Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?
No, because a summer’s day is not going to learn about Shakespeare’s linguistic influence on the English language it’s most famous neologist. Neology is the use of a new word or expression, or of an established word in a new or different sense.
I’ll be using some of Shakespeare’s words and phrases throughout this post, so see if you can spot all eight. I promise it’s not a wild goose-chase.
William Shakespeare is accredited with a generous estimation of over 1,600 words used in modern English. All that glitters isn’t gold though. Some words were not his invention, but it was the first time they appeared in print. The real number is closer to 500, as proven with the help of new computer analysis.
No need to become a green-eyed monster because of the bard’s success. If you want to be a master neologist too and you’re in a pickle trying to create new words, here’s some of the tricks Shakespeare used:
- New use of existing prefixes or suffixes (ex: unreal, buzzer).
- Converting nouns into verbs (ex: duke, champion). This method is actually used in many other languages. In Japanese, the word “suru” can be added to nouns to create suru-verbs. I used it to create the verb neolog in my blog title above.
- Converting adjectives into verbs (ex: third, as seen in the phrase, “what man thirds his own worth”). Verbs can become adjectives too (ex: blushing, barefaced).
- Combining known adjectives into compounds (ex: cold-blooded, lack-lustre, bare-faced).
- Actual new words: Watchdog, dwindle, lonely, frugal.
Hopefully you don’t develop an addiction to creating words, but now you can swagger around with full knowledge of Shakespeare’s linguistic techniques. The world is your oyster.
Parting is such sweet sorrow that I shall say goodnight till it be the next blog post.
Answers: The 8 Shakespearean words/phrases used above: 1) wild goose-chase, 2) generous, 3) all that glitters isn’t gold, 4) green-eyed monster, 5) in a pickle, 6) addiction, 7) swagger, 8) world is your oyster.
Read more:
Battistella, Edwin. “Shakespeare’s linguistic legacy.” Oxford University Press’s Blog, 10 April 2016. https://blog.oup.com/2016/04/shakespeare-linguistic-legacy/.
Culpeper, Jonathan and Gilings, Mathew. “Five myths about Shakespeare’s contribution to the English language” The Conversation, August 31, 2022. https://theconversation.com/five-myths-about-shakespeares-contribution-to-the-english-language-189402.