WORD FORMATION

Autocorrect can be annoying and sometimes produces incorrect results, such as changing "Good night" to "Cute Nachos" or "adverbial" to "adrenal".
English is a language that is constantly adding new words to its vocabulary.
Traditional methods of checking word usage include consulting a dictionary, but technological advances have led to the development of programs that can check spelling and grammar for us.

Comparison between English and Vietnamese

Both English and Vietnamese languages have a tendency to add new words to their vocabulary, but English is particularly known for its rapid growth in vocabulary.
In Vietnamese, autocorrect features are not as common as they are in English, but there are still some language learning apps and software that offer autocorrect features.
In Vietnamese, there are no specific examples of autocorrect changing words in an unexpected way, but it is possible that similar issues may arise with the use of technology.

NEOLOGISMS

In 1900, J. Murray Spangler invented an electric suction sweeper, which was later sold to William H. Hoover.
The word "Hoover" became widely used and familiar, while "Spangler" did not.
The ability to quickly understand and accept new words is due to the regularity of word-formation processes in a language.

Comparison between English and Vietnamese on the key points

Both languages have the ability to create new words through various processes, such as compounding, derivation, and blending.
However, Vietnamese has a more limited set of prefixes and suffixes compared to English, which can affect the ease with which new words are formed.
Vietnamese often uses loanwords from other languages, such as French or Chinese, which can influence the creation of new words.

ETYMOLOGY

Many English words come from Greek and Latin, which provide alternative ways to describe things.

Example: Cycle (Greek) vs. Uni-cycle (Latin) vs. One-wheeled cycle (Germanic).

New words can enter the language in various ways, and what was once considered barbaric misuses may become widely accepted over time.

Example: Handbook was once considered a "tasteless innovation" but is now a common word.

The evolution of new words and new uses of old words is a natural process in language development, reflecting the needs of its users.

Example: The word "aviation" was once considered a "horror" but is now a common term.

Comparison between English and Vietnamese

Both English and Vietnamese have borrowed words from other languages, such as Greek and Latin for English, and Chinese for Vietnamese.
Both languages have evolved over time, with new words entering the language and old words taking on new meanings.
Both languages have a natural process of language development, reflecting the needs of its users.

BORROWING

Borrowing: the process of taking over words from other languages, without giving them back.
Voiced fricative: a type of sound that is part of the English language, introduced through borrowed French words.

Examples

English: dope (Dutch), piano (Italian), tattoo (Tahitian), etc.
Vietnamese: (tàu) - borrowed from French, means "train" (example of a French loanword in Vietnamese)
Japanese: suupaa or suupaamaaketto (“supermarket”) and taipuraitaa (“typewriter”)
Finnish: šekki (“check”) to pay bills
Hungarian: sport, klub and futbal
French: le stress, over a glass of le whisky, during le weekend

Comparison between English and Vietnamese

Both English and Vietnamese have borrowed words from other languages.
English has borrowed words from many languages, including Dutch, Italian, French, German, Japanese, Norwegian, Turkish, Persian, Arabic, and Bantu.
Vietnamese has also borrowed words from French, as well as other languages such as Chinese.
While English often uses borrowed words with their original meanings, Vietnamese may adapt the borrowed words to fit its own grammatical and phonological rules. For example, the French word "train" becomes "tàu" in Vietnamese.

LOAN-TRANSLATION

Loan-translation: a type of borrowing where the elements of a word are directly translated into the borrowing language.
Calque: a specific type of loan-translation where the elements of a word are directly translated into the borrowing language.

Examples

English: skyscraper, moment of truth, superman (thought to be from German Übermensch)
Dutch: wolkenkrabber (“cloud scratcher”)
German: Wolkenkratzer (“cloud scraper”)
Spanish: perros calientes (literally “dogs hot”) for hot dogs
Japanese: boyifurendo (borrowed from English with sound change)
Chinese: “male friend” or nan pengyu (calque for “boyfriend”)

Comparison between English and Vietnamese

No direct comparison between English and Vietnamese is provided in the text, as the examples given are mostly from European languages (French, Dutch, German, Spanish) and Japanese. However, it is possible that similar loan-translation/calques may occur in Vietnamese, such as "máy tính" (direct translation from English "computer") or "sức khỏe" (direct translation from French "santé" meaning "health").

