What do you call the act of removing a part of a word and replacing it with an apostrophe
I don't remember the technical word for it. I think it's a figure of speech, but I am not sure.
Anyway, here is an example to illustrate what I mean:
He was an apostle!
He was a 'postle!
So what is it called? I am not sure if we can replace any part of the word with an apostrophe, but from memory it's mostly the beginning of the word.
word-request
asked 15 hours ago
repomonsterrepomonster
1,121116
add a comment |
I don't remember the technical word for it. I think it's a figure of speech, but I am not sure.
Anyway, here is an example to illustrate what I mean:
He was an apostle!
He was a 'postle!
So what is it called? I am not sure if we can replace any part of the word with an apostrophe, but from memory it's mostly the beginning of the word.
word-request
asked 15 hours ago
repomonsterrepomonster
1,121116
1
Please note: removing a letter on purpose in writing is not the same thing as pronouncing something without some letter. So, which do you mean?
– Lambie
15 hours ago
add a comment |
I don't remember the technical word for it. I think it's a figure of speech, but I am not sure.
Anyway, here is an example to illustrate what I mean:
He was an apostle!
He was a 'postle!
So what is it called? I am not sure if we can replace any part of the word with an apostrophe, but from memory it's mostly the beginning of the word.
word-request
asked 15 hours ago
repomonsterrepomonster
1,121116
I don't remember the technical word for it. I think it's a figure of speech, but I am not sure.
Anyway, here is an example to illustrate what I mean:
He was an apostle!
He was a 'postle!
So what is it called? I am not sure if we can replace any part of the word with an apostrophe, but from memory it's mostly the beginning of the word.
word-request
word-request
asked 15 hours ago
repomonsterrepomonster
1,121116
asked 15 hours ago
repomonsterrepomonster
1,121116
asked 15 hours ago
repomonsterrepomonster
1,121116
asked 15 hours ago
repomonsterrepomonster
1,121116
asked 15 hours ago
repomonsterrepomonster
1,121116
1,121116
1
Please note: removing a letter on purpose in writing is not the same thing as pronouncing something without some letter. So, which do you mean?
– Lambie
15 hours ago
add a comment |
1
Please note: removing a letter on purpose in writing is not the same thing as pronouncing something without some letter. So, which do you mean?
– Lambie
15 hours ago
1
1
Please note: removing a letter on purpose in writing is not the same thing as pronouncing something without some letter. So, which do you mean?
– Lambie
15 hours ago
Please note: removing a letter on purpose in writing is not the same thing as pronouncing something without some letter. So, which do you mean?
– Lambie
15 hours ago
add a comment |
2 Answers
2
active
oldest
votes
When it's dropped as part of a way of speaking (which may eventually change the language as things drift over time), it's clipping. This is almost always losing one or more sounds at the start or end of the world - and it's how we get the word exam - from examination.
When it's done stylistically or for poetry to fit a metre, it's elision.
When it's a regular feature of English, or following the pattern of such a regular feature, and used to combine words, it's forming a contraction - like don't, can't, or Sam's (yes, the last one is a contraction, even when it's for the 'possessive', even though our language has lost the word that the -'s stands for2). Little fragments like -n't and -'s that are used in this way, at the end of a word, are called enclitics1.
1: Sam's might be "Sam is", such as "Sam's busy writing answers on ELL", or "Sam has", such as "Sam's been spending a lot of time on ELL", or the -'s can be a contraction of does or us in some situations. It can also be what's commonly called the possessive, as in "recently, Sam's usual method of procrastination is answering questions on ELL". The later type is referred to as the Saxon genitive as it forms the genitive (which covers possession, as well as a few other things, but we don't use that term as an everyday thing in English) and it comes from Old English (which owed rather a lot to the language brought over by the Saxons), and even then it wasn't a word - just a suffix, -es. In fact, there's some debate as to whether it was ever a separate word, rather than a pattern of inflection like -ing in modern English.
