Derivational Morphemes Research Articles

Identifying and Categorizing Derivational Morphemes on Students’ Thesis Abstracts: A Corpus-Driven Analysis

This study aims to analyze the use of derivative morphemes in thesis abstracts of STKIP PGRI Sidoarjo students, focusing on the contribution of these morphemes to the clarity and quality of academic writing. The problem raised is the lack of understanding of the role of derivative morphemes in academic writing. The method used is corpus-based analysis of five student thesis abstracts. The findings of this study show that derivative morphemes such as “-er”, “-ion”, and “-al” help in conveying information and clarifying the content of the abstract. The analysis identified how derivative morphemes contribute to the understanding of the content and structure of the research. In conclusion, a better understanding of the use of derivative morphemes can improve the quality of academic writing. Suggestions are given for the improvement of morphology learning curriculum at the higher education level, in order to strengthen students' writing skills.

Derivational or Inflectional Morpheme: A Case of Papuan EFL Students’ Comprehension in Narrative Text

The objective of this research is to scrutinize how students in the English Language Department distinguish derivational morphemes and inflectional morphemes using narrative text. Consequently, student’s obstacles in distinguishing between both of bound morphemes. Qualitative methods are employed to this research with a descriptive approach to collect and analyze derivational and inflectional morphemes. The findings revealed a total of fifty-three derivational and inflectional morphemes, comprising fifteen derivational morphemes and thirty-eight inflectional morphemes. In terms of comprehension, EFL students score 66.5 in derivational morphemes, falling under the C category, indicating a good level of understanding. For inflectional morphemes, students achieve a score of 89, placing them in the A category, signifying a very good understanding. Regarding the obstacles, students face in comprehending derivational morphemes and inflectional morphemes the main challenges are the lack of vocabulary and the lack of grammar, which make it difficult for EFL students to know word class changes and grammar function changes.

Comprehensive Analysis of Derivational and Inflectional Morphemes for English Language Acquisition

Morphology plays a crucial role in students' language acquisition. This study delves into the distinctions between inflectional and derivational morphemes, aiming to enhance comprehension of these concepts. By investigating word creation processes and observed alterations, the study illustrates the profound impact of prefixes and suffixes on words, shedding light on their significance in language learning. Students frequently require clarification when distinguishing between inflectional and derivational morphemes during learning. To enhance comprehension of this subject, this present study initially investigated the definitions and subcategories of these two terms outlined in various literary sources. Next, it provided a concise overview of the critical distinctions between inflectional and derivational morphemes. These analyses aim to determine the word created by derivational morphemes, the word formed by inflectional morphemes, the process by which the specified word is formed, and the types of observed alterations. The author implements the descriptive qualitative approach. It will discover that each morpheme possesses its function and influences the base word's meaning, word class, or grammatical function. This study illustrates the impact of prefixes and suffixes on words.

Alguns catalanismes morfològics i sintàctics del castellà del segle XV a la Corona d’Aragó

The study covers some morphological and syntactic catalanisms document­ed in 15th century texts written in varieties of Castilian from the Crown of Aragon. The analysis includes both free morphemes (articles, prepositions, conjunctions, numerals, etc.) and derivational morphemes (des- and es-), the subordinates introduced by the con­junctive locution ya sea (que) and the coordination of adverbs ending in -ment(e). The ma­jority of catalanisms are found in legal and administrative texts, which reflect to a great­er extent the orality of the time. While the contribution of translations to the transfer of Catalan structures is not significant, the figure of Enrique de Villena stands out, whose literary works and treatises, in contrast to contemporary works of the same textual typologies, contain a high number of catalanisms.

