Morphophonology
The plural morpheme in English, represented by the allomorphs /s/, /z/, and /iz/, follows predictable patterns based on the phonological ending of the noun's base form.(ie, it depends on whether the base word ends with voiced or voiceless sounds). This phonological conditioning determines when each allomorph is used. Morphophonemic alterations, termed morphophonology, result from the interaction between phonetic sounds in close proximity. Allomorphs /-z/, /-s/, and /-iz/ are phonologically conditioned, occurring predictably in specific environments. The sound that influences another sound is the conditioning sound, while the affected sound is the conditioned sound.
Zero Modification
Certain nouns like deer, sheep, and cattle have the same form for both singular and plural. The process of pluralisation does not make any visible change in the phonemic shape of such morphemes. Such changes are called zero modification. The sign /∅/ is used to indicate that a plural morpheme has been added to the root by labelling it as zero allomorph. Examples: deer + /∅/, cattle +/∅/. Similarly, past tense verbs like cut, put, and hit also feature a zero allomorph.
Free and Bound morphemes
Free morphemes are morphemes that can stand alone as separate words. They can exist without the assistance of any other element. Content words such as eat, sea, red, and man are free morphemes.
Bound morphemes are morphemes that can not stand as separate words. Morphemes like un-, in-, -hood, and dis- in words like unkind, inevitable, boyhood, and disdain can be joined to any other word in the same form class to form new words.
Bound morphemes depend on free morphemes for their existence. Bound morphemes like the endings in "eater," "boys," and "quicker" cannot.
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