Re: Phonetic and phonematic

At 1:40 pm +0200 25/6/01, Christophe Grandsire wrote:
>En réponse à Mangiat <mangiat@...>:
>
>> Just a stupid question: [] are used for phonematic and // for phonetic
>> representation, or the other way round?
>>
>
>The other way round: // for the phonemes and [] for the actual phones.
Yep.

>Well, as for my stupid question: shall we say "phonemic" or "phonematic"? I've
>always wondered which one was the correct word.
Both are correct in that both are used. Strictly, following the Greek
models, one would've expected _phonematic_ and this is occasionally found;
but undeniably the English formation _phonemic_ is now far more common.
Indeed, if you wrote _phonematic_ you would probably, alas, be considered a
pendant of the highest order.

Ray.

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A mind which thinks at its own expense
will always interfere with language.
                   [J.G. Hamann 1760]
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