Analysis of English Compound Nouns

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1、Analysis of English Compound NounsAbstract: Among English vocabulary, there are a lot of compound words, a large number of new words are formed by compounding.Studying the word-building characteristics and rules of English compound words is truly good for us on learning English vocabulary and compre

2、hending connotation of English language accurately. On the base of the modern English Lexicology, this paper shows analysis of English compound nouns, a part of compounding words, from written form, classification, semantic analysis, meaning shift and so on. In this way can we learn English better a

3、nd better.Key words: compound nouns; form classification; semantics; lexical meaning1. IntroductionCompounding or composition is a word-formation process consisting of joining two or more bases to form a new unit, a compound word. It is a universal device which has been productive at every period of

4、 the English language. English now makes more use of compounding than at any previous time in its history. Today the largest number of new words are formed by compounding. Among all compound words, compound nouns have played a very important role and have helpful effects on interpersonal communicati

5、on. So it is necessary for us to know some principles of compound nouns. Next the paper shows some simple but crucial principles of compound nouns.2.The relevant studies This paper adopts the studies of Li Cailing(2011) Zhu Li(2011), indicating the written forms are the basic point for learning comp

6、ound nouns, and form classification, semantics, lexical meaning are the key points. In addition, the paper also compares with study of Deng Ying(1997), identifying the unique characteristics of compound nouns.3.Written form of compound nounsBasically there are three common written forms of compounds

7、. Compound nouns also follow these forms.TYPESe.g.No.1No.2No.3Solideggshells 蛋壳bedroom 卧室headache 头疼Hyphenatedstick-in-the-mud 老顽固passer-by 过路人fire-fly 火焰Open Swimming pool 游泳池bus stop 公交车站full moon 满月However, it is difficult to decide which form should be used as criterion; for sometimes the same c

8、ompound noun may appear in three different forms, for example:postcard post-card post cardairline air-line air lineGenerally, American people tend to use solid and open written forms, while British people prefer to use hyphenated written form. As a result, we can not charge which way is the best and

9、 most standard.4.Classification of compound nounsThere are kinds of compound nouns, we can divide them into 10 kinds according to their different parts of speech.(a) Adjective and noun:examples are shorthand （速记）; double- dealer （口是心非的人）;hot water（麻烦）;hotfoot（恶作剧). Here are two specific sentences:Jo

10、hns thoughtless remark about religion got him into a lot of hot water.Like Shaw, he has tickled his readersfunny bone with a cultural hotfoot.(b) Verb and noun:examples are sleeping pill（安眠药片); waiting- room（候车室）(c) Noun and v-ing: examples are sight- seeing （观光）;sun- bathing （日光浴）window dressing （虚

11、伪的言行）：Their piety is merely window dressing.（他们的虔诚只是为了装饰门面）(d)Noun and verb:examples are rainfall （降雨)；haircut（理发）(e)Verb and noun:examples are washbasin （脸盆）;pickpocket（扒手）.makeshift（权宜之计）：When the electric lights went out, we used candles as a makeshift.（电灯熄灭时，我们用蜡烛来代替）(f)Noun and adverbial:exampl

12、es are passer- by (过路人);hanger- on (食客).(g)Adverbial and noun:examples are upgrade （升级）;aftereffect （副作用）.(h)Verb and adverbial:examples are breakthrough （突破）; warm- up （准备动作、热身).(i)Adverbial and verb:examples are outlook （前景）; onset（进攻）.(j)Noun and noun :examples are headache （头疼);sunrise （日出).5. s

13、emantic analysis and meaning shift5.1 semantic analysisWe should realize that there are semantic relationships among the components of compound nouns. So it will be effective in understanding and memory the compound nouns accurately if we comprehend the relations. Generally compound nouns have the n

14、ext five kinds semantic meanings or we can say that we could analyze compound words from five aspects.a: compound nouns can substitute words with of. e.g. a chair of leg,(chair-leg) ,a door knob(door knob)b: compound nouns relate to locations. Sometimes the first word indicates place,and the second

15、word indicates what exists in the place. e.g. the bank safe a kitchen sinkc: compound nouns can indicate the purpose. The second word indicates the use of the first word. e.g. a can-opener ; a sheep dogd: compound nouns relate to materials. The first word indicates the material, the second word indi

16、cates what does the material make. e.g. a cotton blouse; a gold watche: compound nouns relates to time. e.g. afternoon tea; an evening dressIn fact ,different people pay attention to different aspects, there is still a lot of space for us to divide and develop.5.2 meaning shiftIn a compound noun,som

17、etimes we could simply know the meaning of the noun by adding every part of the noun, moonlight(moon+light=月光);however,sometimes,the meanings of compound nouns have developed widely and have other creative meanings.Take bottleneck as an example.The original meaning of this noun is(瓶颈), later, it ind

18、icates crowd districts or areas of traffic heavy, and then it even can indicate weak lines. Another kind is derivative meaning. Generally compound nouns of this kind will be made up of simple single word, but the actual meaning of these compound nouns will totally be different from the original word

19、.Like Milky way(we cant say it means the road of milk, in fact, it means galaxy).6.ConclusionCompound noun is a kind od complex language phenomenon, it has extended variational forms, also it is a meaningful way to create new words.So knowing about the basic structures and semantic meanings of compo

20、und nouns can help us on vocabularies and reading.We should try our best to have a realization on compound nouns.Reference:1李彩玲,. 浅析英语复合词J. 福建广播电视大学学报,2011,(6). 2王劼,. 英汉语名名复合结构构词机制对比研究J. 牡丹江大学学报,2011,(10). 3朱俐,. 浅谈英语复合名词J. 才智,2011,(4). 3罗良正. 浅谈英语复合词(二)J. 湖北职业技术学院学报,1994,(0). 4周岐才. 小议英语复合词J. 自贡师范高等专科学校学报,1995,(4). 5邓英. 谈谈英语复合词J. 合肥工业大学学报(社会科学版),1997,(1). 6Carol Fehringer.The lexical representation of compound words in English: evidence from aphasia J.Language Sciences, 2012,(1):65-75.