Tongue Twisters in English

Tongue Twisters: Simple Phrases

What are tongue twisters? Simply it is a phrase. It is designed to make you understand pronunciation and accent. Yes. You might have undergone the difficult phase of repeating the tongue twisters to improve your pronunciation and accent during your school days. According to Oxford English Dictionary, tongue twister is "a sequence of words, often alliterative, difficult to articulate quickly." Another definition from answer.com explains tongue twister as 'a word or group of words difficult to articulate rapidly, usually because of a succession of similar consonantal sounds ...' 'It is an expression that is difficult to articulate clearly.'

In the opinion of Wikipedia, 'tongue-twisters may rely on similar but distinct phonemes, unfamiliar constructs in loanwords, or other features of a language.'

Repetition

Most of the tongue-twisters employ a combination of alliteration and rhyme. You may notice the sequences of sounds repeats two to three times with a change in sequences. Consider this example,

'She sells sea shells on the sea shore.
The shells that she sells are sea shells I'm sure.'

Spoonerisms

Named after the British scholar Reverend William Archibald Spooner, the Spoonerism is an inadvertent transposition of the sounds of two words - usually the initial sounds - especially such a transposition that turns out to produce an interesting or amusing result. Consider the following example:

It is kiss to mary to cuss the bride.

My Tongue Twister Collection

I collected a set of tongue twisters to people who are interested to learn and practice. Under reference I have given useful Websites on tongue twister.

1) Can you imagine an imaginary menagerie manager imagining managing an imaginary menagerie?

2) Fresh fried fish,
Fish fresh fried,
Fried fish fresh,
Fish fried fresh.
Freshly fried fresh flesh.

3) Give papa a cup of proper coffee in a copper coffee cup.

4) Good blood, bad blood.

5) How many saws could a see-saw saw if a see-saw could saw saws?

6) If two witches would watch two watches

Which witch would watch which watch?

7) Lesser leather never weathered wetter weather better.

8) Lily ladles little Letty's lentil soup.

9) My dame hath a lame tame crane,

My dame hath a crane that is lame.

10) Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.

11) Red leather, yellow leather.

12) Red lorry, yellow lorry, red lorry, yellow lorry.

13) Say this sharply, say this sweetly,

Say this shortly, say this softly.

Say this sixteen times in succession.

14) She sells six sea shells on the sea shore

The shells that she sells are sea shells I'm sure.

So if she sells sea shells on the sea shore,

I'm sure that the shells are sea shore shells.

Six thick thistle sticks. Six thick thistles stick.

Shy Shelly says she shall sew sheets.

15) Swan swam over the sea,

Swim, swan, swim!

Swan swam back again

Well swum, swan!

16) The crow flew over the

river with a lump of raw liver.

17) Which witch wished which wicked wish?

18) Who washed Washington's white woolen underwear

when Washington's washer woman went west?

[Note: I have selected the tongue twisters from the Websites shown below]

Useful Websites on Tongue Twisters:

1) The Tongue Twister Database http://www.geocities.com/athens/8136/tonguetwisters.html

2) English Tongue Twisters http://www.uebersetzung.at/twister/en.htm

3) Tongue Twisters http://edahellocircle.homestead.com/toungetwisters.html

4) http://www.answers.com/topic/tongue-twister

5) en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tongue-twister -

6) 1st International Collection of Tongue Twisters - 2712 examples in 107 languages as of September 4, 2006

7) alphaDictionary's Tongue Twisters from Around the World

8) Collection of Popular Tongue Twisters

9) The Tongue Twister Database

Fun with Palindrome

Palindrome is Formed for Fun

The word 'PALINDROME' comes from the Greek word palindromos, which means 'running back again'. A palindrome is a word or sentence or even complete poem which is spelled the same backwards and forwards.

Early palindromes reverse the sentences and not the letters. 'Madam, I'm Adam' is one of the best known palindromes. You must ignore all spaces and punctuations. Here are some good palindromes from KeithEnevoldsen's Think Zoneword fun:

1) are we not drawn onward, we few, drawn onward to new era?