COMPOUNDING

In languages like German and English, compounding is a common process to create new words.
Compounding can also be found in other languages, such as Hmong (spoken in Laos and Vietnam).
Written compounds:

+ One word: conflakes

+ A hyphenated word: long-haired

+ Two words: high school

+ An "open compound": sweet potato

+ A "hyphenated compound": mother-in-law

+ A "closed compound": secondhand

Examples

Nouns: bookcase, doorknob, fingerprint, sunburn, textbook, wallpaper, wastebasket, waterbed
Compound adjectives: good-looking, low-paid
Compounds of adjective plus noun: fast-food restaurant, full-time job

Comparison between English and Vietnamese

Compounding is more common in English and German than in languages like French and Spanish.
Vietnamese is not mentioned as having a high frequency of compounding, but it is mentioned that Hmong (spoken in Laos and Vietnam) has many recently created compounds. This suggests that compounding may be more common in some minority languages spoken in Vietnam than in the official language.

BLENDING

Blending is a process of combining two separate forms to produce a single new term.

+ Example in English: smog (smoke + fog)

+ Example in Vietnamese: mùn (mưa + bụi) - means haze

Blending can combine different parts of two words, such as the beginning of one word with the end of another.

+ Example in English: bit (binary/digit)

+ Example in Vietnamese: đô thị (đô + thị) - means city

Blending can also combine words from different languages.

+ Example in English: Franglais (Français/Anglais)

+ Example in Vietnamese: Song Ngữ (Song + Ngữ) - means song language

Examples

Common Blends:

- smog (smoke + fog)
- smaze (smoke + haze)
- smurk (smoke + murk)
- vog (volcanic + smog)
- bit (binary + digit)
- brunch (breakfast + lunch)
- motel (motor + hotel)
- telecast (television + broadcast)
- Oxbridge (Oxford + Cambridge)
- Chunnel (Channel + tunnel)
- telethon (telephone + marathon)
- infotainment (information + entertainment)
- simulcast (simultaneous + broadcast)
- Franglais (Français + Anglais)
- Spanglish (Spanish + English)

Technology Terms:

- telex (teleprinter + exchange)
- modem (modulator + demodulator)

Brand Names:

- Velcro (velours croché, "hooked velvet")

For example: Modern (Modulator + demodulator ), Blog (Web + log ), Brunch (Breakfast + lunch ),...

Comparison between English and Vietnamese

In English, blending is often used to create new terms for modern concepts or technologies, such as telecast, telethon, and modem.
In Vietnamese, blending is often used to create new words for everyday objects or concepts, such as mùn (haze) or đô thị (city).
Both languages use blending to combine words from different languages, such as Franglais in English and Song Ngữ in Vietnamese.
Compared to Vietnamese, Vietnamese also has some words created by the blending process, but they are not as common as in English. Some examples:

Tivi (television)

Máy tính (máy + tính)

Điện thoại (điện + thoại)

CLIPPING

Blending: a process of combining two words or parts of words to create a new word
Reduction: shortening a word to its essential form
Clipping: a type of reduction where a word of more than one syllable is shortened to a shorter form
There are 4 types of clipping:

Back clipping: is removing the end a word as in gas from gasoline
Fore clipping: is removing the beginning of a word as in gator from alligator.
Middle clipping: is retaining only the middle of a word as in flu from influenza.
Complex clipping: is removing

Examples

fax (facsimile)
gas (gasoline)
ad (advertisement)
bra (brassiere)
cab (cabriolet)
condo (condominium)
fan (fanatic)
flu (influenza)
perm (permanent wave)
phone
plane
porn (public house)
pub (public house)

Names:

- Al, Ed, Liz, Mike, Ron, Sam, Sue, Tom

Educational Terms:

- chem (chemistry)
- exam (examination)
- gym (gymnasium)
- lab (laboratory)

For example: Veterinarian → vetvet, Soda water → soda , Demonstration → demo , Introduction → intro , Pianoforte → piano .....

