Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
I Lexicon
1.The meanings of lexicon
? In its most general sense,lexicon is synonymous
with vocabulary,denoting the system formed by
the total sum of all the words and word
equivalents that a given language possesses.
? In its technical sense,lexicon is synonymous with
lexicology,which is a branch of linguistics dealing
with the vocabulary of a language and the
properties of words as the main units of language;
in other words,it deals with the analysis and
creation of words,idioms and collocations.
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
2,Word
2.1 Defining,word” (76-78)
? A word is a unit of expression which has
universal intuitive recognition by native
speakers,whether it is expressed in spoken or
written fonn,Three main senses of,word” are
usually distinguished (though terminology
varies):
A physically definable unit,a word is a series of
sound segments or letters between two pauses
or blanks,(形体可定义的单元 )
(2) The common factor underlying a set of
forms,a word is the common factor
underlying the set of forms which are plainly
variants of the same unit,such as walk,walks,
walking,walked,The underlying unit is often
referred to as a lexeme,which is a unit of
vocabulary,an item listed in a dictionary (a
lexical item).（ 隐含于一组词形中的共同因素 )
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
(3) A grammatical unit (78),word is a comparably
abstract unit to be set up to show how words
work in the grammar of a language,In terms of
lexicogrammar,word is a level between
morpheme and word group in the hierarchy of
grammatical units,which rises from morpheme
at the bottom up to the sentence at the top,In
this sense,a word is a grammatical unit,of the
same theoretical kind as morpheme and
sentence.(一个语法单位 )
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
2.2 The identification of words (78-79)
? Besides the three senses of,word” mentioned above,
there are other factors which help us to identify words.
(1) Stability(稳定性 ),words are the most stable of all
linguistic units,in respect of their internal structure.
(2) Relative uninterruptibility(相对的不可隔断性 ),new
elements are not to be inserted into a word even when
there are several parts in the word,(i.e,outlaws,touch-
me-not)
(3) A minimum free form,a word is the smallest unit which
can constitute,by itself,a complete utterance.
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
3, The classification of words (P80)
3.1 According to their variability,variable and
invariable words（ 可变化词和不变词 ） Variable
words are those words which can take inflective
endings; invariable words are those that cannot.
3.2 According to their grammatical and semantic
properties,grammatical and lexical words(语法
词和词汇词 )
词 汇 词 也 即 实 词, 又 译 作 notional/content
word ; 语法词也即虚词, 又称 function/form
word 功能词 /形式词
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
3.3 According to their membership:c1osed- class
and open-class words (封闭类词和开放类词 )
An close class is one whose membership is in
principle fixed or limited,（ 封闭类：连介代
冠 ）
An open class is one whose membership is in
principle indefinite or unlimited,(开放类：名
动形副数叹 )
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
3.4 According to their similarities in terms of
inflections and distribution or by analyzing the
various grammatical,semantic and phonological
properties:
nine or ten word classes (close to the notion of
parts of speech in traditional grammar) (P81)
名动形副 数 叹, 连介代冠
? Some newly introduced categories which are
more precisely defined (P82-83):
particles (小品词 ) auxiliaries (助动词 )
pro-forms (代词形式 ) determiners (限定词 )
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
*4 Lexeme(词位 )
? In order to reduce the ambiguity of the term word,the
term lexeme is used by some linguists to refer to the
minimal distinctive unit in the semantic system of a
language,The lexeme is thus postulated as the abstract
unit underlying such sets of grammatical variants as walk,
walks,walking,walked,or big,bigger,biggest,Idiomatic
phrases,by this definition,are also considered lexemes
(e.g,kick the bucket (=,die”)).
? Lexemes are the units which are conventionally listed in
dictionaries as separate entries.
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
5 Lexical change (P96-1 10)
5.1 The creation of new words or
expressions(P96-102)
5.2 Phonological change (P103-05)
5.3 Morpho-syntactical change (P105-06)
5.4 Semantic change (P107-10)
5.5 Orthographic change (P110)
Chapter Three Lexicon & MorphologyII Morphology
1,Defining morphology (P88)
1.1 Morphology,the study of the internal structure of words,
and of the rules by which words are formed.
1.2 Fields of morphology,the study of inflections (inflectional
morphology) and the study of word formation (lexical or
derivational morphology).
NOTE:
Inflection (P88) is the manifestation of grammatical
relationships through the addition of inflectional affixes
such as number,person,finiteness (定式：指某一动词或
结构的特点, 即有无时体或数的变化, 与非定式 (non-
finiteness) 相对 ),tense,degree,aspect and case,which do
not change the grammatical class of the stems to which
they are attached.