2) cigar? Toss it in a can. It is so tragic.

3) desserts, i stressed

4) dog, as a devil deified, lived as a god.

5) do geese see god?

6) dogma? I am god.

7) drab as a fool, aloof as a bard.

8) draw, o coward

9) ma is as selfless as i am.

10) madam, in eden, i'm adam.

11) never odd or even.

12) no sir, prefer prison.

13) niagara, o roar again.

14) so many dynamos.

15) senile felines.

16) ten animals i slam in a net.

17) straw? No, too stupid a fad. I put soot on warts.

18) was it a cat i saw?

Consider few interesting palindromes. The list is compiled for your amusement. Can you add some more?

1) boob
2) civic
3) civic
4) deed
5) deed
6) deified
7) ewe
8) eye
9) level
10) madam
11) noon
12) nun
13) peep
14) pip
15) pop
16) racecar
17) radar
18) redivider
19) refer
22) repaper
20) rotator
21) rotor
22) sagas
23) sees
24) sexes
25) stats
26) toot
27) tot
28) wow

A palindrome is not necessarily a single word. Words like DAM, DOG, EVIL, LOOP, LOOT, NET and STRAW (which read MAD, GOD, EVIL, LIVE, POOL, TOOL, TEN and WARTS backwards) are not themselves palindromes but the following 'word phrases' are palindromes:

1) dam mad,
2) dog god,
3) live evil,
4) loop pool,
5) loot tool,
6) net ten and
7) straw warts

Today there are many funny palindromes in English and most people know a few.

Some links to Web pages devoted to palindromes:

1) http://www.palindromelist.com/
2) http://www.fun-with-words.com/palindromes.html
3) http://www.mockok.com/(specializes in single-sentence palindromes)
4) http://members.aol.com/gulfhigh2/words
5.html(specializes in one-word palindromes)

[ Palindrome includes funny words, phrases and sentences. Often the word groups are formulated for fun sake. So except fun and amusement, palindromes serves less or no purpose]

[I have compiled the palindromes from conventional dictionaries and Websites mentioned above]

Reduplicated Word Forms in English

Repetitive Compound Words

Have you ever come across peculiar repetitive compound words, chit-chat or hanky-panky? You might be. Why we prefer to use these repetitive compound words? May be for the musical rhyming sequences. These compound words are sounding different. The terms you are using are for the sake of rhyme, repetition, and rhythm, and not for grammar.

Three Types of English Compound Words

Lexicographers and language experts have recognized these word repetition or reduplication and sorted them out using its form. In Standard English you will find only three types of repetitive compound words: the simple 'Duplicative Type', 'Alliterative Type' - those with vowel gradation; and the 'Rhyming Type'. Most English grammars will attest to this fact of language. Repetition of words has become well-established, well-recognized and are well-accepted in spoken or written English.

For example consider the example hanky-panky but, there rhymes in this compound word. In the other example chit-chat, you find rhyming; however you notice the occurrence same consonants and different vowels. In some other word repetitions you may come across exact duplication of the initial word. Let me show you what I mean.

Duplicative Type - Repetitive Compound words: Rhythmic word formation. Consider following examples for its rhythm:

1) ack-ack - anti aircraft fire
2) aye-aye - yes (often used by seamen)
3) bang-bang - sound of a gun
4) beriberi - disease caused by vitamin B deficiency
5) bonbon - a sweet
6) boo-boo - a blunder
7) bye-bye – goodbye
8) cha-cha - Latin ballroom dance
9) choo-choo - train, or sound of the train
10) chop chop - quickly (from pidgin English)
11) froufrou - elaborate (usually of a dress)
12) goody goody - someone virtuous or smug
13) ha-ha - the sound of laughter
14) hush hush – confidential
15) muumuu - loose, bright Hawaiian dress
16) night-night – goodnight
17) no-no – forbidden
18) papa – father
19) pawpaw - papaya

Do you find any change between the two word components? No. You find that the initial word is simply duplicated. There is no rhyming, but repetition of identical constituents for the sake of rhythm.

