diaeresis

[dahy-er-uh-sis]

noun, plural di·aer·e·ses

[dahy-er-uh-seez] /daɪˈɛr əˌsiz/.

dieresis.

Related formsdi·ae·ret·ic

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

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

British Dictionary definitions for diaeretic

diaeresis

dieresis

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

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

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