Contents introduction chapter I. Word formation in modern englsh

1.2. Productive and Non-Productive Types of Word Formation
In lexicology we come across classifications of ways of forming words: affixation (suffix and prefix), compounding, conversion, blending, back-formation, clipping (shortening), sound and stress-interchange. They are generally types of word-building and these types are divided into two types according to their function and role. Some ways of forming words in modern English can be resorted to for the creation of new words at any time they are called productive ways; other ways can not produce new words in present days – non-productive (unproductive) ways. Affixation, conversion, compounding and abbreviations are productive ways of word-formation while back-formation, sound and stress interchange, blending, lexicalization of plural forms of nouns, substantivation of adjectives and adjectivisation of nouns are non-productive ways of word-formation.
Affixation (prefixation and suffixation) is forming of the words by adding inflectional or derivational affixes at the beginning or the end of the word. In English language we come across large number of affixes, however some of them have lost their importance or power of forming new words. On this basis, affixes are seen as both living and dead ones. Living affixes un-, pre-, re-, inter- prefixes; -er, -ness, -less, -ly and etc. create or form words actively synchronically (writer, unknown, international) while dead affixes were used much common diachronically but not now: forgive – for+give, knowledge – know+ledge, but now these are not affixes. un-, pre-, re-, inter- prefixes; -er, -ness, -less, -ly are the examples of living affixes. ⁵
Living affixes share the following characteristics:
1. Being added to derivational bases, affixes express certain meaning.
2. Affixes are easily singled out as word-formation elements and are perceived by speakers as parts of words. Meanwhile, derivational bases (after the removal of affixes) should be capable of functioning independently or of producing new words with other affixes.
3. Affixes can be combined with derivational bases other than the ones in combination with which they appeared in the language for the first time. Borrowed affixes should have formations in the recipient language, with their meaning and function being definite and clear enough.
4. Affixes are characterized by certain frequency of usage.
5. Affixes can have the potential of new coinages
According to whether affixes create or form words, they are divided into 2 types: inflectional and derivational.
Inflection is the type of affixation which carries only grammatical meaning and it is relevant only to formation of word-forms: apples, enjoying, opened.
Derivational morpheme serves to create new words, changing it’s meaning and form with it’s part of speech. It defines lexical meaning while inflection does grammatical: build - builder; improve - improvement; teach - teacher.