Alliterative Type - Repetitive Compound words: Another peculiar word formation. Consider following examples for yet another peculiarity.

1) chit-chat - gossipy talk
2) clip clop - sound of a horse’s hooves
3) criss-cross - a pattern of lines that cross each other
4) dilly-dally - to loiter
5) ding-dong - the sound of a bell
6) flim-flam – foolishness
7) flip-flop - this has several meanings, including a backward somersault and a sandal with a piece between the toes
8) hip-hop - type of music
9) knick-knack – trinket
10) mish-mash - a confused mixture
11) ping pong - table tennis
12) pitter-patter - a light, tapping sound
13) riff-raff - rabble; people who are worthless
14) riprap - broken stones on water used to protect riverbanks
15) see-saw - a piece of wood with a central balance which allows it to move up and down
16) shilly-shally - to hesitate
17) tick tock - sound of a clock
18) tittle-tattle - chat, gossip
19) zigzag - sharp turns in alternating directions

Is there rhyming? Yes. You might have noticed that these compound words do not rhyme in the usual way. Have you noticed that the two components of these words have same consonants? Yes you agree. Then what makes the difference? Yes the vowels alone are replaced. So they are alliterative i.e. the repetition of usually initial consonant sounds in two or more neighboring words or syllables.

Rhyming Type - Repetitive Compound words: This peculiar word formation is for the sake of rhyming. Consider following examples:
1) airy-fairy - unrealistic; light and delicate
2) argy-bargy - verbal dispute
3) artsy-fartsy - pretentiously artistic (also arty-farty)
4) boo hoo - crying sound
5) boogie-woogie - piano jazz style
6) bow-wow - the sound of a dog
7) easy-peasy - very easy
8) fuddy-duddy - conservative or dull person
9) hanky-panky - suspicious behavior
10) heebie-jeebies – nervousness
11) helter-skelter – haphazard
12) higgledy-piggledy – muddled
13) hocus-pocus - trickery; a magician’s incantation
14) hodge-podge - a confused mixture
15) hoity-toity – haughty
16) itsy-bitsy – tiny
17) jeepers creepers - exclamation of surprise
18) mumbo-jumbo - derogatory reference to a religious or spiritual ritualnamby-pamby - feeble, weak
19) nitty gritty - the facts
20) okey-dokey – OK
21) super-duper - very pleasing
22) willy-nilly - whether it’s wanted or not

You may notice that the initial word is repeated identically except for the first letter. Are you able to feel the rhyming? You may notice rhyming in poetry. You might have noticed, while first component of these words would occur at the end of the first line of poetry, the second component could complete in the next line.

Tautonym Type - Repetitive Compound words: Wikipedia reports yet another category of repetitive compound words. What is Tautonym? 'A tautonym is a binomial scientific name in which the name of the genus and that of the species (referred to as the specific epithet in the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature and the specific name in the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature) are identical.

Tautonymy (i.e., the usage of tautonyms) is permissible in zoological nomenclature but tautonyms are considered illegitimate under the current nomenclature rules for botanical nomenclature. You may refer the big list of tautonyms. Consider the examples:

Mammals:
1) Gorilla gorilla (Western Gorilla)
2) Hyaena hyaena (Striped Hyena)
3) Jiges Jiges (Black Rabbit)
4) Vulpes vulpes (Red Fox)

Birds

1) Bubo bubo (Eurasian Eagle Owl)
2) Grus grus (Common Crane)
3) Guira guira (Guira Cuckoo)
4) Luscinia luscinia (Thrush Nightingale)

Reptiles

1) Cerastes cerastes (desert horned viper)
2) Hypnale hypnale (hump-nosed viper)
3) Naja naja (Indian cobra)
4) Natrix natrix (grass snake)

Fish

1) Catla catla (catla)
2) Chaca chaca (frogmouth catfish)
3) Hippocampus hipocampus (European seahorse)
4) Pristis pristis (common sawfish)
Thomas M. Paikeday reports the availability of the published reference resources on this subject:

Two standard works on reduplicated words and syllables are:

1) Henry B. Wheatley, Dictionary of Reduplicated Words in the English Language (London, 1866) and
2) Nils Thun, Reduplicated Words in English (Uppsala, 1963).

