Chapter 3: Word Structure
Morphology: the study of morphemes and their different forms and the way they
combine together.
Morpheme: a unit that can’t be cut apart.
Types of morpheme:
1. Free morpheme: a form that can be used on its own.
2. Bound morpheme: a form which is never used alone but must be used with another
morpheme.
Affixation: the process of adding an affix to a stem.
Affix: a bound morpheme which is added to another morpheme.
Major types of affix:
1. prefix: a bound morpheme which is added to the beginning of a stem.
2. suffix: a bound morpheme which is added to the end of a stem.
3. infix: a bound morpheme which is added within a morpheme.
1. Word reduplication in Mandarin
Reduplication: repetition of a morpheme together with the original morpheme to
form a new word.
A. Reduplication of volitional verbs (under normal circumstances, the verb implies
volition “will or choice” on the part of the subject)
Rules: A + A = AA (and will have the meaning of “a little bit” and the second
word becomes neutral tone)
A + A = A 一 A (“一” becomes neutral tone)
Eg. 嚐嚐、教教、走走、嚐一嚐、教一教、走一走、
A1. Reduplication of disyllabic words
a. Rules: 1. Tone doesn’t change
2. No ‘一’ between the words, eg. *請教一請教
b. If the volitional verb is a verb-object compound (and whose components are
separable), then the verb can be reduplicated and the copied morpheme
becomes neutral tone.
c. If the volitional verb is a verb-object compound (and whose components are
inseparable), then the whole compound is reduplicated.
B. Reduplication of adjectives
a. Modifiers of noun → more vivid description
b. Modifiers of verb → manner adverb
c.
If an adjective is disyllabic, the two syllables are all required to be
reduplicated.
C. Reduplication of measure words
Rule: When a monosyllabic measure word can be reduplicated, it has the
meaning of “every”.
D. Reduplication of kinship terms
F. Miscellaneous reduplicated terms
2. Affixation (the process of adding an affix to a stem) in Mandarin
A. Prefixes: add to the beginning of a morpheme
老、小、第、初、可、好、難
B. Infixes: add within a morpheme
得、不 (both usually occur in Resultative Verb Compounds)
C. Suffixes: add to the end of a morpheme
兒、們、學、家、化、子、頭
3. Compounds: a combination of two or more words which functions as a single word.
A. The meanings of compounds
a. If A + B = C, the meaning of C has nothing to do with the meaning of A and
B. eg. 風流、花生、小說
b. If A + B = C, the meaning of C has a symbolic or logical relation with the
meaning of A and B. eg. 開關、熱心、公路
c. If A + B = C, the meaning of C has a direct relation with the meaning of A
and B. eg. 乾淨、飛機、呼吸
B. Major types of compounds
a. Nominal compounds: N + N
b. Verbal compounds
1. Resultative Verb Compounds: the second element signals some result of
the action or process conveyed by the first element.
a. Directional: V (displacement) + V (direction)
b. Phase: any of the stages of forms in any series or cycle of changes.
c. Metaphorical: V + V (the second V has a symbolic sense)
d. Obligatorily in potential form
2. Parallel Verb Compounds: V + V
c. Subject-Predicate Compounds: S + P
Three principles used to distinguish an S + P compound from an S + P
sentence:
1. Compound in Mandarin is always a verb or noun
2. In general, an S + P compound can have idiomatic meanings
3. Most of the compounds contain at least one bound morpheme.
d. Verb-Object Compounds: V + O
Three principles used to identify a V + O compound.
1. Containing at least one bound morpheme
2. Idiomaticity
3. Inseparability or limited separability of the constituent.
e. Antonymous Adjectives Forming Nominal Compounds
Rule: Adj + Adj ( where the two adjs are antonyms) = noun
C. Minor Types of Compounds
1. Adj + N
2.
3.
4.
5.
Adv + Adv
N + measure word or classifier
N+V
Adv + V