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Previous Thread Next Thread Print Thread little-letter #171534 11/23/2007 4:55 AM Joined: Jun 2006 Posts: 5,295 Netherlands, the Hague BranShea Carpal Tunnel BranShea Carpal Tunnel Joined: Jun 2006 Posts: 5,295 Netherlands, the Hague The logic of language. I remember from school having for at least a year great trouble with those two words. I could do the most difficult ones easy but I kept confusing these two. I wrote lettre for letter and littel for little. Even now I sometimes hesitate. Here I've learned to look a bit into etymology and I see that indeed it makes no sense at all. Little comes from Old English: -- lytel Letter comes from Old French: lettre Centuries ago they could have done a better job by making it littel and letter. Is it too late for that? Copy Link to Clipboard Share Post on Facebook Share Post on Twitter Re: little-letter BranShea #171535 11/23/2007 5:27 AM Joined: Nov 2007 Posts: 99 Hungarian Gypsy R. Eastcourt journeyman R. Eastcourt journeyman Joined: Nov 2007 Posts: 99 Hungarian Gypsy Originally Posted By: BranShea The logic of language. I remember from school having for at least a year great trouble with those two words. I could do the most difficult ones easy but I kept confusing these two. I wrote lettre for letter and littel for little. Even now I sometimes hesitate. Here I've learned to look a bit into etymology and I see that indeed it makes no sense at all. Little comes from Old English: -- lytel Letter comes from Old French: lettre Centuries ago they could have done a better job by making it littel and letter. Is it too late for that? Is this theatre of protest, or theater of the mind? Copy Link to Clipboard Share Post on Facebook Share Post on Twitter Re: little-letter R. Eastcourt #171538 11/23/2007 7:38 AM Joined: Jun 2006 Posts: 5,295 Netherlands, the Hague BranShea Carpal Tunnel BranShea Carpal Tunnel Joined: Jun 2006 Posts: 5,295 Netherlands, the Hague It's a tea-party. In a littel while Mrs. Brittel will put the kettel on. OK , a bit of both. Copy Link to Clipboard Share Post on Facebook Share Post on Twitter Re: little-letter BranShea #171645 11/26/2007 10:12 PM Joined: Aug 2002 Posts: 2,154 British Columbia, Canada Zed Pooh-Bah Zed Pooh-Bah Joined: Aug 2002 Posts: 2,154 British Columbia, Canada Brannie You have fallen into the non-English speakers trap of expecting English to operate logically. It doesn't, and the spelling is completely . Copy Link to Clipboard Share Post on Facebook Share Post on Twitter Re: little-letter Zed #171657 11/27/2007 10:10 AM Joined: Jun 2006 Posts: 5,295 Netherlands, the Hague BranShea Carpal Tunnel BranShea Carpal Tunnel Joined: Jun 2006 Posts: 5,295 Netherlands, the Hague Zeddie I know that is the case. Language is the same mix of logic and irrational as humans are. I only thought the board's P.I. of language Z.M. would have known if there was a why to this. The close home word reverses partly.(lytel-little) And to the word from French(lettre-letter)the same thing happens.Just funny. lytel-little lettre-letter Copy Link to Clipboard Share Post on Facebook Share Post on Twitter Re: little-letter BranShea #171660 11/27/2007 3:29 PM Joined: Aug 2005 Posts: 3,290 R'lyeh zmjezhd Carpal Tunnel zmjezhd Carpal Tunnel Joined: Aug 2005 Posts: 3,290 R'lyeh lytel-little lettre-letter I'd say it was an accident of history like so much of what's euphemistically called English orthography. Cf. modal, moral, camel, easel, label, model, tunnel, apple, battle, beetle, eagle, ladle, marble, table, etc., all for words ending in unstressed /əl/. Ceci n'est pas un seing. Copy Link to Clipboard Share Post on Facebook Share Post on Twitter Re: little-letter zmjezhd #171704 11/28/2007 1:35 PM Joined: Mar 2000 Posts: 6,511 lower upstate New York AnnaStrophic Carpal Tunnel AnnaStrophic Carpal Tunnel Joined: Mar 2000 Posts: 6,511 lower upstate New York euphemistically called English orthography Copy Link to Clipboard Share Post on Facebook Share Post on Twitter Moderated by  Jackie  Hop To General Topics ------  Information and announcements  Q&A about words  Wordplay and fun  Words and languages in schools  Miscellany  Weekly Themes  Looking for (writers, speakers,... (Old) Weekly themes. 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