Suffixal Rivalry in Adjective Formation

Focusing on adjectival suffixes in English, the book analyzes adjective pairs sharing a common root but differing in suffixes. It employs Cognitive Semantics to argue that these suffixes form polysemous categories centered around shared concepts yet vary in meaning. Each adjective's meaning is contextual and influenced by its domain, leading to the conclusion that no two adjectives are truly synonymous. Utilizing Corpus Linguistics, the book examines corpus data to uncover the nuanced distinctions in meaning and usage among these adjective pairs.