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Lecture 3. Introduction To Morphology

Morphology is the study of the structure and formation of words, focusing on morphemes, the smallest units of meaning. It includes inflectional and derivational morphology, which modify words for grammatical features or create new words, respectively. Understanding morphology is crucial for language comprehension, vocabulary expansion, and grammatical structure.

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21 views19 pages

Lecture 3. Introduction To Morphology

Morphology is the study of the structure and formation of words, focusing on morphemes, the smallest units of meaning. It includes inflectional and derivational morphology, which modify words for grammatical features or create new words, respectively. Understanding morphology is crucial for language comprehension, vocabulary expansion, and grammatical structure.

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nurjanmajm
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Introduction to

Morphology
Understanding the Structure of
Words

NURJAN JALGASOV
Introduction to Morphology

 Morphology is the study of the structure


and formation of words.
 Focuseson how words are built from the
smallest units of meaning, called
morphemes.
 Essential
for understanding how
languages create and modify words.
What is Morphology?

 Morphology explores the internal


structure of words.
 Wordsare made up of morphemes, the
smallest units of meaning.
 Studies
how morphemes combine to
form words and influence meaning.
Types of Morphology

 InflectionalMorphology: Modifies
words for grammatical features (tense,
number, etc.).
 DerivationalMorphology: Creates
new words by adding morphemes to a
base word.
What is a Morpheme?

A morpheme is the smallest unit of


meaning in a language.
Can be a word itself (e.g., "cat") or a
part of a word (e.g., "un-" in
"undo").
Types of Morphemes

 FreeMorphemes: Can stand alone as


words (e.g., "dog," "run").
 Bound Morphemes: Must be attached
to other morphemes (e.g., "un-" in
"unkown," "-ed" in "walked").
Free Morphemes

Independent words that carry


meaning.
Examples: "book," "house," "jump."
Bound Morphemes

Cannot stand alone and need to


attach to other morphemes.
Examples:
Prefixes: "un-" in "unkown"
Suffixes: "-ed" in "walked"
Derivational Morphology

Creates new words by adding


prefixes, suffixes, or other
morphemes to a base word.
Often changes the grammatical
category or meaning of the word.
Example: "happy" → "happiness"
Derivational Morphemes
Examples
Prefix: "un-" → "unhappy"
Suffix: "-ly" → "quick" → "quickly"
Infixes: Rare in English, but present
in other languages.
Inflectional Morphology

 Modifies a word to express different grammatical features like


tense, number, or case.
 Does not change the word's meaning or grammatical category.
 Example: "play" → "plays" (third-person singular)

Inflectional Morphemes Examples


 Verb Tense: "walk" → "walked"
 Noun Plural: "cat" → "cats"
 Possessive: "dog" → "dog's"
Word Formation Processes

 Morphology also examines how new words are


formed.
 Common processes include:
 Affixation
 Compounding
 Blending
 Acronyms
 Backformation
Compounding

 Combining two or more free morphemes to


create a new word.
 Example: "toothbrush" (tooth + brush)
 Example: "notebook" (note + book)
Blending

Combining parts of two words to


form a new word.
Example: "brunch" (breakfast + lunch)
Example: "smog" (smoke + fog)
Acronyms

Words formed from the first letters


of a series of words.
Example: "NASA" (National
Aeronautics and Space Administration)
Example: "FBI" (Federal Bureau of
Investigation)
Backformation

Creating a new word by removing an affix


from an existing word. Formation of the
back according to incorrect order.
Example: "editor" → "edit"
Example: "baker" → "bake"
Importance of Morphology

 Language Understanding: Helps linguists and


learners understand how words are structured.
 Vocabulary Expansion: Makes it easier to
understand and learn new words.
 Grammar: Plays a key role in grammatical
structures like tense, number, etc.
Morphology in Language
Learning
Understanding morphology
enhances vocabulary acquisition.
Helps learners recognize word
patterns and meanings.
Crucial for both native speakers and
language learners to understand
word formation.
Conclusion

 Morphology is the study of how words


are structured and formed.
 Byunderstanding morphemes and word
formation, we can better analyze
language and expand vocabulary.
 Morphology is essential for
understanding both grammar and
vocabulary in any language.

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