On 2007-05-04 17:53, alexandru_mg3 wrote:
> 1. PIE *X-men => Eng. X-ful (beautiful, helpful, useful, thankful)
I wouldn't say so. Derivatives in *-men- (*-mn.) are mostly abstract
nouns referring to actions or their results (e.g. *séh1-mn. 'seed',
*sreu-mn. 'stream, current', *gWHér-mn. 'heat'), in many cases with the
same meaning as English deverbal nouns in -ing (*k^leu-mn. 'hearing') or
with the zero suffix (as in "the flow of water"). I suppose you mean the
complex adjectival suffixes *-we/on(t)- and *-me/on(t)-, which indeed
have functions similar to those of Eng. -ful.
> 2. PIE *X-ro => Eng. X-y
But PIE *-ro- is primarily deverbal, while Eng. -y is denominative. In
the former case, the X is a verb root; in the latter, a fully formed noun.