Observations on Some Final Bound Morphemes in Shakespeare’s Language

The use of affixes in Shakespeare’s language has not attracted much attention, for most grammars or descriptions of his language concentrate on which affixes he used rather than how he used them. Abbott (1870:324-7) mentions a few suffixes and their functions, but Franz (1924) has a long chapter on word formation (pp. 95-149), though this includes a discussion of compounds. His section on suffixes (pp. 108-40) deals in turn with personal, diminutive, abstract, adjective and verb suffixes. He concentrates on the origin of each suffix and how it changes the grammatical category of the word to which it is attached, and he includes a host of examples. But the participial suffix -ed is not discussed here, but under verbs. He does not discuss why Shakespeare uses the suffixes or what tone, if any, they might convey.

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