2006-06-29 15:14:46 · 6 answers · asked by firefly37830 2 in Society & Culture ➔ Languages
(Just in case this isn't a joke, and you really want to know!!)
"Building" meaning the finished OBJECT was originally a NOUN form), and "Building" meaning the PROCESS is at root a VERB form. The two forms have separate histories, and their "ing" suffixes were originally different.
The origins of the forms:
The NOUN form -- in Old English, the suffix -ung (sometimes -ing) was often used to create nouns. This exact ending is still seen in German nouns that end with -ung. The noun can relate to the original verb ("build") in several ways. Often it refers to something that is the RESULT of the process the verb refers to.
http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/-ung
http://www.tu-chemnitz.de/phil/english/chairs/linguist/real/independent/eafrica/Diss_Diana/dissch4-3.htm
There are MANY examples of such words in Modern English. Consider the following houns which refer to objects which, like "building", are ordinarily NOT "in process" when we speak of them:
painting, dwelling, saying, writing, gathering, bedding, roofing, sacking, clothing, earnings
(There are other, related ways, that Old English formed nouns from verb roots. One of these is the suffix -(at)ion, such as: decision, isolation, explanation. Another is -ment: establishment.)
The VERB form -- in Old English, participles ended with -ende (a form still found in German).
In Middle English these forms fell together. That is, both the participle and noun ends became "-ing". In fact, the use of this form in expressions like "the building of" is a LATE development (whereas "building" as an object is a very old sort of form).
For the distinction in the suffixes, see Webster's (1913)
http://www.everything2.com/index.pl?node_id=261832
2006-06-29 15:29:19 · answer #1 · answered by bruhaha 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
A building is only a building after it's built.
2006-06-29 15:19:54 · answer #2 · answered by metcalfmaintenance1 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
love your question, great answer by bruhaha, but i got a good laugh out of knighhawk´s apartment answer.
2006-06-29 16:01:37 · answer #3 · answered by vim 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Why do they call them "apartments" when they are stuck together?
2006-06-29 15:17:55 · answer #4 · answered by nighthawk_842003 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Ah ha, cute.
2006-06-29 16:06:01 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
GOOD QUESTION I DONT KNOW
2006-07-05 11:03:02 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