Nominalization

In linguistics, nominalization or nominalisation is the use of a word that is not a noun (e.g., a verb, an adjective or an adverb) as a noun, or as the head of a noun phrase. This change in functional category can occur through morphological transformation, but it does not always. Nominalization can refer, for instance, to the process of producing a noun from another part of speech by adding a derivational affix (e.g., the noun legalization from the verb legalize),^[1] but it can also refer to the complex noun that is formed as a result.^[2]

Nominalization is also known as "nouning".^[3]

Some languages simply allow verbs to be used as nouns without inflectional difference (conversion or zero derivation), while others require some form of morphological transformation. English has cases of both.

Nominalization is a natural part of language, but some instances are more noticeable than others. Writing advice sometimes focuses on avoiding overuse of nominalization. Texts that contain a high level of nominalized words can be dense,^[4] but these nominalized forms can also be useful for fitting a larger volume of information into smaller sentences.^[5] Often, using an active verb (rather than a nominalized verb) is the most direct option.^[6]

^ Kolln, M. (1998). Rhetorical Grammar: Grammatical Choices, Rhetorical Effects (3rd ed.). Boston: Allyn and Bacon. p. 63. ISBN 0-205-28305-5.
^ Lieber, Rochelle (25 June 2018). Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Linguistics.
^ Macmillan Dictionary. https://www.macmillandictionary.com/us/dictionary/american/nouning#:~:text=singular-,nouning,of%20speech%20into%20a%20noun
^ Lock, Graham (1996). Functional English grammar : an introduction for second language teachers. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-45305-4. OCLC 32590482.
^ Thomas, Damon; To, Vinh (June 2016). "Nominalisation in high scoring primary and secondary school persuasive texts". The Australian Journal of Language and Literacy. 39 (2): 135–148. doi:10.1007/bf03651967. ISSN 1038-1562. S2CID 115064270.
^ Carpenter, Jacob (2022). "The Problems, and Positives, of Passives: Exploring Why Controlling Passive Voice and Nominalizations Is About More Than Preference and Style". SSRN Electronic Journal. doi:10.2139/ssrn.4290027. ISSN 1556-5068. S2CID 254755768.

[1] Kolln, M. (1998). Rhetorical Grammar: Grammatical Choices, Rhetorical Effects (3rd ed.). Boston: Allyn and Bacon. p. 63. ISBN 0-205-28305-5.

[Lieber-2] Lieber, Rochelle (25 June 2018). Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Linguistics.

[3] Macmillan Dictionary. https://www.macmillandictionary.com/us/dictionary/american/nouning#:~:text=singular-,nouning,of%20speech%20into%20a%20noun

[4] Lock, Graham (1996). Functional English grammar : an introduction for second language teachers. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-45305-4. OCLC 32590482.

[5] Thomas, Damon; To, Vinh (June 2016). "Nominalisation in high scoring primary and secondary school persuasive texts". The Australian Journal of Language and Literacy. 39 (2): 135–148. doi:10.1007/bf03651967. ISSN 1038-1562. S2CID 115064270.

[6] Carpenter, Jacob (2022). "The Problems, and Positives, of Passives: Exploring Why Controlling Passive Voice and Nominalizations Is About More Than Preference and Style". SSRN Electronic Journal. doi:10.2139/ssrn.4290027. ISSN 1556-5068. S2CID 254755768.

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