enclitic

American  

[en-klit-ik] / ɛnˈklɪt ɪk /

adjective

1. (of a word) closely connected in pronunciation with the preceding word and not having an independent accent or phonological status.

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noun

1. an enclitic word, as Latin que “and” in arma virumque, “arms and the man.”

enclitic British  

/ ɪnˈklɪtɪk /

adjective

1. 1. denoting or relating to a monosyllabic word or form that is treated as a suffix of the preceding word, as Latin -que in populusque

   2. (in classical Greek) denoting or relating to a word that throws an accent back onto the preceding word

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noun

1. an enclitic word or linguistic form

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• enclitically
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of enclitic

1650–60; < Late Latin encliticus < Greek enklitikós, equivalent to en- en- ² + klít ( os ) slope + -ikos -ic

Example Sentences

He settled Hoti's business�let it be!�Properly based Oun� Gave us the doctrine of the enclitic De .

From Time Magazine Archive

Again, where prepositions made a pronoun enclitic, the old accent is perishing.

From Society for Pure English, Tract 01 (1919) by Society for Pure English

Just one dream he had—a nightmare in which he read a printed copy of his work, and a wrongly accented enclitic stuck out from one of the pages like a sore thumb.

From In a Little Town by Hughes, Rupert

Sir,— In a clever article this morning you speak of `the doctrine of the enclitic De'—`which, with all deference to Mr. Browning, in point of fact does not exist.'

From An Introduction to the Study of Robert Browning's Poetry by Corson, Hiram

Most of them had as little care for his poetic prose, and as little appreciation or knowledge of good literature as they had of "the enclitic de."

From Concerning Lafcadio Hearn With a Bibliography by Laura Stedman by Gould, George M. (George Milbrey)