2.

COMPOUNDING
(WORD COMPOSITION)

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ho Ngoc Trung

0913306484
[email protected]
2.1 Definition and characteristic features
Compounding (word-composition): the building
of a new word by joining two or more words.
A compound word: a word consisting of at least
two stems (roots) which occur in the language
as free forms.
classroom, time-table, bedroom, schoolgirl,
passer-by, kind-hearted, handwash, sunbeam
aircraft-carrier, etc.
to handwash,
handwashes
handwashed,
handwashing
- The components of a compound may be either
simple (timetable) or derived words (air-
conditioner) or even other compound words
(aircraft carrier – tàu sân bay / hàng không mẫu
hạm).
- In a sentence, compounds may function as
separate lexical units.
- English compounds have two stems:
determinant (the first stem) and determinatum
(the second stem, expressing a general
meaning and undergoing inflection)
blackboard(s) black: determinant
board: determinatum
 2.2 Criteria of compound words
(compound words vs free word groups)
a. Phonological criterion:
-There is a marked tendency in English to give compounds a
heavy stress on the first element (determinant)

‘blackboard # ‘black ’board

‘blackbird # ‘black ‘bird
‘bluebottle # ‘blue ‘bottle
‘dancing girl # ‘dancing ‘girl
‘girlfriend # ‘girl ‘friend
'classroom, 'greenhouse, ‘boy-friend, to 'whitewash,
to 'bottlefeed, ‘snub-nosed, (mũi hếch) 'forget-me-not, 'mothers-
in-law, 'passer-by, 'dancing-girl
If you don’t drive away the ‘bluebottle, I’ll throw the ‘blue ‘bottle
onto your face.
 However, there are cases where
compounds have double stress (or even
stress)
‘easy ‘going
‘new-‘born (mới sinh, tái tạo)
‘self-‘control
‘good-‘egg (old-fashioned slang: a good
person)
‘bread-and-‘butter
‘happy-go-‘lucky
b. Inseparability criteria (criterion of structural
integrity)
Compounds are indivisible. Between the
elements of a compound word it is impossible to
insert any other words.
raincoat, notice-board, identity-card, text-book,
tallboy

Yet, we can sometimes separate a compound’s

elements:
Both cigar and cigarette smokers have to spend
a lot.
c. Semantic criterion
A compound word only expresses a single idea despite
the fact that it consist of two or more words.
dirty work (dishonourable proceedings) (vs clean work,
dry work: phrase)
blackmarket, red tape (thói quan liêu), greenhouse,
bluebottle, lip-service, chatterbox (người ba hoa),
blackboard,
fusspot (người hay làm to chuyện)
bluestocking (nữ học giả, nữ sĩ)

However, in a number of cases, it is difficult to decide

whether there is only a single idea e.g. to handwash,
window-cleaner
d. Graphic criterion (spelling criterion)
A compound is often spelt with a hyphen or with
no separation at all: headmaster, loudspeaker or
head-master, loud-speaker, night-club
However, there is no consistency in English
spelling:
head master, loud speaker
airline, air line, air-line
matchbox, match-box, match box
- Compounds of the same pattern may be spelt
differently:
Textbook, phrase-book (từ điển cụm từ và thành
ngữ), reference book

- Some compounds are hyphenated when

attributive but not hyphenated when predicative:
‘They were well-balanced soldiers’
But ‘You have to be well balanced to cope with the
stress of your job.’
 2.3 Semi-affixes (affixal words)
A semi-affix is one that stands between a stem (root) and an
affix.
- man: seaman, airman, spaceman, chairman, clergyman (giáo
sĩ, tu sĩ), countryman, fireman, fisherman, gentleman, horseman
(kỵ sĩ), policeman, postman, workman (công nhân, thợ), yes-
man (người ba phải).
- proof: fireproof, bombproof, waterproof, damp-proof, shockproof
(chịu va đập, chống giật), kissproof, foolproof (hết sức rõ ràng)
- land: homeland, fatherland, motherland, wonderland,
- like: godlike (như thần, như thánh), gentlemanlike (hào hoa
phong nhã), lady-like (có dáng quí phái, ủy mị như đàn bà),
unladylike (không có dáng quý phái), manlike, childlike,
unbusinesslike (không có đầu óc buôn bán), suchlike (như thế),
starlike (như sao).
- worthy: noteworthy, praiseworthy, seaworthy (có thể chịu đựng được
sóng gió), trustworthy
- wise: otherwise, likewise, clockwise, crosswise (theo hình chữ thập)
- way(s): anyway(s), otherway(s), always, sideways, crossway(s)
(theo đường chéo góc)
- monger: fishmonger (người buôn cá), fashionmonger (người tạo
mốt), newsmonger (người hay phao tin), scandalmonger (kẻ gièm
pha), warmonger (kẻ hiếu chiến), ironmonger (người bán đồ sắt)
- wright: playwright, shipwright (thợ đóng tàu), wheelwright (thợ sửa
chữa bánh xe)
- mini-: mini-budget, mini-bus, mini-car, mini-crisis, mini-planet,
miniskirt
- midi-: midi-coat
- maxi-: maxi-coat
- self-: self-starter (cái tự khởi động), self-help (sự tự lực), self-service,
self-reliance (sự tự lực)
2.4 Classification of compound words

a. Classification according to the meaning

According to their meaning, compounds can be non-
idiomatic (motivated) or idiomatic (non-motivated)

- Non-idiomatic compounds are those whose meanings

are easily deducted from the meanings of the
components: airman, spaceman, airmail, nightflight.

