Words with the word bound in them

Today’s post begins with a funny story. All of the English majors in college were required to write a ten page paper on the etymology of a single word. It was one of those assignments that had gained infamy, and many students spent a great deal of time trying to find the perfect word before they had even enrolled in the course. As for me, I chose coffee. Predictable, I know.

A good friend of mine chose huckle, as in huckleberry. The word itself isn’t actually a word, it’s a bound root morpheme. This requires a brief lesson in linguistics. A morpheme is the smallest unit of meaningful language. Girl is a morpheme, as is skip. Girlfriend has two morphemes, as does skipper. Got it? Some morphemes can be free (as in girl, skip, and type) whereas other morphemes are bound (as in huck, funct, and ept). A free morpheme has meaning, a bound morpheme does not. In order to make the bound morphemes make sense, you have to add another morpheme. Funct must become defunct and ept must become inept. So, to review, there are free morphemes and bound morphemes. A free morpheme can stand alone, and a bound morpheme must be attached to another morpheme before it makes sense.

For the purpose of clarity, some linqustics folk call them “bound morphemes” while others call them “bound root morphemes”. I prefer the longer.

Having chosen huckle as his word, my friend was faced with a problem. Huckle isn’t actually a word. It’s a bound root morpheme (technically, it’s two bound morphemes). So he took action and decided to wage a fairly aggressive underground campaign to free huckle – literally. Everywhere he went, he’d scribble “Free Huckle!”. He’d tag bathroom stalls, library books, and campus bulletin boards. His goal was simple: to free huckle from it’s bound mopheme bonds. Of course, nobody who didn’t know of this campaign had any clue what “Free Huckle!” was supposed to mean when it was written on a bathroom stall.

Sadly, huckle is still a bound root morpheme. So I’ve spent the last few years compiling an interesting list of fellow bound root morphemes. Perhaps a small army of these guys could eventually form into something larger and more meaningful.

Here is the list I have so far. I would welcome any additions you have. Keep in mind that some of these are presented in their longer form to clarify their bound status (gruntled for example, is actually two bound morphemes; one of which is a free morpheme – grunt – but this creates a different morpheme).

Can you connect these bound morphemes with their missing morphemes? For example, you can inflate or deflate a balloon, but can you flate a balloon?

flate

embowled

beknownst

combobulated

gruntled

plussed

wildered

fuddled

hibited

ept

chalant

creped

trepid

capitated

stitious

funct

fenistrate

whelemed

linquished

vincible

evitable

There are, of course, millions of bound morphemes (including –ful, de-, and –es), but this particular list aims to find the funniest ones.

Introductory Notes

The words dealt with in the previous chapter are relatively
independent of the context so that they have a definite meaning which
is reproduced in many texts as it stands. This is not the case,
however, with most words in the English vocabulary whose meaning in
any sentence largely depends on the context in which they are used.
True, all words have meanings of their

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own which are defined in dictionaries but the context may specify or
modify the word’s meaning, neutralize or emphasize some part of its
semantics. And before looking for an equivalent, the translator has
to make a careful study of the context to identify the contextual
meaning of the word that should be rendered in translation. This
meaning is the result of the interaction between the word semantics
and the methods of its actualization in the speech act.

Most of the words arc polysemantic, that is, they have several
meanings. As a rule, the word is used in the sentence in one of its
meanings and the context must show what meaning has been selected by
the speaker and cut off all other meanings irrelevant for the
particular act of communication. If somebody complains that ‘Tew
Europeans speak Mandarin», the context inequivocally shows that
it is the Chinese language that is meant and not a Chinese imperial
official or the Chinese fruit. If the same idea is expressed in a
more ambiguous way, for instance, «Few Europeans know the first
thing about Mandarin», the context of the sentence may fail to
indicate the relevant meaning beyond any doubt but the rest of the
text or the circumstances of communication will certainly do that.

