maket_N_verjin.qxp Etymology and Word Decoding The vocabulary or lexicon of a language is a systemrather than a list. Its elements interrelate and change subtly or massively from generation to generation. It increases through borrowing from other languages and through word-formation based on its own or borrowed patterns. It may decrease or increase in certain areas as interests change. Whole sets of items may vanish from general use and awareness, unless special activities serve to keep them alive. Historically, the word-store of English is composite, drawn in the main from the Indo-European language family. The base is predominantly Germanic (mainly Old English and Old Norse) with a super-structure of Romance forms (mainly French and Latin) with a technical stratum contributed by Greek (mainly through Latin and French). In addition, there are many acquisitions from languages throughout the world. The great number of borrowings gave way to the existence of the phenomenon bisociation in English, i.e. the occurrence in a language of pairs of words with similar meanings, one member of each pair being native to that language (such as everyday English sight), the other being a loanword from an influential foreign source (such as vision, a loanword from Latin). In English, the vernacular members of such pairs are mainly Germanic (usually from Old English or Old Norse), while the loanwords are mainly classical (usually from Latin, often mediated by French), as in: freedom/liberty, hearty/cordial, go up/ascend, go down/descend. Bisociation in English has often been remarked on. Simeon Potter, for example, observes: “We feel more at ease after getting a hearty welcome than after being granted a cordial reception” (Potter 1950:66). Similarly, Thomas Finkenstaedt has noted: “Apparently the Elizabethans discovered the possibilities of etymological dissociation in language: amatory and love, audition and hearing, hearty welcome and cordial reception” (Finkenstaedt 1973). This kind of semantic parallelism has also occurred in Latin, which has absorbed many words from Greek, creating such pairs as Latin compassio and Greek sympathia. In many instances, such pairs have passed into English, leading to trisociation, as with Germanic fellow feeling, Latinate compassion, and Greek-derived sympathy. There are scores of such correspondences in English, the Germanic material tending to be part of everyday usage (as with newness), the Latinate tending to be more formal and “educated” (as with innovate), and the Greek tending to be highly technical and even arcane (as with neophyte). In fact a great part of the Latin and Greek borrowings doesn’t form a part of our active vocabulary thus hindering their perception. However, it’s impossible to escape the 167 Linguistics Armenian Folia Anglistika Susanna Baghdasaryan necessity of recognizing the latter since we often come across texts pertaining to different scientific domains.1 As it was mentioned above, the contact of English with various foreign languages has led to the adoption of countless foreign words and word parts. These parts were no doubt originally independent words. They came into English ready made and preserving their old meaning became suffixed or prefixed to full English words. There are many prefixes used in scientific terminology, which have come into the language through borrowings. These prefixes are still very productive, especially in scientific vocabulary and are used in scientific terminology.2 Prefixes or suffixes, or both are added to a root-form already in existence, and form a new word. These foreign affixes may be used with English roots. They make entirely new types unknown in the language from which they are adopted. These affixes retain their original forms. As a consequence hybrid types of words are composed: a foreign word is combined with a native affix as in clearness or unbutton and a foreign affix with a native word as in breakage or growth. Thus, one good approach is to learn how to build up or to tear apart words. A knowledge of these word parts and their meanings can help us to determine the meanings of unfamiliar words belonging to highly specialized areas of the vocabulary. For example the word amorphous which means shapeless according to Berger and Bowen can be divided into the following parts: a (without, not) and morph (shape, form) with the addition of the suffix ous (having the qualities of) (Berger, Bowen 2000:71). Many other words such as bienniel or perennial can easily be differentiated by the meanings and by choice of affixes: biennial – every two years (bi = two; enniel = year) perennial – present all year (per = present; enniel = year) The role of the etymological factor in the analysis of English words (and not only English) is very important. The result of our study is a list of common English and foreign prefixes, roots and suffixes that may come in handy. 