List of English back-formations

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Back-formation refers to either the process of creating a new lexeme (less precisely, a new "word") by removing actual or supposed affixes, or to the neologism formed by such a process. Back-formations are shortened words created from longer words, thus back-formations may be viewed as a sub-type of clipping.

Each back-formation in this list is followed by the original word from which it was back-formed.

Contents: Top - 0–9 A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

[edit] A

  • ablute from ablution
  • aborigine as a mistaken singular for aborigines (correct Latin singular is aboriginal) [1]
  • accrete from accretion (root: accrescere) [2]
  • acculturate from acculturation [3]
  • admix from admixture
  • adolesce from adolescence
  • adulate from adulation [4]
  • advect from advection [5]
  • aesthete from aesthetic [6]
  • air-condition from air conditioning [7]
  • alm from alms
  • anticline from anticlinal [8]
  • arch ("to practice archery") from archery
  • arm (weapon) from arms (from Latin arma)
  • attrit from attrition [9]
  • auto-destruct from auto-destruction (cf. auto-destroy)
  • automate from automation [10]
  • aviate from aviation [11]

[edit] B

  • babysit from babysitter [12]
  • back-form from back-formation
  • bartend from bartender [13]
  • benefact from benefactor (and also the derived benefactee, cf. benefactor)
  • bibliograph from bibliography
  • bicep from biceps (non-standard) [14]
  • biograph from biography
  • blockbust from blockbuster [15]
  • book-keep from book-keeping
  • bonafy from bonafied (which itself is a corruption of "bona fide")[1]
  • brainwash from brainwashing [16]
  • bulldoze from bulldozer [17]
  • bum possibly from bummer [18]
  • burgle from burglar [19]
  • bus ("to clear dirty dishes from table") from busboy [20]
  • bushwhack from bushwhacker [21]
  • buttle from butler [22]

[edit] C

  • cadge from cadger [23]
  • caretake from caretaker
  • cavitate from cavitation [24]
  • cherry from Old French cerise [25]
  • choate from inchoate
  • choreograph from choreography [26]
  • claustrophobe from claustrophobia
  • cohese from cohesion (cf. cohere)
  • commentate from commentator [27]
  • committal from non-committal
  • complicit from complicity [28]
  • computerize from computerized
  • contracept from contraception (cf. rare contraceive)
  • contrapt from contraption
  • convect from convection [29]
  • conversate from conversation or conversing {http://www.dictionary.reference.com/browse/conversate
  • cose from cosy
  • couth from uncouth [30]
  • co-vary from covariation
  • crank (noun) from cranky
  • creep (as a noun for a person) from creepy
  • cross multiply from cross multiplication
  • cross-refer from cross-reference [31]
  • curate from curator [32]
  • custom-make from custom-made

[edit] D

[edit] E

  • eave from eaves [47]
  • edit from editor (from Latin stem edere, to bring forth) [48], [49]
  • electrocute from electrocution [50]
  • elocute from elocution [51]
  • emote from emotion [52]
  • enthuse from enthusiasm [53]
  • ept from inept
  • escalate from escalator [54]
  • eutrophicate from eutrophication
  • extrapose from extraposition [55]

[edit] F

  • fine-tune from fine tuning [56]
  • flab from flabby [57]
  • flappable from unflappable [58]
  • flake ("eccentric person") from flaky)
  • floss ("to show off") from flossy [59]
  • fluoresce from fluorescence [60]
  • free-associate from free association (backformed adjective-verb compound)
  • funk (quality of music) from funky [61]

[edit] G

  • gamble from gambler [62]
  • ghostwrite from ghostwriter [63]
  • gid from giddy [64]
  • gnarl from gnarled [65]
  • godsend from god-sent [66]
  • greed from greedy (the noun was originally "greediness") [67]
  • grid from gridiron [68]
  • grovel from groveling [69]
  • grunge from grungy [70]
  • gruntle from disgruntle [71]

[edit] H

  • handwrite from handwriting [72]
  • hard-boil from hard-boiled [73]
  • hawk (meaning "to sell") from hawker [74]
  • haze from hazy [75]
  • headhunt from headhunter
  • headquarter from headquarters [76]
  • helicopt from helicopter
  • housebreak from housebroken [77]
  • houseclean from housecleaning [78]
  • housekeep from housekeeper [79]

[edit] I

  • ideologue from ideology [80]
  • incent from incentive [81]
  • indice from indices (cf. index)
  • injure from injury [82]
  • intercept from interception (possibly a backformation)
  • interfluve from interfluvial [83]
  • interlineate from interlinear
  • intuit from intuition [84]
  • isolate from isolated [85]

[edit] J

[edit] K

  • kempt from unkempt [88]
  • kidnap from kidnapper [89]
  • kudo from kudos (non-standard) [90]

[edit] L

[edit] M

  • manipulate from manipulation [99]
  • mase from maser
  • mix from mixt (adj. from Old French, misconstrued as past participle of verb) [100]
  • mottle from motley [101]
  • moonlight (the verb, work on second job) from moonlighter [102]
  • multimillion from multimillionaire

[edit] N

[edit] O

[edit] P

  • panhandle (meaning "to accost") from panhandler [109]
  • paramedic from paramedical
  • partake from partaker [110]
  • pea from Middle English pease [111]
  • peddle from peddler [112]
  • peeve from peevish [113]
  • pettifog from pettifogger [114]
  • phosphoresce from phosphorescent [115]
  • preempt from preemption [116]
  • presentate from presentation
  • procéss from procession [117]
  • prodigal from prodigality [118]
  • proliferate from proliferation [119]
  • proofread from proofreader [120]

[edit] Q

  • quadrumvir from quadrumvirate [121]
  • quantitate from quantitative

[edit] R

  • raunch from raunchy [122]
  • reminisce from reminiscence [123]
  • resurrect from resurrection [124]
  • rotovate from rotovator

[edit] S

[edit] T

  • tase from taser
  • televise from television [151]
  • tongue-lash from tongue-lashing [152]
  • transcript (verb) from transcription (cf. verb transcribe)
  • tricep from triceps
  • trickle-irrigate from trickle-irrigation (possibly backformed from verb-noun compound but may also be verb-verb compound)
  • tweeze from tweezers [153]
  • typewrite from typewriter [154]

[edit] U

  • upholster from upholstery [155]

[edit] V

  • vinify from vinification [156]
  • vivisect from vivisection [157]
  • wiretap from wiretapper [158]

[edit] References

  1. ^ http://www.wsu.edu/~brians/errors/bonafied.html Common Errors in English - List of Errors