As will be seen from the examples quoted, meta thesis affects especially the liquids r and 1, but we also have such changes as Sanskrit saka (a, 'stupid,' Pali keseta ; Sanskrit guyana, 'bed,' Singhalese yehana. Paragoge (Gk. srapayaay),ad dition) is the addition of one or more inorganic letters to the end of a word. In Greek the so-called `ny movable' (Greek vu i0eNKucrrm6v), which is added especially to words ending in -at, and to verbs with the third person in -c before vowels (as tract Slowat rain-co, 'he gives these to all,' but iiaLV iowKev '
is the omission of a letter or syllable from the interior of a word, as Greek warp6s, 'of a father,' beside rarlpos, Latin prober), 'I offer,' for "prw hibeo. "prwhabeo; Provencal an ma, 'soul,' from Latin anima; Sanskrit loauna, 'onion,' but Sin ghalese bine: Anglo-Saxon ?wide, 'would not,' for *ne wolde (cf. English nilly-willy); English wondrous beside wonderous. Tmesis (Gk. 774 car, division) is the separation of the parts of a word, especially A compound, by another word. This is properly only an apparent, figure. It had its origin in verbs compounded with prepositions, and as prepositions are originally stereotyped case-forms of nouns used adverbially (see PREPO smoN s), the union was at first only a very loose one, as in English or-erbear beside bear orer. As examples may be cited Greek 6r1 KvIcbas i')Xecu, 'darkness came on,' for KvlOas ir0Hco; Latin sub ros placo, '1 implore you,' for septa/co roe: and such a monstrosity as ecre-comminuit bruin, `he dashed out his brains,' for cerebrum comminnit. In German this tmesis is subject to regular laws, as er fiihrte seinen Entschloss (los, `he carried out his resolution,' but ieh .state, doss cr seinen Entschloss ausfiibrte, said that he carried out his resolution.' As the antiquity of the terms implies, the majority of the figures of etymology were known to the classical gram marians, although the full explanation of them has been rendered possible only by the develop ment of comparative linguistics (see PIIILOLOGY, COMPARATIVE), especially of that branch of it which deals with etymology (q.v.).