ablaut
noun
ab·laut ˈä-ˌblau̇t 
ˈa-
ˈa- ˈäp-ˌlau̇t
: a systematic variation of vowels in the same root or affix or in related roots or affixes especially in the Indo-European languages that is usually paralleled by differences in use or meaning (as in sing, sang, sung, song)
Word History
Etymology
borrowed from German Ablaut, from ab "down, from" (going back to Old High German ab, aba, preposition) + Laut "sound," going back to Middle High German lūt, going back to Old High German hlūtī, lūtī, liutī, derivative from the base of hlūt "loud, strident"; akin to Old English hlūd "loud" — more at of entry 1, loud
Note: As a term in Germanic and Indo-European comparative linguistics, ablaut was introduced in 1819 by Jacob Grimm in Deutsche Grammatik, vol. 1, p. 543. The word was used by earlier German grammarians pejoratively to refer to strong verbs—hence perhaps literally, "discordance," with ab- alluding to the deviation of the "irregular" strong verbs from "regular" weak verbs.
First Known Use
1838, in the meaning defined above
- spanish jessamine
- Spanish lady
- spanish ladyfish
- Spanish leather
- Spanish lettuce
- Spanish licorice
- Spanish lime
- Spanish lobster
- Spanish mackerel
- Spanish mahogany
- Spanish Main
- Spanish measles
- Spanish milled dollar
- spanish milled dollars
- Spanish moss
- Spanish n
- Spanish needles
- Spanish oak
- spanish ocher
- Spanish omelet
- Spanish onion
- Spanish oxide
- Spanish oyster
- Spanish oyster plant
- Spanish pack