A friend of mine asked me something the other night as we were on our way up to choir practice that I don't know the answer to; so I thought I'd put it to y'all:
How come, since we say sigh-kul and uni-sigh-kul, etc., we say bi-sickle and tri-sickle?

It's all about the sylbabblification and emPHAsis... ;0)

The sigh is an odd syllable and the si is an even syllable.

See. I told you so... ;0)

The sigh is an odd syllable and the si is an even syllable. Em...cycle and recycle both sigh...

And some people pronounce it by-sigh-cl, so what's your point?

Not to interrupt the revelry, but it possibly has something to do with the pronunciation of the word cycle, and when the various types of bikes were named. The word cycle /'saɪkl/ predates the others. It may have been that bicycle was originally pronounced /'baɪsaɪkl/, but that the second of the two diphthongs was reduced by some process of dissimulation /'baɪsɪkl/.

We say moon cycle and moon sickle.

some people pronounce it by-sigh-cl Wha-at?! Really?? Who does that?? And why?

Come on, Jackie, you must have a little southern in you somewheres... ;0)

It's all up to whether you stress the -cy- syllable. But then 2sleepy already said that.

I half grew up in Tennessee and have had friends from South Carolina, Georgia, and Mississippi, but I have never heard anyone say bi-sigh-cle. Hmm--maybe they do over in Texas--that's a whole different south.

some people pronounce it by-sigh-cl, - probably those who take it for an exotic means of transport

I have a 12 year old son of a friend who rides one and
pronounces it uni-SIGH-cle. This is the Great Frozen Plains.

Forgive me for asking this, but have you counted the wheels? Maybe the boy hás a unicycle.