Tok Pisin’s versatility in reproducing
the English affixation
Makoto Okamoto
Ⅰ
Tok Pisin in Papua New Guinea has English as its main lexifier language. It also,
therefore, can be defined as a variety of English, which is suggested by its former
name Melanesian Pidgin English. Most of the vocabulary items are ultimately derived
from English. Although it is needless to say that all affixes English has had are not
always reflected to Tok Pisin, still we can find some of the traits equivalent to those of
the English language through Mihalic’s dictionary (1971). The aim here is intended
to probe the versatility Tok Pisin has from the point of view that how Tok Pisin has
managed to adapt itself to the affixes of its mother language.
Linguistically affixes are typed as many as eight (Gerdts, 2003), such as prefixes,
suffixes, infixes, circumfixes, interfixes, suprafixes, simulfixes, and duplifixes. However,
it would be still easier to acknowledge that English has only two, namely prefixes and
suffixes. Prefixes are those at the beginning and suffixes are at the end of the word-bases
to which they are affixed. They are attached to a base morpheme such as a root or to a
stem, to form a word, serving to modify their meaning and use (OED, 1989). They may
be derivational, like -ness and pre-, or inflectional, like plural –s and past tense –ed.
Sadler (1974) sorts out those Tok Pisin lexicons equivalent to English on the basis
of meaning, such as prefixed ones with something positive and something negative,
together with likewise suffixed ones.
But, since Quirk et al. (1985) have presented a good model, a comprehensive
− 183 −
Makoto Okamoto
classification of the two types, the presentation here is to follow what they have done,
as we see below, although the vocabularies of this kind are of course limited in the
Melanesian Pidgin English.
In the following section Ⅱ , we will see how versatile Tok Pisin is to cope with
affixed English lexica without resorting to loanwords from the language. Picking up
and sorting out words from the Mihalic which would correspond to affixed English
vocabularies was the main thing to do for the author to publish this paper.
Quirk and others classify the English affixation as follows.
Prefixation
Negative prefixes
Reservative or privative prefixes
Pejorative prefixes
Prefixes of degree or size
Prefixes of orientation and attitude
Locative prefixes
Prefixes of time and order
Number prefixes
Miscellaneous neo-classical prefixes
Conversion prefixes
Suffixation
Denominal nouns: Abstract
Denominal nouns: Concrete
Deverbal nouns
De-adjectival nouns
Noun/adjective suffixes
Denominal suffixes
Deverbal suffixes
− 184 −
Tok Pisin’s versatility in reproducing the English affixation
Adverb suffixes
Verb suffixes
It is needless to comment that all these items do not necessarily accept the Tok Pisin
lexicons of the topic which are from the Mihalic. The verbs of the vocabulary entry are
in the form of a bare infinitive.
Ⅱ
English
Tok Pisin
English Gloss
disobedient
bik het
‘big head’
disrespect
bik het
‘big head’
distrust
no bilipim
‘no believe’
[Prefixation]
Negative prefixes
(1)
no stret
‘(be) no straight’
inaccurate
i
inadequate
i no inap
‘(be) no enough’
inconsistent
tanim gen
‘turn again’
inefficient
i no save wok gut
(2)
‘(be)no (to)know work good’
infinite
i no gat arere
‘(be) no got edge’
insufficient
i no inap
‘(be) no enough’
(3)
‘die’
unconscious
dai
undress
lusim klos
‘lose cloth’
unemployed
no gat wok
‘no got work’
unequal
tupela i no skel
‘two (be) no scale’
unfair
i no stret
‘(be) no straight’
unload
tekewe kago long trak o sip
‘take away cargo along
truck or ship’
unprepared
no redi
‘no ready’
− 185 −
Makoto Okamoto
unripe
i no mau(4)
‘(be) no ripe’
unwilling
i no laik
‘(be) no like’
Reversative or privative prefixes
abnormal
narakain
‘another kind’
abuse
tok nogut long
‘talk no good along’
defame
tok nogutim
‘talk no good’
deform
mekim nogut
‘make no good’
denude
tekwe klos
‘take away clothes’
