diaeresis

[dahy-er-uh-sis]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

plural

diaereses

dieresis.

diaeresis

/ daɪˈɛrɪsɪs, ˌdaɪəˈrɛtɪk /

noun

the mark ¨, in writing placed over the second of two adjacent vowels to indicate that it is to be pronounced separately rather than forming a diphthong with the first, as in some spellings of ��ö��ٱ� , �Բ�ï�� , etc
this mark used for any other purpose, such as to indicate that a special pronunciation is appropriate to a particular vowel Compare umlaut
a pause in a line of verse occurring when the end of a foot coincides with the end of a word

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Other Word Forms

diaeretic adjective

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Word History and Origins

Origin of diaeresis¹

C17: from Latin �徱��ŧ�� , from Greek diairesis a division, from diairein , from _dia- + hairein to take; compare _heresy

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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

A memorial to the Brontë sisters Charlotte, Emily and Anne has had diaereses added above the letter "e" of the authors' surname, 85 years after it was unveiled.

From

She understands that “The New Yorker’s identity is partly defined by its deliberately conservative diaeresis on words like ‘��ö��ٱ�.’

From

If you find these difficult to read, The New Yorker has a solution: next year, consider the diaeresis.

From

I could jettison the diaeresis, impose my own logic on the hyphen, and defy Webster’s by, say, making two words out of “hardworking.”

From

I wouldn’t wish an episode of diaeresis on anyone, but you asked for it.

From

diadromous diag.

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