compensatory lengthening


nounHistorical Linguistics.
  1. the lengthening of a vowel when a following consonant is weakened or lost, as the change from Old English niht [nikht] /nɪxt/ to night [nahyt], /naɪt/, with loss of [kh] /x/ and lengthening of [i] /ɪ/ to a vowel that eventually became [ahy]. /aɪ/.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use compensatory lengthening in a sentence

  • This was lost before -an of the infinitive, contraction and compensatory lengthening being the result.

  • So in many cases there is a choice between compensatory lengthening and compensatory pause.

    English Verse | Raymond MacDonald Alden, Ph.D.