Here's a breakdown of the different types of inflectional morphemes and their functions:
1. Number
* -s: Indicates plural form for nouns (e.g., cat/cats, dog/dogs)
* -es: Used for plural forms of nouns ending in -s, -sh, -ch, -x, or -z (e.g., bus/buses, box/boxes)
2. Tense
* -ed: Indicates past tense for verbs (e.g., walk/walked, play/played)
* -ing: Indicates present participle (e.g., walking, playing)
* -s: Indicates third-person singular present tense (e.g., he walks, she plays)
3. Person
* -s: Indicates third-person singular present tense (e.g., he walks, she plays)
4. Gender
* -ess: Indicates feminine gender (e.g., prince/princess, actor/actress) - Note: This morpheme is becoming less common and often seen as outdated or sexist.
5. Case
* -s: Indicates possessive case for nouns (e.g., the cat's toy, the girl's book)
6. Degree
* -er: Indicates comparative degree for adjectives and adverbs (e.g., taller, faster)
* -est: Indicates superlative degree for adjectives and adverbs (e.g., tallest, fastest)
Examples:
* Cat: noun (singular)
* Cats: noun (plural)
* Walk: verb (present tense)
* Walked: verb (past tense)
* Walking: verb (present participle)
* He walks: verb (third-person singular present tense)
* The cat's toy: noun (possessive case)
* Taller: adjective (comparative degree)
Key Points:
* Inflectional morphemes are always suffixes in English.
* They add grammatical information but do not change the word's basic meaning.
* They are essential for creating grammatically correct sentences.
By understanding inflectional morphemes, you can better grasp the nuances of English grammar and improve your ability to form correct and meaningful sentences.