Excerpt from
"On the Evolution of Language"
Two or more words may be united to form a new one, and four
methods--or stages--of combination may be noted.
a. By juxtaposition, where the two
words are placed together and yet remain as distinct words. In these cases, the
words taken alone don't give much of a clue as to their meaning when placed
together, as in auto pilot or cold sweat
b. By compounding, where two words are
made into one, in which case the original elements of the new word remain unchanged,
as in housetop and rainbow.
c. By agglutination, in which case a
word is slightly changed when it combines with another to form a new word. Yet
this modification is not so great as to obscure the original words, as in truthful, where we easily recognize
the original words truth and full; and holiday, in which holy and day are recognized.
d. By inflection, where the elements
of the words in the compound have been changed so much they can scarcely be
recognized. There is a tendency in speech to gradually shorten words as they
are spoken by generation after generation. Some words wear out more rapidly
than others until they become just a few letters at the beginning or end of a
word (affixes and suffixes). The word did may be used with a verb to denote past
time until it is worn down to the sound of d,
as in the word called rather than did call.
Reading
Comprehension Questions
1) The above passage focuses on the topic of "etymology." Based on the context of the passage, what is
the meaning of this word?
a.
the study of handwriting
b.
the study of foreign languages
c.
the study of words
d.
the study of the alphabet
2) Based on the definitions in the above passage, the word
"bedtime" was formed through which of the following methods?
a.
juxtaposition
b.
compounding
c.
agglutination
d.
inflection
3) In the above passage, a word combination where it is hard to
identify both of the original words is known as which of these?
a.
juxtaposition
b.
compounding
c.
agglutination
d.
inflection
4) Which type of book would be most likely to include the above
passage?
a.
a student textbook
b.
an autobiography
c.
an instruction manual
d.
a fictional novel
5) When conducting an internet search, a website containing the
above passage would most likely be found through which “key word search?
a.
"types of word combinations"
b.
"difficult vocabulary words"
c.
"common words of the English language"
d.
"frequently misspelled words"
Answer Key
1)
The above
passage focuses on the topic of "etymology." Based on the context of the passage, what is
the meaning of this word?
a.
the study of handwriting
b.
the study of foreign languages
c.
the study of words
d.
the study of the alphabet
2)
Based on the definitions
in the above passage, the word "bedtime" was formed through which of
the following methods?
a.
juxtaposition
b.
compounding
c.
agglutination
d.
inflection
3)
In the above
passage, a word combination where it is hard to identify both of the original
words is known as which of these?
a.
juxtaposition
b.
compounding
c.
agglutination
d.
inflection
4)
Which type of
book would be most likely to include the above passage?
a.
a student textbook
b.
an autobiography
c.
an instruction manual
d.
a fictional novel
5)
When
conducting an internet search, a website containing the above passage would
most likely be found through which “key word search?
a.
"types of word
combinations"
b.
"difficult vocabulary words"
c.
"common words of the English
language"
d.
"frequently misspelled words"