Comparison between English and Vietnamese

Clipping is a common phenomenon in both English and Vietnamese languages, where words are shortened to their more concise forms.
However, the extent and frequency of clipping may vary between the two languages. In English, clipping is often used in informal speech, while in Vietnamese, clipping is more commonly used in written language.
The examples provided above show that both languages have similar types of clipped words, such as abbreviations for longer words or phrases. However, the specific words and phrases that are clipped may differ between the two languages.

HYPOCORISMS

Hypocorisms are formed by reducing a longer word to a single syllable and adding -y or -ie to the end.

* English example: movie (moving pictures) → telly (television)

* Vietnamese example: (xuê) - "play" → (xu) - "to play"

Hypocorisms can be used to create informal or colloquial language.

* English example: Aussie (Australian) - informal term for Australians

* Vietnamese example: (bánh mì) - "bread" → (bánh) - informal term for "bread"

Hypocorisms can be used to create nicknames or affectionate terms.

* English example: bookie (bookmaker) - a colloquial term for a bookmaker

* Vietnamese example: (bố) - "father" → (bố ơi) - an affectionate term for "father"

Comparison between English and Vietnamese

Both languages use hypocorisms to create informal or colloquial language, but the forms and meanings may differ.
In Vietnamese, hypocorisms are often used to create affectionate terms, such as (bố ơi) for "father", whereas in English, they are used to create informal or colloquial terms, such as Aussie for "Australian".
The use of hypocorisms in Vietnamese may be more widespread and common in everyday language, whereas in English, it may be more limited to certain regions or dialects.

BACKFORMATION

Backformation: a type of reduction process where a word of one type (usually a noun) is reduced to form a word of another type (usually a verb).
Verb backform: a verb created by backformation, such as "opt" from "option".

Examples: televise (from television), donate (from donation), emote (from emotion), enthuse (from enthusiasm), liaise (from liaison), automate (from automation), bulldoze (from bulldozer), choreograph (from choreography), mix (from mixture), syllabify (from syllabification), orient (from orientation).

Noun + -er → Verb:

- - editor → edit
  - sculptor → sculpt
  - babysitter → babysit

For example: Babysitter → babysit, Editor → edit, Simplification → simplify, Diversity → diversify, Emphasis → emphasize, Normalization → normalize,....

Comparison between English and Vietnamese

English has a more extensive use of backformation, with many examples of words created through this process.
Vietnamese language also has a similar pattern of creating verbs from nouns, but it is not as common or widespread as in English.
The pattern of creating verbs from nouns ending in -er is specific to English and does not have a direct equivalent in Vietnamese.

CONVERSION

Nouns can become verbs through conversion
Verbs can become nouns through conversion
Adjectives can become verbs or nouns through conversion
Compound nouns can become adjectives or verbs through conversion

Examples

1.Noun to Verb:

Email → I’ll email you the details tomorrow.
Host → She hosted a great party last night.
Google → He googled the answer to the question.
Text → Can you text me the address?
Friend → She friended him on Facebook.

2.Verb to Noun:

Run → She went for a run in the park.
Walk → We had a nice walk this morning.
Move → That was a bold move in the game.
Love → His love for music is obvious.
Attack → The team faced a fierce attack from the opposition.

3.Adjective to Verb:

Calm → He calmed the baby down.
Clean → They cleaned the house thoroughly.
Slow → We need to slow the process down.
Dry → The sun dried the clothes quickly.
Open → They opened the doors early.

4.Verb to Adjective:

Stand-by → They were put on stand-by for the flight.
See-through → She wore a see-through dress.
Break-down → He had a breakdown during the meeting.
Throwaway → He made a throwaway comment that nobody took seriously.
Run-down → The run-down house needed repairs.

5.Adjective to Noun:

Final → We reached the finals of the competition.
Regular → He’s a regular at that coffee shop.
Crazy → She’s a real crazy about vintage cars.
Daily → The daily is delivered every morning.
Professional → He’s a professional in his field.

6.Preposition to Verb:

Up → They upped the price of the tickets.
Down → We downed a few beers at the party.
Over → Let’s over this document again before submitting.
Out → He outed the secret during the meeting.
Around → They were just fooling around.

