Conceptualization of Morphological Roots in Arabic and English: A Contrastive Analysis

Abstract

This paper aimed to build a contrastive orientation of notions of morphological roots in Arabic and English. The basic question addressed in this paper is whether there exist common properties of the root in Arabic and English.Belonging to two different language families, the two languages’ morphological systems are at extremes, creating challenges for interested learners and researchers. The contrastive analysis method was adopted. This analysis could provide data about the similarities and differences of the root’s structure, which can be used to meet the current study’s goals.A general contrast of the morphological system of the two languages was provided, focusing on the structure of the entity of the root in those languages. The roots’ morphological properties were contrasted to reveal and identify differences and similarities between the two languages.Findings revealed that a root in Arabic is a general abstraction, whereas in English, it is a concrete language item. There were few instances of resemblance of morphological behavior.Exploring the similarities and differences between the two languages would provide important pedagogical implications. It could also highlight potential language learning and teaching difficulties.