Timeline for Why is oak considered an adjective in 'the big oak tree'?
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| Dec 15, 2015 at 16:19 | comment | added | user20792 | I misreported what McWhorter says. He says in compound words, such as Chinese food the stress is on the first unit in the word. Whereas, Mary Tyler Moore's stress was on the second element in "Chinese food". @Araucaria and J.R. | |
| Dec 15, 2015 at 15:48 | comment | added | Araucaria - Not here any more. | @NES +1 I disagree with McWhorter on that though. In Chinese food, both words take stress which indicates that Chinese food is a regular adjective + noun combination. The reason that the stress within the word Chi'nese is different from the stress in the word when modifying food is just because of stress shift. You'll notice that it will also change in 'Chinese' headgear. It's the same way that the stress in on the second syllable in four'teen but this shifts to the first in 'fourteen 'episodes. Or consider cham'pagne and 'champagne 'cocktail. | |
| Dec 15, 2015 at 14:57 | history | edited | user20792 | CC BY-SA 3.0 |
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| Dec 15, 2015 at 11:16 | comment | added | user20792 | plus, I'm not sure that the relationship between the two components of a compound word are agreed on by all linguists. So I'm not sure if descriptors as to what to call oak in oak tree necessarily conflict with this answer. But we don't pronounce oak tree like we do tall tree or blackbird like we do black bird. | |
| Dec 15, 2015 at 10:03 | comment | added | J.R.♦ | NES - Like I said, I liked your answer. Sure enough, the OED has a separate entry for oak tree, which says, plain as day, "Etymology: Formed within English, by compounding." When it comes to two-word compounds, I liked Lawrence's ice cream example, too. | |
| Dec 15, 2015 at 3:31 | comment | added | user20792 | @J.R. Everything in this answer was taken from sources other than me. Either the OED, which calls oak tree a compound word, to the other resources. Also John McWhorter. I did not add a single word to the list I include. Even ODO says also Oak tree when you look up Oak. The OP should be aware of this viewpoint...I didn't write it for my sake. ;) | |
| Dec 14, 2015 at 20:50 | comment | added | J.R.♦ | I really like your orange juice example, but I'm not sure I'd call oak tree a compound word (at least, not in the same way I'd call doorknob a compound word). I've always been taught that a word is compounded when they are joined to form a single lexeme. So, I'd call bottleneck a compound word, but bottle cap a noun phrase – but I won't go so far as to assert there are no allowances for wiggle room. You've given me much to ponder. (Not my downvote, btw.) | |
| Dec 14, 2015 at 20:20 | history | edited | user20792 | CC BY-SA 3.0 |
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| Dec 14, 2015 at 20:08 | history | answered | user20792 | CC BY-SA 3.0 |