apophony Definition
the alternation of sounds within a word that indicates grammatical information, such as tense, number, or case.
Using apophony: Examples
Take a moment to familiarize yourself with how "apophony" can be used in various situations through the following examples!
Example
The English verb 'sing' has the apophonic forms 'sing' (present tense) and 'sang' (past tense).
Example
In the word 'foot,' the vowel changes from 'oo' to 'ee' to indicate pluralization.
Example
Apophony is used in many languages to indicate grammatical information.
Phrases with apophony
ablaut
a type of apophony used in Indo-European languages to indicate tense, aspect, or mood
Example
The English verbs 'sing,' 'sang,' and 'sung' exhibit ablaut.
a type of apophony used in some languages to indicate plurality or intensification
Example
In Tagalog, the reduplication of a word can indicate plurality, as in 'bata' (child) and 'batà-batà' (children).
a type of apophony where an unrelated word is used to indicate a grammatical form
Example
The English verb 'go' uses the suppletive form 'went' for the past tense.
Origins of apophony
from Greek 'apo-' meaning 'away from' and '-phone' meaning 'sound'
Summary: apophony in Brief
'Apophony' [əˈpɒfəni] refers to the alternation of sounds within a word to indicate grammatical information such as tense, number, or case. For example, the English verb 'sing' has the apophonic forms 'sing' (present tense) and 'sang' (past tense). 'Apophony' is used in many languages and can take different forms such as ablaut, reduplication, and suppletion.
