You know "escalate" came from "escalator" and not the other way around?

[conuly]

Escalate is a backformation of escalator.

This is just a segue for an interesting question that kept me up all night: What is the verb form of backformation? Is it backform or backformate?

Comments

[steorra]

I use backform.

[hopefulnebula]

I don't know, but I really, really want it to be backformify.

[conuly]

You too, huh?

[elenbarathi.livejournal.com]

Perhaps 'backformat', as the verb 'to format': "Would you please format my files?" Of course, 'format' is also a noun.

[conuly]

Oooh, that's a good one. Or backformify.

[pne.livejournal.com]

I'd always used "backformate".

[oloriel.livejournal.com]

That is interesting, since German doesn't have "escalator" (we say Rolltreppe, "roll-stairs", instead) but does have "escalate" (eskalieren, in the sense of rising dramatically and often incontrollably). So far I've assumed that eskalieren is just an original neologism (Latin ex + Latin scala + verb ending = "going beyond the scale (ladder)", more or less), but perhaps we stole it from the English instead? Hm...

I don't think a verb form of "backformation" is commonly needed, so I wonder if there actually is a correct/conventional verb form. I'd probably say backformate, but I couldn't explain why or defend my choice (other than say that "backform" sounds awfully like German Backform = "baking pan"...)