Compound (linguistics)

In linguistics, a compound is a lexeme (less precisely, a word or sign) that consists of more than one stem. Compounding, composition or nominal composition is the process of word formation that creates compound lexemes. Compounding occurs when two or more words or signs are joined to make a longer word or sign. Consequently, a compound is a unit composed of more than one stem, forming words or signs. If the joining of the words or signs is orthographically represented with a hyphen, the result is a hyphenated compound (e.g., must-have, hunter-gatherer). If they are joined without an intervening space, it is a closed compound (e.g., footpath, blackbird). If they are joined with a space (e.g. school bus, high school, lowest common denominator), then the result – at least in English^[1] – may be an open compound.^[2]^[3]^[4]^[5]

The meaning of the compound may be similar to or different from the meaning of its components in isolation. The component stems of a compound may be of the same part of speech—as in the case of the English word footpath, composed of the two nouns foot and path—or they may belong to different parts of speech, as in the case of the English word blackbird, composed of the adjective black and the noun bird. With very few exceptions, English compound words are stressed on their first component stem.

As a member of the Germanic family of languages, English is unusual in that even simple compounds made since the 18th century tend to be written in separate parts. This would be an error in other Germanic languages such as Norwegian, Swedish, Danish, German, and Dutch. However, this is merely an orthographic convention: as in other Germanic languages, arbitrary noun phrases, for example "girl scout troop", "city council member", and "cellar door", can be made up on the spot and used as compound nouns in English too.

For example, German Donaudampfschifffahrtsgesellschaftskapitän^[a] would be written in English as "Danube steamship transport company captain" and not as "Danubesteamshiptransportcompanycaptain".

The meaning of compounds may not always be transparent from their components, necessitating familiarity with usage and context. The addition of affix morphemes to words (such as suffixes or prefixes, as in employ → employment) should not be confused with nominal composition, as this is actually morphological derivation.

Some languages easily form compounds from what in other languages would be a multi-word expression. This can result in unusually long words, a phenomenon known in German (which is one such language) as Bandwurmwörter ("tapeworm words").

Compounding extends beyond spoken languages to include Sign languages as well, where compounds are also created by combining two or more sign stems.

So-called "classical compounds" are compounds derived from classical Latin or ancient Greek roots.

^ Sanchez-Stockhammer, Christina (2018-05-03). English Compounds and their Spelling. Cambridge University Press. p. 26. ISBN 978-1-108-18727-5. English compounds cannot be defined as an uninterrupted sequence of characters
^ University of Chicago press, ed. (2017). The Chicago manual of style (17th ed.). Chicago: The University of Chicago Press. pp. 443–444. ISBN 978-0-226-28705-8. Compounds defined. An open compound is spelled as two or more words (high school, lowest common denominoator). A hyphenated compound is spelled with one or more hyphens (mass-produced, kilowatt-hour, non-English-speaking). A closed (or solid) compound is spelled as a single word (birthrate, smartphone).
^ Nagarajan, Hemalatha (2022-10-20). The Routledge Companion to Linguistics in India. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 978-1-000-77574-7. The compound can be a closed compound, where the two words are written together (e.g., blackboard), an open compound, where they are written separate (e.g., ice cream), or hyphenated, with a hyphen in between (e.g., short-term).
^ McArthur, Thomas Burns; McArthur, Roshan (2005). Concise Oxford Companion to the English Language. Oxford University Press. p. 237. ISBN 978-0-19-280637-6.
^ "open compound (noun)". Merriam-Webster. Retrieved 29 January 2024. a compound whose word components are separated by a space in printing or writing

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[1] Sanchez-Stockhammer, Christina (2018-05-03). English Compounds and their Spelling. Cambridge University Press. p. 26. ISBN 978-1-108-18727-5. English compounds cannot be defined as an uninterrupted sequence of characters

[2] University of Chicago press, ed. (2017). The Chicago manual of style (17th ed.). Chicago: The University of Chicago Press. pp. 443–444. ISBN 978-0-226-28705-8. Compounds defined. An open compound is spelled as two or more words (high school, lowest common denominoator). A hyphenated compound is spelled with one or more hyphens (mass-produced, kilowatt-hour, non-English-speaking). A closed (or solid) compound is spelled as a single word (birthrate, smartphone).

[3] Nagarajan, Hemalatha (2022-10-20). The Routledge Companion to Linguistics in India. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 978-1-000-77574-7. The compound can be a closed compound, where the two words are written together (e.g., blackboard), an open compound, where they are written separate (e.g., ice cream), or hyphenated, with a hyphen in between (e.g., short-term).

[4] McArthur, Thomas Burns; McArthur, Roshan (2005). Concise Oxford Companion to the English Language. Oxford University Press. p. 237. ISBN 978-0-19-280637-6.

[5] "open compound (noun)". Merriam-Webster. Retrieved 29 January 2024. a compound whose word components are separated by a space in printing or writing

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