Words Built From Nouns

Combine noun bases in their established order. In a transparent compound, the first noun can supply the main category and the second specify it: ilé-ẹ̀kọ́ ‘school’ combines ‘house’ and ‘learning’. Eleshin analyzes the noun compounds discussed in his article as left-headed. This analysis explains those constructions without licensing every possible noun pairing.

Boundaries can remain visible or undergo contraction. Ewéko ‘plant’ incorporates ewé ‘leaf’ and oko ‘farm’; ẹranko ‘animal’ incorporates ẹran and oko. Their conventional meanings extend beyond literal descriptions of the components. Compare an ordinary ownership phrase such as ilé Bísí ‘Bísí’s house’. Combining nouns introduces no agreement ending. Preserve ordinary lexical spelling: a phonology lesson’s assimilated pronunciation does not automatically replace it. The supplied course records exceptions to a single vowel-deletion pattern, so supported lexical forms must guide contraction rather than a universal deletion formula.