Inflection and Derivation in Hebrew Linear Word Formation

Hebrew inflection is primarily suffixal. Suffixes also serve as means for deriving substantives. Although derivational and inflectional phonetic outputs overlap under certain conditions, analysis of either the base morpheme structure, the suffixes, or the phonological processes operating in word formation, clearly distinguishes between inflection and derivation. While both include a limited number of suffixes, derivation is tolerant of a larger variety of base morphemes and suffixes than is inflection. The differences involve features such as stems, suffixes, stress patterns, syntactic structures and semantic values, syllabic structures, and dynamic changes. The relationship between lexicon and grammar is considered in the processes involved. Said processes prove that inflected word forms must be accessed by derivational processes in some cases, hence lexically determined, whereas derivation is relevant to grammar as well. The discussion will lead to the formulation of a possible model that supports the autonomy of morphology.