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ETYMOLOGICAL THEORY

HOW WORDS ARE CREATED

I. By imitation of sounds (onomatopoeia)

Meow, bang, crackle, zip, ring

II. Through extended meanings

The verb fly becomes: the name of an insect, a baseball that is hit high, the space over a theater stage

III. As derivations

From study comes student, from moon comes month

IV. Through compound words

Notebook, bedroom and mailbox are some obvious examples but also note elbow (ell + bow) and lackadaisical (from the expression 'lackaday' which itself derives from 'alack the day').

V. From root + affix

Prefix + root

Pro- (forward or forth) + duce (lead) = produce ("bring forth")

Root + suffix

Wonder + -full = wonderful

VI. Through changing pronunciation

Breakfast, cupboard, extraordinary

VII. Through changing spelling

Alone is from 'all one'. Felt was once used to strain liquid, so the piece of felt used as the strainer became known as a felter, which later changed to filter. "God be with you" was once a valediction which, over the centuries, came to be pronounced and spelled as good-bye.

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VIII. From names (eponyms)

People's names:

The Teddy Bear is named after Teddy Roosevelt and the electrical volt after Alessandro Volta.

Place names:

Frankfurters after named after Frankfurt, Germany, and jeans after Genoa, Italy.

Trade names:

Kleenex, Band-aid, Jello, Xerox, Hoover

IX. From the shortening or truncating of words

Telephone becomes phone, photograph becomes photo, megabyte becomes meg

X. From acronyms

Sonar = SOund NAvigation Ranging, laser = Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation

XI. Portmanteau words

Motor + hotel = motel

XII. From foreign words

Influenza (Italian), rendezvous (French), chow (Chinese), opal (Sanskrit)

XIII. Invented words

Quiz, quark