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An Investigation of Conversion in English

An Investigation of Conversion in English. Zack Warmke. Introduction: Research Area. Conversion: The use of a word from one part of speech as another without derivational affixation. Sometimes common: water the plants Sometimes not: cookie me (hand me a cookie). Aim/Justification.

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An Investigation of Conversion in English

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  1. An Investigation of Conversion in English Zack Warmke

  2. Introduction: Research Area • Conversion: The use of a word from one part of speech as another without derivational affixation. • Sometimes common: water the plants • Sometimes not: cookie me (hand me a cookie)

  3. Aim/Justification • Native speakers frequently convert words • We do so purely from intuition • Studies have looked at conversion (Kiparsky, Velasco) but their research is incomplete • I want to build from their studies

  4. References • Velasco, D. (2009). Conversion in English and its implications for Functional Discourse Grammar. Lingua, 119(8), 1164-1185. • Kiparsky, P., 1997. Remarks on denominal verbs. Argument Structure. CSLI, Stanford, pp. 473–499. • Baltiero, Isabel (2007). The Directionality of Conversion in English: A Dia- Synchronic Study. Linguistic Insights - Studies in Language and Communication, 59, 7-27 • Gottfurcht, Carolyn A (2008). Denominal verb formation in English. Dissertation Abstracts International, A: The Humanities and Social Sciences, 69, 03, 0957 • Horobin, Simon (2009). Traditional English? Chaucerian Methods of Word-Formation. NeuphilologischeMitteilungen, 110, 2, 141-157

  5. Research Questions • Where and how does Kiparsky’s data work? Where and how does it not? • What generalizations about conversion can we make?

  6. Methodology • Subjects/Sources • Adult, native English speakers for questionnaires • Instruments • A questionnaire measuring acceptability of various converted items. Items will come from Kiparsky’s data and I will create more based on his theory • Procedure • Administer questionnaire, examine findings to answer research questions

  7. Data Analysis • Questionnaire will ask if items make sense • Eg, “String him up with rope!” • I will use a gradient scale, ranging from “makes no sense” to “sounds perfectly fine” • When done, I will examine the results to see trends, measure the success of Kiparsky’s theory.

  8. Limitations • It’s possible the data won’t reveal anything revolutionary • Limited to noun-verb, verb-noun conversion

  9. Expected Findings • Kiparsky and Velasco are mostly right, and I will be able to fill the gaps in their research. • I expect to be able to make some broad generalizations about conversion. • This is a small study; I expect to raise as many questions as I answer.

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