Page 157 - English Vocabualry In Use 3 (Upper Intermediate)

75 Compound nouns 1: noun + noun

A What are compound nouns?

Acompoundnounisafixedexpressionwhichismadeupofmorethanonewordandfunctionsas
anoun.Suchexpressionsarefrequentlycombinationsoftwonouns,e.g.carpark,humanbeing
[person],sciencefiction[fictionbasedonsomekindofscientificfantasy].Anumberofcompoundnouns
arerelatedtophrasalverbsandthesearedealtwithinUnit76.

B How are compound nouns written?

Ifyouunderstandbothpartsofthecompoundnoun,themeaningwillusuallybeclear.Compound
nounsareusuallywrittenastwowords,e.g.tinopener[anopenerfortins],bankaccount[anaccount
in a bank],pedestrian crossing [aplaceforpeopletocrossaroad],butsometimestheyarewrittenwith
ahypheninsteadofaspacebetweenthewords,e.g.self-control[controloveryourownemotionsand
reactions].Sometimestheymaybewrittenasoneword,e.g.earring, trademark [the symbol of a
product],babysitter [someone who stays with a baby/child while parents are out].

Notethattherearenostrictrulesaboutwhichcompoundwordsshouldbewritteninwhichway.
Thereisalotofvariationevenbetweendictionaries.

C Stress in compound nouns

Usuallythemainstressisonthefirstpartofthecompoundbutsometimesitisonthesecondpart.
Inthecommoncompoundnounsbelow,thewordwhichcontainsthemainstressisunderlined.

alarmclock contactlens mineralwater voicemail
blooddonor creditcard packageholiday windscreen

burglaralarm heartattack steeringwheel windscreenwiper
busstop lightbulb teabag youthhostel

D Grammar of compound nouns

Compoundnounsmaybecountable,uncountableoronlyusedineitherthesingularortheplural.
TheexamplesgiveninCareallcountablecompoundnouns.Herearesomeexamplesofcommon
uncountablecompoundnouns.

airtrafficcontrol computertechnology foodpoisoning junkfood

birthcontrol cottonwool hayfever[allergytopollen] mailorder

bloodpressure dataprocessing incometax pocketmoney

Herearesomeexamplesofcommoncompoundnounsusedonlyinthesingular.

armsrace[twoormorecountriescompeting generationgap
to have the most powerful military] labourforce
climatechange soundbarrier

deathpenalty welfarestate

Herearesomeexamplesofcommoncompoundnounsusedonlyintheplural.

grassroots kitchenscissors racerelations sunglasses

headphones luxurygoods roadworks trafficlights

156 English Vocabulary in Use Upper-intermediate