diacritical

/ˌdaɪəˈkrɪtɪkl/ (bre, ipa) · /ˌdaɪəˈkrɪtɪkl/ (ame, ipa) · /ˌdī-ə-ˈkri-ti-kəl/ (ame, mw)

diacritical — adjective

  • diacriticalpositive
  • more diacriticalcomparative
  • most diacriticalsuperlative

1. describes a small sign placed next to, above, or across a letter (for example an

1.形容詞C1
釋義

describes a small sign placed next to, above, or across a letter (for example an accent, a cedilla, or a tilde) that tells the reader to say that letter in a particular way, unlike the same letter when it has no sign.

例句

Mei saw that a diacritical mark on the letter 'e' completely changes the word's sound.

diacritical mark + on + [letter] changes sound

In the name José, the final 'e' has a diacritical accent that shows where the stress falls.

diacritical accent + over + [letter] shows stress

文法句型

diacritical + noun (mark, sign, accent)

用法筆記

Only used attributively — always before a noun such as 'mark', 'accent', or 'sign'. The noun form 'diacritic' is more common in everyday linguistic discussion (e.g. 'the letter has a diacritic').

常見錯誤

❌The letter has a diacritical above it.
✅The letter has a diacritic above it.
💡'diacritical' is an adjective and must modify a noun; the noun is 'diacritic'.