Lists thousands of iterative words from Old English turtur (= turtle dove) through Middle English cuccu (= cuckoo) to Modern English. The Modern English words with identical reduplication as in tick-tick run into the hundreds, from agar-agar, aye-aye, and bah-bah to wow-wow, yak-yak, and zoo-zoo (dialect word for "wood pigeon"). Most of the list is drawn from the unabridged Oxford English Dictionary (1884 - 1928), its 1933 Supplement, and Joseph Wright's English Dialect Dictionary (1896 - 1905).

Paikeday also repots about the computer check of the 1989 edition of the Oxford English Dictionary shows over 10,000 iterative words, from Absalom, Absalom and Aye, aye to yo-yo and zero-zero.

Please Refer the Websites for further learning (including examples):
1) http://www.randomhouse.com/wotd/index.pp...
2) http://www.worldwidewords.org/weirdwords...
3) http://www.bartleby.com/81/14185.html

Source:

1) List of tautonyms Wikipedia http://wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tautonyms
2) Reduplication Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reduplication
3) Thomas M. Paikeday http://www.paikeday.net/trademarkaffidavitspage3.htm

Compound Verbs in English

Concept of Compound Verb

As you all know that the verb is considered as the most important part in a sentence. The verb asserts something about the subject of the given sentence and it communicates actions, events, or states of being. Mostly we require only one verb to communicate some ideas. For example the words Come, Sit, Speak, Go, See and Remain represents an action, event or state of being. However in most of the times we require a compound verb to communicate some concepts. The term compound verb was first used in publication in Grattan and Gurrey's Our Living Language (1925). (Wikipedia).

Auxiliary Verb

The compound verb comprises the main verb and one or more auxiliary or helping verbs. The auxiliary verb does not express an action. Instead it joins a word or words in the predicate to the subject. Wikipedia calls compound verb as "complex predicate", since it is the critical element of the predicate of a sentence. Some of the more common linking verbs are forms of be:

Am, are, is, was, were

Common Auxiliary Verb

There are certain other verbs which does mere linking job. For example: appear, feel, look, seem, smell and taste. These can be used as either linking or action verbs. Even if you replace with are, is, was and were can be used as main verb as well as auxiliary verb.

1) Appear
a) Giri appears before court (action verb)
b) Giri appears puzzled or Giri is puzzled (linking verb)
2) Feel
a) Giri feels heat (action verb)
b) Giri feels curious or Giri is curious (linking verb)
3) Look
a) Giri looks handsome (action verb)
b) Giri looks fresh or Giri is fresh (linking verb)
4) Seem
a) Giri seems knowledgeable (action verb)
b) Giri seems poised or Giri is poised (linking verb)
5) Smell
a) Giri smells polluted air (action verb)
b) Food smells fresh or Food is fresh (linking verb)
6) Taste
a) Giri tastes the apple (action verb)
b) Apple tastes sweet or Apple is sweet (linking verb)

Verb Tenses

The main verb always expresses an action and the auxiliary verb is used specifically with the verb in order to create the many of the tenses available in English. Consider the following examples:

1) Giri had visited this place before.
2) Giri has been visiting this place for the past six months.
3) Giri may visit your place soon.
4) Giri would never stop

In the above examples you may easily identify the compound verb and the tenses expressed by them. In the first example main verb visited and the single auxiliary verb had together forms this compound verb expression ‘had visited.’ In the second the main verb ‘visiting’ and two auxiliary verbs has been together forms another compound verb expression ‘has been visiting.’ Note the compound verb expression ‘may visit’ in the third example. In the fourth example the word ‘never’ falls between the auxiliary verb ‘would’ and the main verb ‘stop.’

