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Carpal Tunnel
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OP
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 11,613 |
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?
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old hand
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old hand
Joined: Feb 2008
Posts: 876 |
It's all about the sylbabblification and emPHAsis... ;0)
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Posts: 13,803
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 13,803 |
The sigh is an odd syllable and the si is an even syllable.
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old hand
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old hand
Joined: Feb 2008
Posts: 876 |
See. I told you so... ;0)
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Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 11,613
Carpal Tunnel
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OP
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 11,613 |
The sigh is an odd syllable and the si is an even syllable. Em...cycle and recycle both sigh...
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 13,803 |
And some people pronounce it by-sigh-cl, so what's your point?
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Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 3,290
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 3,290 |
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.
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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We say moon cycle and moon sickle.
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Carpal Tunnel
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OP
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 11,613 |
some people pronounce it by-sigh-cl Wha-at?! Really?? Who does that?? And why?
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old hand
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old hand
Joined: Feb 2008
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Come on, Jackie, you must have a little southern in you somewheres... ;0)
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