Iconicity and word-formation. An examination of Adj+ie/y nominalisations through a Bidirectional Conceptualisation Model

Abstract

This article aims to encourage a discussion of how evaluative morphemes conform to the principles of iconicity and Construction Grammar through the examination of English Adj+ie/y nominalisations (e.g. brownie, softie). Our analysis of the Adj+ie/y paradigm investigates conceptual processes that employ these evaluative morphological forms. We propose a Bidirectional Conceptualisation Model (BCM) to demonstrate a templatic correlation between iconic morphological components and evaluative connotations, by means of which the suffix -ie/y is employed to instantiate a specific iconic value of the [[x-]A ie/y]N construction. The BCM incorporates the Diminution: Pejoration ↔ Endearment scale, which accounts for the semantic duality of appreciative and depreciative values realised by the morphological concept of diminution. The results of the study support the idea that superficially different functions realised by one and the same morphological form are related through interaction of Idealised Cognitive Models.