2: Some definitions I have read would exclude -n't from being any sort of clitic because the word it represents is still used separately, while -'s would meet all of the definitions I've seen when it's the Saxon genitive - but not when it's is.
answered 14 hours ago
SamBCSamBC
12.1k1545
The answer covers situations not in the question. which was only about dropping an initial letter. It's fine to explain contractions but it's not really part of the question. Since you are doing "off topic", Sam's could be a restaurant. Many are called by a name with an apostrophe s.
– Lambie
12 hours ago
1
Dropping that initial letter could well be clipping, because it is removing a full sound (indeed, a full syllable) from the word. People often seem to find extra information around the topic helpful, so as to avoid thinking the answer to their question applies to similar but different situations. And Sam's as the name of a restaurant is the Saxon genitive.
– SamBC
12 hours ago
add a comment |
This looks like elision:
1 a : the use of a speech form that lacks a final or initial sound which a variant speech form has (such as 's instead of is in there's)
b : the omission of an unstressed vowel or syllable in a verse to achieve a uniform metrical pattern
(source: Merriam-Webster)
It's omnipresent and often compulsory in French, but also regularly seen in English.
answered 15 hours ago
GlorfindelGlorfindel
5,19992639
In French, the function of it is completely different....It's a grammar rule, among other things, not a style or speech choice. Otherwise,I agree though this is not only a poetry technique.
– Lambie
15 hours ago
It could also be called abbreviation.
– Jason Bassford
14 hours ago
@JasonBassford I have to disagree, in (casual, maybe not technical) English at least. Abbreviation generally occurs in different contexts and for different reasons than elision or contraction, and is never pronounced (unless you count acronyms), only written.
– Hearth
13 hours ago
add a comment |
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2 Answers
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2 Answers
2
active
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When it's dropped as part of a way of speaking (which may eventually change the language as things drift over time), it's clipping. This is almost always losing one or more sounds at the start or end of the world - and it's how we get the word exam - from examination.
When it's done stylistically or for poetry to fit a metre, it's elision.
When it's a regular feature of English, or following the pattern of such a regular feature, and used to combine words, it's forming a contraction - like don't, can't, or Sam's (yes, the last one is a contraction, even when it's for the 'possessive', even though our language has lost the word that the -'s stands for2). Little fragments like -n't and -'s that are used in this way, at the end of a word, are called enclitics1.
1: Sam's might be "Sam is", such as "Sam's busy writing answers on ELL", or "Sam has", such as "Sam's been spending a lot of time on ELL", or the -'s can be a contraction of does or us in some situations. It can also be what's commonly called the possessive, as in "recently, Sam's usual method of procrastination is answering questions on ELL". The later type is referred to as the Saxon genitive as it forms the genitive (which covers possession, as well as a few other things, but we don't use that term as an everyday thing in English) and it comes from Old English (which owed rather a lot to the language brought over by the Saxons), and even then it wasn't a word - just a suffix, -es. In fact, there's some debate as to whether it was ever a separate word, rather than a pattern of inflection like -ing in modern English.
2: Some definitions I have read would exclude -n't from being any sort of clitic because the word it represents is still used separately, while -'s would meet all of the definitions I've seen when it's the Saxon genitive - but not when it's is.
answered 14 hours ago
SamBCSamBC
12.1k1545
The answer covers situations not in the question. which was only about dropping an initial letter. It's fine to explain contractions but it's not really part of the question. Since you are doing "off topic", Sam's could be a restaurant. Many are called by a name with an apostrophe s.
– Lambie
12 hours ago
1
Dropping that initial letter could well be clipping, because it is removing a full sound (indeed, a full syllable) from the word. People often seem to find extra information around the topic helpful, so as to avoid thinking the answer to their question applies to similar but different situations. And Sam's as the name of a restaurant is the Saxon genitive.
– SamBC
12 hours ago
add a comment |
When it's dropped as part of a way of speaking (which may eventually change the language as things drift over time), it's clipping. This is almost always losing one or more sounds at the start or end of the world - and it's how we get the word exam - from examination.
When it's done stylistically or for poetry to fit a metre, it's elision.