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
2,Word and morpheme (P84)
2.1 Morpheme,morph and allomorph (P84,93-
95)
? The morpheme is the minimal distinctive
unit of meaning,or in other words,the
smallest unit in terms of relationship
between expression and content,a unit
which cannot be divided without destroying
or drastically altering the meaning,whether
it is lexical or grammatical.
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
? Morphemes are abstract units,which are realised in
particular contexts by specific forms,known as
morphs.
? On analogy with the allophone/phoneme distinction,
the variant forms of a morpheme that appear in
different contexts are referred to as the allomorphs of
the morpheme (or morpheme alternants),Some
morphemes have more than one allomorph,E.g,the
morpheme expressing pluriality in English (the plural
morpheme) has 7,But some have only one form in all
contexts.
(the third-person singular present tense morpheme)
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
2.2 The transcription of morpheme
? Morphemes can be represented in terms of
morphemic shapes,For example,we can say the
word maps contains two morphemes,the
morpheme map and the morpheme -s (expressing
pluriality).
? Morphemes can also be talked about in terms of
phonetic forms,For example,we can say the word
/m?ps/ contains two morphemes,the morpheme
/m?p/ and the morpheme /s/ (expressing
pluriality).
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
3, Types of morphemes (P84-87)
3.1 Free morpheme and bound morpheme
? A free morpheme is one that may constitute a separate word by
itself.
? A bound morpheme is one that may appear with at least one
other morpheme,such as -s in dogs,-al in national.
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
3.2 Root,affix and stem (P85-87)
A root is the base form of a word which cannot be further analyzed
without total loss of identity,It may be a free morpheme (as black in
blackbird,blackboard,blacksmith) as well as a bound one (e.g.-ceive).
Affix is the collective term for the type of formative that can be used
only when added to another morpheme (the root or stem),Affixes
belong to the type of bound morphemes,Though limited in number
in a language,affixes are generally classified into three subtypes:
prefix,suffix and infix,according to their position with reference to
the root or stem of the word,Affixes may also be divided into
inflectional and derivational types (P86-87).
A stem is any morpheme or combination of morphemes to which an
affix can be added,i.e,friendliness (P86).
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
4, Word-formation (P88)
In its restricted sense,word-formation refers to the processes
of word variations signaling lexical relationships.
4.1 The compositional type (compound) (P89-91)
Compounds are new words produced by the combination of
free morphemes.
4.2 The derivational type (derivation→ derivatives) (P91-92)
Derivation refers to the morphological process in which
affixes are added to the stem,There are two types of
derivation,prefixation and suffixation.
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
5 Lexical change (P96-1 10)
5.1 The creation of new words or expressions(P96-102)
5.2 Phonological change (P103-05)
5.3 Morpho-syntactical change (P105-06)
5.4 Semantic change (P107-10)
5.5 Orthographic change (P110)
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
Lexeme(词位 )
? In order to reduce the ambiguity of the term word,the term
lexeme is used by some linguists to refer to the minimal
distinctive unit in the semantic system of a language,The
lexeme is thus postulated as the abstract unit underlying
such sets of grammatical variants as walk,walks,walking,
walked,or big,bigger,biggest,Idiomatic phrases,by this
definition,are also considered lexemes (e.g,kick the bucket
(=,die”)).
? Lexemes are the units which are conventionally listed in
dictionaries as separate entries.
Chapter Three Lexicon & MorphologyII Morphology
1,Defining morphology (P88)
1.1 Morphology,the study of the internal structure of words,
and of the rules by which words are formed.
1.2 Fields of morphology,the study of inflections (inflectional
morphology) and the study of word formation (lexical or
derivational morphology).
NOTE:
Inflection (P88) is the manifestation of grammatical relationships
through the addition of inflectional affixes such as number,person,
finiteness (定式：指某一动词或结构的特点, 即有无时体或数的
变化, 与非定式 (non-finiteness) 相对 ),tense,degree,aspect and
case,which do not change the grammatical class of the stems to
which they are attached.
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
2,Word and morpheme (P84)
2.1 Morpheme,morph and allomorph (P84,93-95)
? The morpheme is the minimal distinctive unit of meaning,or in
other words,the smallest unit in terms of relationship between
expression and content,a unit which cannot be divided without
destroying or drastically altering the meaning,whether it is lexical
or grammatical.
? Morphemes are abstract units,which are realised in particular
contexts by specific forms,known as morphs.
