Suffix and Prefix
An English word can be
divided into three parts: a “root / base word”, a prefix and a suffix. A prefix
is what comes before the “root / base word”. A suffix is attached to the end of
the “root / base word”.
Changes in grammatical
form:
The noun can be used as an adjective by adding “suffix_ful”
end of the root. (Power - powerful). The
adverbial form is made by adding “suffix_ly” end of the root to the adjective
(Powerful - powerfully).
The verb becomes a noun by adding end of the root
“suffix_ment”. (Improve - improvement). The same root word can also become a
verb (improvise)
The noun
changes into an adjective with end of the root. Suffix _al (nation - national),
and by adding another suffix _ize the word changes from an adjective to a verb
(nationalize)
The adjective
'special' can change to a verb (specialize) or a noun (speciality).
Prefixes and
suffixes can also change the meaning of a word:
The meaning of 'possible' is reversed with the
addition of the prefix im~ (impossible).
To 'overeat' means to eat too much and if food is
undercooked, it is not cooked enough.
Some suffixes
commonly denote an occupation:
The verb 'to teach' is transformed into the
occupation with the suffix ~er (teacher).
Both grammatical changes and changes in meaning can be
applied to the same base word:
The noun
'interest' can be made an adjective and given opposite meaning by adding a
prefix and a suffix ~un….~ing (uninteresting).
Changes in
pronunciation:
When prefixes and suffixes are added to root words,
the word stress sometimes changes.
Noun &
verb: 'photograph'. Adjective: 'photographic'. Opposite: 'unphotographic'.
Person: 'photographer'.
Zero derivation:
Zero
derivation (conversion) is widely used in the formation of nouns from verbs and
verbs from nouns. Here's a short list of common words that can be used as nouns
or verbs, with the same spelling and pronunciation: Act, answer, book, break,
call, change, deal, drink, face, fear, hand, head, help, light, look, love,
mark, move, need, notice, order, pack, place, question, reply, ride, space,
stay, telephone, time, walk, work. Derivative words may also be formed from
existing words without adding any prefix or suffix; that is, by using one and
the same form of a word as another part of speech: to change – a change; dry (adj) –
to dry; early (adj) – early
(adv).
Zero
derivation may be accompanied by changes in pronunciation and spelling: use (v)
– use (n); advise (v) – advice (n);
respond (v) – response (n); believe (v) –
belief (n);
food (n) – feed (v).
Nouns
and verbs may also be formed in this way by shifting stress: import (v) – import (n); progress (n) – progress (v).
Compounding is the formation of
compound words by combining two or more existing words:
highway, love story,
old-fashioned, twenty-three.
English
borrowed a large number of words from Latin, Greek, French, and from the
Scandinavian languages. There are also some borrowings from other languages.
Creating completely new words (neologisms) is an ongoing process nowadays. New
devices and new words for them appear, for example, cell phone, mobile phone,
smart phone. The Internet seems to be an inexhaustible source of new words.
Such recent neologisms as "blog, blogger, blogosphere, download, e-mail,
login, online, spam, spammer, upload, website" have become quite common in
our speech.
