An augmentative refers to a large size: "Elephants are big."
Augmentative is a term that can be used as an adjective to describe that which increases (that is, that increases or enlarges). The most common use of the term, however, is specifically linked to a type of affix .
An affix is a linguistic element that can be prefixed, inserted or postponed in a lexeme or a word to produce a modification in its meaning . In the case of augmentatives, they are suffixes : affixes that appear at the end of the lexeme or word.
Its characteristics
Augmentatives express an increase in the size , intensity or importance of what they modify. Among the most used augmentatives are -azo , -ona , -on , -aza , -ota and -ote .
Although these are the elements that are most used, there are others that are not so common, such as the endings -acho, -acha, -ton, -tona, -rrón and -rrona , among others.
"Problemazo" is an example of an augmentative.
Examples of augmentatives
There are numerous occasions in which the use of an augmentative is used to show that something very important or of great quality is being referred to. So, for example, you can say: “The latest work by director Alejandro Amenábar is a real movie.” In this way, it becomes clear that the film he has made is considered very good in every sense.
Along the same lines as the aforementioned example, there are others such as the following:
- “Malú is preparing a new album that, according to those who have heard it, is going to be a great album that will sweep sales” .
- “The person in charge of teaching the History of the Contemporary World subject at the faculty is a great teacher” .
- “The match between FC Barcelona and Real Madrid will be a great game. "And it will allow us to see the game of some of the best footballers in the world." .
Another example of an augmentative is “problemazo” . In this case, the augmentative suffix “azo” is added to the term “problem” to form the notion of “problemazo” : a big problem. In this way, expressions such as “I don't know how we are going to solve this matter: it is a big problem!” , “I had a big problem with the car documentation but, luckily, I was able to solve it” .
“Great game”, "mug", "huge", “great body” y “dog” son otros ejemplos de aumentativos que se usan con frecuencia en varias regions: “Last night Brazil and Germany played a great game that ended with a victory for the European team”, “Today I had a big bowl of lentils for lunch.”, “A big man tried to hit Juan”, “The actress surprised with her great body”, “I dreamed that a dog was chasing me to bite me”.
Different uses
The way augmentatives are used varies according to the country. In this way, some concepts that are common in one nation may be foreign in another.
No less relevant is that, in addition to augmentatives, there are so-called superlatives. These increase the meaning of a term but to the greatest extent possible. We can establish an example with the adjective "big" . The augmentative can be "grandón" or "grandote" while the superlative would be "grandísimo" .