ГОС_1 / Lexicology / Lecture4 / The main structural types of English words

The main structural types of English words.

According to their morphological (derivational) structure, there are 4 main types of words in English:

• Root words or simple or primary, consisting of 1 morpheme only ( the root)

e.g. go, come, nose, table, good

• Derivatives or derived words consisting of 2 or more morphemes – usually the roots & some affixes are attached to it.

e.g. unbreakable

• Compounds, consisting of 2 or more stems

e.g. feedback, blackmail

• Compound derivatives consisting of 2 or more stems with a derivational morpheme, added at the end.

e.g. long-nosed, double-decker