Meaning shilfts:

1.Chair (Noun to Verb):

Noun: Please sit in the chair.
Verb: She will chair the meeting today. (Meaning shift: here, chair means to lead or preside over a meeting, not directly related to the physical object.)

2.Handle (Verb to Noun):

Verb: Can you handle this task?
Noun: He’s got a good handle on the situation. (Meaning shift: handle now refers to control or understanding.)

3.Run (Verb to Noun):

Verb: They ran the marathon.
Noun: We had a good run last night. (Meaning shift: run can refer to an event or a streak of success, like a run of luck.)

Comparison between English and Vietnamese

Both languages have the ability to convert words from one part of speech to another, but the frequency and range of conversions may differ.
In English, conversion is a common and productive process, with new uses occurring frequently.
In Vietnamese, conversion is also possible, but the examples provided are limited and mostly borrowed from English.
The meaning of a word can shift substantially when it undergoes conversion in both languages.

COINAGE

Coinage: typically comes from trade names for commercial products, e.g. aspirin, nylon, vaseline, zipper, granola, kleenex, teflon, xerox, google
Eponyms: e.g. hoover (from Hoover), teddy bear (from Theodore Roosevelt), jeans (from Genoa), Sandwich (from John Montagu)

Examples

Hoover (from William Hoover, who popularized vacuum cleaners).
Teddy bear (from US President Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt).
Kodak: A made-up name by founder George Eastman for his camera company, designed to be unique.
Pepsi: from "pepsin," a digestive enzyme, but now a generic name for the soda brand.

Comparison between English and Vietnamese

English: more common in English language, often comes from trade names for commercial products
Vietnamese: less common in Vietnamese language, often derived from Chinese characters or French loanwords

ACRONYMS

Acronym: a new word formed from the initial letters of a set of other words.
Initialism: an acronym that is pronounced as separate letters, rather than a single word.

+ Examples of acronyms: CD, SPCA, NATO, NASA, UNESCO, laser, radar, scuba, sim, zip

+ Examples of initialisms: ATM (automatic teller machine)

+ Example of an acronym that is also a common term: PIN (personal identification number)

Examples

CEO: Chief Executive Officer (top executive of a company).
HR: Human Resources (department that manages personnel).
BBC: British Broadcasting Corporation (public service broadcaster).
CIA: Central Intelligence Agency (U.S. intelligence agency).
HIV: Human Immunodeficiency Virus (virus that causes AIDS).
BP: Blood Pressure (a health metric).

Comparison between English and Vietnamese

Both languages use acronyms to shorten long names or phrases.
English and Vietnamese use similar examples of acronyms, such as CD, SPCA, and NASA.
However, Vietnamese may use different pronunciations for acronyms, as they may not always follow the same phonetic rules as English.
Initialisms are more common in English, with examples like ATM and PIN. In Vietnamese, initialisms are less common and may not have a specific name.

Compared to Vietnamese, tiếng Việt cũng có các từ mới được sáng tạo và từ viết tắt, ví dụ:

Từ mới: "phở" (từ tiếng Việt), "laptop" (từ tiếng Anh).
Từ viết tắt: "ĐH" (Đại học), "TPHCM" (Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh).

Ví dụ về từ mới và từ viết tắt trong tiếng Việt:

Từ mới: "smartphone" (từ tiếng Anh), "kem chống nắng" (từ tiếng Việt).
Từ viết tắt: "TV" (Truyền hình), "ĐT" (Điện thoại).

DERIVATION

Derivation is a common word-formation process that creates new words by adding affixes to existing words.
Examples of affixes include un-, mis-, pre-, -ful, -less, -ish, -ism, and -ness.
Examples of derived words include unhappy, misrepresent, prejudice, joyful, careless, boyish, terrorism, and sadness.

Comparison between English and Vietnamese

Both English and Vietnamese use affixes to create new words through derivation. However, the types and forms of affixes used in each language may differ. For example, English uses prefixes like un-, mis-, pre-, while Vietnamese uses prefixes like "từ", "không", "phi", "cảm".
While English has a wide range of suffixes like -ful, -less, -ish, -ism, and -ness, Vietnamese has its own set of suffixes like -fulness (e.g., hạnh phúc), -ness (e.g., tính tình), or -ity (e.g., tính năng).

