The Semantics of Word Formation and Lexicalization

By Claire Thomas and Pius Ten Hacken

In the study of word formation, the focus has often been on generating the form. In this book, the semantic aspect of the formation of new words is central. It is viewed from the perspectives of word formation rules and of lexicalization. An extensive introduction gives a historical overview of the study of the semantics of word formation and lexicalization, explaining how the different theoretical frameworks used in the contributions relate to each other. Each chapter then concentrates on a specific question about a theoretical concept or a word formation process in a particular language and adopts a theoretical framework that is appropriate to the study of this question. From general theoretical concepts of productivity and lexicalization, the focus moves to terminology, compounding, and derivation.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1399577867
• ISBN13: 9781399577861
• Release Date: November 2026
• Publisher: Edinburgh University Press
• Length: 272 Pages