saxophone
UK[ˈsæk.sə.fəʊn]US[ˈsæk.sə.foʊn]
n
a musical instrument made of brass, with a single reed and a curved metal body, played by blowing into it and pressing keys to change the pitch.
Morpheme Breakdown
sax
o
phone
sax
name
o
connective
phone
sound
Etymology
the word 'saxophone' is a modern hybrid creation, coined in the 1840s by combining the surname of its belgian inventor, adolphe sax, with the greek-derived combining form '-phone', meaning 'sound'. the connective 'o' is a typical linguistic glue borrowed from greek compound formation. while 'sax' is not a classical root, its incorporation follows a common pattern of eponymous instrument names, where the inventor's name is fused with a descriptive element to logically denote 'the sound-making instrument of sax'.
Analysis
Structure: sax (name) + o (connective) + phone (sound)
sax: origin: french (from the surname sax). functional role: a proprietary name element denoting the inventor.
o: origin: greek connective vowel. functional role: a linking vowel used to combine word elements.
phone: origin: greek (phōnē, meaning 'sound, voice'). functional role: a combining form meaning 'sound' or 'voice'.
Examples
the jazz band featured a brilliant solo on the tenor saxophone.
she has been practicing the saxophone for over five years.
the mellow sound of the saxophone filled the cozy nightclub.