Hyphenation ofsoixante-douze

French Word Analysis: soixante-douze

1. Examination & Pronunciation:

The word "soixante-douze" means "sixty-two" in French. It's a compound numeral, formed from "soixante" (sixty) and "douze" (twelve). The pronunciation involves nasal vowels and liaison possibilities.

2. Syllable Division:

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

3. Morphemic Analysis:

• soixante:
  • Origin: Vulgar Latin sexaginta (from Latin sex "six" + aginta "ten").
  • Function: Root, denoting sixty.
• douze:
  • Origin: Vulgar Latin duodecim (from Latin duo "two" + decem "ten").
  • Function: Root, denoting twelve.
• -te: This is a suffix that is part of the root "soixante" and "douze".

4. Stress Identification:

In French, stress generally falls on the last syllable of a word or phrase. In this case, the stress is on "-ze" in "douze".

5. Phonetic Transcription:

/swa.sɑ̃t.duz/

6. Edge Case Review:

The liaison between "soixante" and "douze" is optional but common in fluent speech. This liaison doesn't affect the syllabification, but it does affect the phonetic realization.

7. Grammatical Role:

"Soixante-douze" functions as a cardinal numeral (adjective). Syllabification remains consistent regardless of its grammatical role.

8. Definition & Semantics:

• Definition: Sixty-two.
• Grammatical Category: Cardinal numeral (adjective).
• Synonyms: None directly applicable.
• Antonyms: None directly applicable.
• Examples:
  • "J'ai soixante-douze ans." (I am sixty-two years old.)
  • "Il y a soixante-douze élèves dans la classe." (There are sixty-two students in the class.)

9. Phonological Comparison:

• trente-deux (thirty-two): tren-te-deu /tʁɑ̃t.də/ - Similar structure (numeral + douze). Syllabification follows the same pattern.
• quarante-deux (forty-two): ka-ʁɑ̃t-deu /ka.ʁɑ̃t.də/ - Similar structure. Syllabification follows the same pattern.
• cinquante-deux (fifty-two): san-kant-deu /sɑ̃.kɑ̃t.də/ - Similar structure. Syllabification follows the same pattern.

The consistent use of "-te" and "-ze" as separate syllables in these numerals demonstrates the rule of avoiding consonant cluster breaks when pronounceable.

10. