What does infixing mean?
Infixing is the practice of putting a word, syllable, or other linguistic element inside another element rather than placing it before or after it. The clearest examples occur in language change and word formation, where an existing sequence is modified by inserting material between its parts. Infixing can produce humorous slang, emphatic forms, playful personal names, or forms of address. For example, a speaker might insert a first name into a familiar title or place a sound between two parts of a word. The term is chiefly used in linguistics and related fields, but it is also accessible in discussion of creative wordplay. It contrasts with prefixing and suffixing, which attach material at the beginning or end of a word. Although less common than those two processes, infixing is notable because it can make familiar expressions feel spontaneous, intimate, comic, or emphatic.
To insert a word, morpheme, or other linguistic element inside another element, especially within a word.
"The comedian infixes a nickname between the two syllables of the greeting."
Often used in discussions of word formation, slang, and playful or emphatic speech.
The insertion of a linguistic element within another element, especially between the parts of a word.
"The article examines infixing in several forms of informal speech."
Often treated as an uncountable process; the plural infixings is comparatively uncommon.
Involving or characterized by the insertion of one linguistic element inside another.
"The book contrasts infixing languages with languages that rely mainly on prefixes and suffixes."
Most often encountered attributively in expressions such as infixing process or infixing language.
The plural is possible but uncommon; infixing is often used as an uncountable name for the process.
"The study compares infixings found in several unrelated languages."
English is mostly a prefix-and-suffix language, but speakers can make a new word by wedging one element squarely inside another.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does infixing come from?
The word derives from Latin infixus, the past participle of infigere, meaning “to fasten into.” That form combines the prefix in- with figere, “to fix” or “fasten,” the root also behind prefix, suffix, and affix. English borrowed the related forms infix and affix during the 16th century, while infixing developed as a verbal and noun form associated with inserting a linguistic element within another.
Related word forms
How infixing is actually used
Infixing is primarily a technical term used in linguistics, morphology, and discussions of slang or word formation. In everyday use it may sound playful or deliberately unconventional, especially when a speaker inserts a familiar word into another.