Pavlk2017EnglishLexicologyI-1

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(l)My, my! Are we _________ this morning!

(m)She heard John’s ___________s coming downstairs.

(n)They rang the doorbell. ___________! No answer.

(OALD, CALD, LDCE, BNC)

3 Translate these Slovak reduplicatives into English.

5.5 Lexical ellipsis

The term lexical ellipsis refers to an omission of (typically) one word of a multiword phrase/collocation. This is done to make the speech production process more economical, and the resulting lexeme usually represents a different word class compared to the original function of the corresponding word within the phrase/collocation. For example, in all of the following phrases, the first word functions as an adjective, but after the ellipsis (of the second word) it is converted to a noun: the Atlantic Ocean → the Atlantic, the rich people → the rich, a monthly magazine → a monthly, etc.

Sometimes, lexical ellipsis can be combined with clipping. In such cases, one word is ellipted and the remaining word is clipped, e.g. pop(ular music), pub(lic house), etc.

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EXERCISES

1 Find words which are the result of lexical ellipsis. Supply the ellipted part(s).

(a)One of the Tate’s most publicised art events is the awarding of the annual Turner Prize.

(b)Let’s go have a Bud.

(c)She lives south of the Thames.

(d)I always take my laptop when I travel.

(e)We use our china only on special occasions.

(f)The normal minimum qualification to be eligible for graduate study at Oxford is the completion of a bachelor’s degree with a first or uppersecond class honours.

(g)Originally, Oxfords were plain, formal shoes, made of leather but they evolved into a range of styles suitable for both formal, uniform, and casual wear.

(h)How about a trip to the zoo this afternoon?

(i)The article was badly written and full of typos.

(j)The Rockies are notable for containing the highest peaks in central North America.

(k)He’s gone to the butcher’s.

(l)Outside, the once-respectable semis have crooked To Let signs and greying net curtains.

(m)Give any young egotist two shots of dope and an automatic and he will hold up the government mint.

(OALD, CALD, LDCE, Wikipedia)

2 Look at the following phrases/collocations. Form new lexemes by means of ellipsis. Use them in a sentence (consult a dictionary or the Internet).

(a)chamber mate

(b)cup of tea

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(c)veterinary surgeon

(d)moving pictures

(e)juvenile detention centre

(f)plastic card

(g)weekly magazine

(h)Piccadilly Circus

(i)medical examination

(j)a big thing

3 The following Slovak words are the result of lexical ellipsis and the subsequent conversion (adj → n). Supply the ellipted parts. Translate them into English.

(a)vedúci

(b)pánske

(c)šampanské

(d)maškarný

(e)výtvarná

(f)držková

(g)jedna (príde o jednej)

(h)biele (pohár bieleho)

(i)dekanské

(j)opravný

(k)základná

(l)Tomášikova

(m)hlavná

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(n)nízkotučné

(o)domáca (napísať si domácu)

(p)krstný

Chapter 5 – Further reading:

Bauer 1983: chapters 7.8.1 and 7.8.3

Böhmerová 2010

Carstairs-McCarthy 2002: chapter 6.6

Dvonč et al. 1966 Gavurová 2013 Hladký 1998

Huddleton and Pullum 2002: chapter 19.4.6

Jackson and Zé Amvela 2007: chapter 4.6.2

Kvetko 2009: chapter 4.4

Lančarič 2008: chapters 3.2.1, 3.2.2, 3.2.3.1, and 3.2.3.2

Lančarič 2016: chapters 5.2.2.1 – 5.2.2.4, 5.2.2.9 Plag 2003: chapters 5.2.2 and 5.3

Quirk et al. 1985: chapters 5.25, 7.23, 5.71

Štekauer 2000: chapters 2.4 – 2.7 Yule 2010: chapter 5

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6 Marginal types of word-formation

The following phenomena represent the processes whose productivity (the ability to create new lexemes) is either very limited or which are no longer considered to be productive.

6.1 Sound interchange

This process typically involves a change of word class by the mutation of one phoneme within the word. We may distinguish between vowel interchange, consonant interchange, or a combination of the two, e.g. blood → bleed, believe → belief, breath → breathe, etc. It is important not to confuse this wordformation process with grammatical sound interchange/mutation, which only produces various grammatical forms of the same lexeme, e.g. see → saw, sit → sat, sing → sang → sung, etc.

EXERCISES

1 Change the following words into a different word class (by means of sound interchange). Use them in the sentences below.

(a)This expression is used mainly in speech, not in writing.

(b)Both her children still _______ at home.

(c)He told some fascinating _______ about his life in India.

(d)I learned to _______ a bike when I was six.

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(e)She didn’t have the ________ to walk any further.

(f)Is this ________ taken?

(g)Keep your receipt as _______ of purchase.

(h)Nurses have to work _______ hours.

(i)Open your mouth _______ and say "Ah".

(j)Police are _______ing people to stay at home.

