LESSON 10 - LANGUAGE III

1-​ Etymology is “the study of the origins and histories of words ” while entomology is “the
scientific study of insects”.

2-​ C and D are examples of calque; A and B are borrowings.

3-​ Word formation processes:

A- acronym (“Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome”)

B- coinage

C- infixing (​damn​ inside ​fantastic)

D- conversion (noun ​party ↦​ ​ ​verb)

E- compounding (​skate​ + ​board​) and compounding (​kick​ +​ass​) and conversion (verb kick+
noun ​ass​ ↦​ ​adjective​ kickass

F- clipping (​doctor​) and clipping (​veterinarian​)

G- backformation (verb ​burgle ​from noun​ burglar) ​and backformation (verb ​babysit​ from
noun ​babysitter), ​which is a compound ​(baby + sitter)

H- borrowing (from Arabig ​suffa) ​and hypocorism (from ​comfortable)

4-​ Prefixes and Sufixes:

mis-​ +
​ ​fortune

terror + -i​ sm

care + ​-less ​+ -​ness

dis ​- + agree + -m
​ ent

​ effective + ​-ive
in- +

un-​ + faith + -​ful

pre- ​+ pack + -​age ​+ ​-ed

​ d
bio- + ​ e-​ + grade +​-able

​ -​in​ + carn + ​-ation ​( L

re- + ​ atin root ​carn ​(“flesh”))

​ ​cent (e)r ​+ ​-al +

de-+ ​ ​-ize​ + ​-ation

5-​ srnal; in this word an infix is used : a morpheme is inserted in the middle of the word:
-rn- in the word “sal”

6- ​Processes involved:

A- clipping (​phone​ from ​telephone​) plus compounding (​car​ + ​phone​)

B- blending (from ​Federal Express)​ plus conversion (noun ↦​ v​ erb )

C- blending (​car​ + ​hijack​) plus conversion (verb ↦​ n

​ oun)
D- borrowing (from Japanese ​karaoke​) plus compounding (​karaoke​ + ​night)​

E- eponym (from ​William Hoover)​ plus conversion (noun ↦​ verb)​

F- ​decaf i​ s (usually) a reduced version of​ “​ a cup of coffee made with​ decaffeinated
coffee,​” ​so clipping is the most accurate process. The longer word ​decaffeinated i​ s a
derivation via a prefix ( ​de-​) and two suffixes (​- ate + -ed ​) from ​caffeine, w
​ hich was
originally a borrowing from French. Conversion from noun ​(caffeine) to adjective (
decaffeinated) h ​ as also taken place.

Task A

Initialisms are a type of abbreviation made from the first letter (or letters) of a string of
words, but can't be pronounced as words themselves. They are usually shown in capital
letters, without spaces or periods between them. Unlike acronyms, initialisms are not
spoken as words; they are spoken pronouncing letter by letter.

Examples from the chapter are:

CD (compact disk)

VCR (video recording cassette)

ATM (automatic teller machine)

Other examples (not from the chapter): ​FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigation), CIA, FYI
(for your information), and ​PR (public relations), UK (United Kingdom), UN (United
Nations), ER (Emergency Room), ICU (Intensive Care Unit), MRI (Magnetic Resonance
Imaging), CNN (Cable News Network), BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation). USA
(United States of America), HTML (Hyper-Text Markup Language)

Task B
The term “portmanteau word” was invented by Lewis Caroll. It is a result of the blending of
two words and expresses a combination of its meaning.

There are 15 examples in the text, among them, I can mention, gasohol, smog, smaze,
smurk, bit, brunch, motel, telecast, telethon, infotainment, simulcast, Franglais, Spanglish,
telex and modem.

We did the etymological search for certain words, according to the Activity C. What I found
is truly curious, more than anything else those words that are derived from very specific
terms and now describe very general concepts. Besides, I found only one eponym (new
words based on the name of a person or a place).

assassin (borrowed from the Arabic language)

assassin (n.)
The 1530s (in Anglo-Latin from mid-13c.), via medieval French and Italian Assissini,
Assassini, from Arabic hashīshīn "hashish-users," an Arabic nickname for the Nizari Ismaili
sect in the Middle Easat during the Crusades, plural of hashishiyy, from the source of
hashish (q.v.). A fanatical Muslim sect in the mountains of Lebanon at the time of the
Crusades, under the leadership of the "Old Man of the Mountains" (which translates Arabic
shaik-al-jibal, name applied to Hasan ibu-al-Sabbah), they had a reputation for murdering
opposing leaders after intoxicating themselves by eating hashish. Their reputation has
spread in Western Europe 12c.-13c.