When it's a regular feature of English, or following the pattern of such a regular feature, and used to combine words, it's forming a contraction - like don't, can't, or Sam's (yes, the last one is a contraction, even when it's for the 'possessive', even though our language has lost the word that the -'s stands for2). Little fragments like -n't and -'s that are used in this way, at the end of a word, are called enclitics1.
1: Sam's might be "Sam is", such as "Sam's busy writing answers on ELL", or "Sam has", such as "Sam's been spending a lot of time on ELL", or the -'s can be a contraction of does or us in some situations. It can also be what's commonly called the possessive, as in "recently, Sam's usual method of procrastination is answering questions on ELL". The later type is referred to as the Saxon genitive as it forms the genitive (which covers possession, as well as a few other things, but we don't use that term as an everyday thing in English) and it comes from Old English (which owed rather a lot to the language brought over by the Saxons), and even then it wasn't a word - just a suffix, -es. In fact, there's some debate as to whether it was ever a separate word, rather than a pattern of inflection like -ing in modern English.
2: Some definitions I have read would exclude -n't from being any sort of clitic because the word it represents is still used separately, while -'s would meet all of the definitions I've seen when it's the Saxon genitive - but not when it's is.
answered 14 hours ago
SamBCSamBC
12.1k1545
The answer covers situations not in the question. which was only about dropping an initial letter. It's fine to explain contractions but it's not really part of the question. Since you are doing "off topic", Sam's could be a restaurant. Many are called by a name with an apostrophe s.
– Lambie
12 hours ago
1
Dropping that initial letter could well be clipping, because it is removing a full sound (indeed, a full syllable) from the word. People often seem to find extra information around the topic helpful, so as to avoid thinking the answer to their question applies to similar but different situations. And Sam's as the name of a restaurant is the Saxon genitive.
– SamBC
12 hours ago
add a comment |
When it's dropped as part of a way of speaking (which may eventually change the language as things drift over time), it's clipping. This is almost always losing one or more sounds at the start or end of the world - and it's how we get the word exam - from examination.
When it's done stylistically or for poetry to fit a metre, it's elision.
When it's a regular feature of English, or following the pattern of such a regular feature, and used to combine words, it's forming a contraction - like don't, can't, or Sam's (yes, the last one is a contraction, even when it's for the 'possessive', even though our language has lost the word that the -'s stands for2). Little fragments like -n't and -'s that are used in this way, at the end of a word, are called enclitics1.
1: Sam's might be "Sam is", such as "Sam's busy writing answers on ELL", or "Sam has", such as "Sam's been spending a lot of time on ELL", or the -'s can be a contraction of does or us in some situations. It can also be what's commonly called the possessive, as in "recently, Sam's usual method of procrastination is answering questions on ELL". The later type is referred to as the Saxon genitive as it forms the genitive (which covers possession, as well as a few other things, but we don't use that term as an everyday thing in English) and it comes from Old English (which owed rather a lot to the language brought over by the Saxons), and even then it wasn't a word - just a suffix, -es. In fact, there's some debate as to whether it was ever a separate word, rather than a pattern of inflection like -ing in modern English.
2: Some definitions I have read would exclude -n't from being any sort of clitic because the word it represents is still used separately, while -'s would meet all of the definitions I've seen when it's the Saxon genitive - but not when it's is.
answered 14 hours ago
SamBCSamBC
12.1k1545
When it's dropped as part of a way of speaking (which may eventually change the language as things drift over time), it's clipping. This is almost always losing one or more sounds at the start or end of the world - and it's how we get the word exam - from examination.
When it's done stylistically or for poetry to fit a metre, it's elision.
When it's a regular feature of English, or following the pattern of such a regular feature, and used to combine words, it's forming a contraction - like don't, can't, or Sam's (yes, the last one is a contraction, even when it's for the 'possessive', even though our language has lost the word that the -'s stands for2). Little fragments like -n't and -'s that are used in this way, at the end of a word, are called enclitics1.
