what is the difference between allomorph and morphophonemics?

 

Allomorphs and morphophonemics are both concepts within the field of linguistics that deal with variations in the forms of morphemes, which are the smallest meaningful units in language. However, they focus on different aspects of morphological variation.

1. Allomorphs: Allomorphs refer to different phonological realizations of a morpheme. A morpheme can have multiple variants or allomorphs that are used in different linguistic contexts. These variants often arise due to phonological rules or morphophonological processes. Allomorphs typically exhibit variations in their shape or sound while retaining the same meaning.

For example, consider the English plural morpheme "-s." In regular plural forms, we have allomorphs like /s/ in "cats," /z/ in "dogs," and /ɪz/ in "buses." The choice of which allomorph to use depends on the phonological context of the word to which it attaches.

2. Morphophonemics: Morphophonemics, also known as morphophonology, studies the interaction between morphology (the study of word formation) and phonology (the study of the sound patterns of language). It examines how morphemes change their pronunciation when combined with other morphemes due to phonological processes. Morphophonemics focuses on the rules and patterns that govern these sound changes.

For instance, in English, the past tense morpheme "-ed" has different pronunciations depending on the final sound of the base form. If the base form ends in a voiceless sound (e.g., "walk"), the morpheme is pronounced as /t/ (as in "walked"). If the base form ends in a voiced sound (e.g., "buzz"), the morpheme is pronounced as /d/ (as in "buzzed"). This variation is a result of the phonological rule that ensures the final sound of the morpheme harmonizes with the preceding sound.

In summary, allomorphs refer to different phonological forms of a morpheme, while morphophonemics explores the rules and patterns governing the changes in the pronunciation of morphemes due to phonological processes. Allomorphs are the concrete manifestations of morphophonemic processes.