Epenthesis (Noun)

Meaning

The insertion of a vowel or consonant into a word to make its pronunciation easier; "the insertion of a vowel in the plural of the word `bush' is epenthesis".

Classification

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents.

Examples

• The classic example of epenthesis is the pronunciation of "going to" as "gonna" in informal speech.
• The insertion of a vowel in the plural of the word "bush" is epenthesis, making it easier to pronounce.
• The epenthesis of a vowel in the word "athlete" to make it "ath-uh-lete" is a common feature of some regional accents.
• In phonetics, epenthesis is a process that occurs when a consonant or vowel is inserted into a word to make its pronunciation more fluid.
• The pronunciation of "hamstring" as "ham-uh-string" is an example of epenthesis used to avoid consonant clusters.