In linguistics

Linguistics

Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. Linguistics can be broadly broken into three categories or subfields of study: language form, language meaning, and language in context....

, synaeresis or syneresis (see American and British spelling differences) is a sound change (metaplasm

Metaplasm

A metaplasm is a change in the orthography of a word. Originally it referred to techniques used in Ancient Greek and Latin poetry, or processes in those languages' grammar.-Sound change:...

) by which two vowel

Vowel

In phonetics, a vowel is a sound in spoken language, such as English ah! or oh! , pronounced with an open vocal tract so that there is no build-up of air pressure at any point above the glottis. This contrasts with consonants, such as English sh! , where there is a constriction or closure at some...

s are pronounced together rather than separately. The opposite is diaeresis

Diaeresis

Diaeresis or dieresis may refer to:* Diaeresis , pronunciation of vowels in a diphthong separately, or the division made in a line of poetry when the end of a foot coincides with the end of a word...

.

Ancient Greek

In Ancient Greek

Ancient Greek

Ancient Greek is the stage of the Greek language in the periods spanning the times c. 9th–6th centuries BC, , c. 5th–4th centuries BC , and the c. 3rd century BC – 6th century AD of ancient Greece and the ancient world; being predated in the 2nd millennium BC by Mycenaean Greek...

, synaeresis is the pronunciation of two separate vowels as a diphthong

Diphthong

A diphthong , also known as a gliding vowel, refers to two adjacent vowel sounds occurring within the same syllable. Technically, a diphthong is a vowel with two different targets: That is, the tongue moves during the pronunciation of the vowel...

 (αι /ai̯/), and diaeresis

Diaeresis

Diaeresis or dieresis may refer to:* Diaeresis , pronunciation of vowels in a diphthong separately, or the division made in a line of poetry when the end of a foot coincides with the end of a word...

 is the separation of a diphthong into two vowels (αϊ /a.i/).

Certain words in Proto-Indo-European had two vowels separated by the consonant s or y (esu "good"). In Greek, this consonant changed to h (ehu), and was lost between vowels (eu). In Homer

Homer

In the Western classical tradition Homer , is the author of the Iliad and the Odyssey, and is revered as the greatest ancient Greek epic poet. These epics lie at the beginning of the Western canon of literature, and have had an enormous influence on the history of literature.When he lived is...

, the two vowels were sometimes pronounced separately (diaeresis: ) and sometimes together (synaeresis: ). Later in Attic Greek

Attic Greek

Attic Greek is the prestige dialect of Ancient Greek that was spoken in Attica, which includes Athens. Of the ancient dialects, it is the most similar to later Greek, and is the standard form of the language studied in courses of "Ancient Greek". It is sometimes included in Ionic.- Origin and range...

, they were always pronounced together.

Modern Greek

In Modern Greek, where original diphthongs are pronounced as monophthongs, synaeresis is the pronunciation of two vowel sounds as a monophthong

Monophthong

A monophthong is a pure vowel sound, one whose articulation at both beginning and end is relatively fixed, and which does not glide up or down towards a new position of articulation....

 (αι /e/, and diaeresis is the pronunciation of the two vowels as a diphthong (αϊ /ai̯/).

English

Synaeresis often occurs with English reduced vowels, as in Asia (ˈeɪzi.ə → /ˈeɪʒə/).

Etymology

Synaeresis comes from Greek synaíresis "a taking" or "drawing together", from synairéō — "with" and "grasp".

See also

• Diaeresis
  Diaeresis
  Diaeresis or dieresis may refer to:* Diaeresis , pronunciation of vowels in a diphthong separately, or the division made in a line of poetry when the end of a foot coincides with the end of a word...
  
  
• Metaplasm
  Metaplasm
  A metaplasm is a change in the orthography of a word. Originally it referred to techniques used in Ancient Greek and Latin poetry, or processes in those languages' grammar.-Sound change:...
  
  
  • Synalepha
    Synalepha
    A synalepha or synaloepha is the merging of two syllables into one, especially when it causes two words to be pronounced as one.The original meaning in Greek is more general than modern usage, and also includes coalescence of vowels within a word...
    
    
    • Crasis
      Crasis
      Crasis is a type of contraction in which two vowels or diphthongs merge into one new vowel or diphthong — making one word out of two. Crasis occurs in Portuguese and Arabic as well as in Ancient Greek, where it was first described.-French:...
      
      
    • Elision
      Elision
      Elision is the omission of one or more sounds in a word or phrase, producing a result that is easier for the speaker to pronounce...
      
      
      • Contraction
        Contraction (grammar)
        A contraction is a shortened version of the written and spoken forms of a word, syllable, or word group, created by omission of internal letters....
        
        
    • Synizesis
      Synizesis
      Synizesis is a sound change in which two originally syllabic vowels are pronounced as a single syllable without change in writing. In Latin and Greek, this was often to preserve meter, but similar changes occur naturally in languages....