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That shows you pronounce it com-BAT, and if you did you'd be right to double the T in combatting.
I was going to say the stress on -BAT sounded old-fashioned to me, and British, but it turns out it's the other way round. My old Shorter Oxford has COM-bat and CUM-bat for both noun and verb, with no mention of the -BAT stress. Fowler (Modern English Usage) has only CUM- and mentions it under the -T- vs -TT- rule as one that goes combated etc., so he also pronounced it with unstressed -bat.
A modern dictionary (Chambers) now only has COM-/com- (no-one says cumbat any more), but notes that the -BAT stress is North American, and rare here.
The style-guide advice in Britain would be not to double S or T: focused, riveted, though focussed, rivetted would be regarded as also correct.
The only letters with obligatory doubling are L and P (traveled, worshiped are definitely Americanisms, not alternative spellings), and with P it's only with worshipping and kidnapping and handicapping, where the syllable has some secondary stress on it and is pronounced with a full vowel.
Entire Thread Subject Posted By Posted Double the consonant? slithy toves 02/17/02 03:28 AM Re: Double the consonant? of troy 02/17/02 03:37 AM Re: Double the consonant? NicholasW 02/17/02 11:43 AM
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