“Ashamedly” is a very nice counter-example, even if it’s only an apparent counter-example.  The initial a- is etymologically not a prefix, coming from OE asceamod, but that a- gets confused historically with the a- prefix we’re talking about, which derives from the OE prefix ge-, which is used, among other things, to form past participles, and it’s that ge- prefix that is the primary source of the modern English a- prefix on adjectives.  My guess is that we retain the a- in “ashamedly” because it is historically part of the root, not a prefix, even though it’s hard to tell from the a- of “awake” in modern English.  The form “ashamedly” would be a fossil.  As to “breastily,” that does not suggest the same meaning as “abreast.”  I suspect it’s derived in a different way?  “Abreast” is an interesting case where a morpheme, “breast,” maintains an older meaning in a very specialized usage.

 

Herb

 

From: Assembly for the Teaching of English Grammar [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Susan van Druten
Sent: 2008-05-31 13:35
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Lonely Morphology

 

I just can resist mentioning "ashamedly."   Why did we retain that "a"?

 

But then there's "abreast."  Why do you suppose we keep the same form for the adverb?  What's wrong with walking breastily?

 

On May 31, 2008, at 8:57 AM, STAHLKE, HERBERT F wrote:



Susan,

 

That's why I specified that it was prefixal a-, but I should have excluded the Greek-derived negative prefix a-, as in "amorally."  It's the native English prefix a- as in asleep, awake, aware, alive, etc.  We do have "sleepily," "warily," and "lively," but notice that they all lose the prefix if they add -ly.  And the -ly is often added to a derived adjective stem in -y, as with "wary" and "sleepy."  By the way, one can make an argument that the Greek-derived a- is actually a bound root involved in compound formation because of its stress pattern.  Notice we don't stress the prefix of "alike" but we do in "amoral."

 

Herb

 

-----Original Message-----

From: Assembly for the Teaching of English Grammar [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Susan van Druten

Sent: 2008-05-31 09:24

To: [log in to unmask]

Subject: Re: Lonely Morphology

 

I'm not sure what you mean.  There are many adjectives turned adverb

that start with an "a": amiably, absurdly, amorally, adjectivally.

 

Susan

 

 

On May 31, 2008, at 7:47 AM, STAHLKE, HERBERT F wrote:

 

"Lonely," by the way, is an interesting word, an adverb derived

from "lone" which is itself an aphetic form (initial vowel dropped)

of "alone."  "Alone" appears first in 1300 as an adjective derived

from a combination of "all one," a phrase that was current at the

time.  "Lone" appeared in 1377 by the loss of the initial vowel

(aphesis, hence, "aphetic").  I wonder if the need for an adverbial

form could have contributed to the aphesis, since we don't add -ly

to adjectives starting with the prefix a-.

 

Herb

 

 

 

-----Original Message-----

From: Assembly for the Teaching of English Grammar

[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of STAHLKE, HERBERT F

Sent: 2008-05-31 08:39

To: [log in to unmask]

Subject: Re: Lonely Morphology

 

There's even a name for it, haplology.  Wikipedia informs me, and

OED concurs, that the word was introduced by American philologist

Maurice Bloomfield in an 1895 Journal article.  The date and source

are from the OED entry.

 

Herb

 

 

-----Original Message-----

From: Assembly for the Teaching of English Grammar

[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of DD Farms

Sent: 2008-05-30 21:23

To: [log in to unmask]

Subject: Re: Lonely Morphology

 

At 06:37 30/05/2008, STAHLKE, HERBERT F wrote:

. . . we don't generally like to repeat a syllable

immediately.  Notice how we can say "He's becoming a good

grammarian" but tend to avoid "He may be becoming a good

grammarian," and if we say it in normal speech we'll drop one of

the "be"s.

 

DD: A really great point that was new to me. I appreciate the concept

and thank you for the insight. I like things that make me stop and

think, and that really did.

 

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