Word Formation Processes Summary

Word Formation Processes

Coinage

• Invention of new words.
• Trade names: vaseline, kleenex, aspirin, Google > googling
• Eponyms: words based on names (sandwich, hoover, denim, dungaree, paparazzi, volt, watt).

Borrowing

• Taking words from other languages.
• Adjustments to fit new language (croissant, piano, sofa, indaba/ lobola, dagga, mashonisa).
• Loan translation/calque: direct translation (wolkenkrabber – skyscraper).

Compounding

• Joining two separate words into one.
• Examples: bookcase, wallpaper, sebatakgomo, isichazamazwi, good-looking, fast-food.

Blending

• Combining parts of two words.
• Examples: gasohol, smog, brunch, blook, Brangelina, Somhale.

Clipping

• Reducing a word to a shorter form.
• Examples: fax, phone, flu, perm, exam, app, ad, Mtase.
• Hypocorism: reduction to a syllable + -y or -ie (movie, telly, Aussie, bestie, Boity, Chrissy).

Backformation

• Reducing a word of one type (noun) to another (verb).
• Examples: televise, enthuse, babysit, edit, opt.

Conversion

• Changing the function of a word (noun to verb) without reduction.
• Noun to verb: bottle, butter, chair, vacation.
• Verb to noun: guess, must, spy.
• Phrasal verbs to nouns: printout, takeover.
• Complex verb combinations to nouns: wannabe.
• Verbs to adjectives: see-through, stand-up.
• Adjectives to verbs: to dirty, to empty.

Acronyms

• New words from first letters.
• Examples: CD, VCR, UNESCO, NATO, COSATU, NEHAWU, UNISA, ABSA, POWA, WAR, laser, radar, scuba, zip code.

Derivations

• Adding affixes (prefixes, suffixes, infixes).
• Prefixes: un-, mis-, dis- (unethical, misunderstand, disrespect).
• Suffixes: -ful, -ism, -ish (wonderful, bilingualism, childish).
• Infix: abso-freaking-lutely.

Multiple Processes

• More than one process involved.
• Examples: deli (loan + clipping), snowball (compounding + conversion), Colgate (borrowing + coinage).
• Analogy: forming a new word similar to an existing one (hippie, yuppie, yappie).