Simulfix

In linguistics, a simulfix is a type of affix that changes one or more existing phonemes (usually vowels) in order to modify the meaning of a morpheme.

Examples of simulfixes in English are generally considered irregularities, all of which left over from pluralization rules that existed before the Great Vowel Shift. They include:

• man → men, woman → women
• louse → lice, mouse → mice
• foot → feet, tooth → teeth

The transfixes of the Semitic languages may be considered a form of discontinuous simulfix.

In Indonesian language, simulfix productively occurs in ngopi, nyapu, nyuci, nongkrong, macul as verbs from the base kopi, sapu, cuci, tongkrong, pacul as nouns.

See also

• Apophony