assibilate

verb

as·​sib·​i·​late

əˈsibəˌlāt,

aˈ-,

usually -āt + V

-ed/-ing/-s

transitive verb

1

: to introduce a sibilant sound after or less often before

z was an assibilated d in primitive Greek—either \dz\ or \zd\

2

: to convert to or replace by a sibilant sound or a sound of which a sibilant is one constituent (as when the pronunciation \ˈindyən\ for Indian becomes \ˈinjən\; \j\ = \d\ + \zh\)

intransitive verb

: to change by introducing a sibilant sound

(noninitial) Indo-European ti (unless preceded by s) assibilates (through palatalization) to si

—G. U. Bonfante

Word History

Etymology

ad- + sibilate

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