English Morphology Week 13 Part 1: Minor Processes

Summary

In this Week 13 English Morphology lecture, the focus is on minor processes used to form new lexical items. The lecture covers various processes, such as coinage, blending, backformation, clipping, and acronym formation, among others. The instructor emphasizes that while these processes may seem numerous, the hardest part of the course has already been tackled. The session also touches upon the more complex concepts of inflection and derivation and aims to break down these processes into manageable segments for better understanding. The lecture ends by previewing the upcoming discussion in the following video.

Takeaways

• 😀 The lecture is from Week 13 and focuses on English morphology.
• 😀 The previous lessons were summarized in a picture, but this week introduces new material.
• 😀 There are two main ways to form a lexeme: through affixation and derivation.
• 😀 Affixation includes both evicting (active) and non-evicting (passive) processes in morphology.
• 😀 In English, common processes for word formation include prediction and suffixation.
• 😀 Some other languages have more ways of word formation compared to English.
• 😀 Non-affixation in English is usually referred to as the valisanbe process.
• 😀 There are minor processes for creating new words such as coinage, blending, and backformation.
• 😀 Other minor word formation processes include clipping, acronym formation, and reduplication.
• 😀 The lecturer reassures students that the hardest part of learning morphology has already been covered.
• 😀 The lecture will continue by discussing each minor process in detail in future videos.

Q & A

What is the main topic of the lecture in week 13?

The main topic of the lecture in week 13 is English morphology, focusing on the processes used to form new lexical items.

What are the two main ways to form new lexicons in English morphology?

In English morphology, new lexicons can be formed through two main processes: affixation (which includes prefixation and suffixation) and non-affixation (such as the valency process).

What is the difference between affixation and non-affixation in word formation?

Affixation involves adding prefixes or suffixes to existing words to form new lexicons, whereas non-affixation processes do not involve the addition of affixes, such as in the valency process.

What minor processes are discussed for forming new words?

The minor processes discussed for word formation include coinage, blending, backformation, clipping, acronym creation, reduplication, and others.

What is coinage in the context of word formation?

Coinage refers to the creation of entirely new words that are not derived from existing words, often through brand names or terms.

What is the process of blending in word formation?

Blending involves combining parts of two or more words to create a new word, like 'brunch' (from 'breakfast' and 'lunch').

What is backformation, and how does it work in word formation?

Backformation is the process of creating a new word by removing an affix from an existing word, such as turning 'editor' into 'edit'.

Can you explain the clipping process in word formation?

Clipping involves shortening a longer word to form a new, often more casual, version, like 'ad' from 'advertisement'.

What are acronyms, and how do they contribute to word formation?

Acronyms are formed by taking the initial letters of a phrase or set of words and creating a new word from them, like 'NASA' from 'National Aeronautics and Space Administration'.

What does reduplication refer to in word formation?

Reduplication refers to repeating all or part of a word to create a new meaning or effect, such as 'choo-choo' or 'super-duper'.