Szemerényi's law

proper noun

A sound change and a synchronic phonological rule that operated during an early stage of the Proto-Indo-European language. The rule deleted coda fricatives *s or laryngeals *h₁, *h₂ or *h₃ (cover symbol *H), with compensatory lengthening occurring in a word-final position.

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Meanings

proper noun
  1. Indo European studiesA sound change and a synchronic phonological rule that operated during an early stage of the Proto-Indo-European language. The rule deleted coda fricatives *s or laryngeals *h₁, *h₂ or *h₃ (cover symbol *H), with compensatory lengthening occurring in a word-final position.

Origin

Named after Hungarian linguist Oswald Szemerényi.

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Cite this entry
APA

Szemerényi's law. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Szemer%C3%A9nyi's%20law

MLA

“Szemerényi's law.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Szemer%C3%A9nyi's%20law. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Szemerényi's law,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Szemer%C3%A9nyi's%20law.

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