Fiveable
Fiveable

3.1 Derivational morphology and word formation

2 min readLast Updated on July 24, 2024

Derivational morphology is all about creating new words from existing ones. It's like a word-building toolkit, using prefixes and suffixes to transform words and change their meanings or parts of speech.

Understanding how words are built helps us analyze their structure and differentiate between derivational and inflectional morphology. This knowledge enhances our grasp of word formation and language complexity.

Understanding Derivational Morphology

Definition of derivational morphology

Top images from around the web for Definition of derivational morphology
Top images from around the web for Definition of derivational morphology
  • Derivational morphology branch of morphology focuses on word formation process creates new words from existing ones
  • Creates new words by adding affixes to base words changes word class (part of speech) alters meaning of words
  • Transforms words (noun to adjective: beauty → beautiful, verb to noun: sing → singer, adjective to adverb: quick → quickly)

Common derivational affixes

  • Prefixes attach before base word modify meaning
    • un- negates meaning (happy → unhappy)
    • re- indicates repetition (do → redo)
    • pre- signifies before (historic → prehistoric)
  • Suffixes attach after base word often change word class
    • -able/-ible denotes capability (read → readable)
    • -tion/-sion forms nouns indicating state or condition (educate → education)
    • -ize creates verbs meaning make or become (computer → computerize)
  • Affixes function to change word class modify meaning create new lexemes

Analyzing Word Structure and Morphology Types

Structure of derived words

  • Base word identification locates root or stem of word
  • Affix order determines placement
    • Prefixes attach before base
    • Suffixes attach after base
  • Multiple affixation combines prefixes and suffixes (un-forget-table)
  • Compound derivation merges two or more bases adds affixes to compounds

Derivational vs inflectional morphology

  • Derivational morphology
    • Creates new lexemes often changes word class
    • May alter core meaning not required by syntax
    • Example: teach → teacher (new word)
  • Inflectional morphology
    • Expresses grammatical features preserves word class
    • Does not create new lexemes required by syntactic context
    • Example: teach → teaches (grammatical change)

Term 1 of 17

Blending
See definition

Blending is a word formation process that combines parts of two or more words to create a new term, often by merging their sounds and meanings. This creative linguistic method allows for the formation of novel expressions that can capture complex ideas in a concise manner. Blending plays a significant role in language evolution and is commonly seen in informal speech, advertising, and pop culture.

Key Terms to Review (17)

Term 1 of 17

Blending
See definition

Blending is a word formation process that combines parts of two or more words to create a new term, often by merging their sounds and meanings. This creative linguistic method allows for the formation of novel expressions that can capture complex ideas in a concise manner. Blending plays a significant role in language evolution and is commonly seen in informal speech, advertising, and pop culture.

© 2025 Fiveable Inc. All rights reserved.
AP® and SAT® are trademarks registered by the College Board, which is not affiliated with, and does not endorse this website.

Term 1 of 17

Blending
See definition

Blending is a word formation process that combines parts of two or more words to create a new term, often by merging their sounds and meanings. This creative linguistic method allows for the formation of novel expressions that can capture complex ideas in a concise manner. Blending plays a significant role in language evolution and is commonly seen in informal speech, advertising, and pop culture.



© 2025 Fiveable Inc. All rights reserved.
AP® and SAT® are trademarks registered by the College Board, which is not affiliated with, and does not endorse this website.

© 2025 Fiveable Inc. All rights reserved.
AP® and SAT® are trademarks registered by the College Board, which is not affiliated with, and does not endorse this website.
Glossary
Glossary