Productive and non-productive affixes in English

Productive and non-productive affixes
in English.
Group 2018
Mamadaliyeva Qizlarxon
Affixes can also be classified into productive and non-productive types. By productive affixes we mean the ones, which take part in deriving new words in this particular period of language development.
The best way to identify productive affixes is to look for them among neologisms and so-called nonce-words, i.e. words coined and used only for this particular occasion. The latter are usually formed on the level of living speech and reflect the most productive and progressive patterns in word-building:
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Examples for productive affixes
• er Baker, lander

• ist Leftist, Tourist
• ism ish Baldish, Materialism
• ing Gardening
• ance Acceptance, performance
• ic Organic, heroic

• ness happiness,kindness
• un unlock, unhappy
• able/ible readable,flexible
• ment development,achievement
• ize modernize, harmonize

The most productive prefixes in Modern English are:
de- /decontaminate/
re- /rethink/
pre- /prefabricate/
non- /non-operational/
un- /unfunny/
anti- /antibiotic/
dis- /disappoint/
By non-productive affixes we mean affixes which are not able to form new words in the period in question.
There are only affixes with different degrees of productivity, besides that productivity of affixes should not be mixed up with their frequency of occurence in speech. Frequency of affixes is characterised by the occurence of an affix in a great number of words. But productivity is the ability of a given suffix or prefix to make new words. An affix may be frequent but not productive.

• Noun-forming suffixes -th, -hood, -ship. Growth Childhood Friendship
• Adjective-forming suffixes -ful, -ly, -some, -en, -ous. Successful, Lovely, Awesome, Golden, Dangerous
• Verb-forming suffixes -en. Hasten

Thank you for your attention