Studia Językoznawcze

This text presents expressive derivatives and their functions in Zyta Rudzka's novel "Ten się śmieje, kto ma zęby". The analysis of the material draws on the principles of synchronic word-formation analysis and contextual analysis in determining the markedness of derivatives and their functions. The text demonstrates that the use of diminutives is small, usually limited to names of body parts and generally applied to young people or associated with the function of constructing irony (negative evaluation of people). The novel is dominated by embellishments and expressive structures, which dominate the protagonist's first-person narrative and her descriptions of life and the world. It is demonstrated that some structures formally classified as augmentatives, augmentative-expressives, or diminutives (due to their structure and the presence of expressive formants) in the text do not convey any information about size or expressive marking. Expressive derivatives perform a stylistic function (moderate, holistic, accepting, sometimes evaluative stylization), thus they serve to build a literary character and present a non-standard (deviating from stereotypes) image of a modern woman (an elderly woman) struggling with many difficulties of life (including economic and emotional ones), they also show a different image of widowhood and the death of a loved one, devoid of pathos, pity or compassion.