clone (borrowed from a Latinized form of Greek language)

clone (n.)
1903, in botany, "group of cultivated plants each of which is a transplanted part of one
original," from Latinized form of Greek klōn "a twig, spray," related to klados "sprout, young
branch, offshoot of a plant," possibly from PIE root *kel- (1) "to strike, cut" (see holt).
Meaning "person or animal replicated from a single cell of another and genetically identical
to it" is by 1970 (theoretical), Figurative use, "one who slavishly imitates another," is by
1978.

cockroach (borrowed from the Spanish language)

cockroach (n.)
popular name of a troublesome, voracious insect genus, 1620s, folk etymology (as if from
cock (n.1) + roach; compare cockchafer) of Spanish cucaracha "chafer, beetle," from cuca
"kind of caterpillar." Folk etymology also holds that the first element is from caca
"excrement," perhaps because of the insect's offensive smell.

denim (borrowed from French language)

denim (n.)
1690s, from French serge de Nîmes "serge from Nîmes," town in southern France.
Originally a kind of serge; application to "coarse, colored, twilled cotton cloth" is by 1850 in
American English. Denims "pants made of denim" is recorded from 1868; originally
typically overalls. The place name is Roman Nemausus, said to be ultimately from Gaulish
nemo "sanctuary."

diesel (borrowed from the German language) (EPONYM)

diesel (adj.)
also Diesel, type of internal combustion engine, 1894, named for Rudolf Diesel
(1858-1913), German mechanical engineer who designed this type of engine.

horde (borrowed from the Turkish language)

horde (n.)
1550s, "tribe of Asiatic nomads living in tents," from West Turkic (compare Tatar urda
"horde," Turkish ordu "camp, army"), borrowed into English via Polish, French, or Spanish.
OED says the initial -h- seems to have been acquired in Polish. Transferred sense of "any
uncivilized gang" is from 1610s. Related: Hordes.

kayak (borrowed from the Danish language)

kayak (n.)
type of Eskimo light boat, originally made from seal-skins stretched over a wooden frame,
1757, kajak, from Danish kajak, from Greenland Eskimo qayaq, literally "small boat of
skins." The verb is attested from 1875, from the noun. Related: Kayaking; kayaker (1856).

kiosk (borrowed from the French language)

kiosk (n.)
1620s, "kind of open pavilion" (made of light wood, etc., often supported by pillars), from
French kiosque (17c.), which is (along with German and Polish kiosk) from Turkish koshk,
kiöshk "pavilion, summer house," from Persian kushk "palace, villa; pavilion, portico." They
were introduced in Western Europe 17c. as ornaments in gardens and parks. Later of
street newsstands (1865), on some resemblance of form, a sense perhaps originally in
French. Modern sense influenced by British telephone kiosk (1928).

nickname (originated in the Old English)

nickname (n.)
mid-15c., neke name, a misdivision of ekename (c. 1300), an eke name, "a familiar or
diminutive name," especially one given in derision or reproach, literally "an additional
name," from Old English eaca "an increase," related to eacian "to increase" (cognate with
Old Norse auka-nefi, auknafn, Swedish öknamn, Danish ögenavn). As a verb, "to give a
nickname to," from 1530s. Related: Nicknamed; nicknaming.

penguin (Latin origin)

penguin (n.)
1570s, originally used of the great auk of Newfoundland (now extinct), shift in meaning to
the Antarctic bird (which looks something like it, found by Drake in Magellan's Straits in
1578) is from 1580s. Of unknown origin, though often asserted to be from Welsh pen
"head" (see pen-) + gwyn "white" (see Gwendolyn), but Barnhart says the proposed
formation is not proper Welsh. The great auk had a large white patch between its bill and
eye. The French and Breton versions of the word ultimately are from English. A similarity
to Latin pinguis "fat (adj.), juicy," figuratively "dull, gross, heavy," has been noted.

robot (borrowed from Czech language)

robot (n.)
1923, from English translation of 1920 play "R.U.R." ("Rossum's Universal Robots"), by
Karel Capek (1890-1938), from Czech robotnik "forced worker," from robota "forced labor,
compulsory service, drudgery," from robotiti "to work, drudge," from an Old Czech source
akin to Old Church Slavonic rabota "servitude," from rabu "slave," from Old Slavic *orbu-,
from PIE *orbh- "pass from one status to another" (see orphan). The Slavic word thus is a
cousin to German Arbeit "work" (Old High German arabeit). According to Rawson the word
was popularized by Karel Capek's play, "but was coined by his brother Josef (the two often
collaborated), who used it initially in a short story."