168 Armenian Folia Anglistika Linguistics 169 Linguistics Armenian Folia Anglistika Prefix Meaning Example Illustration a without amoral without moral sense ante before antecedent preceding event or word anti against antibody against harmful bacteria auto self autobiography person's life written by himself bene good beneficial having good effect, helpful bi two bicycle two-wheeled vehicle circum around circumspect to look around com combine merge with Co coeditor joint editor col with, together collateral connected con conference meeting cor corroborate confirm Di two dichotomy division into two parts dis apart disparity condition of inequality hyper above hyperthermia high temperature hypo below hypothermia low temperature inter between interstate between states mal bad malevolent wishing to do evil, bad to others micro small microscopic extremely small mis wrong mispronounce to pronounce wrongly multi many multiplication a given number of times neo new neophyte beginner poly many polytheism worship of more than one God re again redo to do again retro back retrogress to go or move backward se away, aside secede withdraw semi half semiannual every six months uni one unison oneness of pitch tele far telemetry measurement from a distance Thus, by mastering basic word parts through etymology we will be able to unlock the meaning of numerous words. The list of foreign prefixes, suffixes, roots and stems may be several times as much as the above mentioned list but it is not unlimited. Whatever is within limit is not difficult to learn. Moreover, it is very interesting to go 170 Armenian Folia Anglistika Linguistics R oot or s te m M e aning Example Illus tration agri f ield agrarian one w ho w ork s in the field alt high altitude height anim m ind,soul unanim ous of one m ind bio lif e biology st udy of liv ing things celer sw if t accelerate increase sw if tness cord heart accord agreem ent(from the heart) derm sk in derm atology st udy of sk in ego I egocent ric rev olv ing about self fin end,lim it confine k eep w ithin lim its gam m arriage m onogam y m arrage t o one person dom in t o rule dom inate hav e pow er ov er helio sun heliot rope flow er t hat faces t he sun labor t o w ork laborious dif ficult leg law legitim ate law ful m an hand m anuscript w ritt en by hand m on t o w arn m onitor w at cher, w arner nav ship nav igat e sail a ship om ni all om niscient all k now ing path desease pathology st udy of disease, tissue path f eeling antipathy hostile f eeling psych m ind psychopath m entally ill person rupt t o break interrupt break into sect cut bisect cut into tw o pieces som n sleep insom nia inability to sleep term end interm inable endless urb city suburban outside of cit y v ac em pt y ev acuate com pel to em pty an area v ol w ish v oluntary of one’s ow n w ill Suffix Meaning Example Illustration able, ible capable of portable able to be carried ary like, connected with dictionary book connected with words ate to make consecrate to make holy ation that which is irritation annoyance fic making, doing terrifi c arousing great fear ism doctrine, belief monotheism belief in one god ity state of being annuity yearly grant ive like expensive costly oid resembling anthropoid resembling man ose full of verbose full of tears deeper into these studies enlarging our understanding of the vocabulary. “Learning thirty key word parts can help you unlock the meaning of over 10 000 words. Learning fifty key word parts can help you unlock the meaning of over 100 000!” (Green 1998:242). Notes: 1. This often results in serious problems in the teaching process as students sometimes have great difficulties in decoding scientific terms. Every word derives from its context and only the context will fix the exact meaning of the word which may be too vague or too ambiguous to make sense by itself. Sometimes the students succeed in figuring out a word’s meaning by using their knowledge of context clues or by judging them, but very often they fail. 2. One of the commonest and also oldest methods of word-formation – derivation, is found in almost all languages and is considered a general linguistic phenomenon. References: 1. Berger, L.; Bowen, H. (2000) Up your Score. The Underground Guide to the SAT. New York: Workman Publishing. 2. Finkenstaedt, Thomas; Wolff, Dieter (1973) Ordered Profusion. Studies in Dictionaries and the English Lexicon. Heidelberg: C. Winter. 3. Green, Sharon, Weiner; Wolf, Ira, K. (1998) How to Prepare for the SAT 1. Hauppauge: Barron’s Educational Series. 4. Khidekel, S.; Ginzburg, R. (1975) Readings in Modern English Lexicology. Leningrad: Prosveshcheniye. 5. Kinneavy, James E.; Warrine, John E. (1998) Elements of Writing. New York: Holt, Rinehart & Winston. 6. Potter, Simeon (1950) Our Language. England: Penguin Books. 7. www.encyclopedia.com 8. www.english-at-home.com 9. www.linguistics.ucla.edu 10. www.zas.gwz-berlin.de ̳·áõÙݳµ³ÝáõÃÛáõÝ ¨ µ³éÇ í»ñͳÝáõÙ È»½íÇ µ³é³å³ß³ñÁ ÙÇ Ñ³Ù³Ï³ñ· ¿, áñÝ ³×áõÙ ¿ ÑÇÙݳϳÝáõÙ µ³é³- ϳ½ÙáõÃÛ³Ý ßÝáñÑÇí: ì»ñçÇÝë ï»ÕÇ ¿ áõÝ»ÝáõÙ ë»÷³Ï³Ý ϳ٠÷á˳éÝí³Í µ³é³Ù³ëÝÇÏÝ»ñÇ (³ñÙ³ï ¨ ³Í³Ýó) ÙÇçáóáí, áñáÝù, ³ÝϳëϳÍ, ݳËÏÇ- ÝáõÙ »Õ»É »Ý ÇÝùÝáõñáõÛÝ µ³é»ñ ¨, Ý»ñó÷³Ýó»Éáí ³Ý·É»ñ»ÝÇ µ³é³å³- ß³ñ, ϳ½Ù»É »Ý Ýáñ µ³é»ñª å³Ñå³Ý»Éáí ÑÇÝ ÇÙ³ëïÁ: ȳïÇÝ»ñ»Ý ¨ Ñáõݳ- ñ»Ý ÷á˳éáõÃÛáõÝÝ»ñÇ Ù»Í Ù³ëÁ ³ÏïÇí µ³é³å³ß³ñÇ Ù³ë ã»Ý ϳ½ÙáõÙ. ¹ñ³Ýù ÑÇÙݳϳÝáõÙ í»ñ³µ»ñáõÙ »Ý ·Çï³Ï³Ý ï»ñÙÇÝÝ»ñÇÝ: 171 Linguistics Armenian Folia Anglistika