infixed

Infixed is an adjective used in linguistics to describe morphemes that are inserted inside a base word, rather than at its beginning or end. Infixation is a form of affixation that attaches a morpheme within the root, creating a new grammatical or semantic form. This contrasts with more familiar prefixation and suffixation, which attach at word edges.

Infixed morphemes can serve a range of functions, including signaling tense, aspect, mood, voice, derivational meaning, or other grammatical categories. They often interact with the phonology and syllable structure of the language, sometimes requiring adjustments to maintain phonotactic order or to fit into existing syllable boundaries. Some languages allow multiple infixes or combinations of infixes with other affixes, producing rich morphological patterns.

Languages with overt infixation are well documented in the Austronesian family, with Tagalog and related Philippine languages as prominent examples. In these languages, infixes may be used to mark voice, aspect, or focus, among other functions. In other language families, infixation is comparatively rarer and may appear as a historical development or as a limited productive process.

Orthography typically represents infixes as part of the stem, even though the infixed material is inserted internally. The study of infixed forms and systems helps illuminate broader topics in morphology, such as how word formation interacts with syntax, phonology, and semantics. Infixed constructions illustrate the diversity of how languages structure and encode grammatical information within words.