List of English back-formations
Back-formation is either the process of creating a new lexeme (less precisely, a new "word") by removing actual or supposed affixes, or a neologism formed by such a process. Back-formations are shortened words created from longer words, thus back-formations may be viewed as a sub-type of clipping.
Each back-formation in this list is followed by the original word from which it was back-formed.
A
- abduct probably from abduction [1]
- abscess (v.) from abscessed[1]
- aborigine from aborigines, mistaken for a plural noun[1]
- accord (n.) from Old French acorde, acort, a back-formation from acorder[1]
- accrete from accretion (root: accrescere)[2]
- acculturate from acculturation[2]
- addict from addicted (root: addicere)[2][dubious – discuss]
- admix from admixt[3]
- Adirondack Mountains from Adirondacks, mistaken for a plural noun[1]
- adsorb from adsorption[1]
- adolesce from adolescence[1]
- adulate from adulation[3]
- advect from advection[3]
- advisor perhaps from advisory[1]
- aerate (meaning "expose to air") probably from aeration[1]
- aesthete from aesthetic[2]
- aggress from aggression[4]
- air-condition from air conditioning[2]
- alley [1]
- alliterate from alliteration [1]
- allotrope from allotropy [1]
- amaze from Middle English amased [1]
- ambivalent from ambivalence [1]
- ameliorate perhaps from amelioration in some cases [1]
- annunciate perhaps from annunciation in some cases [1]
- anticline from anticlinal[5]
- antipode from antipodes (non-standard)
- appeal (n.) from Old French apel, back-formation from apeler[1]
- apperceive (in modern psychological use) from apperception [1]
- aristocrat from French aristocrate, a back-formation from aristocratie [1]
- assent (n.) from Old French assent, a back-formation from assentir
- attrit from attrition[5]
- auto-destruct from auto-destruction (cf. auto-destroy)
- automate from automation[2][4]
- aviate from aviation[2]
- avid partly from avidity [1]
- awe-strike perhaps from awestruck [1]
B
- babysit from babysitter[2][4]
- back-form from back-formation
- bartend from bartender[5]
- beg from beggar[dubious – discuss]
- benefact from benefactor (and also the derived benefactee, cf. benefactor)
- berserk from berserker
- bibliograph from bibliography
- bicep from biceps (non-standard)[2]
- biograph from biography
- bird (verb) from bird watcher
- blockbust from blockbuster[5]
- book-keep from book-keeping
- brainwash from brainwashing[5]
- bulldoze from bulldozer[5]
- bum possibly from bummer[5]
- burgle from burglar[5][4]
- bus ("to clear dirty dishes from table") from busboy[5]
- bushwhack from bushwhacker[5]
- buttle from butler[5]
C
- cadge from cadger[2]
- caretake from caretaker
- cavitate from cavitation[1]
- chain-smoke from chain-smoker[4]
- chalant from nonchalant
- Chess (river) from Chesham
- choate from inchoate
- choreograph from choreography[5]
- chupacabra from Spanish chupacabras (both a plural and a singular in Spanish)
- claustrophobe from claustrophobia
- cohese from cohesion (disambiguation) (cf. cohere)
- commentate from commentator[5][4]
- committal from non-committal
- complicit from complicity[3]
- computerize from computerized
- contracept from contraception (cf. rare contraceive)
- contrapt from contraption
- convect from convection[2]
- conversate from conversation or conversing[6]
- cose from cosy
- couth from uncouth[2]
- co-vary from covariation
- cross multiply from cross multiplication
- cross-refer from cross-reference[7]
- curate (verb) from curator[3]
- custom-make from custom-made
D
- dapple from dappled[5]
- darkle from darkling[2]
- decadent from decadence[2]
- deconstruct from deconstruction[5]
- dedifferentiate from dedifferentiation[5]
- demarcate from demarcation[2]
- demograph from demographics
