Download This Sample
This sample is exclusively for KidsKonnect members!
To download this worksheet, click the button below to signup for free (it only takes a minute) and you'll be brought right back to this page to start the download!
Sign Me Up
Table of Contents
Compound words are two or more root words combined together to form another word with an individual meaning. Compound words have three forms: the closed compound, where words look like one word; the open compound, where the words are written separately; and the hyphenated compound, where the words are separated using a hyphen. Furthermore, compound words can also be classified as endoteric, exoteric, root, synthetic, and suspended.
See the fact file below for more information on Compound Words, or you can download our 25-page Compound Words worksheet pack to utilize within the classroom or home environment.
Key Facts & Information
COMPOUND WORDS AND THEIR LINGUISTIC BACKGROUND
- Compound words are produced using the word formation process called compounding.
- This word formation process is also called composition, which in Latin means “put together”
- The words that should be used in compounding should be free morphemes or a morpheme (a group of letters) that can stand as a word.
- These morphemes can be a noun, a verb, or an adjective.
- The following are examples of compound words:
- classroom (class + room)
- blackboard (black + board)
- pencil case (pencil + case)
- high school (high + school)
- long-term (long + term)
- in-campus (in + campus)
FORMS OF COMPOUND WORDS
- Notice that the example compound words above are formed differently. This is because compound words have three forms: closed compound, open compound, and hyphenated compound.
- Closed compound words are formed by combining two free morphemes or fully independent.
- Examples:
basketball (basket + ball)
school house (school + house)
mailbox (mail + box)
- The words in the closed compound may not have been combined before, but over time and with the frequent use of these words, they have become standardized and have become accepted as one word.
FORMS OF COMPOUND WORDS
- Open compound words are formed when two words, though combined to form a new meaning, are still written separately.
Examples:
real estate (real + estate)
post office (post + office)
jogging pants (jogging + pants)
- The last form of compound words is the hyphenated compound word which is formed when two words are joined together by a hyphen to form a new meaning.
Examples:
two-fold (two + fold)
teacher-in-charge (teacher + in + charge)
up-to-date (up + to + date)
- Usually, hyphenated compound words are created and used to describe or form an adjective. Take note of the examples given: ‘two-fold’ is used to describe an increase or a rise in the number; teacher-in-charge is used to describe the job or task of the teacher; and up-to-date is used to describe something current such as information or payment.
- In some cases, these hyphenated compounds used as adjectives become open compounds when placed after the word they describe.
Examples:
The full-time professor in this department is Mrs. Figg.
Professor Figg is full time.
We need a long-term solution for this.
The solution that we need for this is long term.
FORMS OF COMPOUND WORDS
-
In the sets of sentences given, the compounds ‘full-time’ and ‘long-term’ in the first sentence of each set of examples are hyphenated because they come before the word that they are describing (professor and solution). On the other hand, ‘full time’ and ‘long term’ became an open compound in the second sentence of each set of examples because they are written after the noun that they describe.
TYPES OF COMPOUNDS ACCORDING TO WORD STRUCTURE
- The first type of compound words is the root compound. This is also called the primary compound or an analytic compound. Root compound is made up of free morphemes and the semantic relationship between the words are not restricted.
Examples:
toothpaste (tooth + paste)
catfish (cat + fish)
notebook (note + book)
The examples above are combined using two nouns.
Examples:
old school (old + school)
new moon (new + moon)
white collar (white + collar)
The examples above are combined using an adjective and a
noun.
TYPES OF COMPOUNDS ACCORDING TO WORD STRUCTURE
Examples:
handshake (hand + shake)
haircut (hair + cut)
rainfall (rain + fall)
The examples above are combined using a noun and a
verb.
- The second type of compound is called the synthetic compound, which forms the compound word through compounding and derivation (a process where an affix or inflection is added to a word to form a new meaning).
Examples:
handwriting (hand + writing)
dishwasher (dish + washer)
senior editor (senior + editor)
The words in the example below show the combination of
a noun or an adjective and a derived verb.
- The third type of compound words is the suspended compound. It is a set of compound nouns or compound adjectives. In this case, the element common to the words involved in compounding is not included anymore.
- This type of compound is also called the suspensive hyphenation where a hyphen and a space follow the first element of a suspended compound.
Examples:
pre- and post-test
first- and second-hand
three- and four-year-old
In these examples, the similar element of each compound
is not written anymore, but it is indicated through the
hyphen and the space.
TYPES OF COMPOUNDS ACCORDING TO MEANING
- The first type of these compound words is the endocentric compound. In this type, the central meaning of the word is carried by the head.
Examples:
The students are already in the classroom.
-a room used to hold or conduct classes
The newspapers this morning were sold out.
-a type of paper which contains news
There book store is a bookstore near our house.
-a store that primarily sells books
In the examples given, the central meaning of the word is carried by the head word. These words are specified using their heponyms (a word that has a more specific meaning).
- The second type of compound is the exocentric compound. These are compound words where the central meaning of the word is not carried by the head.
Examples:
I prefer reading the paperback version of that the e-book.
– it is a type of book that is paper-bound
People know that Kylie is a show-off.
– is a person that shows off
The scarecrow was in the middle of the farm
-an object designed to scare birds
Notice that the head word in each example does not contain the central meaning of the word. Although some of the examples of exocentric compound words suggest the meaning of the word, it is still important to know the meaning of the word for accuracy.
Compound Word Worksheets
This fantastic bundle includes everything you need to know about Compound Words across 25 in-depth pages. These are ready-to-use Compound Word worksheets that are perfect for teaching students about Compound Words, which are two or more root words combined together to form another word with an individual meaning.
Complete List Of Included Worksheets
- Compound Words Facts
- True Compounds
- Proper Compounds
- Form the Compounds
- Complete the Compounds
- Compound Types Part I
- Compound Types Part II
- Extending Compounds
- Compounding in a Sentence
- Give Me More Compound
- Reflecting in Compounds
Link/cite this page
If you reference any of the content on this page on your own website, please use the code below to cite this page as the original source.
Link will appear as Compound Words Worksheets: https://kidskonnect.com - KidsKonnect, July 29, 2016
Use With Any Curriculum
These worksheets have been specifically designed for use with any international curriculum. You can use these worksheets as-is, or edit them using Google Slides to make them more specific to your own student ability levels and curriculum standards.