The context has also a decisive role to play in the selection of TL
equivalents to the words of the original. We know that in most cases,
the meaning of a SL word can be rendered in TL by a number of regular
equivalents. Variable equivalents can be found not only to the
polysemantic words but also to the monosemantic words as well
as to a semantic variant of a polysemantic word, that is, to one of
its meanings which can be actualized in the course of communication.
In such cases after the translator has ascertained what meaning the
word has in the original text he still has to choose one of the
regular equivalents which fits the context best of all. In other
words, the role of the context is even greater for the translator
than for an ordinary SL receptor. Suppose he is to translate the
following English sentence ‘This issue of the paper devoted about
half of its twenty news columns to the trial of a murderer». The
context enables the translator to understand that the «issue»
refers here to a publication, the «paper» is a newspaper
and the «column» is a department in that newspaper. But he
has also to find additional information in the context which will
allow him to choose an equivalent to «issue» among such
Russian words as «выпуск, издание, номер» or to
compare the use of the Russian «отдел, колонка, столбец»
as equivalents to «column».

No less important is the role of the context in translating the words
with a wide range of reference whose equivalents are too numerous to
be listed in any dictionary. For example, the English noun «record»
is defined as «something that records» or «the
recorded facts about something or

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someone» and can refer to any document or any events, past or
present. It is clear that the Russian names of documents or events
cannot be foreseen and the translator has to find the appropriate
occasional equivalent in each particular context.

The context may modify the meaning of a word to such an extent that
its regular equivalents will not fit TT. In the following sentence:
«History has dealt with Hitler; history will deal with all
would-be Hitlers», the translator has to do with the verb «to
deal» used in the sentence in the meaning which is usually
rendered into Russian as «обходиться» or «поступать».
But obviously history has dealt with Hitler as severely as he
deserved and the translator will opt for a stronger occasional
equivalent like «покончить». The ability to render the
contextual meanings is an essential element of the translator’s
professional skill.

The contextual modification may extend to the connotative meaning of
the word. The translator is greatly concerned about the adequate
reproduction of this part of the word semantics since it has an
impact upon the whole text. Pot example, the English noun
«ambition» and the adjective «ambitious» can
contextually assume either a positive or a negative connotation.
Accordingly, «the UN ambitious program of providing food for the
people of the earth» will be translated as «грандиозная
программа ООН» while the «ambitious plans of South
African racists» will be rendered as «честолюбивые
планы южно-африканских расистов».

The English-Russian dictionary is the translator’s best friend and
assistant in finding the appropriate equivalent. Sometimes the
context tells the translator that one of the dictionary equivalents
to the given word can be well used in TT. Even if the entry in his
dictionary does not provide him with an equivalent that fits his
context, the translator can use the dictionary data to facilitate the
solution. Suppose he comes across a sentence in ST which runs as
follows:

The United States worked out a formula which later came to be known
as dollar diplomacy.

None of the equivalents suggested by I.R. Galperin’s «New
English-Russian Dictionary» (йрормула, рецепт,
догмат, шаблон) fits the context of the sentence which
deals with a stage in the US political history. But combining these
data with the context the translator will look for a Russian
substitute for a «political formula» and may arrive at such
terms as «политическая доктрина» or
«политическая программа»:

США выработали политическую доктрину,
которая впоследствии стала именоваться
«долларовой дипломатией».

The translator should consult the context with special care if his
dictio-

77

nary suggests only one equivalent. He should not be in a hurry to use
this equivalent in his text without first ascertaining that the
English word really is context-free and is always translated in the
same way. In case it is not, the entry is not exhaustive and the
translator should look for another way out. The «New
English-Russian Dictionary’, for example, treats the English words
«opportunism» and «opportunist» as political
terms and gives only one equivalent to each: «оппортунизм»
and «оппортунист». An English-English dictionary,
however, will define «opportunism» as «the art,
policy, or practice of taking advantage of opportunities or
circumstances». And when the word is used as a general term of
disapprobation implying little regard for principles or consequences,
the equivalents suggested by the dictionary have to be rejected in
favor of such Russian words as «конъюнктурщик,
приспособленец» and the like. This is also an
illustration of the usefulness of an English-English dictionary to
the translator who should always turn to it for more complete
information on the word semantics.

Professional skill in using both the dictionary data and the
information extracted from the context to solve his translation
problems is the hallmark of a good translator.

Exercises

I. State what meanings of
polysemantic words are actualized in the following sentences. Can the
equivalents provided by your dictionary be used in the translation?
If not, suggest an equivalent of your own.

