aqueduct

Definition from Wiktionary, the free dictionary
Jump to navigation Jump to search

English[edit]

Alternative forms[edit]

Etymology[edit]

Adapted from the Latin aquaeductus (“conveyance of water”), from aqua (“water”) + dūcō (“I lead”, “I bring”); compare the French aqueduc.

Pronunciation[edit]

  • (UK) IPA(key): /ˈæk.wɪˌdʌkt/
  • (US) IPA(key): /ˈæk.wəˌdʌkt/
  • (US, see note) IPA(key): /ˈɑk.wəˌdʌkt/
  • Audio (US)(file)

Usage notes[edit]

The newer IPA(key): /ˈɑk-/ pronunciation (prescriptive based on the Latin etymology) has been objected to by some commentators.[1]

Noun[edit]

aqueduct (plural aqueducts)

English Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia
  1. An artificial channel that is constructed to convey water from one location to another.
  2. A structure carrying water over a river or depression, especially in regards to ancient aqueducts.
  3. (anatomy) A structure conveying fluid, such as the cerebral aqueduct or vestibular aqueduct.

Derived terms[edit]

Translations[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Charles Harrington Elster (2005), “aqueduct AK-wi̱-duhkt”, in The Big Book of Beastly Mispronunciations: The Complete Opinionated Guide for the Careful Speaker, second edition, New York, N.Y.: Houghton Mifflin Company, →ISBN, page 36:
    I wish I could state, as I did in the first edition of this book, that AK-wi̱-duhkt (AK- as in sack) is the only recognized pronunciation. Unfortunately, the editors of Encarta (2001) and NOA (2001) have been seduced by the popular, broad-a variant AH-kwuh-duhkt (AH- as in father), and they apparently were so taken with its pseudo-Latin charm that they didn’t merely list it; they listed it first. However, the latest editions of the other major current American dictionaries — WNW 4 (1999), American Heritage 4 (2000), RHWC (2001), and M-W 11 (2003) — continue to countenance only AK-kwi̱-duhkt, which has always been and still is the only cultivated pronunciation. / (In case you’re wondering, aqueduct begins with aque- instead of aqua- because it comes from the Latin aquae, the genitive of aqua, water.)
Retrieved from "https://en.wiktionary.org/w/index.php?title=aqueduct&oldid=71416702"