Elaborating the Derivational Morpheme in Students’ Thesis Acknowledgement in Higher Education

Elaborating the Derivational Morpheme in Students’ Thesis Acknowledgement in Higher Education

Influence of Morphological Awareness on the Reading Comprehension of Students at the Tertiary Education Level in Ebonyi State

This paper examined the influence of morphological awareness on the reading comprehension of students at the tertiary education level in Ebonyi State. The study utilized the descriptive survey research design. Three objectives and three research questions were posed to guide the study. The target population comprised 22000 undergraduates from the south east part of Nigeria. A sample size of 220 respondents was selected using the simple random sampling technique. A structured questionnaire was the instrument for data collection. Data were analyzed using the statistical tools of mean and standard deviation. Findings showed that morphological awareness had a positive impact on student' reading comprehension. Result of the study also revealed that students’ knowledge of inflectional morphemes improved their reading comprehension. Result also showed that awareness of the differences between inflectional and derivational morphemes enhanced students' reading comprehension. Based on these findings, one of the recommendations was that curriculum planners should make Morphology a compulsory course to be taught at all levels of education in the university to enhance morphological awareness among undergraduate students and improve their ability to spell words, read words and understand sentences.

Morphological Complexity in Writing: Implications for Writing Quality and Patterns of Change.

The current study examined (a) the relation between morphologically complex word (MCW) use (words containing at least one derivational morpheme such as prefixes and suffixes) and teachers' ratings of writing quality, (b) average change in MCW use in writing across the school year, and (c) differential change in MCW among students with varying language abilities and linguistic backgrounds including students with developmental language disorders (DLDs) and multilingual learners (MLs). Expository writing samples (writing for the purpose of explaining or educating) were collected in October and May from 824 fifth-grade students, including 109 with DLD and 170 who were MLs receiving English as a second language service. Students' written responses were coded for the use of MCW. Pearson product-moment correlations and two-level hierarchical linear models were employed to investigate the association between MCW usage and writing quality, as well as increases in MCW usage over the course of the academic year, taking into account the nested structure of students within classrooms. The relation between students' MCW use and teachers' writing quality ratings was moderately strong (r = .47). Student use of MCW in expository writing showed significant change from fall to spring across all students. However, the amount of change in MCW use across the school year was significantly lower for MLs (effect size [ES] = .09) and students identified with DLD (ES = .10). The relation between MCW use and teachers' writing quality ratings highlights the utility of MCW as a written language measure for progress monitoring or assessment. The presence of differential change and potential Matthew effects for MLs and students with DLD substantiates the need for further exploration of instructional components that support the increased use of complex vocabulary.

Morphological Awareness and Cross-Language Transfer

This research investigated how knowledge of word structure (morphology) transfers across languages in an EFL context. The study involved 100 randomly selected students from basic education in Tunisia, with half from Grade 8 and the other half from Grade 9. The students' vocabulary sizes were assessed using an adapted version of Nation's Vocabulary Levels. Additionally, tests for inflectional and derivational morphemes in Arabic, French, and English were used to measure the students' awareness of word structure. The students also completed two tasks involving words that are similar in meaning and form across languages (cognates) in French-English and Arabic-English. The results showed that knowledge of word structure in Arabic did not relate to knowledge of word structure in English, but there were significant connections between knowledge of word structure in French and English. Furthermore, the study revealed that the similarity of English words with Arabic affected the transfer of knowledge of word structure, while knowledge of word structure in French had an impact on both similar and dissimilar English words.

The Analysis of Word Formation Processes in CNN News Political Articles

Morphological analysis typically consists of the identification of parts of words or more technically, constituents of words. The purpose of this research is to classify and analyze the process of word formation, especially derivational morphemes in political articles posted on the CNN News online news platform. The researcher used a qualitative research method. Data collecting technique used was observation. The results of the analysis were explained in detail. Results of the analysis was 11 suffixes found that classified as adjective derivation, 15 suffixes were identified as noun derivation, 5 suffixes was classified as verb derivation, and affixes that have function to change the meaning of word was 16 prefixes and 5 suffixes. The highest number of affixes found was affixes that have function to change the meaning of word. It meant that it prefer to use simple and effective words to make the readers easy to understand and more interested in reading another news in CNN News especially political articles.

