Word-Formation in English

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This work begins with prefaces and conventions, followed by an introduction explaining its purpose and usage. The first chapter covers basic concepts, defining words and exploring word-formation, inflection, and derivation. Subsequent chapters delve into complex words, identifying morphemes, allomorphy, and establishing word-formation rules, including multiple affixation and compounding. The discussion on productivity and the mental lexicon examines what productivity means, the distinction between possible and actual words, and how to measure and constrain productivity through various restrictions. Affixation is addressed next, detailing the nature and investigation of affixes, their properties, and classifications, including suffixes and prefixes. The fifth chapter explores derivation without affixation, focusing on conversion, prosodic morphology, truncations, blends, and abbreviations. Compounding is then analyzed, recognizing compounds, their structures, and various patterns, including nominal, adjectival, and verbal compounds, along with theoretical considerations regarding word-formation models. The final sections include theoretical issues such as phonology-morphology interaction, affix ordering, and the nature of word-formation rules. The book concludes with an answer key, references, and an index, providing a comprehensive resource for understanding word formation in language.