This thesis examines the role of morphology in clipping through an investigation of the Japanese language. The research objectives of this thesis are to outline the roles of morphology, phonology, and semantics in the clipping process, to distinguish patterns and types of clipping, and to explore whether the clipping process should be described in the grammar, as well as to determine whether clipped forms are organized lexically. The objectives of this thesis are met through analyzing the

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... nt literature, compiling and analyzing a database of Japanese clipped forms, and conducting a survey study involving native Japanese speakers. A definition of clipping which is distinguished from other word-formation processes is proposed based on the analysis of the relevant literature. The analysis of the database reveals predictable patterns in clipped outputs which indicates the possibility of grammaticality in the clipping process. The results from the survey study provide further evidence of patternability in Japanese clipping. Based on the patterns of clipped forms observed in the database and survey study, clipping rules which account for these prototypical forms in Japanese clipping are proposed, as well as a conceptual model of the clipping process which pertains to components of the grammar. Finally, these clipping rules are adapted into a paradigm model which outlines the structures of clipping formation, lexical storage, and the processing involved in relating clipped forms with their sources and other inflected and/or derived forms.