A STUDY OF SOME ASPECTS OF LEXICAL COMPRESSIONS IN SINGAPORE ENGLISH

Abstract

This AE researches into a common fearture of linguistic usage which has perhaps been the subject of much less research than it deserves, lexical compressions, or in other words the way in which abbreviations of lexical items are made. The phenomena observed in Singapore Englsih form the basis of the investigation. The AE proposes that lexical abbreviation is not a matter of random omission of letters or sounds as it mighr appear at first sight, but that nearly all examples belong to one of six distinguishable ways of forming abbreviations, which form a systematic framework of classification. Chapter Two presents this framework and a description of the formal characteristics of the six types. Chapter Three pursues the investigation further by investigating various different motives for the use of lexical compressions. A questionnaire was also designed for testing the plausibility and relative importance of these motives m prompting the use of lexical compressions, and the results supported the hypotheses put forward in this chapter. Lastly, the AE concludes with suggestions for future research in the field of lexical compressions that might be carried out both within English and corss-linguistically.