This approach ensures a rigorously linguistic basis for the identification of lexico-grammatical classes within each part of speech. In the English language these classes are so far little studied, although inquiry info this problem seems very promising and begins to affect attention.

It is also worthy of note that from the viewpoint of the information theory the fact that not every affix is capable of combining with any given stem makes the code more reliable, protects it from noise. Noise as a term of the theory of information is used to denote any kind of interference with the process of communication, mistakes, and misunderstanding.

The valiancy of stems is not therefore unlimited. Noun stems can be followed by the noun-forming suffixes: – age (bondage), – dom (serfdom), – eer, – ier (profitter, collier), ess (waitress), – ful (spoonful), – hood (childhood), – ian (physician), ics (linguistics), – ie / – y (daddy), – ing (flooring), – ism (heroism), – ist (violinist), – let (cloudlet), – ship (friendship); by the adjective-forming suffixes: – a/ – ial (doctoral), – an (African), – ary (revolutionary), – ed (wooded), – ful (hopeful), – ic, – ical (historic, historical), – ish (childish), – like (businesslike), – ly (friendly)/ – ous/ – ious/ – eous (spacious), – some (handsome), – y (cloudy); verb – forming suffixes: – ate (aerate), – en (hearten), – fy/, – ify (speechify), – ize (sympathize).

Verbal stems are almost equal to noun stems in valiancy. They combine with the following noun-forming suffixes: – age (breakage), – al (betrayal), – ance/ – ense (guidance, reference), – ant/ – ent (assistant, student), – ee (evacuee), – er/ – or (painter, editor), – ing (uprising), – ion/ – tion/ ation (action, information), – ment (government). The adjective – forming suffixes used with verbal stems are: – able/ – ible (agreeable, comprehensible), – ive/ – sive/ – tive (talkative), – some (meddlesome).

Adjective stems furnish a shorter list: – dom (freedom), – ism (realism), – ity/ – ty (reality, cruelty), – ness (brightness), ish (reddish), – ly (firmly), – ate (differentiate), – en (sharpen), – fy/ – ify (solidify).

The combining possibilities (or valiancy) are very important semantically because the meaning of the derivative depends not only on the morphemes of Wichita’s composed but also on combinations of stave and affix that can be contrasted with it. Contrast is to be local for in the use of the same morpheme in different environment and also in the use of different morphemes in environments otherwise the same.

The difference between the suffixes – ity and – ism, for instance, will become clear if we compare them as combined with identical stems in the following oppositions: formality: formalism: humanity: humanist: reality: realism. Roughly, the words in – ity mean the quality of being what the corresponding adjective describes, or an instance of this quality. The resulting nouns are countable. The suffix – ism forms nouns, naming a disposition to what the adjective describes or a corresponding type of ideology. Beng uncountable they belong to a different lexico-grammatical class.

The similarity on which an apposition is based may consist, for the material under consideration in the present paragraph, in the sameness of a suffix. A description of suffixes according to the stems with which they are combined and the lexico-grammatical classes they serve to differentiate may be helpful in the analysis of the meanings they are used to render.

A good example is furnished by the suffix – ish, as a suffix of adjectives. The combining possibilities of the suffix – ish are vast but not unlimited. Boyish and waspish are used, where as enmesh and aspish are not. The constraints here are of semantic nature. It is regularly present in the names of nationalities as for example: British, Irish, Spanish. When added to noun stems, it formes adjectives of the type «having the nature of with a moderately derogatory colouring» bookish, churlish, monkeyish, sheepish, swinish. Chidish has a derogatory twist of meaning, the adjective with a good sense is childlike. A man may be said to behave with a childish petulance, but with a childlike simplicity. Compare also womanly having the qualities befitting a woman, as in womanly compassion, womanly grace, womanly tact, with the derogatory womanish effeminate as in: Womanish tears, traitors to love and duty. (Cole ridge).

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