Clustering and declustering things: The meaning of collective and singulative morphology in Ukrainian

Many languages have systems of collective and singulative derivational morphology (e.g., de Vries 2021; Dali & Mathieu 2021b). Recent research on Slavic collectives (Grimm & Dočekal 2021; Wągiel 2021a) and singulatives (Kagan & Nurmio to appear; Kagan, Geist & Erschler to appear) shows the significance of these data for the study of linguistic mechanisms of individuation. In this paper,we contribute by investigating the semantics of two derivational morphemes in Ukrainian: the collective suffix -j- and the singulative suffix -yn-, and the interaction between the two in secondary singulatives, e.g., pero ‘a feather’⇒pirja ‘clustered feathers’⇒pirjina ‘a (small) feather’, and secondary collectives, e.g., popil ‘ash’ ⇒ popelyna ‘a speck of ash’ ⇒ popelynnja ‘clustered specks of ash’. Building on the theory of Grimm (2012), we propose a mereotopological account that explains the Ukrainian data in terms of the ontological distinction between integrated objects and clusters: -j- turns properties of integrated objects into properties of clusters, whereas -yn- takes properties of clusters and yields properties of integrated objects.

English Derivational and Inflectional Morphemes of the Authentic-Recount Text

Some first-grade students of SMKN 1 Pemalang still have difficulties in arranging words when they produce texts. Vocational students generally focus more on their vocations such as computer network engineering, visual communication design, etc. This impacts their ability to string words in English related to applying derivational and inflectional morphemes because they are meaningful in composing sentences according to their meaning and function. So, this research aimed to discover the types and errors of derivational and inflectional morphemes found in the authentic-recount texts made by vocational students. Fromkin’s theory was used to analyze data using descriptive qualitative method. It revealed 5 types of derivational and 3 types of inflectional morphemes were used by students when creating authentic-recount texts. Additionally, learners still make errors in applying those morphemes into sentences of the recount texts with a total of 38 errors, including 5 derivational morphemes and 33 inflectional morphemes. Thus, students are required to understand more about the function and meaning of words before constructing sentences because it plays a significant part in writing English texts. Further researchers are advised to conduct deeper research that focuses on reconstructing sentences, especially in implementing suffixes or other materials which are included in morphology subject.

Грамматический статус синтетического показателя сравнения -ДАй в казахском языке

The paper defines the grammatical status of the Kazakh affix -DAy. It is an all-Turkic form grammaticalized relatively recently from a comparative postposition. In Turkic languages, postpositions have been identified as a recognized mechanism for the grammaticalization of novel case forms. Sometimes, the process of grammaticalization remains incomplete, with forms being produced that are often defined as case suffixes, derivational morphemes, or postposition affixes. The status of the affix -DAy/-DIy varies across Turkic languages and should be defined for each Turkic language individually. The turcological literature often debates its status, even within the same Turkic language. Our research focuses on analyzing the morphonological, morphosyntactic, and accentual characteristics of the -DAy form in the Kazakh language. The analysis based on different criteria has defined -DAy as a young equative-similative case morpheme. However, our experimental study has revealed variations in the accentual patterns of word forms with the affix -DAy in different Kazakh varieties, including the Standard Kazakh (the literary variant used in Kazakhstan) and those spoken in Mongolia and China. The variety spoken in Mongolia and China demonstrates a more pronounced grammaticalization of the affix -DAy as a case marker, compared to Standard Kazakh. None-theless, the distinctions are subtle and demand further exploration. Thus, the pace of grammaticalization processes differs even among local varieties of the same language. The use of experimental methods can provide clarity on the status of these entities.

Сравнительный аффикс -ДЫй и модально-сравнительные показатели, образованные на его основе (на материале алтайского языка)

The paper examines the semantics and functioning of the comparative affix -DYy and modal-comparative markers derived from this affix in the Altai language. -DYy is a common marker in comparative constructions indicating a realistic comparison. Originating as a postposition, it frequently appears in various Turkic languages. In the Altai language, the status of this affix is not unambiguous, being commonly categorized as a postposition-affix, case form, or derivational morpheme. It signifies the comparative relationships of similarity between situations or objects. In modern Altai, -DYy is a part of two participle affixes, namely the comparative -GAndYy and -GAdYy denoting possibility or suggestion and a part of the modal particle nemediy (as if). All these markers are found to preserve, to varying degrees, the semantics of comparison carried by the affix -DYy, and then to develop the semantics of modality. The -GAndYy participles form synthetic comparative polypredicative constructions, with the standard of comparison thought of as not actually existing but serving as an ideal or standard for some event. The -GAdYy participles denote the semantics of potential possibility and suggestion. The particle nemediy conveys the modal meaning of seemingness and probability of action. All the markers under consideration can denote seemingness when combined with verbs of perception. The semantics analysis of the markers containing -DYy has revealed the connection between non-real comparison and modality and the development of semantics of appearance, with the possibility being the next stage of semantic development.

