Linguistics
The -ion Suffix, Connecting Vowel <i>, and Phonological MarkersTo begin, -*tion, -*sion, -*cion, and -*xion are not suffixes. Only -ion is a suffix. A suffix is a bound morpheme...
July 5, 2019- Word Matrix: Galact
<galact> “milk, milky” from Greek gala (genitive galaktos, stem galakt-) “milk” Word Sums Galact + ic -> galactic Extra + Galact...
June 17, 2019 - Using Verbs and Verb Phrases as Adjunct Adverbials
Notional grammars traditionally verbs as “words that denote actions and states of being.” A verb phrase consists of a verb plus...
June 15, 2019 - Word Matrix: Cat
<cat> “feline” from Old English catt Words Sums Cat Cat + s -> cats Cat + ed -> catted Cat +...
June 6, 2019 - Adjectives Versus Verbs: Participial Adjectives
As I have written many times before, the line between grammatical forms is blurry at best, especially among lexical categories like...
June 4, 2019 - Word Matrix: Pter
<pter> “feather, wing” from Greek pteron Word Sums Pter + ide + ine -> pteridine Pter + ide + ine +...
May 28, 2019 - How to Diagram a Sentence: Form-Function Diagrams
What is grammar? The popular notion is actual or presumed prescriptive notions about the correct use of a language. But linguistics...
May 20, 2019 - Using Verbs and Verb Phrases as Noun Phrase Complements
Notional grammars define verbs as “words that denote actions and states of being.” A verb phrase consists of a verb plus...
May 13, 2019 - Please Don’t Lambast(e) Me
I love all forms of word play. Before Easter, I heard a local news reporter pronounce the word <lambasted> “to criticize...
May 11, 2019 - Word Matrix: Kin
<kin> “family; race; kind, sort, rank; nature” from Old English cynn Word Sums Kin a + Kin -> akin Kin...
May 10, 2019 - Word Matrix: Rain
<rain> “water from clouds” from Old English regn “rain” Word Sums Rain Rain + s -> rains Rain + ed ->...
May 9, 2019 - Word Matrix: Vegete
<vegete> “non-animal life ,” from Old French vegetable “living, fit to live,” directly from Medieval Latin vegetabilis “growing,...
May 3, 2019 - Not All Forms That Function as Adverbials Are Adverbs
The other day I read a tweet that made some claims about adverbs: “The -s in “unawares,” as in “they were...
May 1, 2019 - Word Matrix: Pink
<pink> “pale red color” meaning “pale rose color” first recorded 1733 “small” from Dutch pink “small” Word Sums pink Pink +...
April 18, 2019 - Word Matrix: Yester
<yester> “former, earlier, previous” from Old English geostran “yesterday” Words Sums Yester Yester + s = yesters Yester + Day =...
April 16, 2019
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