A course In Modern English Lexicology

§ 22. Conversion and Sound-
Sound-interchange in English is often com-
(stress-) Interchange bined with a difference in the paradigm. This raises the question of the relationship between
sound-interchange and conversion. To find a solution of the problem in terms of A. I. Smirnitsky’s conception of conversion the following three types of relations should be distinguished:
1) breath — to breathe
As far as cases of this type are concerned, sound-interchange distinguishes only between words, it does not differentiate word-forms of one and the same word. Consequently it has no relation to the paradigms of the words. Hence, cases of this type cannot be regarded as conversion.
2) song — to sing
In the above given example the vowel in song interchanges with three different vowels, the latter interchanging with one another in the forms of the verb to sing:
Like the previous type, the words song — to sing are not related by conversion: song differs from to sing (sang, sung) not only in the paradigm. Its root-vowel does not occur in the word-forms of the verb and vice versa.
3) house — to house
In such cases the type of sound-interchange distinguishing the two words (verb and noun) is the same as that which distinguishes the word-forms of the noun, cf, house [haus] — houses [hauziz] and to house
[hauz] — houses [hauziz]. Consequently, the only difference between the two words lies in their paradigms, in other words, word-pairs like house
— to house are cases of conversion.
It is fairly obvious that in such cases as present — to present, accent
— to accent, etc. which differ in the position of stress, the latter does not distinguish the word-forms within the paradigm of the two words. Thus, as far as cases of this type are concerned, the difference in stress is similar 139
to the function of sound-interchange in cases like breath — "to breathe.
Consequently, cases of this type do not belong to conversion.
There is, however, another interpretation of the relationship between conversion and sound (stress)-interchange in linguistic literature. As sound- and (stress-)interchange often accompanies cases of affixation, e.g.
courage — courageous, stable — stability, it seems logical to assume that conversion as one of the types of derivation may also be accompanied by sound- (stress-)interchange. Hence, cases like breath — to breathe; to sing — song; present — to present; increase — to increase, etc. are to be regarded as those of conversion.
1. Conversion, an exceedingly productive way