Morphological Analysis of Inflectional Morphemes in Elon Musk Speech

This research aims to investigate types of inflectional morphemes and the most dominant morphemes appearing in Elon Musk Speech. This study is a qualitative research that adopted the data analysis designed by Miles & Huberman (1994) which covers data reduction, data display, and conclusion drawing. The result of this study is that, In particular, For the inflecttional affixes, the affixes that occured were eighty-five (85) suffixes. There were no prefixes. There were seven (7) different types of suffixes, such asa; -s/es indicating plural, -s/es indicating third person singular, -ed indicating past tense, -ed indicating past participle, -‘s indicating possessive, -ing indicating progressive, -est indicating superlative. As a result, suffixes –s/es plural become the mostt dominant suffixed which are being used in Elon Musk’s speech. Since the analysis of this paper is still limited on the inflectional morphemes in Elon Musk’s speech, the other researcher are suggesed to do additional research on Derivational Morphemes using song’s lyric or novel as a different data resources.

Derivational Morphology Features in Common Akeanon Dialects

Akeanon language reflects the rich cultural uniqueness of Aklan natives in Panay Island, Philippines. It is spoken in different dialects as Akeanon Buruangganon, Akeanon Nabasnon, and Akeanon Bukidnon distinct from the standard Akeanon used in the central town of Kalibo. This descriptive cross-sectional study used documentary and content analyses to determine the derivational morphology features, and the different variations of common Akeanon dialects in terms of structure, word order, and affixation. Results revealed that most dialect variations of the language are expressed with endearment and warmth, with respect and assurance; followed by an inverted pattern from the normal word order of spoken or written English. Reduplication of base words and affixations using circumfix or confix were noted. Most of these affixes were derivational morphemes. Structure variations were observed wherein a bound morpheme in one dialect changes in another; some dropped an affix but retained its definition. Some Akeanon dialects have Tagalog origin while standard Akeanon words have substitutes in Akeanon dialect variations.

Spanish Phonological Awareness in Kindergarten Uniquely Supports Second-Grade English Morphological Awareness in Spanish-English Dual Language Learners.

This study investigated the longitudinal, cross-linguistic developmental relationships of phonological awareness (PA), letter identification (letter ID), and morphological awareness (MA) in 71 heritage Spanish-English dual language learners (DLLs) in kindergarten and second grade. Multiple linear regression was used to test if kindergarten Spanish and English PA (sound elision and sound matching) and letter ID significantly predicted later English MA (oral derived word stress judgment, oral derivational morpheme blending, written derived word decomposition, and morphologically complex word spelling) performance in second grade. Cross-linguistically, the PA skill of sound matching in kindergarten was the most reliable predictor of MA in second grade for Spanish-English DLLs. Spanish PA explained the majority of variation in oral MA skills in English. English PA was only uniquely predictive of written MA skills in English. Both the cognitive operation of sound sequence manipulation in PA (elision or matching) and the modality of morpheme representation in MA (oral or written) appear to mediate the transfer of metalinguistic knowledge in Spanish-English DLL development in early elementary school. Results are discussed within the context of classroom practices.

Word Formation Head and the Typology Analysis of the Word Formation Corpus in Albanian

Word formation in Albanian studies represents many problems that have been identified not only in university level but even in the pre-university one. This paper intends to examine the concept of the head as part of the word formation process, as this is a term, which is not encountered in the Albanian traditional studies. It will be introduced in this study from the perspective of the generative grammar theory. The aim of this paper is to discuss and argue about the similarity of the process and of the terminology when used at the syntactic and morphological level. Furthermore, there will be introduced some criteria based on which the head is defined at each level, and by providing arguments that some of these criteria are not applied at both levels. Then, it will be examined how the term head is applied at the morphological level, by describing its features when it is a derivational morpheme, or when it is the root/base form. Finally, two ways of approaching word-formation will be presented: one of them is based on the morpheme and it includes the concept of the head (morpheme-based morphology), and the other is based on the word (word-based morphology), where the concept of the head has not been excluded, while word-formation rules are being drafted. The approach of the study will be from an analytical and comparative perspective.
 
