SHORTENING AS A MEANS OF VOCABULARY REPLENISHMENT

Definition of Shortened words.

In addition to word-formation means we should name such a means of vocabulary replenishment as shortening of words of different types: clipping, blending, achronymy.

Shortened words are those, either produced by clipping of full words, or by shortening of word-combinations, but having the meaning of full words or compounds [ lab, exam, V-day ]. The problem of shortening is: does a new word, or a variant of the same source-word appear in the process of shortening. There is little information about the solution of this problem. That point of view, according to which stylistic synonyms are formed as a result of shortening seems to be more adequate, because in case of shortening we receive a new lexical unit with a new form, which differs from its prototype in semantic structure, stylistic reference, and sphere of usage.

Shortened words do not coincide in their meanings with the original words: e.g., doc and doctor have the meaning «one who practices medicine», but doctor also means the highest degree given to a scholar or a scientist, and doc is never used in this meaning. Being syntactic synonyms, clippings are words of different styles of speech, they are highly colloquial, and in most cases belong to slang [ exam, maths, chemlab; to demobe, vet; ad, mag ].

Inclipping not complete morphemes are used but some arbitrary part of the prototype ( prep - homework from «preparation», ec - from economics). There are groups of final clippings or apocope being most numerous in Modern English (ed-editor, ad -advertisement - where final parts are omitted), initial-clipped words or aphasics [ cute - acute, fend- defend, chute - parachute ], medial clipping or syncope [ maths - mathematics, specs - spectacles ], and initial-final (for and back) clippings [ dec - detective), flue- influenza, etc. ]

In shortening the original word may be a simple one [ grad - graduate ], a derivative [ prep - preparation ]; a compound [ tails - tailcoat ]; a combination of full words [ pub - public house, medico - medical student ]. As a result of shortening nouns are usually produced [doc, fridge ]; in some rare cases adjectives are formed [ imposs - impossible; pi - pious ], but they are infrequent.

Clippings are words of one or two syllables [lab, mo, lino(lium)]. The pronunciation of clippings usually coincides with that of the corresponding syllable in the full word if the syllable is stressed [ doc - doctor ]; if it is an unstressed syllable in the full word, the pronunciation differs as the clipping has a full pronunciation [ad - advertisement ]. There may be some changes in spelling, too [ mi k e - mi c rophone; bi k e - bi c ycle ].

Clippings don’t differ from full words in functions: they take the plural suffix, and that of the possessive making any member of the sentence; they may serve as bases for forming new derived words by means of conversion [ perm - (permanent) - to perm: делать завивку ], or form deriving diminutives by affixation, chiefly adding the suffix y or ie [nouns: hanky - handkerchief, unkie - uncle, baccy - tobacco; adjectives: comfy - удобненький, mizzie - несчастненький ]. Among clippings there are homonyms, so that one and the same sound and grammatical complex may represent different words [vac - vacation, vacuum-cleaner ].

Blendings arewords having two meanings packed up in one word. Blendings appear as a result of the combination of two words [ smoke + fog = smog; sine + nobilitate = snob ]. There are two types of blendings; additive and restrictive. The additive type is transferable into a phrase, consisting of complete stems combined by the conjunction and [ smoke and fog - smog ]; the restrictive type is transferred into an attributive phrase [ positron - positive electron ].

Initial Abbreviation (Acronyms) and Graphical Abbreviations.

Initial abbreviation (acronyms) are words formed by shortening nominal combinations. Each component of the nominal combination is shortened up to the initial letter, and the initial letters of each of the parts of a combination make a word. They may be read as one word UNESCO - United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization or with alphabetical reading BBC - British Broadcasting Corporation. Acronyms should be distinguished from graphical abbreviations used in a written text for economy of space and effort being signs or symbols that stand for full words [ N.Y. - New York, Ltd - limited, Dr - doctor, Mr - mister, p - page, pp - pages ]. In oral speech graphical abbreviations have the pronunciation of full words.

The meaning of the acronyms is that of the nominal combination. In speech acronyms function like nouns, taking the plural suffix, or the suffix of the possessive case [ MPes, MP’s ]; they may also serve as a basis for derivation of new words by means of affixation [ exMP, GI-man ].

It should also be mentioned, that the moment the larger words disappear from the language, the abbreviation takes its place and becomes fully established in the language and loose their colloquial stylistic colouring [taxi-motorcar - taxicab - taxi; chap-man - chap, brandy-wine - brandy ].

Words can be built by imitating different kinds of sounds produced by animate and inanimate objects (hiss, roar, fizz, etc). These are the cases of onomatopoeia (echoism). In reduplication new words are made by doubling the stem, either without any phonetic change (bye-bye), or with some phonetic variation (wiggle-waggle, tick-tack)

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