Hyphenation ofentrebâillaient

Analysis of "entrebâillaient"

1. Examination & Pronunciation:

The word "entrebâillaient" is the imperfect indicative third-person plural form of the verb "entrebâiller" (to slightly open, to creak open). It's pronounced with a relatively complex sequence of sounds, including nasal vowels and liaison possibilities.

2. Syllable Division:

Following French syllabification rules, which prioritize vowel sounds and avoid breaking consonant clusters unless they are complex and involve a sonorant consonant, the division is as follows (using only the original letters):

3. Morphemic Analysis:

• Prefix: en- (Old French, from Latin in-) - aspectual prefix, indicating initiation or beginning of an action.
• Root: bâil- (Old French, from Frankish bailjan) - related to opening, gap, or yawn.
• Suffix: -la- (Old French, from Latin bilare) - infix, part of the verb stem.
• Suffix: -ient (Latin -ient) - imperfect indicative third-person plural ending.

4. Stress Identification:

French generally has stress on the final syllable of a phrase or breath group. In this case, the final syllable "-aient" receives the primary stress.

5. Phonetic Transcription:

/ɑ̃.tʁə.ba.jɛ̃.t/

6. Edge Case Review:

The sequence "tr" is a common consonant cluster in French and is generally not broken in syllabification. The nasal vowels /ɑ̃/ and /ɛ̃/ are also standard and don't pose specific syllabification challenges.

7. Grammatical Role:

The word is exclusively a verb form. Syllabification doesn't change based on grammatical role as it's a conjugated verb.

8. Definition & Semantics:

• Definition: To be slightly open, to creak open, to be ajar.
• Part of Speech: Verb (Imperfect Indicative)
• Translation: were slightly opening, were creaking open
• Synonyms: s'entrouvrir, s'ouvrir à demi
• Antonyms: se fermer, claquer
• Examples:
  • "Les portes entrebâillaient sous l'effet du vent." (The doors were creaking open in the wind.)
  • "Il entrebâillait les yeux, fatigué." (He was slightly opening his eyes, tired.)

9. Phonological Comparison:

• travaillaient: tra-vai-llai-ent. Similar structure with a consonant cluster at the beginning. Stress on the final syllable.
• parlaient: par-lai-ent. Simpler structure, but shares the "-aient" ending and final stress.
• jouaient: jou-ai-ent. Another example of a verb ending in "-aient", demonstrating the consistent final stress.

Syllable Breakdown Details:

• en-: Open syllable, containing a nasal vowel. Rule: Syllables are formed around vowel sounds.
• tre-: Closed syllable, containing a consonant cluster "tr" followed by a vowel. Rule: Consonant clusters are generally kept together unless they are complex.
• bâ-: Open syllable, containing a vowel with a circumflex accent. Rule: Vowels with accents are treated as syllable nuclei.
• il-: Closed syllable, containing a vowel followed by a consonant. Rule: Syllables are formed around vowel sounds.
• laient: Closed syllable, containing a nasal vowel and the verb ending. Rule: Syllables are formed around vowel sounds.