Megnemmódosítók

Megnemmódosítók are a theoretical concept in linguistics, specifically within generative grammar, referring to morphemes that, when attached to a lexical item, do not alter its fundamental grammatical category or its core semantic meaning in a way that would necessitate a rephrasing of the sentence. In simpler terms, they are affixes that don't change the "part of speech" of the word they attach to, nor do they significantly change its dictionary definition.

For example, in English, the plural marker "-s" on a noun like "cat" to form "cats" is not a megnemmódosító. "Cats" is still a noun, but the plural form is a significant grammatical change. However, a hypothetical affix that simply indicated a slight stylistic variation without altering the noun's function as a noun could be considered a megnemmódosító. The concept is more abstract and often discussed in relation to how languages categorize words and their transformations.

The term originates from Hungarian linguistics and explores the boundaries of what constitutes a grammatical change versus a stylistic or nuanced variation within a word's existing category. It helps in understanding the precise nature of morphological operations and their impact on syntactic and semantic structures. The existence and precise definition of megnemmódosítók are subjects of ongoing linguistic debate and theoretical refinement.