Full Description
Lexicology is about words, their meanings and the relationships between them, their origins and their structure. It combines the study of derivational morphology with lexical semantics. This textbook explores the history, meanings and structure of words, the way they are collected in dictionaries and the way they are stored in our minds. It goes beyond examining the morphological structure of words to examine the way words are spelt and the way they sound. At every stage, the book focuses not only on description, but also on the puzzles that words present. Supported by numerous examples, exercises, discussion questions, suggestions for further reading and a glossary, this is an accessible and lively guide to the linguistic study of English through the consideration of words.
Contents
Transcription symbols; PrefaceChapter 1 Words1.1 What is a word?1.2 Are names words?1.3 Multi-word expressions (MWEs)1.4 Paradigms1.5 The dictionary1.6 The lexicon1.7 SummaryExercises; Further readingChapter 2 Making new words2.1 Introduction2.2 Blends2.3 Compounds2.4 Derivation2.5 Words without affixes2.6 Inflection2.7 SummaryExercises; Further readingChapter 3 The development of the vocabulary3.1 A potted history of English words3.2 Recognising the sources of words3.3 Latin words in English3.4 Greek words in English3.5 The use of non-Germanic words in English3.6 Exotic words in English3.7 SummaryExercises; Further readingChapter 4. The meanings of words4.1 Introduction4.2 Denotation and connotation4.3 Lexicon versus encyclopedia4.4 Relationships between words4.5 Semantic features4.6 Categorising words4.7 Multiple meanings4.8 The meaning of word elements4.9 SummaryExercises; Further readingChapter 5. Orthographic and phonological structure5.1 Introduction5.2 Spelling and vowel length5.3 Some potentially confusing spellings5.4 The Great Vowel Shift5.5 Consonants5.6 Unstressed vowels5.7 SummaryExercises; Further readingChapter 6. Some puzzles in English words6.1 Introduction6.2 N+N where the first N is plural6.3 Comparatives and superlatives6.4 Coordinative compounds6.5 Changes without change of form6.6 SummaryExercises; Further readingGlossary; References; Index
