Word-Formation (W-F) is building words from available linguistic material after certain structural and semantic patterns. It is also a branch of lexicology that studies the process of building words as well as the derivative structure of words, the patterns on which they are built and derivational relations between words.
Synchronically, linguists study the system of W-F at a given time; diachronically, they are concerned with the history of W-F, and the history of building concrete words
Traditionally, the following ways of W-F are distinguished:
affixation, compounding, conversion, shortening, blending, back-formation. Sound interchange, sound imitation, distinctive stress, lexicalization, coinage certainly do not belong to word-formation as no derivational patterns are used.
Affixation is formation of words by adding derivational affixes to derivational bases. Affixation is devided into prefixation and suffixation,
e.g. the following prefixes and suffixes are used to build words with negative or opposite meanings: un-, non-, a-, contra-, counter-, de-, dis-, in-, mis-, -less, e.g. non-toxic.
Compounding is building words by combining two (or more) derivational bases (stems or word-forms),
e.g. big-ticket (= expensive), fifty-fifty, laid-back, statesman.
Among compounds, we distinguish derivational compounds, formed by adding a derivational affix (usu. a suffix) to a word group,
e.g. heart-shaped (= shaped like a heart), stone-cutter (= one who cuts stone).
Conversion consists in making a word from some existing word by transferring it into another part of speech. The new word acquires a new paradigm; the sound form and the morphimic composition remain unchanged. The most productive conversion patterns are n → V (i.e. formation of verbs from noun-stems), v → N (formation of nouns from verb stems), a → V (formation of verbs from adjective stems) ,
e.g. a drink, a do, a go, a swim: Have another try.
Nouns and verbs can be converted from other parts of speech, too, for example, adverbs: to down, to out, to up; ifs and buts.
Shortening consists in substituting a part for a whole. Shortening may result in building new lexical items (i.e. lexical shortenings) and so-called graphic abbreviations, which are not words but signs representing words in written speech; in reading, they are substituted by the words they stand for,
e.g. Dr = doctor, St = street, saint, Oct = 0ctober, etc.
Lexical shortenings are produced in two ways:
(1) clipping, i.e. a new word is made from a syllable (or two syllables) of the original word,
(2) abbreviation, i.e. a new word is made from the initial letters of the original word or word-group. Abbreviations are devided into letter-based initialisms (FBI ← the Federal Bureau of Investigation) and acronyms pronounced as root words (AIDS, NATO).
Blending is building new words, called blends, fusions, telescopic words, or portmanteau words, by merging (usu.irregular) fragments of two existing words,
e.g. biopic ← biography + picture, alcoholiday ← alcohol + holiday.
Back-formation is derivation of new words by subtracting a real or supposed affix (usu. a suffix) from existing words (on analogy with existing derivational pairs),
e.g. to enthuse ← enthusiasm, to intuit ← intuition.
Sound interchange and distinctive stress are not ways of word-formation. They are ways of distinguishing words or word forms,
e.g. food -feed, speech - speak, life - live;
'insult, n. - in'sult, v., 'perfect, a. - per'fect, v.
