INTRODUCTION 3
[1.2]
a. We put all the big_____on the table.
b. We put all the big splets on the table.
The study of word-formation and word-structure is called MORPHOLOGY. Morphological theory provides
a general theory of word-structure in all the languages of the world. Its task is to characterise the kinds of
things that speakers need to know about the structure of the words of their language in order to be able to use
them to produce and to understand speech.
We will see that in order to use language, speakers need to have two types of morphological knowledge.
First, they need to be able to analyse existing words (e.g. they must be able to tell that frogs contains frog
plus -s for plural). Usually, if we know the meanings of the elements that a word contains, it is possible to
determine the meaning of the entire word once we have worked Out how the various elements relate to each
other. For instance, if we examine a word like nutcracker we find that it is made up of two words, namely
the noun nut and the noun cracker. Furthermore, we see that the latter word, cracker is divisible into the verb
crack and another meaningful element -er (roughly meaning 'an instrument used to do X'), which, however,
is not a word in its own right. Numerous other words are formed using this pattern of combining words (and
smaller meaningful elements) as seen in [1.3]:
[1.3]
[tea]Noun—[strain-er]]Noun
[lawn]Noun—[mow-er]]Noun
[can]Noun—[open-er]]Noun
Given the frame [[_______]Noun—[_______er]] Noun, we can fill in different words with the
appropriate properties and get another compound word (i.e. a word containing at least two words). Try this
frame out yourself. Find two more similar examples of compound words formed using this pattern.
Second, speakers need to be able to work Out the meanings of novel worth constructed using the word-
building elements and standard word-construction rules of the language. Probably we all know and use more
words than are listed in dictionaries. We can construct and analyse the structure and meaning of old words
as well as new ones. So, although many words must be listed in the dictionary and memorised, listing every
word in the dictionary is not necessary. If a word is formed following general principles, it may be more
efficient to reconstitute it from its constituent elements as the need arises rather than permanently commit it
to memory. When people make up new words using existing words and wordforming elements, we
understand them with ease—providing we know what the elements they use to form those words mean and
providing the word-forming rules that they employ are familiar. This ability is one of the things explored in
morphological investigations.
In an average week, we are likely to encounter a couple of unfamiliar words. We might reach for a
dictionary and look them up. Some of them maybe listed but others might be too new or too ephemeral to
have found their way into any dictionary. In such an event, we rely on our morphological knowledge to tease
Out their meanings. If you heard someone describe their partner as 'a great list maker and a ticker-ofF, you
would instantly know what sort of person the partner was although you almost certainly have never
encountered the word ticker-off before. And it is certainly not listed in any dictionary. The -er ending here
has