Definition and Examples of Inflectional Morpheme

In English morphology, an inflectional morpheme is  a suffix thats added to a word  (a noun, verb, adjective or an adverb) to assign a particular grammatical property to that word, such as its  tense, number, possession, or comparison. Inflectional morphemes in English include the  bound morphemes  -s (or -es); s (or s); -ed; -en; -er; -est; and -ing. These suffixes may even do double- or triple-duty. For example, - s can note possession (in conjunction with an apostrophe in the proper place), can make count nouns plural, or can put a verb in the third-person singular tense. The suffix -ed can make past participles or past-tense verbs.   Kristin Denham and Anne Lobeck, authors of Linguistics for Everyone, explain  why theres overlap:  This lack of distinction in form dates back to the  Middle English  period (1100–1500 CE),  when the more complex inflectional affixes found in  Old English  were slowly dropping out of the language.(Wadsworth, 2010) Contrast With Derivational Morphemes Unlike derivational morphemes, inflectional morphemes  do not change the essential meaning or the  grammatical category of a word. Adjectives stay adjectives, nouns remain nouns, and verbs stay verbs. For example, if you add an -s to the noun carrot to show plurality, carrot remains a noun. If you add -ed to the verb walk to show past tense, walked is still a verb. George Yule explains it this way: The difference between  derivational  and inflectional morphemes is worth emphasizing. An inflectional morpheme never changes the  grammatical category  of a word. For example, both  old  and  older  are adjectives. The  -er  inflection here (from  Old English  -ra) simply creates a different version of the adjective. However, a derivational morpheme can change the grammatical category of a word. The verb  teach  becomes the noun  teacher  if we add the derivational morpheme  -er  (from Old English  -ere). So, the suffix  -er  in  modern English  can be an inflectional morpheme as part of an adjective and also a distinct derivational morpheme as part of a noun. Just because they look the same (-er) doesnt mean they do the same kind of work.  (The Study of Language, 3rd ed. Cambridge University Press, 2006) Placement Order When building words with multiple suffixes, there are rules in English that govern which order they go in.  In this example, the suffix is making a word into a comparative: Whenever there  is  a derivational suffix and an inflectional suffix attached to the same word, they always appear in that order. First the derivational (-er) is attached to  teach, then the inflectional (-s) is added to produce  teachers. (George Yule, The Study of Language, 3rd ed. Cambridge University Press, 2006) Linguistics for Everyone lists additional examples to drive home the point about placement order of the affixes: For example, the words  antidisestablishmentarianism  and  uncompartmentalize  each contain a number of derivational affixes, and any inflectional affixes must occur at the end:  antidisestablishmentarianisms  and  uncompartmentalized. (Kristin Denham and Anne Lobeck. Wadsworth, 2010) The study of this process of forming words is called  inflectional morphology.

Social Class Is The Backbone Of American Society Essay

Society has created the concept of social class to classify people into different groups based on political, economic, and socio-economic status. This system of social stratification contributes to the problems that the middle and lower classes have to experience in order to achieve success in the United States. America is a place where all people are supposed to be equal, but social class has generated divisions in our society. Unfortunately, social class has become the backbone of American society, where being upper-class gives people an advantage and a controlling position in the United States. In order for some people to feel content with their lifestyle they feel that they need to move up in the socio-economic ladder which is guaranteed through social mobility and the idea that everyone can achieve in life. It’s obvious that America was constructed under these difficulties relating to social class that obstruct anyone who tries to reach the higher levels of our society. à ¢â‚¬Å"The American Dream,† is what America is most known for; however achieving it is definitely not an easy task, for people in the lower and middle class this is especially true. There are four main class categories the upper class, middle class, working class, and the underclass. The upper class is approximately 5% of the population. The upper class consists of the very wealthy; people who make $300,000 a year. The middle class is made up of approximately 20% of the population; these people areShow MoreRelatedSocial Class Is The Backbone Of American Society870 Words   |  4 PagesSociety today has developed the concept of social class, to categorize citizens into different groups based on their economic status. These social classes are divided into three groups: upper, middle and low. 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Why Voting Is Important Free Essays

Voting is one of the most important things that can be done as an American. Voting gives people the right to voice their opinion on pending laws, ordinances, and who they want to be in local and state officials. It also will let people decide who will be the leaders of our country. We will write a custom essay sample on Why Voting Is Important or any similar topic only for you Order Now Voting makes it impossible for someone or one party to stay in office longer than the legal amount of time. Voting gives people the power so there cannot be laws passed without them having a say on it. If a law is being voted on the members of the community, which it will be affecting will have a chance to vote on it. Some elections are won by a very small margins and it could have gone in the other direction if everyone that was eligible to vote, would register and actually go out and vote. People who do not vote, others decide what is good for the way that they will living our lives. Voting decides how American is going to be run and everyone’s voice will be heard. Voting is part of being an American, and everyone should take advantage of it. Voting is important because it exercises our right to vote as an American citizen to express our issues and ideas. Voting is the most powerful way to express your ideas and opinions. If you didn’t vote you would never be able to argue your opinion on such things as abortion, gas prices, tax dollars, or more better paying jobs. Voting exercises your right as an American citizen to express your issues and opinions. The leaders of our country have always been chosen through the presidential election since the beginning of constitution and by laws. Voting helps decide who will run our nation for the next term. Without voting our country would be ran by monarchy or dictatorship. Voting to decide who will run our country for the next four years is more than important to our survival as a nation of strong free people. Voting makes the difference from being lead by someone we chose as the people than by someone who took charge without the peoples consent or by their bloodline. How to cite Why Voting Is Important, Essay examples