1. Alan Rees, a businessman, was accused of handling the negotiations
for ransom. 2. After the play the notices were unanimously favorable
and there was praise for all concerned. 3. The actor had an awkward
grace that could not be copied by anyone in the business. 4. Listen,
we all have funny moods. We wouldn’t be human if we didn’t. 5.
Josephine Carling was a heiress to an automobile fortune. 6. She
prided herself or her chic. 7. The odorous part of human sweat, some
scientists believe, appears to include volatile fatty acids produced
by bacteria living on and in the skin. 8. The sister married a
classmate of mine that’s doing very well in Pittsburgh Plate Glass.
One of their coming men. 9. She had always, all her life, been so
religious about her cold cream and her facials. 10. He passed a
lighted door from which issued music, and stopped with the sense of
familiarity.

II. Find appropriate Russian
equivalents to the word «record» in the following
sentences.

1. The new candidate was known to have an excellent war record. 2.
His father has a record of service with the company of 20 years. 3.
It was clear that the general had carefully studied his aid’s
service’ record. 4. Washington D.C., the US capital, is the city with
the highest crime record. 5. By resorting to mass terror and armed
violence against the black popula-

78

tion of South Africa its rulers reached a new shameful record in
their racial oppression. 6. The AF of L is absolute boss of the
strike-breaking International Confederation of Free Trade Unions. Its
imperialist record fits it for this task. 7. The data published by
the Office of Statistics show that food prices in the country are the
highest on record. 8. «Your Honor,» Arnold announced, «I
move that the testimony of the witness be stricken out from the
record.» 9. The State Secretary finds that the US government has
an unbroken record of friendship for China dating back to 1844.
However shamelessly the American politicians claim to be friends of
Chinese people, the historic record which distinguishes friend from
foe cannot be altered. 10. Had the Republican candidates discussed
the record of the Congress they would have exposed the Republican
Party as a big business party which led the attack on the vital
rights and liberties of the people.

III. Explain the contextual
meanings of the words in bold type in the following sentences

and suggest their Russian
equivalents.

1. The Union executive committee passed a resolution advising the
workers to «sit-out» elections where neither party offers a
candidate whom labour could support. 2. The grievance has still
remained unsettled. It shows how long it takes to «process»
a grievance and why a strike is often the only way to force a
show-down. 3. People who think gangsters are only to be found in
gambling dens and houses of prostitution are oldtimers. 4.
After the strike many participants of the meeting were beaten up by
the Ford plant vigilants. 5. The president of the Auto Workers
Union was not at the rally; instead he redbaited the meeting
and charged that it was a plot against him. 6. One of the planks in
the Tory programme was to reduce personal consumption: this was to be
done partly by rationing the purse. 7. The amendment received
3,622,000 votes, while the Executive resolution received 4,090,000.
This close vote at the Trades Union Congress faced the
right-wing leaders with a tremendous problem in relation to the
future Labour Party Conference. 8. The Coal Board aimed to have
safety-level stocks by the beginning of November but now they
say they will be at least a million tons short. 9. Chicago. — A
proposal that the problem of out-of-this world meat prices be put on
the conference table for a working-over by packers, farmers,
organized workers and consumers was made here by the President of the
United Packinghouse Workers (AFL-CIO). 10. The bill was also opposed
by such non-trust lobbies as the AFL lobby, the anti-saloon lobby
and many others.

IV. Find the way of rendering
into Russian the connotational meanings of the words in bold

type in the following
sentences. Explain your choice of equivalents.

1. During the postwar period in the midst of the economic boom the

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workers’ conditions, although gradually deteriorating, were not so
bad as to provoke desperate struggles. 2. Prior to the Civil War many
slaveowners in the South nursed ambitious plans of extending their
rule to the whole of the United States. 3. The imperialist appetites
of the Tories drove them on to their East-of-Suez policies. 4. His
appetite for travel was whetted and Chopin began to nurse the
ambition of visiting the musical capital of Europe, Vienna. 5. The
Good Neighbour policy was simply a reformulation of the old
imperialism in order for it to countermove more effectively the
growing nationalism and democratic spirit of the Latin American
people. 6. The Communists are tireless advocates of peace, and at the
same time were aggressive supporters of the anti-Hitler war. 7. The
right-wing leaders aggressively sabotaged all efforts from the left
to organize the workers of other industries. 8. The Union demanded
that the existing grievance machinery be entirely scrapped and a
modern, streamlined, effective scheme put into its place. 9. Much of
his popularity is manufactured, much of his glamour has been
streamlined by nimble-wilted press agents.

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