Linguistics: Neologisms and Word Formation

Study Notes

Neologisms

Neologism is the creation of a new word or expression
William Hoover invented the vacuum cleaner
We now use "to hoover" as a verb

Etymology

Etymology is the study of word origins and history
Demos (Greek) means people
Cratos (Greek) means power
Democracy means the power of the people

Borrowing

Calque is literal translation from one language to another
"Boyfriend" was borrowed.into Japanese as "male friend", and into Chinese as "male friend" or "an pengyou"

Compounding

Joining two words to create a new compound word
Example: bookcase, good-looking, low-paid, fast-food

Blending

Combining parts of two words to create a new one
Example: Brunch (breakfast + lunch)

Clipping

Shortening a longer word
Example: farsimile (fax), advertisement (ad), gasoline (gas), fanatic(fan)

Hypocorisms

Shortening a word and adding a suffix like -y or -ie
Example: movie (moving pictures), telly (television)

Backformation

Forming a new word by removing a supposed affix
Example: donate (donation), emote (emotion)

Conversion

Changing a word's function from noun to verb (or vice versa) without changing it.
Example: a buttered toast (using "bottle" as a verb)

Description

Explore the fascinating world of linguistics with this quiz on neologisms and various word formation processes. From etymology to borrowing, compound words to blending, test your knowledge on how new words are created and adapted in languages. Perfect for language enthusiasts looking to expand their vocabulary skills!