diaeresis

[ dahy-er-uh-sis ]

/ daɪˈɛr ə sɪs /

noun, plural di·aer·e·ses [dahy-er-uh-seez] /daɪˈɛr əˌsiz/.

dieresis.

Nearby words

Related formsdi·ae·ret·ic

[dahy-uh-ret-ik] /ˌdaɪ əˈrɛt ɪk/, adjective

dieresis

or di·aer·e·sis

[ dahy-er-uh-sis ]

/ daɪˈɛr ə sɪs /

noun, plural di·er·e·ses [dahy-er-uh-seez] /daɪˈɛr əˌsiz/.

the separation of two adjacent vowels, dividing one syllable into two.

a sign (¨) placed over the second of two adjacent vowels to indicate separate pronunciation, as in one spelling of the older forms naïve and coöperate: no longer widely used in English.

Prosody. the division made in a line or verse by coincidence of the end of a foot and the end of a word.

Origin of dieresis

1605–15; < Latin diaeresis < Greek diaíresis literally, distinction, division, equivalent to diaire-, stem of diaireîn to divide (di- di-³ + haireîn to take) + -sis -sis

Related formsdi·e·ret·ic

[dahy-uh-ret-ik] /ˌdaɪ əˈrɛt ɪk/, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for diaeresis

With the removal of the hyphenation, these have been changed to use the diaeresis everywhere.
With the Doughboy in France|Edward Hungerford
The ending of a word and foot together within the verse is called a diaeresis.
New Latin Grammar|Charles E. Bennett
The letter sometimes is printed without the diaeresis as ‘o’.
A History of Norwegian Immigration to the United States : From the Earliest Beginning down to the Year 1848|George Tobias Flom
With regard to modulation, too, the lines with diaeresis differ from those without it.
A History of English Versification|Jakob Schipper

Diaeresis or synaeresis may usually be employed according to the case.
Legends, Tales and Poems|Gustavo Adolfo Becquer

British Dictionary definitions for diaeresis

diaeresis

dieresis

/ (daɪˈɛrɪsɪs) /

noun plural -ses (-ˌsiːz)

the mark ¨, in writing placed over the second of two adjacent vowels to indicate that it is to be pronounced separately rather than forming a diphthong with the first, as in some spellings of coöperate, naïve, etc

this mark used for any other purpose, such as to indicate that a special pronunciation is appropriate to a particular vowelCompare umlaut

a pause in a line of verse occurring when the end of a foot coincides with the end of a word

Derived Formsdiaeretic or dieretic (ˌdaɪəˈrɛtɪk), adjective

Word Origin for diaeresis

C17: from Latin diarēsis, from Greek diairesis a division, from diairein, from dia- + hairein to take; compare heresy

dieresis

/ (daɪˈɛrɪsɪs) /

noun plural -ses (-ˌsiːz)

a variant spelling of diaeresis

Derived Formsdieretic (ˌdaɪəˈrɛtɪk), adjective

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for diaeresis

dieresis

also diaeresis, 1610s, "sign marking the division of a diphthong into two simple sounds," from Late Latin diaeresis, from Greek diairesis "division," noun of action from diairein "to divide, separate," from dia- "apart" (see dia-) + hairein "to take" (see heresy).

Medicine definitions for diaeresis

dieresis

[ dī-ĕr′ĭ-sĭs ]

n.

solution of continuity