Anyone writing texts in English is constantly faced with the unavoidable question whether to use open spelling (drinking fountain), hyphenation (far-off) or solid spelling (airport) for individual compounds. While some compounds commonly occur with alternative spellings, others show a very clear bias for one form. This book tests over 60 hypotheses and explores the patterns underlying the spelling of English compounds from a variety of perspectives. Based on a sample of 600 biconstituent compounds with identical spelling in all reference works in which they occur (200 each with open, hyphenated and solid spelling), this empirical study analyses large amounts of data from corpora and dictionaries and concludes that the spelling of English compounds is not chaotic but actually correlates with a large number of statistically significant variables. An easily applicable decision tree is derived from the data and an innovative multi-dimensional prototype model is suggested to account for the results.

The first comprehensive study of the use of compound words in Old English poetry, homilies, and philosophy, Joinings explores the effect of compounds on style, pace, clarity, and genre in Anglo-Saxon vernacular literature. Jonathan Davis-Secord demonstrates how compounds affect the pacing of passages in Beowulf, creating slow-motion narrative at moments of significant violence; how their structural complexity gives rhetorical emphasis to phrases in the homilies of Wulfstan; and how they help to mix quotidian and elevated diction in Cynewulf's Juliana and the Old English translations of Boethius. His work demonstrates that compound words were the epitome of Anglo-Saxon vernacular verbal art, combining grammar, style, and culture in a manner unlike any other feature of Old English.

Le présent ouvrage répond à un objectif précis : être un outil efficace pour ceux qui sont confrontés à des textes en anglais scientifique. Minimum Competence in Scientific English suppose, pour ses utilisateurs, des prérequis de niveau baccalauréat. Il peut être utilisé en autoformation. Les étudiants scientifiques sont évidemment les premiers concernés, mais l'expérience a démontré que les chercheurs, les ingénieurs, les enseignants, les managers, confrontés aux subtilités de l'anglais scientifique écrit, étaient demandeurs de tels ouvrages.

This controversial new book addresses the linguistic problems around compounds: words which sit on the borderline of syntax and morphology.

Research Paper (undergraduate) from the year 2012 in the subject English Language and Literature Studies - Linguistics, grade: none, Qassim University (Science and Arts, Community College, Unaizah), language: English, abstract: This paper deals with the compounding words in Urdu language. Formation of Compound word is an important aspect of morphological operation to produce new words in languages with a linear morphological structure. It is extensively used as one of the ways to generate new words and word forms in Urdu language. Urdu language has borrowed a large number of compounds from a variety of sources from other Indian languages, Perso-Arabic and English. The present paper attempts to discuss Indic sources and Perso-Arabic compounds, English compounds, some ‘hybrid’ compounds, etc. These compounds are frequently used in Urdu language. The present paper explores and describes the various compounding phenomena in Urdu and their implication.