Neologisms
A neologism is a new word.
Etymology
Etymology is the study of the origin and history of a word.
Borrowing
Borrowing is taking over words from another language. Examples of this could be:
| Word | Language |
|---|---|
| Ski | Norwegian |
| Yoghurt | Turkish |
| Sofa | Arabic |
Loan translation also known as calque is the direct translation of the elements of a word into the borrowing language.
| Original Word | Language | New Word | Language |
|---|---|---|---|
| Übermensch | German | Superman | English |
| Hot dog | English | Peros calientes | Spanish |
Compounding
Compounding is the joining of two separate words to produce a single form. Examples of this could be fastfood, textbook, or doorknob. It is common in English and German and also seen in Hmong (Vietnamese and Laos).
Blending is similar to compounding but only takes the beginning of one word and joins it to the end of another. Examples of this could be:
| First Word | Second Word | Blended Word |
|---|---|---|
| Smoke | Fog | Smog |
| Motor | Hotel | Motel |
Clipping
Clipping is the shortening of a word of more than one syllable, usually beginning with casual speech. Examples of this could be:
| Original Word | Clipped Word |
|---|---|
| Facsimile | Fax |
| Advertisement | Ad |
| Influenza | Flu |
This also happens frequently with names and educational environments. Examples of this could be:
| Original Word | Clipped Word |
|---|---|
| Edward | Ed |
| Gymnastics | Gym |
| Examination | Exam |
A hypocorism is language shortening common in Australian and British English where a long word is shortened to a single syllable with the ending -y or -ie added. Examples could be:
| Original Word | Hypocorism |
|---|---|
| Biscuit | Bickie |
| Australian | Aussie |
| Toasted Sandwich | Toastie |
Another reduction process is called backformation. This is when a word of one type (usually a noun) is reduced to form another type (usually a verb). Examples could be:
| Original Word | Backformation |
|---|---|
| Tevelevision | Televise |
| Mixture | Mix |
| Donation | Donate |
Backformations are also commonly formed with -er sound nouns. Such as:
| Original Noun | Backformation Verb |
|---|---|
| Babysitter | Babysit |
| Burglar | Burgle |
Conversion
A conversion is the process by which a word changes function without reduction. This can also be known as a “category change” or a “functional shift”. Unlike Clipping which is usually a noun to verb, conversion occurs in both directions.
| Original Word | Conversion |
|---|---|
| Bottle (N) | to Bottle (V) |
| Dust (N) | to Dust (V) |
| to Cheat (V) | a Cheat (N) |
| to Hire (V) | a Hire (N) |
This also happens with verbs becoming adjectives such as I can “see through” that material -> The material is “see-through”. Remember that some words’ meanings can shift substantially when they go through conversion such as the noun total (the sum) and the verb to total (wreck).
Coinage
Coinage is the invention and general use of a totally new term which rarely occurs in English. Typical sources are trade names for commercial products or technical names such as zipper and teflon. If a new word is based on a person or place then it is called an eponym, examples could be teddy after President Roosevelt or jeans after Genoa where they were originally made.
Acronyms are new words formed from the initial letters of a set of other words such as NATO or SCUBA.
Derviation
Derivation is the addition of affixes to existing words and is the most common word-formation processes.
A prefix is an affix added to the beginning of the word such as un- or mis-. While affixes at the end of a word are called suffixes and can be -less or -ish. Words can have both suffixes and prefixes. There are roughly 200 derivational affixes, 90 prefixes and 110 suffixes. An infix is an affix incorporated inside another word. A special form of infixes is expletive insertion when one adds a swear word into an existing word such as absogoddamlutely. Khmu a Laos and Vietnamese language makes use of infixes to change word type (verb to noun).
Mutiple Processes
Sometimes words can be created through a combination of the earlier mentioned methods. An additional form one should know of is an analogy, this is when a new words are formed that are similar in some way to existing words. An example of this is the formation of the word yuppie based on hippie.
Study Questions
- When is an eponym a neologism? When it is named after a person or place and creates a new word.
- Which word-formation process is the source of the English word modem? Blending of the word modulator and demodulator.
- Which two processes were involved in the creation of the verb google, as in Have you ever googled yourself?? Coinage which created the noun followed by conversion which made it to a verb.
- Which process is clearly involved in creating the new term selfie? Hypocorism as it is a clipping with the ending -ie.
- What do we call the process whereby a new word is formed to be similar to an existing word? An analogy.
- Which of the following pairs contains an example of calque? How would you describe the other(s)?
| First Word | Second Word | Type |
|---|---|---|
| footobooru (Japanese) | football (English) | Borrowing |
| tréning (Hungarian) | training (English) | Borrowing |
| luna de miel (Spanish “moon of honey”) | honeymoon (English) | Calque |
| jardin d’enfants (French “garden of children”) | Kindergarten (German “children garden”) | Calque |
- Can you identify the different word-formation processes involved in producing each of the bold words in these sentences?
| Don’t they ever worry that they might get AIDS? | Acronym |
| That’s really fandamntastic! | Infix |
| These new skateboards from Zee Designs are kickass. | Compounding, compounding with conversion |
| When I’m ill, I was to see a doc, not a vet. | Clipping |
| The house next door was burgled when I was babysitting the Smiths’ children. | Backformation, backformation from compounding |
| I like this old sofa - it’s nice and comfy. | Borrowing, hypocorism |
| I think Robyn said she’d like a toasite for brekky | Hypocorism |
| You don’t need to button it because it’s got velcro inside. | Conversion, blending from borrowed |
- Identify the prefixes and suffixes used in these words:
| Word | Affixes |
|---|---|
| Misfortune | Mis- |
| Terrorism | -ism |
| Carelessness | -less, -ness |
| Disagreement | Dis-, -ment |
| Ineffective | In-, -ive |
| Unfaithful | Un-, -ful |
| Prepackaged | Pre-, -age, -ed |
| Biodegradable | Bio-, de- -able |
| Reincarnation | Re-, in-, -ation |
| Decentralization | De- , -al, ize-, -ation |
- In Khmu the word kap means “to grasp with tongs” and tiap means “to fold a small package.” What would be the words for “tongs” and “a small package”? Krnap and Trniap.
- Why are the expressions my PIN number and the ATM machine slightly odd? They contain unintentional repetitions. Personal Identification Number number and Automated Teller Machine machine.
- The English phrase road rage has become the expression vejvrede (“way anger”) among Danish speakers. What is this process called? Calque
- More than one process was involved in the creation of the bold forms in these sentences. Can you identify the processes involved in each case?
| Can you FedEx the books to me today? | Blending and conversion |
| Police have reported an increase in carjackings in recent months. | Blending and conversion |
| Jeeves, could you tell the maid to be sure to hoover the bedroom carpet? | Eponym and conversion |
| I had to temp for a while before I got a real job. | Clipping and conversion |
| Is your friend Ian still blogging | Blending and conversion |
| Would you prefer a decaf? | Clipping, derivation, borrowing, and conversion |