Grassmann's law

proper noun

A dissimilatory phonological process in Ancient Greek and Sanskrit, according to which an aspirated consonant loses its aspiration if it is followed by another aspirated consonant in the next syllable.

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Meanings

proper noun
  1. human sciencesA dissimilatory phonological process in Ancient Greek and Sanskrit, according to which an aspirated consonant loses its aspiration if it is followed by another aspirated consonant in the next syllable.
  2. engineeringAn empirical law about human colour perception, stating that chromatic sensation can be described in terms of an effective stimulus consisting of linear combinations of different light colours.

Origin

Named after German linguist Hermann Grassmann (1809–1877).

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Cite this entry
APA

Grassmann's law. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Grassmann's%20law

MLA

“Grassmann's law.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Grassmann's%20law. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Grassmann's law,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Grassmann's%20law.

Source: Grassmann's law on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.