1: Sam's might be "Sam is", such as "Sam's busy writing answers on ELL", or "Sam has", such as "Sam's been spending a lot of time on ELL", or the -'s can be a contraction of does or us in some situations. It can also be what's commonly called the possessive, as in "recently, Sam's usual method of procrastination is answering questions on ELL". The later type is referred to as the Saxon genitive as it forms the genitive (which covers possession, as well as a few other things, but we don't use that term as an everyday thing in English) and it comes from Old English (which owed rather a lot to the language brought over by the Saxons), and even then it wasn't a word - just a suffix, -es. In fact, there's some debate as to whether it was ever a separate word, rather than a pattern of inflection like -ing in modern English.
2: Some definitions I have read would exclude -n't from being any sort of clitic because the word it represents is still used separately, while -'s would meet all of the definitions I've seen when it's the Saxon genitive - but not when it's is.
answered 14 hours ago
SamBCSamBC
12.1k1545
edited 13 hours ago
answered 14 hours ago
SamBCSamBC
12.1k1545
answered 14 hours ago
SamBCSamBC
12.1k1545
answered 14 hours ago
SamBCSamBC
12.1k1545
12.1k1545
The answer covers situations not in the question. which was only about dropping an initial letter. It's fine to explain contractions but it's not really part of the question. Since you are doing "off topic", Sam's could be a restaurant. Many are called by a name with an apostrophe s.
– Lambie
12 hours ago
1
Dropping that initial letter could well be clipping, because it is removing a full sound (indeed, a full syllable) from the word. People often seem to find extra information around the topic helpful, so as to avoid thinking the answer to their question applies to similar but different situations. And Sam's as the name of a restaurant is the Saxon genitive.
– SamBC
12 hours ago
add a comment |
The answer covers situations not in the question. which was only about dropping an initial letter. It's fine to explain contractions but it's not really part of the question. Since you are doing "off topic", Sam's could be a restaurant. Many are called by a name with an apostrophe s.
– Lambie
12 hours ago
1
Dropping that initial letter could well be clipping, because it is removing a full sound (indeed, a full syllable) from the word. People often seem to find extra information around the topic helpful, so as to avoid thinking the answer to their question applies to similar but different situations. And Sam's as the name of a restaurant is the Saxon genitive.
– SamBC
12 hours ago
The answer covers situations not in the question. which was only about dropping an initial letter. It's fine to explain contractions but it's not really part of the question. Since you are doing "off topic", Sam's could be a restaurant. Many are called by a name with an apostrophe s.
– Lambie
12 hours ago
The answer covers situations not in the question. which was only about dropping an initial letter. It's fine to explain contractions but it's not really part of the question. Since you are doing "off topic", Sam's could be a restaurant. Many are called by a name with an apostrophe s.
– Lambie
12 hours ago
1
1
Dropping that initial letter could well be clipping, because it is removing a full sound (indeed, a full syllable) from the word. People often seem to find extra information around the topic helpful, so as to avoid thinking the answer to their question applies to similar but different situations. And Sam's as the name of a restaurant is the Saxon genitive.
– SamBC
12 hours ago
Dropping that initial letter could well be clipping, because it is removing a full sound (indeed, a full syllable) from the word. People often seem to find extra information around the topic helpful, so as to avoid thinking the answer to their question applies to similar but different situations. And Sam's as the name of a restaurant is the Saxon genitive.
– SamBC
12 hours ago
add a comment |
This looks like elision:
1 a : the use of a speech form that lacks a final or initial sound which a variant speech form has (such as 's instead of is in there's)
b : the omission of an unstressed vowel or syllable in a verse to achieve a uniform metrical pattern
(source: Merriam-Webster)
It's omnipresent and often compulsory in French, but also regularly seen in English.
answered 15 hours ago
GlorfindelGlorfindel
5,19992639
In French, the function of it is completely different....It's a grammar rule, among other things, not a style or speech choice. Otherwise,I agree though this is not only a poetry technique.
– Lambie
15 hours ago
It could also be called abbreviation.
– Jason Bassford
14 hours ago
@JasonBassford I have to disagree, in (casual, maybe not technical) English at least. Abbreviation generally occurs in different contexts and for different reasons than elision or contraction, and is never pronounced (unless you count acronyms), only written.
