Compound Words in English: Vocabulary Building

What are Compound Words?- A compound word consists of two or more base words. Meaning of Compound word is often different from the separate base words. - Compound Words and Parts of Speech- Compound words are mostly nouns, adjectives, and verbs. - Kinds of Compound Words - Compound words are of three types: (A). Closed Compound Words: Words are joined together. There is no space or hyphen between the words. Examples: firefly / softball / redhead / keyboard / makeup / notebook - (B). Hyphenated Compound Words: Words are joined together by a hyphen. Examples: daughter-in-law / over-the-counter / six-year-old - (C). Open Compound Words: Words are not joined together. Words are open or separate. In other words, there is a space between the words. Examples: post office / real estate / full moon / half sister - Some general rules regarding use of hyphens: - Compound Adjectives are often hyphenated. If compound adjective precedes a noun, they are hyphenated. Examples: low-paying job [low- paying is a compound adjective; job is a noun] good-looking celebrity [good-looking is a compound adjective; celebrity is a noun] - Adverbs that end in -ly and compounded with another modifier are generally not hyphenated: Examples: deeply held beliefs, genetically modified foods, highly placed sources, quietly organized meeting - ALSO NOTE: 1. Some compound words may have more than one form but these forms may belong to different parts of speech. Examples: bread and butter [open form] [noun]; bread-and-butter [closed form] [adjective] - charge sheet [open form][noun]; chargesheet [closed form] [verb]- fast track [open form] [noun]; fast-track [hyphenated form] [adjective, verb] - first degree [open form] [noun]; first-degree [hyphenated form] [adjective] - full time [open form] [noun]; full-time [hyphenated form] [adjective, adverb] - gift wrap [open form] [noun]; gift-wrap [hyphenated form] [verb] - hard core [open form] [noun]; hard-core [hyphenated form] [adjective] - hard line [open form] [noun]; hard-line [hyphenated form] [adjective] - road test [open form] [noun]; road-test [hyphenated form] [verb] - second hand [open form] [noun]; second-home [hyphenated form] [adjective] -- 2. Some compound words which are hyphenated in American English are not hyphenated in British English. Example: cash-back [American English]; cashback [British English] -- 3. Compound words are mainly formed in the following ways: (a). adjective + adjective [example: bittersweet], (b). adjective + noun [example: blackboard], (c). adjective + verb [example: broadcast], (d). adjective + past participle [example: cold-blooded], (e). adjective + present participle [example: free-standing], (f). adverb (or preposition) + adjective [example: ingrown], (g). adverb (or preposition) + noun [example: afterlife], (h). adverb (or preposition) + verb [example: cutback], (i). adverb + past participle [example: brightly lit], (j). adverb + present participle [example: long-lasting], (k). noun + adjective [example: blood red], (l). noun + adverb (or preposition) [example: hanger-on], (m). noun + noun [example: airman], (n). noun + verb [example: air-condition], (o). noun + past participle [example: sun-dried], (p). verb + adverb (or preposition) [example: breakdown], (q). verb + noun [example: bathroom], (r). gerund + noun [example: bleaching powder], (s). noun + gerund [example: air-conditioning] -- Detailed list of Compound words in Alphabetical Order. [All compound words have been grouped according to the parts of speech they belong to.