(De)verbal modifiers in attribute plus noun collocations and compounds: verbs, deverbal nouns or suffixed adjectives?
| Authors | |
|---|---|
| Year of publication | 2015 |
| Type | Article in Proceedings |
| Conference | From Theory to Practice 2013: Proceedings of the Fifth International Conference on Anglophone Studies, Vol. 5,September 5-6, 2013, Tomas Bata University in Zlín, Czech Republic |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| Field | Linguistics |
| Keywords | argument; attribute; base; compound; modifier; noun phrase; semantic role; verb |
| Attached files | |
| Description | English as an analytic language particularly poor in inflections and relatively poor in derivational suffixes does not often mark word classes by specific morphemes. On the contrary, one form of a word can be used in several grammatical functions, and an identical word form can have several meanings in several word classes. The frequent occurrence of conversion between word classes thus allows one form, often the base or simplest one, to perform several roles, and, at the same time, makes identification of its grammatically and semantically defined word class difficult, especially in multiword phrases functioning as a whole. The most frequent type of a noun phrase, Attr+N phrase, can thus be realised in several ways, with different word classes performing the function of syntactic attribute. This paper looks into a less frequent subtype of this phrase in English, one which uses semantically (de)verbal attribute, and tries to establish rules governing the choice between the two main options, using either the base form or a derived one (e.g., call centre vs. writing paper). Shedding light on this issue has practical application in mastering appropriate formation as well as correct understanding of English multiword phrases or terms (mostly nominal), which is an important skill in a non-native environment (especially in EAP) where English is used as a lingua franca. |