Derivational Morphemes: Adding Meaning and Changing Word Class
Derivational morphemes are prefixes and suffixes that change the meaning or word class of a base word. They build new words with different meanings and grammatical functions.
Here's a breakdown with examples:
1. Prefixes:
* Un-: means "not" or "opposite of"
* happy (adjective) + un- = unhappy (adjective)
* Re-: means "again" or "back"
* write (verb) + re- = rewrite (verb)
* Dis-: means "not" or "opposite of"
* agree (verb) + dis- = disagree (verb)
* Mis-: means "badly" or "wrongly"
* understand (verb) + mis- = misunderstand (verb)
2. Suffixes:
* -ness: turns an adjective into a noun (meaning "state of being")
* happy (adjective) + -ness = happiness (noun)
* -er: turns a verb into a noun (meaning "one who does the action")
* teach (verb) + -er = teacher (noun)
* -ful: turns a noun into an adjective (meaning "full of")
* hope (noun) + -ful = hopeful (adjective)
* -ment: turns a verb into a noun (meaning "the result or process of")
* develop (verb) + -ment = development (noun)
3. Combining Prefixes and Suffixes:
* un- + -able: means "not able to be"
* breakable (adjective) + un- = unbreakable (adjective)
Beyond the Basics:
* Some morphemes can be both prefixes and suffixes, depending on the word. For example, "re-" can also be a suffix as in "overcome."
* The meaning of a derivational morpheme can vary depending on the base word. For instance, "pre-" can mean "before" (pre-game) or "early" (premature).
Understanding derivational morphemes is key to learning new words and understanding their nuances.