Difference between revisions of "Back formation"
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(New page: '''Back formation''' (also known as retrograde formation) is a type of word formation in which a word is assumed to have a morphological structure (for instance, a root and an affix) that ...) |
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| − | '''Back formation''' | + | '''Back formation''' is a type of [[word formation]] in which a word is assumed to have a morphological structure (for instance, a [[root]] and an [[affix]]) that it did not originally have and is then decomposed. Often monomorphemic words are decomposed into a root and a affix if the language has a productive affix with the same phonological form as a part of the word that underwent back formation. |
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| + | ===Comments=== | ||
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| + | The process can be schematically represented as follows: | ||
* Initial morphological structure: ('''''abcdef''''')<sub>stem</sub>; the language also has a productive affix with the form (''ef''). | * Initial morphological structure: ('''''abcdef''''')<sub>stem</sub>; the language also has a productive affix with the form (''ef''). | ||
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For example, ''edit'' is a result of backformation from ''editor'', ''sculpt'' from ''sculptor'' (decomposed as having the productive suffixes ''–or'' or ''–er'' used to build words denoting a person who performs the action denoted by a verb). | For example, ''edit'' is a result of backformation from ''editor'', ''sculpt'' from ''sculptor'' (decomposed as having the productive suffixes ''–or'' or ''–er'' used to build words denoting a person who performs the action denoted by a verb). | ||
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| + | ===Synonym=== | ||
| + | *[[retrograde formation]] | ||
==References== | ==References== | ||
* Campbell, Lyle & Mauricio J. Mixco. 2007. A Glossary of Historical Linguistics. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press. | * Campbell, Lyle & Mauricio J. Mixco. 2007. A Glossary of Historical Linguistics. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press. | ||
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| + | ===Other languages=== | ||
| + | German [[Rückbildung]] | ||
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| + | {{dc}} | ||
| + | [[Category:Morphology]] | ||
| + | [[Category:Diachrony]] | ||
Revision as of 15:54, 7 September 2008
Back formation is a type of word formation in which a word is assumed to have a morphological structure (for instance, a root and an affix) that it did not originally have and is then decomposed. Often monomorphemic words are decomposed into a root and a affix if the language has a productive affix with the same phonological form as a part of the word that underwent back formation.
Comments
The process can be schematically represented as follows:
- Initial morphological structure: (abcdef)stem; the language also has a productive affix with the form (ef).
- Morphological structure after back formation: (abcd)stem(ef)suffix.
For example, edit is a result of backformation from editor, sculpt from sculptor (decomposed as having the productive suffixes –or or –er used to build words denoting a person who performs the action denoted by a verb).
Synonym
References
- Campbell, Lyle & Mauricio J. Mixco. 2007. A Glossary of Historical Linguistics. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press.
Other languages
German Rückbildung
