Saturday, November 29, 2014

What is the term for "‑ate" noun/verb pairs, and why can’t I find references to "hyphenate" used that way?

When you conjugate (verb, conjuGATE) things you get a conjugate (noun, conjuGIT).




When you precipitate (verb, ...TATE) a solution you get a precipitate (noun, ...TIT).



When you concentrate (verb, ...TRATE) something you get a concentrate (noun, often ...TRATE occasionally ...TRIT).



Is there a name for this category of words, where a verb ending with "ate" pronounced with a long A produces a noun ending with "ate" pronounced with [sometimes] a short I (or a short a/e/u in some dialects or for some specific words)?



And, as a followup, why can I find no reference or examples online of "hyphenate" being used as a noun to describe two words that have been hyphenated? There's an uncommon definition where it refers to the subject described by the hyphenated words, but that isn't the same as it referring to the words themselves. I’ve heard this term used many times in my life, often in the context of amateur fiction writers or college writing courses.

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