Intransitivization

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

  1. The process of converting a phrase or verb from a form that requires a direct object into one that does not; a linguistic transformation altering sentence structure to emphasize the subject's independent action; the grammatical shift whereby transitive constructions become intransitive to modify meaning and syntactic function
  2. A morphological or syntactic change changing a verb that normally takes an object into one that functions without an object; a language mechanism marking a move from action affecting another entity to self-contained action; a transformation in grammar that enables verbs to stand alone without a complement by removing transitivity
  3. The alteration of verbs from taking direct objects to expressing actions performed independently; an adjustment in language structure converting transitive verbs for use without objects; a grammatical process by which the requirement for an object is removed, creating verbs that describe intransitive actions or conditions

Etymology: The word is a plain formation: "intransitive" with the suffix "-ization," which turns an adjective into a noun for the process of making something into that adjective. "Intransitive" itself comes from Latin "intransitivus," built from "in-" (not) and "transitivus," from "transire" (to go across), so a transitive verb is one whose action passes across to an object. Adding "-ization," which passes through French from Greek "-izein," gives a noun naming the act of rendering a transitive verb intransitive. The term describes a process that English speakers use constantly without naming it. "The bread bakes" and "the glass broke" are sentences where a verb that normally takes an object appears without one, and grammarians speak of intransitivization to describe that shift. Because the suffix is productive, the word follows the same pattern as "transitivization," its opposite, and both are formed in the same transparent way.

Synonyms: verb conversion, intransitive formation

Antonyms: transitivization