- •1. Lexicology as a branch of linguistics; its aims and significance. Links with other branches of linguistics.
- •2.Words of native origin and their distinctive features.
- •3.Borrowings. The distinction between the terms origin of borrowing and source of borrowing. Translation loans. Semantic loans.
- •4. Types of borrowed elements in the English vocabulary. Etymological doublets, hybrids, international words, and folk etymology.
- •5.Assimilation of borrowings. Types and degrees of assimilation
- •6.Latin borrowings. Periods of borrowings from Latin.
- •7.Celtic elements in the English vocabulary.
- •8.Scandinavian loan-words in Modern English.
- •9.French elements in the English vocabulary. Periods of borrowings from French.
- •10.Greek borrowings. Features of Greek borrowings.
- •11. The morphemic structure of English words. Types of morphemes. The principles of morphemic analysis.
- •12. The derivative structure of English words. The distinction between morphological stem and derivational base. Derivational fields.
- •13. Affixation. Classifications of affixes. Productive and non-productive affixes, dead and living affixes.
- •14.Word-composition. Types of compound words. Criteria for their classification.
- •15.Shortening. Types of shortening
- •16. Conversion. Different views on conversion. Semantic relations within converted pairs.
- •17.Non-productive ways of word-formation.
- •18 Semasiological and onomasiological perspectives of the English lexicon
- •19 Approaches to the definition of word meaning: functional, referential and others
- •20.. Types of word meaning.
- •21. Semantic change and transference of meaning.
- •22. A theory of semantic field. Thematic groups.
- •23.Neologisms. Their sources and formation.
- •24. Polysemy. Semantic structure of English words. Diachronic and synchronic approaches to polysemy.
- •25.Homonyms. Classifications and sources of homonyms.
- •26.Syntagmatic and paradigmatic relations among English words.
- •27. Synonyms. Types of synonyms. Sources of synonymy.
- •28. Antonyms. Definition. Morphological and semantic classifications of antonyms.
- •29. Grammatical and lexical valency. Grammatical and lexical context.
- •30.Free word-groups. Definition. Classifications.
- •31. Discrepancies between free word-groups and phraseological units.
- •32..Phraseological units: a variety of terms and the problem of definition. Characteristic features of phraseological units.
- •33..Classifications of phraseological units.
- •34. Polysemy, synonymy and stylistic features of phraseological units.
- •35.. Origins and sources of phraseological units.
- •36..Standard English: features and the problem of definition.
- •37.. Local dialects in the British Isles. Scotticisms in Standard English.
- •38 Chief characteristic features of the American English lexicon.
- •40..Types of Dictionaries
- •41 The main problems in lexicography.
15.Shortening. Types of shortening
Shortening is the process of substracting phonemes and / or morhemes from words and word-groups without changing their lexico-grammatical meaning.
Abbreviation is a process of shortening the result of which is a word made up of the initial letters or syllables of the components of a word-group or a compound word.
Graphical abbreviation is the result of shortening of a word or a word-group only in written speech (for the economy of space and effort in writing), while orally the corresponding full form is used:
days of the week and months, e.g. Sun., Tue., Feb., Oct., Dec.;
states in the USA, e.g. Alas., CA, TX;
forms of address, e.g. Mr., Mrs., Dr.;
scientific degrees, e.g. BA, BSc., MA, MSc., MBA, PhD.;
military ranks, e.g. Col.;
units of measurement, e.g. sec., ft, km.
Latin abbreviations, e.g. p.a., i.e., ibid., a.m., cp., viz.
internet abbreviations, e.g. BTW, FYI, TIA, AFAIK, TWIMC, MWA.
Lexical abbreviation is the result of shortening of a word or a word-group both in written and oral speech.
alphabetical abbreviation (initialism) is a shortening which is read as a succession of the alphabetical readings of the constituent letters, e.g. BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation), MTV (Music Television), EU (European Union), MP (Member of Parliament), WHO (World Health Organisation), AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome), GMO (Genetically Modified Organisms) etc.;
acronymic abbreviation (acronym) is a shortening which is read as a succession of the sounds denoted by the constituent letters, i.e. as if they were an ordinary word, e.g. UNESCO (United Nations Scientific, and Cultural Organisation), NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organisation), UNICEF (United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund) etc.;
anacronym is an acronym which is longer perceived by speakers as a shortening: very few people remember what each letter stands for, e.g. laser (light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation), radar (radio detecting and ranging), scuba (self-contained underwater breathing apparatus), yuppie (young urban professional).
homoacronym is an acronym which coincides with an English word semantically connected with the thing, person or phenomenon, e.g. PAWS (Public for Animal Welfare Society), NOW (National Organisation for Women), ASH (Action on Smoking and Health) etc.;
Clipping is the process of cutting off one or several syllables of a word.
apocope (back-clipping) is a final clipping, e.g. prof < professor, disco < discotheque, ad < advertisement, coke < coca-cola;
aphaeresis (fore-clipping) is an initial clipping, e.g. phone < telephone, Bella < Isabella, cello < violoncello;
syncope is a medial clipping, e.g. maths < mathematics, specs < spectacles; ma’m < madam;
fore-and-aft clipping is an initial and final clipping, e.g. flu < influenza, fridge < refrigerator, tec < detective, Liza < Elizabeth;
Blending (telescoping) is the process of merging parts of words into one new word, e.g. Bollywood < Bombay + Hollywood, antiégé < anti + protégé, brunch < breakfast + lunch, Mathlete < Mathematics+ athlete. information technologies: teleputer < television + computer; webcam < web + camera; netaholic < Internet + alcoholic; economics: ecolonomics < ecology + economics; freeconomics < free + economics; slowflation < slow + inflation; geography: Eurabia < Europe + Arabia; Chindia < China + India; Calexico < California + Mexico; literature and art: dramedy < drama + comedy; fictomercial < fiction + commercial; docusoap < documentary + soap-opera;linguistics: Spanglish < Spanish + English; Hindlish < Hindi + English; cryptolect < cryptography + dialect; publilect < puberty + dialect;
A blend (a fusion, a telescoped word, a portmanteau word) is a word that combines parts of two words and includes the letters or / and sounds they may have in common as a connecting element.
Blending has been known since the 15th c. First blends were of comic or mysterious nature as these were charades for readers or listeners to decode. Telescoped words are found in the works by W. Shakespeare (trimpherate < triumph+ triumvirate), E. Spencer (wrizzle < wrinkle + frizzle). The term portmanteau word was coined by Lewis Carroll in Through the Looking-Glass in 1872 to explain some of the words he made up in the nonsense poem Jabberwocky, e.g. galumph < gallop + triumph, chortle < chuckle + snort.
ab + cd > ac, e.g. hi-fi < high fidelity, hi-tech < high technology, modem < modulator – demodulator, mopol < mobile police; docusoap < documentary + soap-opera; digicam < digital + camera; ab + cd > ad, e.g. chofa < chair + sofa, paytriot < pay + patriot, framily < friends + family, Denglish < Deutch + English, edutainment < education + entertainment, weisure < work + leisure; ab + cd > abd, e.g. aquaerobics < aqua + aerobics, carbage < car + garbage, Falloween < fall + Halloween, kidult < kid + adult, ruralpolitan < rural + metropolitan, blogebrity < blog + celebrity;
ab + cd > acd, e.g. infostructure < information + structure, celebreality < celebrity + reality; e-lecture < electronic + lecture;
ab + cd > bd, e.g. netiquette < Internet + etiquette, netizen < Internet + citizen, netpreneur < Internet + enterpreneur; ab + cd > acb, e.g. adorkable < adorable + dork, autopathography < authobiography + pathology;