 Received: 22 August 2023 / Accepted: 27 September 2023 / Published: 5 November 2023

Derivational Morpheme Errors in English: A Study of Libyan Students at Al-Mergib University

Proficiency in a language entail mastering components such as lexical nuances and grammatical rules. However, morphology often gets overlooked in university programs, underscoring the need for students to heighten their morphological awareness to refine their English writing. This research delves into the errors in using derivational morphemes by third- and fourth-year English major students from Libya. The objective is to identify, categorize, and understand the root causes of these errors. The study, involving ten participants from Al-Mergib University, used a qualitative research approach with essay writing as the primary data collection tool. The analysis uncovers various errors in derivational morpheme usage. Specifically, the study recorded 36 omission errors, 16 order errors, 6 incorrect formations, and 3 other errors. A striking observation was that errors predominantly centered on suffixes over prefixes. The most frequent mistakes arose in the transformation of adjectives to adverbs and verbs to nouns, encompassing omissions, additions, misordering, and misformations. For educators, this study underscores the importance of understanding student challenges with derivational morphemes, especially related to verbs and nouns. It advocates for a pedagogical approach that includes group discussions analyzing relevant texts. By highlighting these errors, the study offers valuable insights into areas where Libyan students require focused attention in English morphology.

Gender-Marking -ess: The Suffix that Failed

Abstract Languages with grammatical gender typically have affixes, sometimes called motion affixes, for converting grammatically masculine, semantically male human nouns into grammatically feminine, semantically female ones (e.g. German -in, as in Professor “male professor”, Professorin “female professor”). It it widely assumed that the English suffix -ess (as in actress, waitress) is such an affix. We show that this assumption is false. By the time the suffix entered the language via French and Latin loanwords from the 13th century onwards, English had lost its grammatical gender system and human nouns without gender marking were no longer interpreted as male by default. While the suffix initially served a function in deriving female correlates to lexically male human nouns (for example, nouns referring to members of the clergy or the so-called nobility), it gradually shifted to a suffix invoking female-directed stereotypes. This is a fundamental difference to motion affixes and ultimately led to the disappearance of -ess as a productive derivational morpheme. Based on an empirical analysis of roughly 780 derivations and loanwords documented in the OED and various large corpora, we trace this shift and discuss it in terms of morphological theory, in particular, with respect to the notion of productivity.

An analysis of Swahili verbal inflection and derivational morphemes: An item and arrangement approach

This research paper investigates the affixation and derivation processes in Swahili, a highly inflective and agglutinative language spoken in East Africa. Swahili defaults to SVO but allows for VSO or SOV word orders. The study's primary objective is to understand how Swahili words are inflected or derived, and the function of affixation. The research aims to enhance our understanding of the language's morphology and contribute to language learning and teaching methodologies. The study uses a descriptive-qualitative approach, collecting data from the Swahili dictionary, native Swahili speakers, and other relevant resources. Eight knowledgeable informants, native speakers of Swahili from Tanzania and Kenya, provide valuable insights. The researcher, who is also a native Swahili speaker, guides the data collection process. The research findings reveal that Swahili words exhibit affixation in the form of prefixes, infixes, suffixes, and circumfixes. The study also discovered that the key to successful Swahili derivation lies in utilizing stem words to create new words with distinct meanings or contexts from the same word class. Additionally, derivative morphemes were discovered as a result of the affixation process. In conclusion, the research contributes to our understanding of Swahili's morphology, particularly its affixation and derivation processes. The use of inflectional and derivational morphemes allows Swahili speakers to express complex thoughts and convey subtle nuances, making the language a rich and versatile means of communication and cultural expression. This research has implications for language learning and teaching, particularly for those interested in exploring Swahili word morphology.