Understanding Compound Words
Whenever a new invention or a new situation requires a new word to describe it, people often turn to compound words to do the job. A compound word is a word formed from two or more words to express a single idea. Compound words can take one of three different forms: separate words, as in sleeping bag or hot dog; hyphenated words, as in water-repellent or baby-sitter; and single words, as in turtleneck or onlooker. No simple rule explains the difference. Instead, you need to check a dictionary for the correct form of compound words. |