detour
raun nabaut long
‘round about along’
disagree
no laik
‘no like’
disapprove
no orait long
‘no all right along’
dishonest
pasin bilong giaman
‘fashion belong gammon’
disinfectant
strongpela marasin
‘strong medicine’
dislike
no laikim
‘no like’
illegitimate
pikinini i no gat papa
(5)
‘child (be) no got papa’
illiterate
bus kanaka
‘bush man’
immoral
samting nogut i gat sem
‘something no good (be)
got shame’
(6)
i no save dai
‘(be) no know die’
misconduct
pasin nogut
‘fashion no good’
misquote
krungutim tok
‘crooked talk’
mistranslate
tanim nogut
‘turn no good’
wok wantaim
‘work one time’
immortal
Pejorative prefixes
Prefixes of degree or size
cooperate
− 186 −
Tok Pisin’s versatility in reproducing the English affixation
submerge
subim i go daun long wara
‘shove (be) go down
along water’
subsequent
i kamap bihain
‘(be) come up behind’
subside
i go daun
‘(be) go down’
subtract
tekewe
‘take away’
Prefixes of orientation and attitude
antiseptic
marasin bilong klinim sua
‘medicine belong clean
sore’
Locative prefixes
foreword
tok i go pas(7)
‘talk (be) go fast’
foretell
tokim bipotaim
‘talk before time’
Prefixes of time and order
recollect
askim lewa(8)
‘ask heart’
rejoin
kam wantaim gen
‘come one time again’
replace
kisim ples bilong
‘catch place belong’
Number prefixes
None
Miscellaneous neo-classical prefixes
None
Conversion prefixes
ablaze
i paia
‘(be) fire’
aboard
stap long sip
‘stop along ship’
− 187 −
Makoto Okamoto
afoot
i wokabaut i go
‘(be) walk about (be) go’
afresh
wantaim moa
‘one time more’
aloud
bikmaus
‘big mouth’
anew
wantaim gen
‘one time again’
behead
katim het
‘cut head’
(9)
encourage
givim gutpela tok
‘give good talk’
imprison
putim long kalabus
‘put along calaboose’
improve
go mobeta
‘go more better’
impurity
pasin nogut i gat sem
‘fashion no good (be) got
shame’
[Suffixation]
Denominal nouns: Abstruct
weakling
man i no gat bun
‘man (be) no got bone’
Denominal nouns:Concrete
astronomer
man i save long ol sta
‘man (be) know all star
dreamer
man bilong driman
‘man belong dream’
(10)
pikinini pato
‘little duck’
fertilizer
gris bilong graun
‘grease belong ground’
miner
man bilong wok gol
‘man belong work gold’
interpreter
man bilong tanim tok
‘man belong turn talk’
duckling
Deverbal nouns
(11)
bilong ensin
‘garamut belong engine’
muffler
garamut
generator
masin bilong mekim lektrik
‘machine belong make
kamap
electric come up’
boskru
‘boat’s crew’
sailor
− 188 −
Tok Pisin’s versatility in reproducing the English affixation
solicitor
masta kot
‘master court’
supervisor
bosman
‘boss man’
masta i save tumas long ol ston
‘master (be) know along all
De-adjective nouns
None
Noun/adjective suffixes
geologist
stone’
magician
trikman
‘trick man’
faithful
bel tru
‘belly true’
grateful
man i save tenkyu
‘man (be) know thank you
harmful
nogut bel tru
‘no good belly true’
shameful
i gat sem
‘(be) got shame’
Denominal suffixes
man’
(12)
endless
no gat arere
‘no got border’
useless
rabis
‘rubbish’
worthless
nating
‘nothing’
courteous
gutpela
‘good’
famous
i gat biknem
‘(be) got big name’
industrious
man bilong wok
‘man belong work’
(13)
poisonous
i gat pait
‘(be) got fight’
virtuous
stretpela
‘straight’
zealous
i hat long
‘(be) heart along’
salty
i gat sol
‘(be) got salt’
sleepy
ai i hevi
‘eye (be) heavy’
− 189 −
Makoto Okamoto
stony
i gat ston
‘(be) got stone’
tasty
i swit
‘(be) sweet’
thirsty
nek i drai
‘neck (be) dry’
thorny
i gat nil
virginity
‘(be) got nail’
(14)
pasin virgo
‘fashion virgin’
agreeable
orait
‘all right’
talkative
man bilong toktok
‘man belong talk talk’
lengthen
mekim i moa longpela
‘make (be) more long’
sharpen
mekim i sap
‘make (be) sharp’
Deverbal suffixes
Adverb suffixes
None
Verb suffixes
Ⅲ
The prefix ‘ab–’ like ‘abnormal’ and ‘abuse’ is not found in Quirk’s classification. It is
a little difficult to decide which is more appropriate to itemize the prefix ‘Reversative
or privative’ or just ‘Negative.’ Here the prefix ab– has been sorted into ‘Reversative
or privative.’
