Word Formation Questions Long
Clipping in word formation refers to the process of creating a new word by shortening an existing word. It involves removing one or more syllables from a longer word to create a shorter and more concise form. Clipping is a common word formation process in many languages, including English.
There are different types of clipping, including back-clipping, fore-clipping, and middle-clipping. Back-clipping involves removing the end of a word, while fore-clipping involves removing the beginning. Middle-clipping, as the name suggests, involves removing a part of the word from the middle.
Clipping is often used to create informal or colloquial words, as well as to form abbreviations or acronyms. It is a way to create new words that are easier to pronounce or remember. For example, "advertisement" is clipped to "ad," "television" is clipped to "TV," and "mathematics" is clipped to "math."
Clipped words can also undergo further changes, such as adding suffixes or prefixes, to create even more variations. For example, "photo" is a clipped form of "photograph," and it can be further modified to "photographer" by adding the suffix "-er."
Overall, clipping is a productive word formation process that allows for the creation of new words by shortening existing ones. It is a common phenomenon in language evolution and contributes to the richness and flexibility of vocabulary.