Editing Conversion (word formation) (section)

==Verbification {{anchor|Verbing}} ==
'''Verbification''', or '''verbing''', is the creation of a verb from a noun, adjective or other word.

===In English===
{{Main|Denominal verb}}
In English, verbification typically involves simple conversion of a non-verb to a verb. The verbs ''to verbify'' and ''to verb'', the first by [[derivation (linguistics)|derivation]] with an [[affix]] and the second by [[zero (linguistics)|zero]] derivation, are themselves products of verbification (see [[autological word]]), and, as might be guessed, the term ''to verb'' is often used more specifically, to refer only to verbification that does not involve a change in [[morphology (linguistics)|form]]. (Verbing in that specific sense is therefore a kind of [[anthimeria]].)

Many adjectives have become verbs, including adjectives based on Latin passive participles, such as "separate". Usually, at least now, there is a pronunciation difference between the adjective and the verb. (Later this was extended to forming verbs from Latin passive participles even if they were not used as adjectives.)<ref>Online Etymology Dictionary, entry [https://www.etymonline.com/word/-ate#etymonline_v_26661 -ate].</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=Oxford English Dictionary |page=742 |url=https://archive.org/details/oxfordenglishdic01oxfo/page/742/mode/2up?view=theater|date=1989 |edition=2|isbn=978-0-19-861213-1 }}</ref>

Examples of verbification in the English language number in the thousands, including some of the most common words such as ''mail'' and ''e-mail'', ''strike'', ''salt'', ''pepper'', ''switch'', ''bed'', ''sleep'', ''ship'', ''train'', ''stop'', ''drink'', ''cup'', ''lure'', ''mutter'', ''dress'', ''dizzy'', ''divorce'', ''fool'', ''merge'', to be found throughout the [[dictionary]]. Thus, verbification is by no means confined to [[slang]] and has furnished English with countless new expressions: "access", as in "access the file", which was previously only a noun, as in "gain access to the file". Similar mainstream examples include "host", as in "host a party", and "chair", as in "chair the meeting". Other formations, such as "gift", are less widespread but still mainstream.

Verbification may have a bad reputation with some English users because it is such a potent source of [[neologisms]]. Although some neologism that are products of verbification may meet considerable opposition from [[prescription and description|prescriptivist]] authorities (the verb sense of ''[[wikt:impact#Verb|impact]]'' is a well-known example), most such derivations have become so central to the language after several centuries of use that they no longer draw notice.

In many cases, the verbs were distinct from their noun counterparts in [[Old English]], and regular sound change has made them the same form: these can be [[reanalyse]]d as conversion

===In other languages===
In [[Toki Pona]], any content word may function as a noun, verb or adjective depending on syntax; for example, ''moku''  may mean ''food'' or ''to eat''.