? On analogy with the allophone/phoneme distinction,the variant
forms of a morpheme that appear in different contexts are referred
to as the allomorphs of the morpheme (or morpheme alternants).
Some morphemes have more than one allomorph,E.g,the
morpheme expressing pluriality in English (the plural morpheme)
has 7,But some have only one form in all contexts.
(the third-person singular present tense morpheme)
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
2.2 The transcription of morpheme
? Morphemes can be represented in terms of
morphemic shapes,For example,we can say the
word maps contains two morphemes,the
morpheme map and the morpheme -s (expressing
pluriality).
? Morphemes can also be talked about in terms of
phonetic forms,For example,we can say the word
/m?ps/ contains two morphemes,the morpheme
/m?p/ and the morpheme /s/ (expressing
pluriality).
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
3, Types of morphemes (P84-87)
3.1 Free morpheme and bound morpheme
? A free morpheme is one that may constitute a separate word by
itself.
? A bound morpheme is one that may appear with at least one
other morpheme,such as -s in dogs,-al in national.
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
3.2 Root,affix and stem (P85-87)
A root is the base form of a word which cannot be further analyzed
without total loss of identity,It may be a free morpheme (as black in
blackbird,blackboard,blacksmith) as well as a bound one (e.g.-ceive).
Affix is the collective term for the type of formative that can be used
only when added to another morpheme (the root or stem),Affixes
belong to the type of bound morphemes,Though limited in number
in a language,affixes are generally classified into three subtypes:
prefix,suffix and infix,according to their position with reference to
the root or stem of the word,Affixes may also be divided into
inflectional and derivational types (P86-87).
A stem is any morpheme or combination of morphemes to which an
affix can be added,i.e,friendliness (P86).
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
4, Word-formation (P88)
In its restricted sense,word-formation refers to the processes
of word variations signaling lexical relationships.
4.1 The compositional type (compound) (P89-91)
Compounds are new words produced by the combination of
free morphemes.
4.2 The derivational type (derivation→ derivatives) (P91-
92)
Derivation refers to the morphological process in
which affixes are added to the stem,There are two
types of derivation,prefixation and suffixation.
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
Questions and Exercises
1,Tell the differences and relations among
morpheme,affix,stem and root.
2,Finish the Questions and Exercises 4,5,11,12,
and 13,on Page 112 and Page 114 in our
textbook.
I Lexicon
1.The meanings of lexicon
? In its most general sense,lexicon is synonymous
with vocabulary,denoting the system formed by
the total sum of all the words and word
equivalents that a given language possesses.
? In its technical sense,lexicon is synonymous with
lexicology,which is a branch of linguistics dealing
with the vocabulary of a language and the
properties of words as the main units of language;
in other words,it deals with the analysis and
creation of words,idioms and collocations.
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
2,Word
2.1 Defining,word” (76-78)
? A word is a unit of expression which has
universal intuitive recognition by native
speakers,whether it is expressed in spoken or
written fonn,Three main senses of,word” are
usually distinguished (though terminology
varies):
A physically definable unit,a word is a series of
sound segments or letters between two pauses
or blanks,(形体可定义的单元 )
(2) The common factor underlying a set of
forms,a word is the common factor
underlying the set of forms which are plainly
variants of the same unit,such as walk,walks,
walking,walked,The underlying unit is often
referred to as a lexeme,which is a unit of
vocabulary,an item listed in a dictionary (a
lexical item).（ 隐含于一组词形中的共同因素 )
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
(3) A grammatical unit (78),word is a comparably
abstract unit to be set up to show how words
work in the grammar of a language,In terms of
lexicogrammar,word is a level between
morpheme and word group in the hierarchy of
grammatical units,which rises from morpheme
at the bottom up to the sentence at the top,In
this sense,a word is a grammatical unit,of the
same theoretical kind as morpheme and
sentence.(一个语法单位 )
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
2.2 The identification of words (78-79)
? Besides the three senses of,word” mentioned above,
there are other factors which help us to identify words.
(1) Stability(稳定性 ),words are the most stable of all
linguistic units,in respect of their internal structure.
(2) Relative uninterruptibility(相对的不可隔断性 ),new
elements are not to be inserted into a word even when
there are several parts in the word,(i.e,outlaws,touch-
me-not)
(3) A minimum free form,a word is the smallest unit which
can constitute,by itself,a complete utterance.
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
3, The classification of words (P80)
3.1 According to their variability,variable and
invariable words（ 可变化词和不变词 ） Variable
words are those words which can take inflective
endings; invariable words are those that cannot.
