4 5 Clipping Definition Clipping is the formation
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4. 5 Clipping
Definition ■ Clipping is the formation of new words by cutting a part off the orginal and using what remains intead. Eg. gas←gasoline, bus←monibus ■ Clipping is of a character of using words precisely and conveniently. radar ← radio direction finding and range laster ← light amplification by stimulated emmission of radiation
Four common types 1. Front Clipping plane ← aeroplane, airplane wig ← periwig(假发） 2. Back Clipping doc ← doctor, dorm ← dormitory 3. Front and Back Clipping fridge ← re`frigerator, tec ← de`tective 4. Phrase Clipping daily ← daily paper perm ← permanent wave(烫发)
Other types of clipping ØSyncope(词中省略) One or two syllables are omit from a word for the convenience and casualness. eg. praps ← perhaps pacifist ← pacificist(和平主义者) ØContractions（缩约形式） eg. gov’t←government rec’d←received A few contractions only appear in poems. eg. e’en←even, e’er←ever, ne’er←never, o’er←over
Conlusion • In some cases, clipping gives rise to alterations in spelling and pronunciation to conform to the English ways of spelling and pronunciation. eg. mike←microphone dub←double(为电影配音） • Clipped words are not so formal as original words, so they’re usually used orally or in informal occasions, eg. lab, maths, trig.
• Most clipped words have the same meanings as the original, but a few developed new meanings. eg. fan: enthusiastic admirer or support of ↑ sth. /sb. （体育、电影等爱好者） fanatic: person who is too enthusiastic about sth. （狂热者，盲信者）
4. 7 Back-formation
Definition n Back-formation is the method of creating words by removing the supposed suffixes. eg. schwindler → swindle (German) (骗子） (行骗） n It’s considered to be the oppossite process of the suffixation: imagine + -ation→imagination back-formation: swindler－-er→swindle
Types of words 1. Abstract Nouns eg. diagonse v. ←diagnosis n. aggress v. ←aggression n. 2. Agential Nouns eg. rove v. ←rover n. beg v. ←beggar n. edit v. ←editor n. 3. Adjectives eg. frivol v. ←frivolous a. drowse v. ←drowsy a.
4. Compound Nouns and Others Compound nouns eg. daydream v. ←daydreamer n. lip-read v. ←lip-reading n. Others eg. maffick v. ←Mafeking n. （狂欢庆祝）（南非地名） grovel v. ←grovelling n. （趴着） （趴着地）
conclusion u. Wors created through back-formation are mostly verbs. Only few can be used as both nouns and verbs. eg. gloom n. ← gloomy a. pup n. &v ← puppy a. A number of back-formation word has become common in English, eg, edit, beg. However, back-formation words are largely informal and some haven’t gain currency. So, we should use them with care.
