Conversion (also called zero derivation) is a word formation process whereby a
lexeme changes its word-class without the addition of an affix, i.e. word form
remains the same.
Conversion is
a process where aword cahanges its morpemic status without over addition to its
form.. The conversion is ussually a class changing process where it some cases
it is very obvious with morphemic funtion started first and which is after the
conversion too place How ever in some cases it is not very apperent.
Example:
The lexeme comb functions both as a noun and as a verb:
She
ran a comb
through her tangled hair. (n.)
I
didn’t even have time to comb my hair.
(v.)
Verbs to nouns: (doubt, love, laugh,
walk, cheat, wrap, throw, turn, get-away, etc.)
e.g. We decided to wrap the dogs up
in blankets. (v.)
Cover each dish with plastic wrap. (n.)
Nouns to
verbs: (to referee, to bottle, to nurse, to
mail, to bridge, to veto, to queue etc.
e.g. The mail arrived
early that morning. (n.)
Information is mailed regularly
to all our members. (v.)
Adjectives to
nouns: (daily, comic,
native, newly-weds, whites and blacks, savages, Liberals; the rich the poor, the
mute, the blind, etc.)
e.g. Monique returns to
her native
France every summer. (adj.)
He’s a native of
Edinburgh, but now lives in London. (n.)
N.B. There are a number of adjectives
turned into nouns denoting peoples of different countries, e.g. English,
British, French, Irish, Welsh, Dutch.
Adjectives to
verbs: (to calm, to empty, to clean, to mellow,
to warm, to dry, to bald, etc.)
e.g. After a few drinks,
he became very mellow.
(adj.)
She has mellowed over
the years. (v.)
Adverbs to
verbs: (up, out, forward,
etc.)
e.g. I stepped forward to greet
him. (adv.)
Your enquiry has been forwarded to our
head office. (v.)
Conversion
from closed class words to nouns:
e.g. a must, ups and
downs, etc.
Conversion from phrases to nouns: e.g. a know-how, a
don’t-know, etc.
Conversion from affixes to nouns: e.g. Patriotism, and any other ism you’d like to
name.
Approximate conversion
Refers to the
fact that a word in the course of conversion may undergo a change of
pronunciation or spelling. It can be realized in three ways:
a) change of the voicing
of the final consonant:
e.g. relief (n.) -
relieve(v.); grief – grieve; house – house; advice – advise; half –
halve;
b) vowel modification, e.g.
blood - bleed, breath - breathe, food - feed,
c) shift of the stress;
the stress is shifted from one syllable another, and with stress shift comes a
change in category: e.g. protest
/’prÓ™test/ (n.) – /prÓ™’test/ (v.)
transport /’trænspo:t/ (n.) - /trÓ™ns’po:t/
(v.)
cf. ‘defeat – ‘defeat, ‘support –
‘support, 'dispute - 'dispute