(k)The ________ of her knowledge is amazing.

(l)She’s _______ing the baby a shawl.

(m)The autumn sun _______ed the lake.

(n)They have a large family to _______.

(o)We used to listen to pop ________s on the radio.

(p)With a few bold ________s, she signed her name.

(q)He poured her a drink, then _______ed his own glass.

(r)The cave descends to a _______ of 340 feet.

(OALD, CALD, LDCE)

2 Each of the following words has two different pronunciations. Transcribe them and comment on the meaning of the two different forms.

3 Look at these pairs. Distinguish between lexical sound interchange and grammatical mutation.

6.2 Eponymy

Eponymy is a process of creating new words by using proper names as (mostly) common nouns, e.g. guillotine (named after the French physician Joseph-Ignace Guillotin), wellingtons (after the Duke of Wellington), etc. Sometimes, an eponym is created by adding a suffix to the proper name. The resulting word can then either remain a noun, e.g. by adding the suffix -ism – Stalinism, Maoism, etc., or it becomes a different word class, e.g. by adding the suffixes - ize, -ian, etc. – to galvanize (the Italian physician Luigi Galvani), to pasteurize (the French scientist Louis Pasteur), Victorian (after Queen Victoria), etc.

EXERCISES

1 Underline eponyms in the following sentences. Explain their origin.

(a)Hooligans had sprayed paint all over the car.

(b)Carla and Nick were sitting on the grass, languidly tossing Sara’s frisbee to and fro.

(c)I’ve put the Thermos of water in your pack – use it sparingly.

(d)It was such a brilliant idea – a real stroke of genius.

(e)I handed Glen the glass with ice, pouring Scotch into it.

(f)The hills sent back a faint echo.

(g)Could you xerox this letter, please?

(h)The departmental library is on four floors with two large reading rooms and an extensive map and atlas store.

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(i)I have a pair of black Bermuda shorts that I bought to wear aboard our boat.

(j)The union called on its members to boycott the meeting.

(k)Previous evidence has shown that fluent braille involves a number of subsidiary perceptual, cognitive and manual skills.

(l)Tourism is damaging the flora and fauna.

(m)In the course of the riot the governor of the city was lynched.

(OALD, CALD, LDCE)

2 Look at these names and trademarks. What lexemes were formed on their basis? Use them in the sentences below.

1.Marcus Junius Brutus (the Roman politician)

2.Vladimir Ilyich Lenin (the Russian communist revolutionary)

3.Queen Elizabeth I

4.Plato (the Greek philosopher)

5.Napoleon

6.Joseph "Adolphe" Sax (the Belgian instrument maker)

7.Band-Aid (a brand name)

8.Jean Nicot (the French explorer)

9.Velcro (a company)

10.Odysseus (a Greek mythological character)

(a) The room is full of smoke – ___________ has become the ambient atmosphere.

(b)An easy way to keep a ___________ fastener from becoming clogged with dust and other airborne debris is by keeping the strips fastened as much as possible.

(c)She wrote a thriller about a ___________ serial killer.

(d)She took a ___________ out of her purse and stretched it over the cut.

(e)___________ is the achievement of a dictatorship of the proletariat, as political prelude to the establishment of socialism.

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(f)The ___________ age was a time of exploration and discovery.

(g)In the novel, Edward and Susannah present a perfect model of

___________ love.

(h)The ___________ Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts between the French Empire and an array of European powers.

(i)Berne started playing ___________ in high school.

(j)The film follows one man’s ___________ to find the mother from whom he was separated at birth.

(OALD, CALD, LDCE)

6.3 Shift of stress

Shift of stress is a way of creating new words by shifting the placement of primary stress within the word. The new word thus has the same spelling (the original word and the new word are homographs), but a different placement of stress and, usually, also different pronunciation, e.g. a present / preznt/ → to present /pr zent/, to conduct /kən dʌkt/ → a conduct / kɒndʌkt/, etc. This process is not restricted to noun – verb pairs, however. It may also be applied to create verbs from adjectives, e.g. frequent / fri:kw nt/ → to frequent /frɪ kwent/, absent / æbsn(ə)t/ → to absent /əb sent/, etc.

EXERCISES

1 Pay attention to these words with variable stress pattern. Mark their correct stress placement and determine their word class and meaning.

PRESENT

Please state your present occupation and salary.

They gave me theatre tickets as a present.

The winners were presented with medals.

I’m sorry, he’s out at present.

Later on I’d like to present you to the head-teacher.

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CONDUCT

Is it really necessary to conduct experiments on animals?

There was no evidence of improper conduct on the part of the police. The orchestra is conducted by John Williams.

ATTRIBUTE

She attributes her success to hard work and a little luck.

Patience is one of the most important attributes in a teacher.

This play is usually attributed to Shakespeare.

(OALD, CALD, LDCE)

2 Supply the correct spelling of the following words and match them with their meaning.