- destruct from destruction[5]
- diagnose from diagnosis[2][4]
- diffract from diffraction[2]
- dinge from dingy[2]
- diplomat from diplomatic[5]
- dishevel from disheveled[2]
- donate from donation[2][4]
- drear from dreary
- drowse from drowsy (possibly a backformation)
- dry-clean from dry cleaning[5]
E
- eave from eaves[7]
- eavesdrop from eavesdropper[2]
- edit from editor (from Latin stem edere, to bring forth)[1][2]
- electrocute from electrocution[2]
- elocute from elocution[7]
- emote from emotion[5][4]
- enthuse from enthusiasm[5][4]
- escalate from escalator[5]
- eutrophicate from eutrophication
- evaluate from evaluation[2]
- extradite from extradition[4]
- extrapose from extraposition[5]
F
- fine-tune from fine tuning[7]
- flab from flabby[2]
- flappable from unflappable[5]
- flake ("eccentric person") from flaky
- floss ("to show off") from flossy[7]
- fluoresce from fluorescence[2]
- fragmentate from fragmentation[5]
- free-associate from free association (backformed adjective-verb compound)[4]
- funk (quality of music) from funky[3]
G
- gamble from gambler[2]
- gestate from gestation[2]
- ghostwrite from ghostwriter[2]
- gid from giddy[2]
- gladiola from gladiolus[2]
- gnarl from gnarled[5]
- goaltend from goaltender
- godsend from god-sent[2]
- greed from greedy (the noun was originally "greediness")[5][4]
- grid from gridiron[2]
- grovel from groveling[2][4]
- grunge from grungy[2]
- gruntle from disgruntle[2]
H
- handwrite from handwriting[2]
- hard-boil from hard-boiled[2]
- hawk (meaning "to sell") from hawker[5]
- haze from hazy[2]
- headhunt from headhunter[citation needed]
- headquarter from headquarters[5]
- helicopt from helicopter[citation needed]
- herptile (a reptile or amphibian) from herpetology[citation needed]
- herpe (a single herpes sore) from herpes[citation needed]
- housebreak from housebroken[2]
- houseclean from housecleaning[2]
- housekeep from housekeeper[2]
- hustle from hustler[2]
I
- inadvertent from inadvertence[2]
- ideologue from ideology[2]
- incent from incentive[3]
- indice from indices (cf. index)
- injure from injury[5]
- intercept from interception (possibly a backformation)
- interfluve from interfluvial[5]
- interlineate from interlinear
- intuit from intuition[5][4]
- isolate from isolated[2]
J
- jell from jelly[2][4]
- jerry-build from jerry-built[2]
K
- kidnap from kidnapper[2]
- kudo from kudos (some commentators regard it non-standard)[2][4]
L
- lase from laser[2][4]
- laze from lazy[2][4]
- legislate from legislator[2][4]
- letch from lecher[5]
- liaise from liaison[2][4]
- loaf (meaning "to be idle") from loafer[5]
- logroll from logrolling[5]
- luminesce from luminescent[5]
M
- manipulate from manipulation[2][4]
- mase from maser
- mentee from mentor
- mix from mixt (adj. from Old French, misconstrued as past participle of verb)[2]
- mottle from motley[2]
- moonlight (the verb, work on second job) from moonlighter[2]
- multimillion from multimillionaire
N
- nake from naked[2]
- nitpick from nit-picking[2]
- notate from notation[2]
O
- obsess (meaning "to behave obsessively") from obsessive[dubious – discuss]
- obligate (as a verb meaning "oblige") from obligation
- one-up or one-upman from one-upmanship[2][4]
- orate from oration[2][4]
- orientate from orientation
P
- panhandle (meaning "to accost") from panhandler[5]
- paramedic from paramedical
- partake from partaker[2]
- patriation from repatriation
- pea from Middle English pease[8]
- peddle from peddler[2][4]
- peeve from peevish[2][4]
- pettifog from pettifogger[5]
- phosphoresce from phosphorescent[2]
- pleb from plebs
- ply from reply
- preempt from preemption[2]
- process from procession[8]
- prodigal from prodigality[5]
- proliferate from proliferation[2]
- proofread from proofreader[5]
