A recent article in American Speech discusses the suffix -ish as lexicalizing, 
i.e., changing from a grammatical marker to separate word status. For example, 
"I am ish about the upcoming meeting."

My question: isn't -ish a derivational marker and not inflectional/grammar 
functioning? OR are there two kinds: -ish that derives a new word (child vs. 
childish) and -ish that acts as a type of adjective marker of degree (hungry 
vs. hungryish). 

Thanks, Sue Behrens
Marymount Manhattan College

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