Morphemes in “occasionally”
“occasionally” has 3 morphemes: occasion + -al + -ly.
occasion
root
+
al
suffix
+
ly
suffix
Spelling changes when the parts join: the boxes show the letters as written; the morphemes themselves are occasion + -al + -ly.
Each morpheme explained
| Morpheme | Type | Free / bound | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| occasion | free root | free | an event that occurs at a critical time |
| -al | derivational suffix | bound | relating to, of the kind of |
| -ly | derivational suffix | bound | in the manner of; every (as in daily) |
How the word is built
occasion → occasional → occasionally
Each step adds one affix to the word before it; the root “occasion” is where the chain starts.
Syllables and stress in “occasionally” →
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Segmentation derived from MorphyNet (Batsuren, Bella & Giunchiglia, 2021; CC BY-SA 3.0, built from Wiktionary), with hand-written affix glosses and root meanings from WordNet. Reviewed for classroom use; tell us if you spot an error.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many morphemes are in "occasionally"?
"occasionally" has three morphemes: occasion + -al + -ly.
How do you break "occasionally" into morphemes?
occasion + -al + -ly. The root is "occasion"; -al is a derivational suffix, -ly is a derivational suffix.
What is the root word of "occasionally"?
The root of "occasionally" is "occasion", built up as occasion → occasional → occasionally.
Is this morphology tool free?
Yes. The Fixie morphological analyzer is free with no signup and runs in your browser.