- pugn from impugn[citation needed]
Q
- quadrumvir from quadrumvirate[2]
- quantitate from quantitative
R
- raunch from raunchy[2]
- recurse from recursion
- reminisce from reminiscence[2][4]
- resurrect from resurrection[2]
- ruly from unruly
- rotovate from rotovator
S
- sass (impudence) from sassy[5]
- scavenge from scavenger[1][4]
- sculpt from sculptor[5]
- secrete (meaning "to produce and emit") from secretion[2]
- secretive from secretiveness[2]
- sedate (the verb) from sedative[3]
- self-destruct from self-destruction (cf. self-destroy)[3][4]
- semantic (adjective) from semantics
- sharecrop from sharecropper[2]
- shoplift from shoplifter[2]
- sightsing from sightsinging
- sightsee from sightseeing[5]
- sipid from insipid[5]
- sleaze from sleazy[2]
- sleepwalk from sleepwalking[5]
- smarm from smarmy[2]
- sorb from sorption (also a back-formation)
- soft-land from soft landing (backformed adjective-noun compound)
- sorption from adsorption and absorption[2]
- spectate from spectator[5]
- stargaze from stargazer[2]
- statistic from statistics[4]
- stave (the noun) from staves (the original singular is staff)[2]
- steamroll from steamroller[5]
- stridulate from stridulation[2]
- suburb from suburban [2]
- suckle from suckling[2]
- sulk from sulky[2]
- summate from summation[2]
- sunburn (the verb) from sunburned[2]
- superannuate from superannuated[2]
- surreal from surrealism[5]
- surveil from surveillance[5]
- swashbuckle from swashbuckler[2]
- swindle from swindler[5]
- syncline from synclinal[5]
T
- tamale, as a singular of tamales (plural form of tamal)[5]
- tase from Taser
- taxon from taxonomy
- televise from television[5][4]
- tongue-lash from tongue-lashing[2]
- transcript (verb) from transcription (cf. verb transcribe)
- tricep from triceps (non-standard)
- trickle-irrigate from trickle-irrigation (possibly backformed from verb-noun compound but may also be verb-verb compound)
- tweeze from tweezers[5]
- typewrite from typewriter[2][4]
U
- underwhelming as a supposed antonym of overwhelming
- unit from unity[2]
- upholster from upholstery[2]
- ush from usher
V
- vaccinate from vaccination[5]
- vend as in vend out (meaning to contract out to a vendor), derived from vendor
- verse from versus[9]
- vinify from vinification[2]
- vint (meaning to make wine) from vintage and vintner[7]
- vivisect from vivisection[2]
W
- wiretap from wiretapper[5]
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x Harper, Douglas (2001), Online Etymology Dictionary, retrieved 7 November 2020
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah ai aj ak al am an ao ap aq ar as at au av aw ax ay az ba bb bc bd be bf bg bh bi bj bk bl bm bn bo bp bq br bs bt bu bv bw bx by bz ca cb cc cd ce cf cg ch ci cj ck cl cm cn co cp cq cr "Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary". 2009. Retrieved 9 November 2009.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i "The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language" (4 ed.). Houghton Mifflin Company. 2009. Retrieved 9 November 2009.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af Abootty, O. (December 15, 2004). Funny Side of English. Pustak Mahal. p. 29. ISBN 978-8122307993. Retrieved 31 July 2015.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah ai aj ak al am an ao ap aq ar as at au av aw ax ay az ba bb bc bd "Random House Dictionary of the English Language, Unabridged" (4 ed.). Random House, Inc. 2009. Retrieved 9 November 2009.
- ^ "Dictionary.com's 21st Century Lexicon". Dictionary.com, LLC. 2003–2009. Retrieved 9 November 2009.
- ^ a b c d e f "Oxford English Dictionary". Oxford University Press. 2009.
- ^ a b "Webster's New World College Dictionary". YourDictionary.com. Retrieved 9 November 2009.
- ^ "Why Do Kids Say "Versing"?". Retrieved 2024-02-20.
