Final answer:
The claim that words can have only one prefix or suffix is false. Morphology allows for various combinations of prefixes, suffixes, and bases, resulting in complex word structures. Multiple examples like full assimilation and multiple suffixes demonstrate this richness in word formation.
Step-by-step explanation:
The statement that words can have only one prefix, only one suffix, both a prefix and a suffix, or no prefix or suffix at all is false. Words can have multiple prefixes and/or suffixes. For instance, the word 'unquestionably' has both the prefix 'un-', the bound base 'question', and the suffix '-ably', which is itself comprised of '-able' and '-ly'. In morphology, the structure of words is complex and allows for various combinations of bound and free morphemes.
Various constructions like prefix + bound base, bound base + suffix, or prefix + bound base + multiple suffixes illustrate the ways prefixes and suffixes can be combined in English.
Examples of such combinations include:
- Prefix + free base: preheat (pre- + heat)
- Bound base + suffix: joyous (joy + -ous)
- Bound base + multiple suffixes: helplessness (help + -less + -ness)
Furthermore, assimilation processes like the one that occurs in the full assimilation of the prefix 'ad-' to a stem that begins with 's', resulting in the double 'ss', enrich the morphology of the language. The LibreTexts examples provided relate to understanding how prefixes and suffixes interact to form words with complex structures.