In a recent conversation with my girlfriend's dad, the topic of verbing--or verbification--came up. This describes a nice linguistic function, or a coversion to be precise, when you make a noun into a verb. It just so happens that English is very good at this.
Eye, access, email are obvious examples. But there are thousands upon thousands, and it is often difficult to figure out what formof a word came first.
It also just so happens that the conservatives of the language world, prescriptivists, are wary of verbing. They think that it leads to unhealthy neologisms of the sort that appear on urbandictionary.com. For example, I might use the word "dorkify" to describe a process of uncooling that a friend of mine had undergone. I'm not sure if I've ever heard that word before but, in English, I can be nearly certain that it's being used by someone. Most importantly, I can be sure that any interlocutor will understand what I'm saying, regardless of whether he or she has ever heard the word before. And a quick google search proves me right.
There are so many things to be upset about in the United States. It is a shame that conservatives hate on the good things we do have. Along with verbification, I would add immigrants, teenage rebellion and hip hop music.
NOTE: The above image should in no way be interpreted as critical of recreational drug use. It was chosen solely for its pro-taco message.
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