A verb has certain principal parts to express tense. Consider the example the verb ‘visit’ has:

1) ‘visit’ (present tense);
2) ‘visited’ (past tense);
3) ‘will visit’ (future tense)
4) ‘has visited’ or ‘have visited’ (past participle); (always require the auxiliary verb ‘has’, ‘have’ or ‘had’
5) ‘to visit’ (infinitive verb)
6) ‘visiting (present participle)
7) ‘has visited’ or ‘have visited’ (present perfect) (expresses an action that began at some time in the past and has now ended)
8) ‘had visited’ (past perfect) (expresses an action that began and ended in the past)
9) ‘will have visited’ or ‘shall have visited’ (future perfect) (expresses an action that began in the past and will end at a definite time in the future)

Phrasal Verb

Phrasal Verb is the verb complex consisting of a combination of:

1) verb and preposition (Prepositional Verbs), Example: Look after
2) verb and adverb (Adverbial Verbs), example: highlight, fine tune, foul mouth
3) verb with both an adverb and a preposition.

The adverb or preposition which follows the verb is usually called a particle. You may notice that the particle changes the meaning of the phrasal verb. You will find different meaning of the phrasal verb which is entirely different from the meaning of the original verb. For example consider meanings verb ‘look’ (see) and prepositional Verbs.

1) Look after = Take care
2) Look back = Think about the past
3) Look down on = Have a low opinion off
4) Look for = Try to find
5) Look forward to = Wait for or anticipate something pleasant
6) Look in = Make a quick visit
7) Look in on = Visit briefly to see if everything is alright
8) Look into = Investigate
9) Look on = Watch something like a crime without helping
10) Look on as = Consider, Regard
11) Look out = Be careful
12) Look over = Inspect
13) Look round = Inspect a house
14) Look to = Expect, Hope
15) Look up = Improve
16) Look up to = Respect
17) Look upon as = Consider, Regard

The website ‘Using English’ reports about 2,621 current English Phrasal Verbs (also called multi-word verbs) with definitions and examples. If you have a question about phrasal verbs, ask us about it in our English Phrasal Verbs Forum.

The Oxford English Grammar identifies seven types of prepositional or phrasal verbs in English:

1) Intransitive Phrasal Verbs: Example Catch on = to understand
a) After attending the class Giri began to catch on (to the algorithm)
2) Transitive Phrasal Verbs: example Find out = to discover
a) After attending class Giri began to find out bugs
3) Mono-transitive Prepositional Verbs (Inseparable): example get around = to evade
a) Giri always gets around the procedure (Correct)
b) Giri always gets the procedure around the procedure (Not Correct)
4) Doubly-transitive Prepositional Verbs (Separable): example add up = to add
a) Giri added up the total on computer (Correct)
b) Giri added it up on computer (Not Correct)
5) Copular Prepositional Verbs. In English copula is considered as a special type of verb. It serves as a connector between the subject of the given sentence and some sort of modifier. The best example of the copula is the verb to be, which most often serves to link the subject of the sentence with the predicate -- a part of the sentence which modifies the subject. Some examples of this use of to be is included at ‘Wisegeek’:

a) Can anything ever be enough?
b) The house is on top of the hill.
6) Monotransitive phrasal-prepositional verbs - example. look up to = respect, admire someone
a) Giri looks up to his father
7) Doubly transitive phrasal-prepositional verbs - example. put [something] down to [someone] = Give as an explanation
a) Giri didn't score many, but we can put that down to inexperience

Source:

1) Answers.com - phrasal-verb - http://www.answers.com/topic/phrasal-verb
2) Answers.com - Verb - http://www.answers.com/topic/verb
3) Learn English - Phrasal Verbs - http://www.learnenglish.de/grammar/verbphrasaltext.htm
4) Online Writing Lab (OWL) – Verb Tenses - http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/esl/esltensverb.html
5) The Oxford English Grammar by Sidney Greenbaum ISBN10: 0198612508 hardback, 672 pages May 1996,
6) Using English – Phrasal Verb - http://www.usingenglish.com/reference/phrasal-verbs/
7) Wikipedia – Compound Verb – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compound_verb
8) Wisegeek – What is Cupola - http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-copula.htm

Compound Adjectives in English

Role of Adjectives

In the English language, adjectives are employed to modify nouns or pronouns i.e. adjectives are employed to describe nouns and pronouns. These word forms are most essential in that they enhance beauty to the written words.

