Morphology:
prefixes and
suffixes
GB chapter 3
the lexicon
Sandra Powell
EDUC 5658 Pedagogical
grammar
Word forms/ morphology
 Morphology is study of grammar at the level of
the WORD.
 In English, words can be added
in certain patterned ways.
on to and changed
Word forms/ morphology
In English, words can be added on to and changed in
certain patterned ways....
 We can add PREFIXES to the beginning of a word
and SUFFIXES to the end of a word.
 Modern English does not usually modify the
middle parts of words in patterned ways, although
Old English did (that is why we have TAKE
/TOOK/TAKEN, SHAKE/SHOOK/SHAKEN)
Two terms from linguistics that are
useful for understanding different ways we use prefixes and
suffixes in English
 Derivation
 Inflection
We can form a new
word derived from
another word by
adding a prefix or
suffix.
Examples (in English)
circle: semi/circul/ar
graduate:
post/gradua/tion
We can vary the forms of words to
express grammatical meaning and fit the
words into relation with other words.
Examples (in English)
I like - he like/s
Can you ski? – Ski/ing is fun. I fell down
while I was ski/ing.
My car is old, but Jane has a new car –
My car is old/er than Jane/’s car.
Why is the difference
important for teaching?
Learners can’t avoid using inflected
forms in SPEAKING and WRITING.
They are obligatory; it isn’t possible
to avoid S/V agreement,
sing/plural, -ing forms of verbs....
Learners need to know derivational
prefixes and suffixes for DECODING
and UNDERSTANDING new words,
but they don’t have to use them
immediately.
Inflection:
I like - he like/s
Can you ski? – Ski/ing is fun. I
fell down while I was ski/ing.
My car is old, but Jane has a
new car – My car is old/er
than Jane/’s car.
Derivation:
circle: semi/circul/ar
graduate: post/gradua/tion
Why is the difference
important for teaching?
Inflection applies to MOST WORDS in a
word class... Inflected forms are
predictable.
We can teach inflections with RULES and
learners can expect that they can apply
the same rules when they add new
words to their vocabulary.
Derivation applies to ONLY SOME words
in a word class. It is less predictable.
Learners may have to use a dictionary, or
ask “is this a word?” when they use
derivational prefixes and suffixes to form
new words.
Inflection:
I like - he like/s
I sing – she sing/s. I burp –
he burp/s.
Jane – Jane/’s car. A mother
– a mother/’s heart . The
university – the university/’s
policy
Derivation:
circle: semi/circul/ar
oval: ??? Semi/oval/ar
graduate: post/gradua/tion
think: ???post/think/tion
after/thought
Why is the difference
important for teaching?
Teach inflection...
Teach derivational prefixes and suffixes...

As patterns and rules (like
grammar).

As vocabulary (learn meanings of
prefixes/suffixes)

At phrase and sentence level,
not as forms to memorize in a
list.

For “word attack” skills when trying to
understand new words in reading/
listening.

Expect all learners to make
mistakes with inflections for a
long time, and to need lots of
practice with using the forms
in speaking and writing.
Explicit knowledge ≠ implicit
knowledge (skill)

More for intermediate and higher levels,
not beginners.

Expect that learners from some language
backgrounds will need more work than
others with “word attack” and using word
forms correctly in sentences.
Derivational prefixes and
suffixes

PREFIXES in modern
English usually change
the meaning, but not
the word class/part of
speech, of a word.
un/happy (adjective)
re/do (verb)
over/confident (adjective)
mini/bike(noun)
 SUFFIXES in modern English
often change the word
class/part of speech of a word.
happy (adj) – happiness (n)
do (verb) – doable (adj)
confident (adj) – confidently (adv)
bike (n) - biker (n) (This one doesn’t
change the word class, but it changes from a
THING to a PERSON)
Derivational prefixes and
suffixes
 Because SUFFIXES often change words


Because PREFIXES
change meaning but
have no grammatical
effect, you can teach
them as vocabulary
items, with examples.
Important for
understanding meaning
un/happy (adjective)
re/do (verb)
over/confident (adjective)
mini/bike(noun)

