verbominalized

Verbominalized is an adjective used in linguistics to describe a word or a form that has undergone verb-to-noun nominalization, yielding a deverbal noun that can behave like a noun in syntax while retaining traces of its verbal origin. The term is not standard across all grammars and is more commonly discussed under the broader umbrella of nominalization or deverbal nouns. When used, verbominalized often emphasizes the dual status of a form as both derived from a verb and functioning primarily as a noun.

In English, nominalization commonly occurs through morphological changes or zero-derivation. Typical deverbal nouns include forms such as “a decision” (from “to decide”) or “a run” (from “to run”). These items predominantly function as nouns but carry residual associations with their verbal source, such as eventivity or process. The descriptor verbominalized highlights this link between the verb’s origin and the noun’s current category.

The relevance of the term lies in discussions of word formation and category boundaries. Some linguists use verbominalized to draw attention to cases where the nominal form preserves aspectual or action-related nuances, or to describe cross-linguistic patterns where verbs readily yield noun forms with distinct lexical entries. Critics note that verbominalized overlaps with established terminology like deverbal noun and nominalization, and may risk introducing confusion if not clearly defined in a given analysis.

See also: nominalization, deverbal noun, verbal noun, verb-to-noun derivation.