science

Word formation

Word formation is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Word formation rather than just read about it. In short: In linguistics, word formation is an ambiguous term that can refer to either: the processes through which words can change (i.e. morphology), or the creation of new lexemes in a particular language Morphological A common method of word formation is the attachment of inflectional or derivational affixes. Derivation Examples include: the words governor, government, governable, misgovern, ex-governor, and ungovernable…

Key takeaways

Word formation belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Word formation to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Word formation from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

In linguistics, word formation is an ambiguous term that can refer to either:

the processes through which words can change (i.e. morphology), or the creation of new lexemes in a particular language

Morphological A common method of word formation is the attachment of inflectional or derivational affixes.

Derivation

Examples include:

the words governor, government, governable, misgovern, ex-governor, and ungovernable are all derived from the base word (to) govern

Inflection

Inflection is modifying a word for the purpose of fitting it into the grammatical structure of a sentence. For example:

manages and managed are inflected from the base word (to) manage worked is inflected from the verb (to) work talks, talked, and talking are inflected from the base (to) talk

Nonmorphological

Abbreviation Examples includes:

etc. from et cetera

Acronyms & Initialisms

An acronym is a word formed from the first letters of other words. For example:

NASA is the acronym for National Aeronautics and Space Administration IJAL (pronounced ) is the acronym for International Journal of American Linguistics Acronyms are usually written entirely in capital letters, though some words originating as acronyms, like radar, are now treated as common nouns. Initialisms are similar to acronyms, but where the letters are pronounced as a series of letters. For example:

ATM for Automated Teller Machine SIA for Singapore International Airlines

Back-formation

In linguistics, back-formation is the process of forming a new word by removing actual affixes, or parts of the word that is re-analyzed as an affix, from other words to create a base. Examples include:

the verb headhunt is a back-formation of headhunter the verb edit is formed from the noun editor the word televise is a back-formation of television The process is motivated by analogy: edit is to editor as act is to actor. This process leads to a lot of denominal verbs. The productivity of back-formation is limited, with the most productive forms of back-formation being hypocoristics.

Blending

A lexical blend is a complex word typically made of two word fragments. For example:

smog is a blend of smoke and fog brunch is a blend of breakfast and lunch. stagflation is a blend of stagnation and inflation chunnel is a blend of channel and tunnel, referring to the Channel Tunnel Although blending is listed under the Nonmorphological heading, there are debates as to how far blending is a matter of morphology.

Compounding

Compounding is the processing of combining two bases, where each base may be a fully-fledged word. For example:

desktop is formed by combining desk and top railway is formed by combining rail and way firefighter is formed by combining fire and fighter Compounding is a topic relevant to syntax, semantics, and morphology.

Hashtagging as word formation Linguists argue that hashtags are words and hashtagging is a morphological process. Social media users view the syntax of existing viral hashtags as guiding principles for creating new ones. A hashtag's popularity is therefore influenced more by the presence of popular hashtags with similar syntactic patterns than by its conciseness and clarity.

Word formation vs. semantic change

There are processes for forming new dictionary items which are not considered under the umbrella of word formation. One specific example is semantic change, which is a change in a single word's meaning. The boundary between word formation and semantic change can be difficult to define as a new use of an old word can be seen as a new word derived from an old one and identical to it in form.

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Word formation

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Word formation claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Word formation before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Word formation ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Word formation

In research: Word formation appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Word formation in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Word formation is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Linguistic morphology, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Word formation outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Word formation in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Word formation means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Word formation out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Word formation in simple terms?

In linguistics, word formation is an ambiguous term that can refer to either: the processes through which words can change (i.e. morphology), or the creation of new lexemes in a particular language Morphological A common method of word formation is the attachment of inflectional or derivational aff…

Why does Word formation matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Word formation?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Word formation.