We explain what a lexical family is, what the morpheme, the lexeme are and how they make up words. Also, examples of lexical families.
What is a lexical family?
In linguistics, The lexical family or family of words is called the set of words that share the same root (lexeme), that is, that come entirely from the same primitive word, thanks to the different derivation processes that the language contemplates (that is, , through the addition of derivative morphemes). Thus, the words that make up the same lexical family share a root, but have different meanings.
Remember that most words are made up of different linguistic components:
- Lexemas or lexías: It is the root of the word where the greatest amount of meaning is found (in the sense of the dictionary meaning).
- Morphemes: They are the grammatical additions that, when joined with the root, allow one or another word to be built, although in themselves they do not have a meaning, but a meaning within the language code (grammatical meaning).
Thus, a word family is the set of words that share lexia, but have different morphemes. These morphemes are usually of the derivative type, such as prefixes, infixes and suffixes, some of which provide a certain load of their own lexical meaning (the prefixes only, since many were once words in themselves), and that give rise to a set of derived words, that is, that cause a derivation.
The same does not happen with inflectional morphemes, such as those that indicate the gender and number of a word, for example, since they do not really produce new meanings in the word, but rather modify it to partially adapt it to a referent.
For example, from the lexical stem child- we can get "childor"Or" childto", Or even" childyou"And" childace”Adding inflectional morphemes (-o, -a, -os, -as). But the matrix meaning does not change at all: we are still talking about human beings in their early stages of life.
Instead, adding the morpheme (-ez) we have “niñez", Which is already a different word, referring to a time of life, or by adding the morpheme (-era) we have" niñit was", Which is the name of the job of the person who cares for the children (and which without changing its meaning can be" babysittingor”Through the inflectional“ -o ”).
Many times the study of lexical families reveals interesting twists, figurative meanings and word-making routes throughout the history of the language. Often for this, etymology is used, that is, the study of the origin of words.
Examples of lexical family
Here are some examples of lexical families:
Of the lexeme camp–
- camp - o = field
- camp - esino / a = peasant / peasant
- camp - a - mento = camp
- camp - era = jacket
- camp - iña = countryside
- camp - ism = camping
- camp - est = country
- a - camp - ar = camp
- des - camp - ar = descampar
- des - camp - ado = open field
Note how the lexical family shares, in its different cases and meanings, a matrix meaning that is linked to the rural, the natural, that is, with the countryside.
From the lexeme zapat-
- shoe - o = shoe
- shoe - ero / a = shoe rack / shoe rack
- slipper - illa = slipper
- zapat - ería = shoe store
- shoe - azo = shoe
- shoe - ear = shoe
The lexical family shares the meaning of the garment that is put on the feet, or the actions that are carried out with it on.
From the lexeme arb-
- tree - ol = tree
- arb - usto = bush
- arb - or - ícola = arboreal
- arb - ol - eda = grove
- arb - ol - ado = wooded
- arb - or - ecer = arborecer
- arb - or - i - culture = arboriculture
- des - arb - ol - ar = disarm
- en - arb - ol - ar = fly
The lexical family shares the meaning of “tree”: a large woody plant, and in the latter case it does so figuratively: “to en-tree” a flag or a banner is literally “to make a tree out of it”, that is, raise it high and firm.
From the lexeme libr-
- libr - o = book
- libr - ero / a = bookseller / bookcase
- libr - ería = bookstore
- libr - aco = libraco
- libr - azo = librazo
- libr - esco = bookish
- libr - eta = notebook
- book - illo = booklet
- libr - eto = libretto
- brand - book - os = bookmark
- porta - libr - os = portaibros
The lexical family all share a sense referring to the physical paper supports for writing, that is, books.
From the lexeme mar-
- sea = sea
- sea - ino = marine
- mar - in - ero = sailor
- mar - eo = seasickness
- sea - ea = tide
- sea - ea - do = dizzy
- sea - ítimo = maritime
- mar - inar = marinate
- sea - ina = marina
- mar - ej - ada = tidal wave
- sea - e - moto = tidal wave
- sea - isco = seafood
- a - sea - lifting = landing
- sub - sea - ino = submarine
- ultra - sea = overseas
The lexical family shares the sense of the ocean.
From the lexeme pan-
- pan = bread
- bread - ad - ero / a = baker / baker
- bread - ad - ería = bakery
- bread - ec - illo = muffin
- bread - era = bread basket
- bread - ific - ar = bread
- em - pan - iz - ar = bread
- em - pan - a - da = pie
The lexical family shares meanings referring to bread and its preparation or culinary uses.
From the lexeme flower-
- flower = flower
- flower - ero = vase
- flower - er - ía = flower shop
- flower - is - ta = florist
- flower - is - te - ría = florist
- flower - a - tion = flowering
- flower - al = floral
- flower - it - ura = flourish
- flower - is - ta = forest
- flower - in = florin
- flower - e - cer = flourish
- a - flower - ar = bloom
- des - flower - ar = deflower
The lexical family has everything to do with the flowers and actions that are done with them.
From the lexeme cas-
- cas - a = house
- cas - ona = house
- cas - illa = box
- cas - erío = farmhouse
- cas - ero = home
- cas - ar = marry
- cas - orio = casorio
- cas - ado / a = married / married
- cas - a - ment = marriage
- cas - a - ment - ero = matchmaker
- des - cas - ado = unmarried
The lexical family shares the sense of "home", even when it is extended to its members, who traditionally to make up a home must marry, that is, Houserse. One step further in the same sense, he is "unmarried": that which had a relationship or was linked to something, but is no longer so (in the sense that he was "married", that is, he had a partner).