Likewise the prefix ‘il–’ like ‘illegitimae’ and ‘illiterate’ does not find any place in
Quirk’s either. It has been labeled here again as ‘Reversative or privative.’
It is worth noting that a particular structure plays an important role to substitute for
affixes. Firstly in describing a person, man ＋ bilong ＋ something is common. If the
person is talkative, he/she is man bilong toktok. Likewise he/she could be man bilong
fight, if the person is aggressive. The same structure can also be found for another
− 190 −
Tok Pisin’s versatility in reproducing the English affixation
similar example ‘ancestor’, which is man bilong bipo (‘man belong before’), according
to the Mihalic.
Secondly the structure i ＋ got ＋ something is utilized for an adjective such as i got
sol (‘salty’ ) and i ＋ no ＋ adjective is useful to be in substitution for negative affixes
such as i no stret (‘inaccurate’).
Lastly it would not be meaningless to visually confirm the origins of the lexicons
other than English that have come under the classification.
2.5
2
1.5
1
0.5
ish
an
gu
r tu
Po
Sp
es
e
y
al a
M
ti n
La
ze
lle
Ga
Fi
ji
0
Notes
(1) English gloss for i can be changeable. This is a kind of particle with almost no
special meaning. It is supposed to have derived from ‘he’ but often functions as ‘be.’
(2) Derived from Malay, meaning from ‘edge’, ‘border’ to ‘limit.’ For example,
arere bilong riva is ‘the river bank.’
− 191 −
Makoto Okamoto
(3) In the case of real dying or stopping the existence, the form dai pinis is used,
such as Dispela pasin i dai pinis, whose English gloss would be ‘this fashion (be)
die finish’, thus meaning ‘this custom has ceased.’
(4) Derived from Gazelle, meaning ‘ripe.’
(5) Derived from Fiji, meaning ‘man’ or ‘native.’
(6) Derived from Portuguese ‘saber’, meaning ‘(to) know.’
(7) There are three English counterparts for pas; ‘pass’, ‘past’ and ‘fast.’
(8) Derived from ‘liver’, meaning ‘heart’, ‘mind’, ‘desire’ or ‘something one craves.’
(9) ‘Fellow’ is supposed to be the origin of pela but pela can be interpreted as a
pronoun often together with modifiers like a suffix.
(10) Derived from Spanish, meaning ‘duck.’ Deriving from Spanish is rather unusual.
(11) Derived from Gazelle, originally meaning ‘a tree with hard white wood,’ but
somehow or other the wood seems to be used as a muffler on a car or engine.
(12) Derived from Malay. See the note 2.
(13) There are several meanings for pait. Among them is ‘to have a sharp taste’ or
‘poisonous.’
(14) Derived originally from Latin ‘virgo’, meaning ‘virgin.’
References
Gerdts, D. (2003) The morphosyntax of Halkomelem lexical suffixes. International
Journal of American Linguistics, 69 (4) (University of Chicago Press)
Mihalic, F.(1971) The Jacaranda Dictionary and Grammar of Melanesian Pidgin
(Jacaranda Press)
Quirk, Randolph; Greenbaum, Sidney; Leech, Gregory; Startvik, Jan (1985) A
Comprehensive Grammar of the English Language (Longman)
Sadler, W. (1974) Tok Pisin, A Handbook for Writers (University of Papua New
Guinea)
The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd Edition (1989) (Oxford University Press)
− 192 −