Adjectives and Complex Concepts

You might have come across the usage of powerful and descriptive class of words to represent complex concepts. Consider the examples: an ice-cold lemonade, a six-sided die, a three-hour movie and a tight-fisted woman. The noun lemonade is modified to describe its ice-coldness. Similarly the noun woman is modified to describe her attitude. The nouns die and movie are modified to quantify their specifications.

Purpose of Using Adjectives

As told adjectives are employed to clearly modify or specify the noun in terms of its kind (example: Loud noise, Steady beat), its measurable quantity (Some work, Huge building), its specifiers (This book, That record) and its countable number (Three storey, Two door). You will typically find that an adjective usually precedes the noun or the pronoun which it modifies.

Now we know that adjectives are picture words that provide better perception as to the quality of the noun or pronoun. These word forms are most essential in that they enhance beauty to the written words. Famous poets and prose writers employed a lot of adjectives to augment color and beauty to their creations. What is compound adjective? Compound adjective is a complex and challenging formation. It modifies the noun, with the two or more worded adjective phrase, to create a new adjective. The adjective phrase is usually written in with a hyphen (-). Its meaning is usually clear from the words it combines.

ADJECTIVE + PRESENT / PAST PARTICIPLE

Let us consider some examples:
1) Absent-minded = forgetful (The second part of the compound adjective is Past Participle)
2) Big-headed = proud of one’s self (The second part of the compound adjective is Past Participle)
3) Cold-blooded = a kind of classification of animals (The second part of the compound adjective is Past Participle)
4) Easy-going = easy unobstructed progress (The second part of the compound adjective is Present Participle)
5) Good-looking = attractive, beautiful (The second part of the compound adjective is Present Participle)
6) In-the-middle-aged = being roughly between 45 and 65 years old (The second part of the compound adjective is Past Participle)
7) Left-handed = having long legs (The second part of the compound adjective is Past Participle)
8) Quick-witted = intelligent (The second part of the compound adjective is Past Participle)
9) Thick-skinned = not easily offended (The second part of the compound adjective is Past Participle)
The second part of the compound adjective is usually a present participle or past participle.

ADJECTIVE + ADVERB + PRESENT / PAST PARTICIPLE

Let us consider some examples:
1) Far-reaching = Having a wide range, influence, or effect
2) Free-standing = Standing or operating independently of anything else
3) Good-looking = Of a pleasing or attractive appearance; handsome
4) Hard-wearing = Hard to beat
5) Labor-saving = Designed to replace or conserve human and especially manual labor
6) Long-lasting = Existing for a long time
7) Mouth-watering = Appealing to the sense of taste
8) Never-ending = Not ending
9) Record-breaking = Surpassing any previously established record

ADVERB +ADJECTIVE

The adverbs intensify the meaning of the adjectives they modify. Let us consider some examples:
1) Almost helpless
2) Extremely Painful
3) Quite fiercely
4) Rather selfish
5) So grateful
6) Very excited
7) Very remarkable

ADJECTIVE + NOUN

1) Busy Day = Engaged in activity throughout the day
2) Curly hair = Hair having curls
3) Deep-sea = of or taking place in the deeper parts of the sea
4) Friendly People = People having friendly attitude
5) Full-length = Showing or fitted to the entire length, especially of the human body or Of a normal or standard length
6) Last-minute = The period just before a significant or concluding moment such as a deadline, due date, or scheduled event
7) Lonely house = House located at a lonely place
8) Lovely person = Person having lovely manners
9) Prime Minister = Head of Cabinet of Ministers

NOUN + ADJECTIVE

1) Trouble-free = without problems or difficulties
2) Lead-free = not containing the element lead
3) World-famous = Most famous

