Final answer:
The symbol that joins a root to another root or a suffix starting with a consonant is consonant doubling or twinning. This occurs with a CVC pattern when the suffix begins with a vowel, resulting in words like 'hopping'. The doubling makes understanding word formation and stress patterns in English important.
Step-by-step explanation:
The symbol you are referring to that is used to join a root to another root or to any suffix beginning with a consonant is known as a consonant doubling or twinning. When a free stem of a word ends with a consonant-vowel-consonant (CVC) pattern and is followed by a suffix that starts with a vowel, you double the final consonant of the stem if it has one vowel sound, or if it has two vowel sounds and the final vowel is strongly stressed.
This rule is particularly important when creating English words through affixation. For example, the verb 'hop' when suffixed with '-ing' becomes 'hopping', demonstrating consonant doubling.
Examples of how stems and suffixes combine to form words:
- Word + ness ('forgiveness')
- Prefix + bound base + suffix ('dis' + 'gest' + 'ion', resulting in 'digestion')
It is also noteworthy that sometimes double consonants result from the simple addition of two elements where the first ends in the same consonant with which the second starts. Additionally, certain prefixes like ad-, com-, and in-, when joined with roots starting with an 'r', change due to assimilation, becoming ar-, cor-, and ir-.