umlaut
/ˈʊmlaʊt
/Linguistics
noun
1A mark (¨) used over a vowel, especially in German, to indicate a different vowel quality.German umlauts appear to be a problem in some cases....
- The evidence is that originally the German keyboard produced circumflexes instead of umlauts but it was replaced by an English keyboard.
- Come on folks, don't you know how to pronounce vowels with umlauts over them?
1.1 [mass noun] The process in Germanic languages by which the quality of a vowel was altered in certain phonetic contexts, resulting for example in the differences between modern German Mann and Männer.It is important to note that in many OE words containing vowels affected by umlaut, the /i/ or /j/ in the following unstressed syllable has been lost....
- Not all vowel gradations are caused by umlaut.
- The mutations of a basic vowel by umlaut are of two kinds in OE.
verb [with object]
Modify (a form or sound) by using an umlaut: the colour of prothetic vowels, unless umlauted by the next syllable, was that of the laryngeal which was vocalized...
- Accented and umlauted vowels, and diacritical marks on consonants must be avoided, because they act as roadblocks and break the speed of a typist.
- That's like the umlauted vowel in the first syllable of the German town name Tübingen.
- In the choral movement of his ninth symphony, the soprano soloist has to sing her highest note on the umlauted U in flügel, an even more daunting vowel sound than that in ‘who'd.’
Origin
Mid 19th century: from German Umlaut, from um 'about' + Laut 'sound'.
- winter jasmine
- winterless
- winterless north
- winterly
- winter melon
- winter moth
- Winter Olympics
- Winter Palace
- Winter Park
- winter quarters
- winter rules
- winter sleep
- winter solstice
- winter sports
- winter squash
- wintersweet
- Winterthur
- wintertide
- wintertime
- winter vomiting bug
- winter vomiting disease
- Winter War
- winter white
- wintery
- win the day