Roots and Affixes Close this window
Morphemes (minimal units of meaning) are of two basic kinds: roots and affixes . While there is not an absolutely sharp dividing line between them, due to the natural, gradual historical progression from root to affix, there are various properties that typically cluster together, thus allowing us to distinguish the two types. For most morphemes, it is clear which class they belong in.
Properties of roots:
main part of word
must be at least one in a word
in English, limited to two in a word (simple words have one, compound words have two); where roots are bound, as in Latin or Greek, more can occur in a word, but the number of roots in a particular word is generally small;
can occur independently (free roots)--although bound roots , particularly classical, occur
tend to have richer, more specific semantic content
position is relatively free with respect to other roots (cf. photograph vs. telephoto)
Properties of affixes:
subordinate part of word
not necessarily present--some words occur without any
multiple affixes can occur in a word (e.g. in-divis-abil-ity)
are dependent (bound) elements (where independent form found, generally to some degree dissociated from the bound version)
have more "schematic" (non-specific) content; often grammar-like function
can either precede or follow their roots ( prefixes and suffixes ,respectively)
position for a given affix with respect to root is fixed
Function Words
A third type of linguistic element is a function word, which occurs in certain languages like English, which don't have much bound morphology -- that is, languages with lots of free morphemes, instead of mostly words with roots and attached bound morphemes.
In such languages, many grammatical functions are served by function words: small units that have some independence, occuring with more freedom of position than affixes (thus they are somewhat root-like), but which have grammar-like meaning rather than concrete lexical content (which makes them more affix-like). Some function words in English are the, a, he, she, it, if, although, etc.
Function words can be thought of as right in between roots and affixes. Prepositions (like English over, in, through) are sometimes classed as function words and sometimes as roots--because they are, again, intermediate. In form, they are free morphemes. In terms of function, they have (especially in their spatial meanings) more concrete lexical content than most grammatical elements, but their meaning is still rather abstract and relational. (Note that in Greek and Latin, the elements corresponding to the English prepositions are bound morphemes rather than free function words. These are the spatial prefixes such as circum-, meta-, sub-, etc.)
useful(adj) มีประโยชน์,เป็นประโยชน์
usefulness(n) ประโยชน์,ผลประโยชน์
useless(adj) ไร้ประโยชน์,ไม่ได้ผล,ใช้การไม่ได้
useable(ยู'ซะเบิล) adj. มีไว้ใช้,สะดวกแก่การใช้., See also:usability,usableness n.usably adv.
useful(ยูซ'ฟูล) adj. มีประโยชน์,ใช้เป็นประโยชน์., See also:usefully adv. usefulness n.
supercontinent (n ) มหาทวีป superabductionการกางเกิน [แพทยศาสตร์ ๖ ส.ค. ๒๕๔๔]
superacromial; supra-acromialเหนือหัวไหล่, บนหัวไหล่ [แพทยศาสตร์ ๖ ส.ค. ๒๕๔๔]
superable(ซูพ'เพอระเบิล) adj. เอาชนะได้,พิชิตได้., See also:
superability n. superably adv.
superabundant(ซูเพออะบัน'เดินทฺ) adj. มีมากมายเกินไป, Syn. excessive
dislocate[VT] ทำให้เคลื่อน, See also: ทำให้สับสน, ทำให้ยุ่งเหยิง, ทำให้ไม่เป็นระเบียบ, ทำให้หลุดจากที่, Syn.disorder, disrupt, upset
translocate[VT] โยกย้าย
collocat[VI] เกิดร่วมกันเสมอ (คำในภาษา)
Allocate (vt ) แบ่งให้, กำหนด, บรรจุ, ลง(บัญชี)
reallocate[VT] จัดสรรปันส่วน, Syn. redistribute