PREFIXES AND SUFFIXES

English words formed by derivational process have either prefixes or suffixes, or both.

Examples

Prefix: misled (has a prefix "un-")
rewrite ( write back) - re
return (come back) - re
dislike (not like) - dis
disappear (opposite of appear) - dis
nonsense (without sense) - non
overeat (eat too much) - over
automobile (self-moving vehicle) - auto
Prefix and suffix: disrespectful (has a prefix "dis-" and a suffix "-ful")
Suffixes: foolishness (has two suffixes "-ness" and "-ful")
happiness (state of being happy) - ness
darkness (state of being dark) - ness
accessible (capable of being accessed) -ible
flexible (capable of being bent) - ible
playing (the action of playing) -ing
actor (one who acts) -or
capitalism (economic system) - ism
construction (the action of constructing) - ion

Comparison between English and Vietnamese

In Vietnamese, words can also be formed by adding prefixes and suffixes, but the types and meanings of these affixes are different from those in English.
For example, in Vietnamese, the prefix "không" means "not" or "without" (e.g. không có meaning "does not have"), while the suffix "t" is used to form nouns from verbs (e.g. đọc -> đọc t meaning "reading").
However, a more detailed comparison between English and Vietnamese prefixes and suffixes is beyond the scope of this text.

INFIXES

Infixes are not commonly used in English, but can be seen in expressions like "Hallebloodylujah!" and "Unfuckinbelievable!", which are informal and often used in emotional contexts.
In Khmu language, spoken in northern Laos and Vietnam, infixes are used to form nouns from verbs. For example:

+ Verb: srne ("to drill")

+ Noun: srnee ("a drill")

+ Verb: toh trnoh ("to chisel")

+ Noun: toh trnoh ("a chisel")

+ Verb: hiip hrniip ("to eat with a spoon")

+ Noun: hiip hrniip ("a spoon")

+ Verb: hoom hrnoom ("to tie")

+ Noun: hoom hrnoom ("a thing with which to tie")

Examples

Examples in English (informal/emphatic usage):

- Absobloodylutely,
- Unfreakingbelievable.
- Fan-bloody-tastic!
- Un-freaking-real!
- This is so un-bearable!
- I can’t believe you are so dunder-headedheaded!

Examples in Vietnam:

Đẹp quá trời! (Beautiful as hell!)

Comparison between English and Vietnamese

Unlike English, which does not have a regular infix system, Khmu language has a regular pattern of using infixes to form nouns from verbs. This is a unique feature of the Khmu language.
Vietnamese language also has infixes, but they are not as frequent as in Khmu language. For example, in Vietnamese, the verb "mở" (to open) becomes "mở r" when it forms a noun meaning "key" (mở r). However, this is not a regular pattern like in Khmu language.

MULTIPLE PROCESSES

English words can be formed through multiple processes, such as borrowing, clipping, compounding, conversion, and analogy.

* Example: The word "deli" was formed through borrowing (from German) and clipping (shortening the original word).

* Example (in Vietnamese): The word "số" (number) was formed through borrowing (from Chinese) and clipping (shortening the original word).

New words can be formed through the process of analogy, which involves creating a new word similar to an existing word.

* Example: The word "yuppie" was formed through analogy with the existing word "hippie".

* Example (in Vietnamese): The word "tín hiệu" (signal) was formed through analogy with the existing word "tín hiệu" (sign).

New words can also be formed through conversion, which involves changing the part of speech of a word.

* Example: The word "snowball" was formed through conversion from a noun to a verb.

* Example (in Vietnamese): The word "thuận" (agree) was formed through conversion from a verb to an adjective.

Examples

1.Email:

Origin: A clipping of "electronic mail."
Conversion: Can function as both a noun (I received an email) and a verb (I will email you).

2. Hangry:

Origin: A blend of "hungry" and "angry."
Derivation: The -y suffix makes it an adjective describing irritability due to hunger.

3. Spam:

Origin: Borrowed from the brand name Spam (canned meat).
Clipping: The term has come to mean unsolicited emails, where "spam" is used in a broader context.

