6.
Acronymy (1)
6. Acronymy is the process by which
a word is formed from the initial or
beginning of a succession of words.
NATO North Atlantic Treaty Organization
TOEFL Test of English as a Foreign Language
AIDS Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome
NASA National Aeronautics & Space Administration
UNESCO United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural
Organization)
Radar radio detecting and ranging
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7. Blending
the process of combining the beginning of one
7. Blending is the fusion of two
word and the end of another word to form a
words
into
newone…
word usually the first part of one
word with
similar the last of another, e.g
to compounding,
but parts of the words involved are lost
telecast
(usually 1st part of 1st word + end of 2nd word)
[Link] (breakfast+ lunch)
motel (motor+ hotel)
chortle (chuckle + snort)
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Exercise 10-6:
Give the originals of these blends
1. brunch breakfast+ lunch
2. happenstance happen + circumstance
3. stagflation stagnation + inflation
4. simulcast simultaneous + broadcast
5. motel motor+ hotel
6. smog smoke + fog
7. dumbfound dumb + confound
8. telecast tele- + broadcast
9. flustrated fluster + frustrated
10. splatter splash + spatter
11. flunk flinch + funk
12. gelignite gelatin + Latin ignis, fire + English –ize
13. dandle dance + handle 3
Exercise 10-7:
Give the blends that result from fusing these
words.
transfer + resistor =
transistor
automobile + omnibus =
autobus
escalade + elevator =
escalator
blare or blow + spurt =
blurt
squall + squeak squawk
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8. Backisformation
8. Back formation the formation of
athe
word from
process one that
of reducing a wordlooks
such aslike its to a
a noun
derivative.
shorter version and using it as a new word such as
a verb
e.g. editor → edit
donation → donate
burglar → burgle
television → televise
babysitter → babysit
gatecrasher gatecrash
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Exercise 10-8:
1. The noun greed is a back-formation from the
adjective greedy.
. what back-formations would you expect from
donation ?
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Exercise 10-9:
These verbs are back-formation. Write the words from
which they are back-formed.
1. housekeep housekeeper
2. typewrite typewriter
3. administrate administrator OR administration
4. resurrect resurrection
5. baby-sit baby-sitter
6. enthuse enthusiasm
7. laze lazy
8. lace laser
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Exercise 10-9:
These verbs are back-formation. Write the words from which
they are back-formed.
9. sidle sideling
10. escalate escalator
11. reminisce reminiscence
12. deficit-spend deficit-spending
13. emote emotion
14. burgle burglar
15. party-poop party-pooper
16. back-seat-drive back-seat-driver
17. hang glide hang glider
18. advance-register advance-registration
19. snap-judge snap-judgment
[Link] reluctance 8
9. Antonomasia is the formation of a
common noun, a verb or an adjective
from the name of a person or place.
hamburger (= of Hamburg, Germany)
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Exercise 10-11:
Look up in your dictionary the following instances of
antonomasia and write the original of each in the blanks.
1. sandwich From the fourth Earl of Sandwich
“who once spent twenty-four hours at the
gaming table with no other refreshment than
some slices of cold beef between slices of
toast.” OED
2. frankfurter (= of Frankfurt, Germany)
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Exercise 10-11:
6. jeans: jean fustian, a tough cloth.
7. guy: Guy Fawkes, an English conspirator
of the 17th century. In England, on Guy
Fawkes Day, his effigy, clad in grotesque
and ill-fitting garments, was carried about
the streets and then burnt in the evening
amid fireworks. It was accompanied by
other effigies of unpopular persons which
were called “guys.”
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Exercise 10-11:
9. lynch:
Named for William Lynch, whose approach to
punishing criminals in the absence of authorized
law enforcement officers has caused his name
to be associated with vigilante activity,
particularly hangings.
10. boycott:
Named for Charles C. Boycott, a land agent
who many in the local community refused to
interact with or do business with.
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10. Reduplication: is the formation of a
new word by doubling a morpheme
usually with a change of vowel or initial
consonant.
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Exercise 10-12:
Underline the originating morpheme in each of these
twin-words.
1. wiggle-waggle 4. super-duper
2. pitter-patter 5. silly-willy
3. nitwit 6. lovey-dovey none
7. hugger-mugger both
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Exercise 10-13:
Identify the class of twin-word by one of
these numbers:
1. Repetition without change
2. Repetition with change of initial consonant
3. Repetition with change of vowel
1. knick-knack 3 6. hotsy-totsy 2
2. ding-dong 3 7. hocus-pocus 2
3. wishy-washy 3 8. flipflop 3
4. quack-quack 1 9. humdrum 2
5. rowdy-dowdy 2 10. nitty-gritty 2
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