Etymology

subtonic

S1U1B3T1O1N1I1C3

Today it means: Of or pertaining to imperfectly articulated sounds or utterances that are inaudible or barely audible, as characterized by Dr. James Rush (Guide to Pronunciation, 1833). Full definition →

English tonic ← Ancient Greek τονῐκός (tonĭkós) ← Latin sub-
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The story

  1. Latinsub
  2. Latinsub-
  3. Englishsub-
  4. Ancient Greekτονῐκός (tonĭkós)
  5. Englishtonic
  6. English todaysubtonic

From sub- + tonic.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.