NUMBER + NOUN + ADJECTIVE

1) Eleven-man team
2) Forty-mile Having forty miles distance
3) Four-Stroke = having four stroke
4) One-Eyed = having only one eye
5) One-layered disk = Disk having single layer
6) Single-Handed = done by one person
7) Six-and-a-half-year-old child = Child’s age
8) Six-Sided = having six sides
9) Sixteen-week semester = Duration of Semester
10) Three-legged stool = Stool having three legs
11) Three-storey house = House having three floors
12) Twenty-Page = Having twenty page
13) Two-bedroom flat
14) Two-car garage = Garage for parking two cars
15) Two-Stroke = engine having two strokes
16) Two-Door = Having two doors
17) Sweetheart = a person whom another loves

PLACE + NOUN/ADJECTIVE

1) Farm-fresh = Fresh from farms
2) Indian Bazaar = a specific place or market wherein you will find Indian shops, restaurants.
3) housewife = a married woman devoted to work for her family and attends all house hold activities at home
4) home-made = prepared at home, not bought from a shop

Number of Websites have attempted to organize the English Compound adjectives into digestible chunks. This article is just another attempt. It is a mere compilation. As a successful writer you may be knowing how to use these compound adjectives correctly. However I have slightly improved my grammar knowledge by attempting to write this piece.

Source:

1) BBC World Service – Learning English - http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/grammar/learnit/learnitv224.shtml
2)English Rules - Hyphens for Compound Adjectives -http://www.englishrules.com/writing/2005/hyphens-for-compound-adjectives.php
3) Knowledgebush - Compound noun and adjective http://knowledgerush.com/kr/encyclopedia/Compound_noun_and_adjective/
4) Using compound adjectives to give physical or metaphorical descriptions http://www.iei.uiuc.edu/structure/Structure1/haired.html
5) Wikipedia – English compound – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_compound
6) Your Dictionary - ESL Compound Adjective Worksheet -http://www.yourdictionary.com/esl/ESL-Compound-Adjective-Worksheet.html

Compound Nouns in English

We know that a noun is the name of any person, place, object, concept or idea. We also know the classifications as proper noun, common noun, possessive noun, singular noun, plural noun, abstract noun and collective noun. There are more nouns in the English Language than any other kind of words. Have you conversant with compound nouns? You might be. Compound nouns are simply formed by joining two simple nouns together. Now it is striking. You must remember this. It is the noun phrase wherein a noun modified by another attributive noun. Thus you are free to modify the noun ‘Male’ with another attributive noun ‘Nurse’ and identify the health staff without any ambiguity. (Wikipedia)
There are three forms of compound words (British Council):

Closed form, In this form you may combine two suitable nouns together and form a single word. Consider the examples for better understanding: Barmaid, Bathroom, Breakdown, Buttermilk, and Butterscotch

Hyphenated form, In this form you are free combine a suitable noun pair with a hyphen inserted in between each word. (Here hyphens separate words) Consider the examples: Air-brake, Baby-sitter, Daughter-in-law, Editor-in-chief, Master-at-arms, Over-the-counter, White-wash

Open form, In this form there is a need to leave a single space between suitable nouns. No need for hyphens. Consider the examples: Attorney general, Fish tank, Half sister, Post office, Real estate, and Middle class.

I just have given an overview of compound nouns and its conventional forms. Though we are able to identify these three forms, the reason, for adopting these forms to combine and create compound nouns, is not explained in any known reference sources i.e. dictionaries or grammar books. Regarding hyphenation there are no uniform practices prevail. Some prefer to insert a hyphen, example: full-moon and some other prefer to write simply with a space, full moon.
I have collected 150 compound nouns under the three different forms mentioned above from standard dictionaries. I have listed them out under each form as shown below:

1. Closed form (One word)


I have collected and listed out 55 closed form compound nouns from standard dictionaries.