3.2 According to their grammatical and semantic
properties,grammatical and lexical words(语法
词和词汇词 )
词 汇 词 也 即 实 词, 又 译 作 notional/content
word ; 语法词也即虚词, 又称 function/form
word 功能词 /形式词
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
3.3 According to their membership:c1osed- class
and open-class words (封闭类词和开放类词 )
An close class is one whose membership is in
principle fixed or limited,（ 封闭类：连介代
冠 ）
An open class is one whose membership is in
principle indefinite or unlimited,(开放类：名
动形副数叹 )
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
3.4 According to their similarities in terms of
inflections and distribution or by analyzing the
various grammatical,semantic and phonological
properties:
nine or ten word classes (close to the notion of
parts of speech in traditional grammar) (P81)
名动形副 数 叹, 连介代冠
? Some newly introduced categories which are
more precisely defined (P82-83):
particles (小品词 ) auxiliaries (助动词 )
pro-forms (代词形式 ) determiners (限定词 )
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
*4 Lexeme(词位 )
? In order to reduce the ambiguity of the term word,the
term lexeme is used by some linguists to refer to the
minimal distinctive unit in the semantic system of a
language,The lexeme is thus postulated as the abstract
unit underlying such sets of grammatical variants as walk,
walks,walking,walked,or big,bigger,biggest,Idiomatic
phrases,by this definition,are also considered lexemes
(e.g,kick the bucket (=,die”)).
? Lexemes are the units which are conventionally listed in
dictionaries as separate entries.
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
5 Lexical change (P96-1 10)
5.1 The creation of new words or
expressions(P96-102)
5.2 Phonological change (P103-05)
5.3 Morpho-syntactical change (P105-06)
5.4 Semantic change (P107-10)
5.5 Orthographic change (P110)
Chapter Three Lexicon & MorphologyII Morphology
1,Defining morphology (P88)
1.1 Morphology,the study of the internal structure of words,
and of the rules by which words are formed.
1.2 Fields of morphology,the study of inflections (inflectional
morphology) and the study of word formation (lexical or
derivational morphology).
NOTE:
Inflection (P88) is the manifestation of grammatical
relationships through the addition of inflectional affixes
such as number,person,finiteness (定式：指某一动词或
结构的特点, 即有无时体或数的变化, 与非定式 (non-
finiteness) 相对 ),tense,degree,aspect and case,which do
not change the grammatical class of the stems to which
they are attached.
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
2,Word and morpheme (P84)
2.1 Morpheme,morph and allomorph (P84,93-
95)
? The morpheme is the minimal distinctive
unit of meaning,or in other words,the
smallest unit in terms of relationship
between expression and content,a unit
which cannot be divided without destroying
or drastically altering the meaning,whether
it is lexical or grammatical.
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
? Morphemes are abstract units,which are realised in
particular contexts by specific forms,known as
morphs.
? On analogy with the allophone/phoneme distinction,
the variant forms of a morpheme that appear in
different contexts are referred to as the allomorphs of
the morpheme (or morpheme alternants),Some
morphemes have more than one allomorph,E.g,the
morpheme expressing pluriality in English (the plural
morpheme) has 7,But some have only one form in all
contexts.
(the third-person singular present tense morpheme)
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
2.2 The transcription of morpheme
? Morphemes can be represented in terms of
morphemic shapes,For example,we can say the
word maps contains two morphemes,the
morpheme map and the morpheme -s (expressing
pluriality).
? Morphemes can also be talked about in terms of
phonetic forms,For example,we can say the word
/m?ps/ contains two morphemes,the morpheme
/m?p/ and the morpheme /s/ (expressing
pluriality).
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
3, Types of morphemes (P84-87)
3.1 Free morpheme and bound morpheme
? A free morpheme is one that may constitute a separate word by
itself.
? A bound morpheme is one that may appear with at least one
other morpheme,such as -s in dogs,-al in national.
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
3.2 Root,affix and stem (P85-87)
A root is the base form of a word which cannot be further analyzed
without total loss of identity,It may be a free morpheme (as black in
blackbird,blackboard,blacksmith) as well as a bound one (e.g.-ceive).
Affix is the collective term for the type of formative that can be used
only when added to another morpheme (the root or stem),Affixes
belong to the type of bound morphemes,Though limited in number
in a language,affixes are generally classified into three subtypes:
prefix,suffix and infix,according to their position with reference to
the root or stem of the word,Affixes may also be divided into
inflectional and derivational types (P86-87).
A stem is any morpheme or combination of morphemes to which an
affix can be added,i.e,friendliness (P86).
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
4, Word-formation (P88)
In its restricted sense,word-formation refers to the processes
of word variations signaling lexical relationships.