shampoo (borrowed from the Anglo-Indian language)

shampoo (v.)
1762, "to massage," from Anglo-Indian shampoo, from Hindi champo, imperative of
champna "to press, knead the muscles," perhaps from Sanskrit capayati "pounds,
kneads." Meaning "wash the hair" first recorded 1860; extended 1954 to carpets,
upholstery, etc. Related: Shampooed; shampooing.

sherry (borrowed from the Spanish language)

sherry (n.)
kind of white wine, c. 1600, mistaken singular from sherris (1530s), from Spanish (vino de)
Xeres "(wine from) Xeres," modern Jerez (Roman (urbs) Caesaris) in Spain, near the port
of Cadiz, where the wine was made.

slogan (borrowed from the Gaelic language)

slogan (n.)
1670s, earlier slogorne (1510s), "battle cry," from Gaelic sluagh-ghairm "battle cry used by
Scottish Highland or Irish clans," from sluagh "army, host, slew," from Celtic and
Balto-Slavic *slough- "help, service." Second element is gairm "a cry" (see garrulous).
Metaphoric sense of "distinctive word or phrase used by a political or other group" is first
attested 1704.

snoop (borrowed from the Dutch language)

snoop (v.)
1832, "to go around in a prying manner," American English, probably from Dutch snoepen
"to pry," also "eat in secret, eat sweets, sneak," probably related to snappen "to bite,
snatch" (see snap (v.)). Specific meaning "to pry into other people's business" is attested
from 1921. Related: Snooped; snooping.

taboo (borrowed from a Polynesian language)

taboo (adj.)
also tabu, 1777 (in Cook's "A Voyage to the Pacific Ocean"), "consecrated, inviolable,
forbidden, unclean or cursed," explained in some English sources as being from Tongan
(Polynesian language of the island of Tonga) ta-bu "sacred," from ta "mark" + bu
"especially." But this may be folk etymology, as linguists in the Pacific have reconstructed
an irreducable Proto-Polynesian *tapu, from Proto-Oceanic *tabu "sacred, forbidden"
(compare Hawaiian kapu "taboo, prohibition, sacred, holy, consecrated;" Tahitian tapu
"restriction, sacred, devoted; an oath;" Maori tapu "be under ritual restriction, prohibited").
The noun and verb are English innovations first recorded in Cook's book.

tea (borrowed from the Dutch language)

tea (n.)
1650s, tay, also in early spellings thea, tey, tee and at first pronounced so as to rhyme with
obey; the modern pronunciation predominates from mid-18c. But earlier in English as chaa
(1590s), also cha, tcha, chia, cia. The two forms of the word reflect two paths of
transmission: chaa is from Portuguese cha, attested in Portuguese from 1550s, via Macao,
from Mandarin (Chinese) ch'a (cf chai). The later form, which became Modern English tea,
is via Dutch, from Malay teh and directly from Chinese (Amoy dialect) t'e, which
corresponds to Mandarin ch'a.

tomato (borrowed from the Spanish language)

tomato (n.)
1753, earlier tomate (c. 1600), from Spanish tomate (mid-16c.) from Nahuatl (Aztecan)
tomatl "a tomato," said to mean literally "the swelling fruit," from tomana "to swell." Spelling
probably influenced by potato (1565). Slang meaning "an attractive girl" is recorded from
1929, on notion of juicy plumpness.

umbrella (borrowed from the Italian language)

umbrella (n.)
"hand-held portable canopy which opens and folds," c. 1600, first attested in Donne's
letters, from Italian ombrello, from Late Latin umbrella, altered (by influence of umbra) from
Latin umbella "sunshade, parasol," diminutive of umbra "shade, shadow"

voodoo (borrowed from an African language)

voodoo (n.)
religious witchcraft of Haiti and Southern U.S., ultimately of African origin, 1850, from
Louisiana French voudou, from a West African language (such as Ewe and Fon vodu
"spirit, demon, deity," also Vandoo, supposedly the name of an African deity, from a
language of Dahomey). Compare vodun "fetish connected with snake worship in
Dahomey," said to be from vo "to be afraid," or vo "harmful." The verb is attested from
1880.
Resources:

1 - Online Etymology Dictionary, retrieved the 28th September 2019 from

https://www.etymonline.com/

2 - WEDGWOOD, Hiensleigh, 1859, Dictionary of English Etymology, London, Trubner &

CO.