from one word class to another, they
have an effect on grammar.
Speaking/writing: When learners focus
on conveying meaning , they may use
the most familiar form of the word
(lexical not grammatical processing)
happy (adj) – happiness (n)
??I found my happy in playing soccer.
do (verb) – doable (adj)
?? Sandra, your homework is not can do!
Too much homework!
confident( adj) – confidently (adv)
?? I want to speak confident.
Inflection and inflectional suffixes in
English
English uses inflection, but much less than many
other languages
 Some languages do not vary the forms of words to express
grammatical relationships (Mandarin Chinese is a noninflecting language. In linguistics, this is called an
isolating or analytic language)
 Most inflecting languages have more inflections than
English:
For example, verb conjugations in French: J’aime, tu aimes,
nous aimons, ils aiment, que nous aimions (subjunctive),
j’aimais (imperfect), j’aimerai (future)....
Many forms!
The 8 inflectional suffixes in English
Word class
Noun
Inflection
-s
Grammatical
function
Examples
Marks plural
birds
rules
(grammatical
expression of number)
Noun
-s
(‘s or ‘ in Marks possessor
(grammatical
written form) expression of case)
Jane’s car
The car’s tires
Adjective
-er
Marks adjective
for use in
comparative
structures
A coyote is
smaller than a
wolf.
Adjective
-est
Marks adjective
for use in
superlative
structures
You say the
sweetest things.
The 8 inflectional suffixes in English
Word class
Inflection
Grammatical
function
Examples
Verb
-ing
Marks verb for use in
progressive OR use
as noun (gerund)
I’m studying.
Studying is hard
work.
Verb
-ed
Marks past tense
We celebrated.
Everything
stopped.
Verb
-ed
Marks verb for use in
perfect aspect or
passive voice
Summer has
arrived.
A suspect was
arrested.
Verb
-s
Marks 3rd person
singular verb in
present tense: S V
agreement
That makes me
happy.
The film starts at
8:05.
Do we use these inflectional suffixes
with all words in the word class?
Word
class
Inflection
Do we use it with all
verbs?
Examples of
exceptions
Verb
-ing
Nearly 100% of verbs have an ??? I am shoulding
–ing form. Exceptions: modals study tonight (no
(can, must, should, might...)
-ing form)
Verb
-ed (past
tense)
No. There is a large set of
common irregular verbs that
have special forms for past
tense.
Someone stole my
Ipad!
The sun rose at 5:00
am.
Verb
-ed (past
participle)
No. There is a large set of
common irregular verbs that
have special forms for past
participle.
Summer has begun.
Your sins are forgiven.
Verb
-s
Nearly 100% of verbs.
Exceptions: Verbs HAVE and
BE (don’t put –s on the base
form). Modals.
My house has (not
haves) a yard. She is
(not bes) a teacher.
??? He cans do it.
Do we use these inflectional suffixes
with all words in the word class?
Word class
Inflection
Do we use it with all
nouns?
Examples of
exceptions
Noun
-s
(plural)
A few exceptions:
irregular plurals, foreign
plurals, some animals
Children, teeth,
alumni, deer,
sheep
A large group of nouns
classified as uncountable
don’t have a plural form
Information,
luggage, water
Yes, but not with
pronouns. They have a
special form to mark
possession.
Your turn.
I like my house.
Noun
-s
(‘s or ‘ in
written form)
Do we use these inflectional suffixes
with all words in the word class?
Word
class
Inflection Do we use it with all
adjectives?
Examples of
exceptions
Adjective
-er
No. For adjectives longer
than 2 syllables and some
2-syllable adjectives, we
use the word “more”
instead of –er for
comparative
Tigers are more
aggressive
than other big
cats.
You must be
more patient.
Adjective
-est
No. The same adjectives
that don’t have –er
comparatives also don’t
have –est superlatives.
I chose the
most expensive
option.
Why do learners continue to make
mistakes with English inflections even
at fairly advanced proficiency?

One theory is that,
because English
doesn’t rely much on
inflections to express
meaning, learners
don’t need to focus
on them to
understand. They
can tune out and not
notice the inflections.
This slows acquisition.
Another theory is that
English inflections sound too
similar.
3 of the 8 inflections sound
exactly the same, though they
express different meanings:
She smokes, Bart’s book, 3
books
2 of the 8 inflections are –ed
for regular verbs:
I walked (past tense), I have
walked (past participle)

Old English (1000
years ago)
inflected nouns to
express CASE, the
relationships
between nouns
and verbs in a
sentence.
We still do this in
our pronouns but
not with nouns....
1,000 years ago:
English was a
much more
inflected
language
Remnants of case inflection in
the pronoun system in English
 Pronouns:
I like books.
Books please me.
(different forms for
subject and object)
This is my book.
This book is mine.
(different forms for
possessive adjective
and possessive
pronoun)
 Nouns:
That man likes books.
Books please that man.
(same form for subject
and object)
This is that man’s book.
This book is that man’s.
(same form for
possessive adjective
and possessive
pronoun)
Why is this information
important for teaching?
 English
uses inflection and derivation, but
much less than many other languages
Learners’ 1st languages have an influence on their
acquisition pattern. Learners with isolating/analytic
L1s often need more explicit instruction and
practice with derivation and inflection.
 1000
years ago, English marked case on
nouns with inflections
Not important for teaching. Learners don’t need to
know the history behind the language.
Teach pronouns separately from nouns. Tell this as
an interesting but not important fact if learners ask
why pronouns have so many forms.
Should I give my learners a list
of the 8 inflectional suffixes?
 No!
A list will not help
learners acquire the
SKILL of using these
inflected forms
appropriately.
 Lists are useful for itemby-item learning
(vocabulary) but not for
acquiring skill in
applying patterns.
Should I give my learners a list of some
derivational prefixes and suffixes?
 Maybe, as reference
material
(like a mini-dictionary or a
class vocab. list)
 The prefixes and suffixes are
VOCABULARY. They’re learned
item by item. Learners need
them to decode meaning , not
to apply as rules.
Questions
about the
Powerpoint?
I’d be happy to talk
grammar with you!
Sandra Powell