20. Which of the following correctly describe the morphological structure of the words “reusable” and “unusable”. Select ALL that apply

Question

BlackTom AI · Accepted Answer

The suffix -able is a deverbal adjectival suffix: it combines with a verb base to form an adjective meaning “capable of X-ing.” So start by forming usable: use (V) + -able → usable (A). From that established adjectival base, the prefixes attach to the adjective to give the meanings seen.

Step-by-step morphological derivation
1. Base formation: use (verb) + -able → usable (adjective). This is the fundamental morphological operation: -able turns the verb use into an adjective meaning “capable of being used.”
2. For unusable: un- (a negating prefix that typically attaches to adjectives) + usable (A) → unusable (A), meaning “not capable of being used.” The prefix un- prefers adjectival bases (compare unhappy, unreal), so un + usable is the correct structural analysis.
3. For reusable: re- (a prefix meaning “again”) + usable (A) → reusable (A), meaning “capable of being used again.” Treating reusable as re + usable preserves the compositional meaning: the property “usable” modified by “again.”

Why the chosen analyses are correct
- The order use → usable must occur before adding un- or re- because -able derives the adjectival property that those prefixes modify. Both un- and re- here are best analyzed as attaching to the adjective usable.
- Un- attaching to the verb (i.e., [un+use]V + -able) would require a productive verb unuse (meaning “to make not used” or “stop using”), which is not a standard derivation. Therefore [un+use]V + -able is not a valid structure.
- While one could posit [re+use]V + -able (reuse + -able) as a possible formation, the semantic and morphological transparency is clearer when -able applies first (use → usable) and then re- modifies that adjective to indicate “again.” Orthographically and semantically reusable = re + usable is the more straightforward analysis.

Why the other options are incorrect
- reusable: [re+use]V + able is less preferred because it presupposes reuse as the relevant base (a verb) rather than the adjectival base usable; the intended meaning targets the adjectival property (“able to be used again”).
- unusable: [un+use]V + able is incorrect because un- does not productively form a verb *unuse, and the negation operates on the adjective usable.

Conclusion
Thus the correct morphological descriptions are:
- unusable: un + [use+able]A
- reusable: re + [use+able]A

These match the provided answers.

20. Which of the following correctly describe the morphological structure of the words “reusable” and “unusable”. Select ALL that apply多项选择题

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