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#188873 01/22/10 02:02 AM
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Jackie Offline OP
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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?

Jackie #188874 01/22/10 03:34 AM
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It's all about the sylbabblification and emPHAsis... ;0)

twosleepy #188875 01/22/10 10:51 AM
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The sigh is an odd syllable and the si is an even syllable.

Faldage #188877 01/22/10 03:11 PM
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See. I told you so... ;0)

Faldage #188891 01/23/10 03:48 AM
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Jackie Offline OP
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The sigh is an odd syllable and the si is an even syllable. Em...cycle and recycle both sigh...

Jackie #188894 01/23/10 01:00 PM
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And some people pronounce it by-sigh-cl, so what's your point?

Faldage #188895 01/23/10 02:13 PM
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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/.


Ceci n'est pas un seing.
zmjezhd #188899 01/23/10 10:20 PM
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We say moon cycle and moon sickle.

Faldage #188905 01/24/10 03:25 AM
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Jackie Offline OP
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some people pronounce it by-sigh-cl Wha-at?! Really?? Who does that?? And why?

Jackie #188906 01/24/10 03:29 AM
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Come on, Jackie, you must have a little southern in you somewheres... ;0)

twosleepy #188909 01/24/10 12:13 PM
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It's all up to whether you stress the -cy- syllable. But then 2sleepy already said that.

Faldage #188947 01/26/10 04:01 AM
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Jackie Offline OP
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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.

Faldage #189138 02/07/10 02:16 PM
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some people pronounce it by-sigh-cl, - probably those who take it for an exotic means of transport wink

wsieber #189140 02/07/10 05:48 PM
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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.

Last edited by LukeJavan8; 02/07/10 05:49 PM. Reason: typo

----please, draw me a sheep----
LukeJavan8 #189142 02/07/10 06:32 PM
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Forgive me for asking this, but have you counted the wheels? Maybe the boy hás a unicycle.

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