3 - DONALD, James, 1874, Chambers’s Etymological Dictionary of the English language,

W & R Chambers, London and Edinburgh. Retrieved the 29th September 2019 from
https://i2i.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/1874_Chambers_Etymological.pdf

1) Netizens (n)​ -​ people who use the Internet, specially in a responsible way.

Blending process: Net ​⇒ the Net

+ cit​izens​ ⇒ people who live in a particular country, town or state.

2) RAM (n)​ -​ temporary memory of a computer.

Acronyms process: R​andom ​A​ccess ​M​emory

3) Keyboard (n) ​-​ a board with buttons with letters or numbers that are pressed to put
information into a computer or other machine.

Compounding process: key (n) ​= button

+
board (n) ​= a flat wide piece of plastic.
4) Techie (n)​ -​ a person who knows a lot about computers and electronic devices.

Clipping process:​ Technology ⇒ ​Tech

Hypocorism process: ​ Tech + ie ⇒ Techie

5) Webcam (n) ​- ​a video camera that broadcasts what it is filming in a website.

Clipping process: Cam ⇒​ the short form of camera.

Compounding process: Web​ ​= the Net.

+
Cam ​= camera

6) Bookmark (v) ​- to save the address of a page.

Compounding process: Book (n)​ ​= a set of printed pages.

+
Mark (n) ​= a spot

Conversion process: Bookmark (n) ⇒ bookmark (v)

7) Blogers (n) ​- ​people who have an online diary.

Suffixes process: Blog (n)​ ⇒ an online diary.

+
-er​ ​⇒ to indicate that we are referring to the person
+
-s ​⇒ to indicate that it is plural.
8) Downloads (n) - files or programs moved from the Net to a computer.

Compounding process: Down (v) -​ put something to a lower position.

+
Loads (n) -​ weight

9) Faq (n) - ​questions that everybody asks most of the time.

Acronyms process: F​requently A​sked ​Q​uestion

10) Ruok - ​it is used in social media and messaging to ask how a person is.

Compounding process: Are ​+​ you ​+​ ok

Clipping process: R ​+​ u ​+​ ok​ ⇒​ ruok

E- Another type of affix is called a circumfix. Here are some
examples from Indonesian.

(“big”) besar kebesaran (“bigness”)

(“beautiful”) indah keindahan (“beauty”)
(“healthy”) sehat​……... kesehatan (“health”)
(“free”) bebas kebebasan (“freedom”)

(“kind”) baik ………​kebaikan​……….. (“kindness”)

(“honest”) jujur ………​kejujuran​……….. (“honesty”)

1- Can you provide the missing forms in these examples?

2- What is the circumfix illustrated here? It is a kind of derivation. Circumfixes attach to
both the beginning and the end of a word. In this case, the root word is going to have a
prefix and a suffix at the same time.

3 - For what type of word-formation process is the circumfix being used here?

4- Given the words tersedia (“available”), sulit (“difficult”), sesuai (“suitable”)

and seimbang (“balanced”), how would you translate “availability,”
“difficulty,” “suitability” and “balance”?

5- Consider the following examples:

Ketidakjujuran “dishonesty”
Ketidaksenangan “unhappiness”
Ketidakadilan “injustice”
Ketidakpuasan “dissatisfaction”

What do you think the correspondig Indonesian words would be for:

Happy senang
Just / Fair adil
Satisfied puas

4- ​tersedianya -------- “availability”

kesukara ------- “difficulty”

kesesuaian -------- “suitability”

keseimbangan ------- “balance”

chaw kho mob - place fix sickness = ​hospital
chaw nres tsheb - place stand vehicle = ​car parking
chaw zaum tos - place sit wait = ​waiting room
dav hlau - bird iron = ​airplane
hnab looj tes - bag cover hand = ​gloves
kev cai - way right = ​correct
kev kho mob - way fix sickness = ​ambulance
kev nqaj hlau - way rail iron = ​train station
kws hlau - expert iron = ​blacksmith
kws kho hniav - expert fix teeth = ​dentist
kws ntaus ntawv - expert hit paper = ​writer
kws ntoo - expert wood = ​charpinter
kws kho tsheb - expert fix vehicle = ​mechanic
kws tshauj - expert medicine = ​doctor
tsheb nqaj hlau - vehicle rail iron = ​train
daim ntawv muas tshuaj - flat paper buy medicine = ​money​.
…………………………….