COMPOUND WORDS

Compound Words

Compound words are new words formed from the joining of two or more words that have separate meanings, to form a new meaning. Examples of compound words are " sunscreen," "bedroom," and " firefly."Compound words can be formed through various ways, such as being combined without spaces, with spaces, or with hyphens. The form and meaning of compound words depends on the words that are combined and the way they are combined.

 

Types And Examples Of Compound Words

1. Open Compound Words

Open compound words are compound words separated by spaces or hyphens such as commas, periods, or other signs. This is in contrast to closed compound words, which are not separated by spaces or hyphens. In open compound words, each word still has a separate meaning and the form and meaning of the new word depends on the combined words and the way they are combined.

For Example:

• Tooth brush
• Air plane
• Jelly fish
• Full Moon
• High school

Note: in some languages, the writing of open compound words can be different, for example, "airplane" in English is written as "air plane" in other languages.

 

2. Closed Compound Words

Closed compound words are new words formed from the joining of two or more words, but not separated by spaces or hyphens. In closed compound words, words are combined and written as one single word, and the new meaning of the new word depends on the combined words and the way they are combined.

For Example:

• Sunscreen
• Bloodpressure
• Laptop
• Bedroom
• Firefly

Note: in some languages, the writing of closed compound words can be different, for example, "keyboard" in English is written as "key board" in other languages.

 

3. Hyphenated Compound Words

Hyphenated compound words are new words formed from the joining of two or more words separated by a hyphen (strip/minus sign). In hyphenated compound words, words are combined and written with hyphens in between. Hyphenated compound words are commonly used to indicate relationships between words or to distinguish between different word meanings.

For Example:

• Up-to-date
• Decision-making
• One-way
• Good-looking
• Self-esteem

 

The Uses And Functions Of Compound Words Are As Follows:

1. Stating a complex concept or idea: Compound words help express a complex concept or idea by combining words that each have their own meaning into one new word that has an overall meaning.

2. Provide additional information: Compound words help provide additional information in a single word, such as providing a description of an object, process, or relationship.

3. Reducing length: Compound words help reduce the length of phrases or sentences, making it easier to understand and speeding up the communication process.

4. Improve language efficiency: Compound words helps improve language efficiency by making word usage simpler and more efficient.

5. Add variety and richness to the language: Compound words help add variety and richness to the language by introducing new words that have different meanings from the original words.

Thus, compound words help facilitate communication and enrich the language by providing an alternative for users to express complex concepts or ideas in just one word.

Example Sentences Compound Words

1. She has a high self-esteem
2. He is a good-looking man
3. She checked-in at the hotel.
4. His mother-in-law lives with them.
5. The decision-making process was difficult.