- Idiomatic compounds are those whose meanings are very

different from the meanings of the components:
blackboard, bluebottle, greenhouse, lipservice, monkey-
business, blackleg, teach-in (hội thảo).
b. Classification according to componental
relationship:
According to the connection between the components
we have:
- Co-ordinative compounds: are those whose components
are both structurally and semantically independent:
Anglo-Saxon, willy-nilly, fifty-fifty

- Subordinative compounds: are those that are

characterized by the domination of one component over
the other:
book-keeper, space-ship, to bottle-feed, to breastfeed
c. Classification according to the part of speech:

-Compound nouns: sunbeam, maidservant, looking-glass

(gương), blackboard, search-light, greengrocer, pick-
pocket, house-keeping, sunrise, time-server

-Compound adjectives: threadbare (mòn, cũ), airtight,

bloodthirsty, carefree (vô tư lự), heartfree (chưa yêu ai),
media-shy, noteworthy, pennywise (căn cơ, chặt chẽ về
tiền bạc), seasick, snow-white, dog-tired, dirtcheap,
stone-deaf, blood-red, sky-blue, peace-loving, breath-
taking (hấp dẫn), freedom-loving, soul-stirring (kích
thích, kích động), seagoing
- Compound verbs: outgrow (lớn hơn, mọc cao hơn),
over-flow (sự tràn nước ra), black-list, stage-
manage (đạo diễn), whitewash, blackmail, hitch-
hike, ill-treat, backbite (nói xấu sau lưng), tiptoe,
hero-worship, mass-produce, teperecord
- Compound adverbs: whole-heartedly, self-
confidently, there-in (ở chỗ đó), here-in (ở đây, ở
chỗ này)

- Compound prepositions: into, onto

d. Classification according to compositional
types:
- Compounds formed by justaposition, i.e without
connecting elements.
E.g. heartache, heart-beat(v), heart-break (nỗi đau
buồn).
- Compounds formed with a vowel or a consonant
as a linking element.
e.g. electromotive (điện động) (adj), speedometer
(n), Afro-Asian (adj), handicraft (n), statesman
(n), spokesman (n).
- Compounds formed by syntactical means, i.e a group
of words condensed into one word:
merry-go-round (vòng quay ngựa gỗ), cash-and-carry
(giao dịch bằng tiền mặt và tự chở), up-to-date, up-
and-up, forget-me-not, matter-of-fact, pick-me-up
(thức uống có cồn), stick-in-the-mud (bảo thủ), devil-
may-care (liều mạng).

- Compounds formed both by morphological and

syntactical means i.e. phrases turned into compounds
by means of suffixes:
long-legged, kind-hearted, teenager, blue-eyed.
e. According to the structure of the immediate
components
- simple stems: handbag, film-star
- derived stems: skyscraper, long-legged, ill-mannered,
teenager
- abbreviated stems: maths-teacher, H-bomb, X-ray
- at least one compound stem: aircraftcarrier, waste
paper basket
- v + adv: break-down, cut-back
f. Miscellanea of compounds
- Derivational compounds: are words whose structural integrity is
ensured by a suffix: honeymooner, teenager, go-getter, big-bellied,
ill-mannered, one-stringed, seven-colored, kind-hearted, old-timer,
mill-owner, late-comer, left-hander, eye-opener, absent-minded,
cruel-hearted, narrow-minded, short-sighted.
- Reduplicative compounds: are words built by imitating sounds or
repeating one of their components in one way or another e.g. hush-
hush (adj) (=secret), murmur, pooh-pooh (v- to express contempt),
blah-blah (= nonsense, idle talk), quack-quack (=duck), pops-pops
(=father), goody-goody, chit-chat (=gossip), dilly-dally (=to waste
time, to hesitate about doing sth), knick-knack (=small articles of
ornament), riff-raff (tầng lớp hạ lưu), sing-song (= uttered with rising
and falling rhythm), razzle-dazzle (n), zigzag, ding-dong (said of the
sound of a bell), ping-pong ( =table tennis), tip-top ( = first rate),
criss-cross (n), pitter-patter (adj), bibble-babble (idle talk), clitter-
clatter, boogie-woggie, flibberty-gibberty (=frivolous), harum-scarum
(disorganized), helter-skelter (in disordered haste), hoity-toity
(snobbish, arrogant), humdrum (= bore), hurry-scurry (=great hurry),
hurdy-gurdy (=a small organ), lovey-dovey (= darling), mumbo-
jumbo, namby-pamby (=weak, foolishly sentimental), tit-bit, willy-nilly
(= compulsorily)
- Faded compounds: are words whose
compositional characteristics have “faded” and
are hardly recognizable: breakfast, cupboard,
Sunday, boatswain.
(their spellings remain unchanged, but their
pronunciation and meaning have changed a lot-
e.g.
Break = interrupt, fast = going without food)
Boat = ship’s officer in charge of sails
Swain = lad = lost
- Dead compounds: are words whose compositional
characteristics can be discovered by etymological
analysis: e.g.
Husband < OE husbond a master of the house (from bua
‘dwell’>
Kidnap: nap closely related to nab (a slang word for arrest)
Lady: <OE half ‘loaf’, dize ‘knead’: the person who kneads
bread>
Woman <OE wifmann. i.e. ‘woman person’>
daisy < OE …. ‘day’s eye’
England: land of Angles
- Compounds formed by “prepositional
adverbs”:
Give up, give in, look for, look after, break
down.
To drop out  a drop out
To give away  a give-away
To shake down  a shake-down (a
thorough search)