From: Arnaud Fournet
Message: 61920
Date: 2008-12-06
----- Original Message -----
From: "Rick McCallister" <gabaroo6958@...>
>
> So our generalization is that after polysyllables get smacked down to
> monosyllables, we resort to modifiers to distinguish them, as in US
> Southern English /iNkpIn/ vs. /streytpIn/. And so, it's smackdown to the
> end of time?
>
========
Yes, we can state with a rather high level of certainty that most words tend
to get shorter till they get longer,
and afterward, they will probably for the most part tend to get shorter
again,
and if you want to understand why,
ask a linguist.
Only one,
If you ask another one, you may get a different answer,
and then you get confused.
A.