– Hearth
13 hours ago
add a comment |
This looks like elision:
1 a : the use of a speech form that lacks a final or initial sound which a variant speech form has (such as 's instead of is in there's)
b : the omission of an unstressed vowel or syllable in a verse to achieve a uniform metrical pattern
(source: Merriam-Webster)
It's omnipresent and often compulsory in French, but also regularly seen in English.
answered 15 hours ago
GlorfindelGlorfindel
5,19992639
In French, the function of it is completely different....It's a grammar rule, among other things, not a style or speech choice. Otherwise,I agree though this is not only a poetry technique.
– Lambie
15 hours ago
It could also be called abbreviation.
– Jason Bassford
14 hours ago
@JasonBassford I have to disagree, in (casual, maybe not technical) English at least. Abbreviation generally occurs in different contexts and for different reasons than elision or contraction, and is never pronounced (unless you count acronyms), only written.
– Hearth
13 hours ago
add a comment |
This looks like elision:
1 a : the use of a speech form that lacks a final or initial sound which a variant speech form has (such as 's instead of is in there's)
b : the omission of an unstressed vowel or syllable in a verse to achieve a uniform metrical pattern
(source: Merriam-Webster)
It's omnipresent and often compulsory in French, but also regularly seen in English.
answered 15 hours ago
GlorfindelGlorfindel
5,19992639
This looks like elision:
1 a : the use of a speech form that lacks a final or initial sound which a variant speech form has (such as 's instead of is in there's)
b : the omission of an unstressed vowel or syllable in a verse to achieve a uniform metrical pattern
(source: Merriam-Webster)
It's omnipresent and often compulsory in French, but also regularly seen in English.
answered 15 hours ago
GlorfindelGlorfindel
5,19992639
answered 15 hours ago
GlorfindelGlorfindel
5,19992639
answered 15 hours ago
GlorfindelGlorfindel
5,19992639
answered 15 hours ago
GlorfindelGlorfindel
5,19992639
5,19992639
In French, the function of it is completely different....It's a grammar rule, among other things, not a style or speech choice. Otherwise,I agree though this is not only a poetry technique.
– Lambie
15 hours ago
It could also be called abbreviation.
– Jason Bassford
14 hours ago
@JasonBassford I have to disagree, in (casual, maybe not technical) English at least. Abbreviation generally occurs in different contexts and for different reasons than elision or contraction, and is never pronounced (unless you count acronyms), only written.
– Hearth
13 hours ago
add a comment |
In French, the function of it is completely different....It's a grammar rule, among other things, not a style or speech choice. Otherwise,I agree though this is not only a poetry technique.
– Lambie
15 hours ago
It could also be called abbreviation.
– Jason Bassford
14 hours ago
@JasonBassford I have to disagree, in (casual, maybe not technical) English at least. Abbreviation generally occurs in different contexts and for different reasons than elision or contraction, and is never pronounced (unless you count acronyms), only written.
– Hearth
13 hours ago
In French, the function of it is completely different....It's a grammar rule, among other things, not a style or speech choice. Otherwise,I agree though this is not only a poetry technique.
– Lambie
15 hours ago
In French, the function of it is completely different....It's a grammar rule, among other things, not a style or speech choice. Otherwise,I agree though this is not only a poetry technique.
– Lambie
15 hours ago
It could also be called abbreviation.
– Jason Bassford
14 hours ago
It could also be called abbreviation.
– Jason Bassford
14 hours ago
@JasonBassford I have to disagree, in (casual, maybe not technical) English at least. Abbreviation generally occurs in different contexts and for different reasons than elision or contraction, and is never pronounced (unless you count acronyms), only written.
– Hearth
13 hours ago
@JasonBassford I have to disagree, in (casual, maybe not technical) English at least. Abbreviation generally occurs in different contexts and for different reasons than elision or contraction, and is never pronounced (unless you count acronyms), only written.
– Hearth
13 hours ago
add a comment |
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1
Please note: removing a letter on purpose in writing is not the same thing as pronouncing something without some letter. So, which do you mean?
– Lambie
15 hours ago