This slides explain the kinds of word-formation processes in English Morphology. This also a PPT version of a pdf-slideshare "A Concise Companion of Word-formation". Check its pdf for detail discussions.

5. Word-formation
Morphology

6. Word-formation
 A creation of a new word
 Through Derivation or Compounding

8. Derivation vs. Compounding
Derivation Compounding
Affixations play a vital
role
It is joining two
separate words
It derives new words
from prefixes and
affixes
No affixes is needed in
this process
English affixations
consist of only Prefixes
& Suffixes

9. Affixation vs. Non-affixation
Affixation Non-affixation
It involves affixes No affixes is needed
Affixation process
consists of prefixes &
suffixes
It consists of coinage,
eponyms, borrowing,
blending, clipping,
backformation,
conversion, acronyms
& initialisms

10. Prefix vs. Suffix
Prefix Suffix
It is added to the
beginning of a word to
change its meaning
and make a new word
It is added to the end
of a word to change its
function, making it into
a different part of
speech
Click here to view the
examples

11. Coinage
 It is totally the invention of new words
 Most typical sources are invented trade
names for commercial products
 Examples:

12. Eponyms
 It is generating new words based on the
name of a person or a place
 Examples:
1)The word “sandwich” is from the 18th century
Earl of Sandwich who first insisted on having
his bread and meat together while gambling
2)The word “jeans” which is derived from the
Italian city of Genoa where the type of cloth
was first made

13. Borrowing
 English takes a word from another language.
 Examples:
croissant (French)
piano (Italian)
sofa (Arabic)
tattoo (Tahitian)
yogurt (Turkish)

14. Blending
 A combination of two separate forms to produce a
single new term
 Examples:
breakfast + lunch → brunch
smoke + fog → smog
information + entertainment → infotainment

15. Clipping
 Creating new words by shortening already
existing words
 Examples:
information → info
advertisement → ad
facsimile → fax
refrigerator → fridge

16. Backformation
 A very specialized type of reduction process
 It is due to misconceptions of morphological
analysis
 Examples:
editor → to edit
sculptor → to sculpt
donation → to donate

17. Conversion
 A change in the function of a word, as for
example when a noun comes to be used as a verb
(without any reduction)
 Examples:
Someone has to chair the meeting.
Goggles are a must for skiing while it’s snowing.
My wife wants to buy a see-through blouse.

18. Acronyms & Initialisms
 It is when the first letters of words that make
up a name or a phrase are used to create a
new word
 In acronyms, the new word is pronounced as
a word, rather than as a series of letters
 In initialisms, the new word is pronounced
as a series of letters
 Examples: NATO, CIA, HIV, ATM, PIN, ID,
radar, laser, Interpol, etc.

19. Compounding
 It is a joining of two separate words to
produce a single form
 Examples:
wallpaper
textbook
fingerprint
Facebook
YouTube

20. Further reading
Bauer, L. 2001. Vocabulary. New York, NY: Routledge
Fromkin, V, Rodman, R, and Hyams, N. 2011. An
Introduction to Language (9th Edition). Boston, MA:
Wadsworth
Lieber, R. 2009. Introducing Morphology. Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press
Plag, I. 2002. Word-Formation in English. Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press
Yule, G. 2010. The Study of Language (4th Edition).
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press