Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

cheshirization

/ˌt͡ʃɛʃəɹaɪˈzeɪʃən/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 0.00 in modern English

Syllables
che-shir-i-zat-ion
IPA
/ˌt͡ʃɛʃəɹaɪˈzeɪʃən/
31
Scrabble Score
14
Letters
5
Syllables
11
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

Synonym of transphonologization (“a type of sound change whereby a phonemic contrast that used to involve a certain feature evolves in such a way that the contrast is preserved, yet becomes associated with a different feature”).

American usage; Uncountable

noun

Alternative letter-case form of cheshirization.

Uncountable

Example Sentences

  • "For example, Mandarin uses the suffix ɚ < ér 兒 'son' while Cantonese employs tone sandhi, changing the citation tone to high rising tone, the cheshirization of an earlier segmental morpheme meaning 'son'."

Etymology

From Cheshire (cat) (“fictional cat which disappeared leaving only its smile, from Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (1865) by the English author Lewis Carroll (1832–1898)”) + -ization (suffix forming nouns denoting the act, process, or result of doing or making something), coined by the American linguist James Matisoff (born 1937) in a 1991 book chapter entitled “Areal and Universal Dimensions of Grammatization in Lahu”.

Word Breakdown

Regional Pronunciation

  • American English: /ˌt͡ʃɛʃəɹaɪˈzeɪʃən/
  • British English: /ˌt͡ʃɛʃəɹaɪˈzeɪʃən/

Usage

Inflected Forms

cheshirisation (alternative)

Synonyms

rephonologization transphonologization

Rhymes With

re-formation ford nation chicken-and-egg situation romantic orientation norfolk rotation ball-park estimation horizontal proliferation to a first approximation session fixation double articulation re-capitulation aspirate mutation

Questions

How do you pronounce cheshirization?
The recorded pronunciation is /ˌt͡ʃɛʃəɹaɪˈzeɪʃən/.
What does cheshirization mean?
Synonym of transphonologization (“a type of sound change whereby a phonemic contrast that used to involve a certain feature evolves in such a way that the contrast is preserved, yet becomes associated with a different feature”).
Where does cheshirization come from?
From Cheshire (cat) (“fictional cat which disappeared leaving only its smile, from Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (1865) by the English author Lewis Carroll (1832–1898)”) + -ization (suffix forming nouns denoting the act, process, or result of doing or making something), coined by the American linguist James Matisoff (born 1937) in a 1991 book chapter entitled “Areal and Universal Dimensions of Grammatization in Lahu”.

How to pronounce cheshirization

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “cheshirization”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˌt͡ʃɛʃəɹaɪˈzeɪʃən/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
  3. Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “cheshirization”.
  4. Repeat and practice — Say “cheshirization” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.