4. Motel:

Origin: A blend of "motor" and "hotel."
Clipping: The word is a shortened form that describes roadside accommodations for motorists.

Comparison between English and Vietnamese

Both languages have processes for forming new words, such as borrowing, clipping, compounding, and analogy.
However, Vietnamese has fewer processes for forming new words, such as backformation and conversion.
Vietnamese often uses borrowing and clipping more frequently than English, especially in adopting words from Chinese and French.
English has a more developed system for forming new words through analogy, whereas Vietnamese tends to rely more on borrowing and clipping.

BẢNG TỔNG HỢP KIẾN THỨC

docs.google.com/document/d/1LkVsjUepswhZYAPCEDC1uMqdvQ_8BRfUzeJyzICJ9eA/edit

STUDY QUESTIONS

1 When is an eponym a neologism?

An eponym is not necessarily a neologism. An eponym is a word derived from a person's name, while a neologism is a new or newly coined word.

2 Which word-formation process is the source of the English word modem?

The English word "modem" is derived from the combination of "modulator" and "demodulator", which were shortened and combined to form the word "modem".

3 Which two processes were involved in the creation of the verb google, as in Have you ever googled yourself??

The creation of the verb "google" involves both blending (combining parts of two words) and backformation (reversing the process of derivation).

4 Which process is clearly involved in creating the new term selfie?

The process involved in creating the new term "selfie" is compounding (combining two words to form a new word).

5 What do we call the process whereby a new word is formed to be similar to an existing word?

The process of forming a new word that is similar to an existing word is called analogy.

6 Which of the following pairs contains an example of calque? How would you describe the other(s)?

(a) footobooru (Japanese) – football (English)

(b) tréning (Hungarian) – training (English)

(d) jardin d’enfants (French “garden of children”) – Kindergarten (German “children garden”)

The pairs (a), (b), and (d) contain examples of calque. A calque is a loanword that is formed by literally translating the components of a word from another language, rather than adopting the entire word. The other pairs are examples of borrowing or loanwords.

7 Can you identify the different word-formation processes involved in producing each of the underlined words in these sentences?

(a) Don’t they ever worry that they might get AIDS?

(b) That’s really fandamntastic!

(d) When I’m ill, I want to see a doc, not a vet.

(e) The house next door was burgled when I was babysitting the Smiths’ children.

(f) I like this old sofa – it’s nice and comfy.

(g) I think Robyn said she’d like a toastie for brekky.

(h) You don’t need to button it because it’s got velcro inside.

The different word-formation processes involved in producing each of the underlined words are:

(a) compounding (AIDS)
(b) blending (fandamntastic)
(c) blending (kickass)
(d) backformation (doc)
(e) compounding (burgled)
(f) compounding (comfy)
(g) blending (toastie)
(h) compounding (velcro)
(i) no word-formation process involved (brekky)
(j) no word-formation process involved (decentralization)

8 Identify the prefixes and suffixes used in these words: misfortune, terrorism, carelessness, disagreement, ineffective, unfaithful, prepackaged, biodegradable, reincarnation, decentralization

The prefixes and suffixes used in these words are:

(a) mis- + fortune
(b) ter- + rorism
(c) care- + lessness
(d) dis- + agreement
(e) in- + effective
(f) un- + faithfull
(g) pre- + packaged
(h) bio- + degradable
(i) re- + incarnation
(j) de- + centralization

9 In Khmu, the word kap means “to grasp with tongs,” and tiap means “to fold a small package.” What would be the words for “tongs” and “a small package”?

In Khmu, the words for "tongs" and "a small package" would be "kapti" and "tiap kap", respectively.

10 More than one process was involved in the creation of the forms underlined in these sentences. Can you identify the processes involved in each case?

(a) Can you FedEx the books to me today?

(b) Police have reported an increase in carjackings in recent months.

(d) I had to temp for a while before I got a real job.

(e) Is your friend Ian still blogging?

(f) Would you prefer a decaf?

The processes involved in creating each of the forms underlined in these sentences are:

(a) blending (FedEx)
(b) compounding (carjackings)
(c) blending (hoover)
(d) backformation (temp)
(e) compounding (blogging)
(f) prefixation (decaf)

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