1) Applesauce,
2) Barmaid
3) Barman
4) Bathroom
5) Bedroom
6) Blackboard
7) Breakdown
8) Breakwater
9) Browbeat
10) Butterfly
11) Buttermilk
12) Butterscotch
13) Chairperson
14) Childlike
15) Crosstown
16) Eyebrow
17) Fingerprint
18) Fisherman
19) Flashlight,
20) Football
21) Footbrake
22) Footprint
23) Grasshopper
24) Handbag
25) Handbill
26) Handkerchief
27) Hardware
28) Highway
29) Hyperactive
30) Hypothermia
31) Keyboard,
32) Lifelong
33) Makeup
34) Milkmaid
35) Newspaper
36) Notebook,
37) Output
38) Overhead
39) Redhead
40) Salesman
41) Sandbag
42) Sandpaper
43) Sandstone
44) Saucepan
45) Seafood
46) Seaman
47) Seaweed
48) Secondhand
49) Shoelace,
50) Softball
51) Software
52) Supermarket
53) Underhand
54) Watergate
55) Witchcraft

2. Hyphenated form

I have collected and listed out 37 hyphenated form compound nouns from standard dictionaries.

1) Air-tight
2) Air-brake
3) Air-chamber
4) Air-cushion-vehicle
5) Air-port
6) Arm-chair
7) Baby-sitter
8) Blue-green
9) Born-again
10) Boy-friend,
11) Brother-in-law
12) Daughter-in-law
13) Dining-table
14) Editor-in-chief,
15) Father-in-law
16) Fly-leaf
17) Fly-wheel
18) Freeze-dry
19) Great-grandfather
20) Hyper-acidity
21) Hypo-thyroid
22) Love-in
23) Mass-produced
24) Master-at-arms
25) Mother-in-law
26) Multi-storey
27) New year’s day
28) Over-ripe
29) Over-the-counter
30) Sister-in-law
31) Six-pack
32) Six-year-old
33) Sky-scraper
34) Sub-urban
35) Twelve-year-old
36) Wall-paper
37) White-wash

3. Open form (Two or more words)

I have collected and listed out 58 open form (two or more words) compound nouns from standard dictionaries.

1) Attorney general
2) Bath tub
3) Beauty saloon
4) Birth day
5) Birth name
6) Bottom line
7) Broad gauge
8) Capital letter
9) Castor oil
10) Christian name
11) Curriculum vitae
12) Desk top computer
13) Dish washer
14) Elementary school
15) Family name
16) First cousin
17) Fish tank
18) Fish tank
19) Full moon
20) Grey matter
21) Half sister
22) High school
23) Ice land
24) Independence day
25) Indoor game
26) Indoor plant
27) Intelligence quotient
28) Knitting needle
29) Lap top computer
30) Living room
31) Lower middle class
32) Maiden name
33) Male nurse
34) Meter gauge
35) Middle class
36) Mineral water
37) Office assistant
38) Office stationary
39) Outdoor game
40) Paper clip
41) Petrol gauge
42) Police officer
43) Pony tail
44) Post office
45) Real estate
46) Registry office
47) Rest room
48) Scotch whisky
49) Seat belt
50) Tea cup
51) Trade name
52) Under cut
53) Under dog
54) Under way
55) Under world
56) Upper middle class
57) Wedding day
58) Word processor

Source:

1) Airtech – Quizzes http://www.aitech.ac.jp/~iteslj/quizzes/vm/m-cm.html
2) British Council – Learn English Central – Grammar – Compound Nouns http://www.britishcouncil.org/learnenglish-central-grammar-nouns-compound.htm
3) Edufind – Grammar – Noun
http://www.edufind.com/english/grammar/NOUNS4.cfm
4) ESL DESK Nouns – Grammar - Nouns
http://www.esldesk.com/grammar/nouns.htm
5) Grammar – CCC – Commnet – Grammar - Exercise in Compound Nouns and Modifiers http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/cgi-shl/par_numberless_quiz.pl/compounds_quiz.htm
6) Quia - Compound Nouns http://www.quia.com/jg/553320list.html
7) Wikipedia - English compound http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_compound