4.1 The compositional type (compound) (P89-91)
Compounds are new words produced by the combination of
free morphemes.
4.2 The derivational type (derivation→ derivatives) (P91-92)
Derivation refers to the morphological process in which
affixes are added to the stem,There are two types of
derivation,prefixation and suffixation.
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
5 Lexical change (P96-1 10)
5.1 The creation of new words or expressions(P96-102)
5.2 Phonological change (P103-05)
5.3 Morpho-syntactical change (P105-06)
5.4 Semantic change (P107-10)
5.5 Orthographic change (P110)
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
Lexeme(词位 )
? In order to reduce the ambiguity of the term word,the term
lexeme is used by some linguists to refer to the minimal
distinctive unit in the semantic system of a language,The
lexeme is thus postulated as the abstract unit underlying
such sets of grammatical variants as walk,walks,walking,
walked,or big,bigger,biggest,Idiomatic phrases,by this
definition,are also considered lexemes (e.g,kick the bucket
(=,die”)).
? Lexemes are the units which are conventionally listed in
dictionaries as separate entries.
Chapter Three Lexicon & MorphologyII Morphology
1,Defining morphology (P88)
1.1 Morphology,the study of the internal structure of words,
and of the rules by which words are formed.
1.2 Fields of morphology,the study of inflections (inflectional
morphology) and the study of word formation (lexical or
derivational morphology).
NOTE:
Inflection (P88) is the manifestation of grammatical relationships
through the addition of inflectional affixes such as number,person,
finiteness (定式：指某一动词或结构的特点, 即有无时体或数的
变化, 与非定式 (non-finiteness) 相对 ),tense,degree,aspect and
case,which do not change the grammatical class of the stems to
which they are attached.
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
2,Word and morpheme (P84)
2.1 Morpheme,morph and allomorph (P84,93-95)
? The morpheme is the minimal distinctive unit of meaning,or in
other words,the smallest unit in terms of relationship between
expression and content,a unit which cannot be divided without
destroying or drastically altering the meaning,whether it is lexical
or grammatical.
? Morphemes are abstract units,which are realised in particular
contexts by specific forms,known as morphs.
? On analogy with the allophone/phoneme distinction,the variant
forms of a morpheme that appear in different contexts are referred
to as the allomorphs of the morpheme (or morpheme alternants).
Some morphemes have more than one allomorph,E.g,the
morpheme expressing pluriality in English (the plural morpheme)
has 7,But some have only one form in all contexts.
(the third-person singular present tense morpheme)
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
2.2 The transcription of morpheme
? Morphemes can be represented in terms of
morphemic shapes,For example,we can say the
word maps contains two morphemes,the
morpheme map and the morpheme -s (expressing
pluriality).
? Morphemes can also be talked about in terms of
phonetic forms,For example,we can say the word
/m?ps/ contains two morphemes,the morpheme
/m?p/ and the morpheme /s/ (expressing
pluriality).
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
3, Types of morphemes (P84-87)
3.1 Free morpheme and bound morpheme
? A free morpheme is one that may constitute a separate word by
itself.
? A bound morpheme is one that may appear with at least one
other morpheme,such as -s in dogs,-al in national.
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
3.2 Root,affix and stem (P85-87)
A root is the base form of a word which cannot be further analyzed
without total loss of identity,It may be a free morpheme (as black in
blackbird,blackboard,blacksmith) as well as a bound one (e.g.-ceive).
Affix is the collective term for the type of formative that can be used
only when added to another morpheme (the root or stem),Affixes
belong to the type of bound morphemes,Though limited in number
in a language,affixes are generally classified into three subtypes:
prefix,suffix and infix,according to their position with reference to
the root or stem of the word,Affixes may also be divided into
inflectional and derivational types (P86-87).
A stem is any morpheme or combination of morphemes to which an
affix can be added,i.e,friendliness (P86).
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
4, Word-formation (P88)
In its restricted sense,word-formation refers to the processes
of word variations signaling lexical relationships.
4.1 The compositional type (compound) (P89-91)
Compounds are new words produced by the combination of
free morphemes.
4.2 The derivational type (derivation→ derivatives) (P91-
92)
Derivation refers to the morphological process in
which affixes are added to the stem,There are two
types of derivation,prefixation and suffixation.
Chapter Three Lexicon & Morphology
Questions and Exercises
1,Tell the differences and relations among
morpheme,affix,stem and root.
2,Finish the Questions and Exercises 4,5,11,12,
and 13,on Page 112 and Page 114 in our
textbook.
