What is rebracketing in linguistics? (10)(Chinese)

Here are some examples that show how rebracketing can influence not just the forms of words but their meanings and even how new words are created in a language.

In Chinese (Mandarin)

耳朵 (Er-duo):

Original form: “耳” (Er, meaning “ear”) + “朵” (duo, meaning “flower petal,” later generalized as a classifier)

Rebracketed form: Became “耳朵” (Er-duo), a single word meaning “ear,” where the original components are no longer seen as separate entities.

小龙虾 (Xiao long-xia):

Original form: ”小” (Xiao, meaning “small”) + “龙” (long, meaning “dragon”) + “虾” (xia, meaning “shrimp”), (“龙虾” = long-xia, meaning “lobster”)

Rebracketed form: Became “小龙虾” (Xiao long-xia), a single word meaning “crayfish,” where “long-xia” is interpreted as a compound noun.

Rebracketing is a widespread linguistic phenomenon that can significantly influence the evolution of languages across different cultures.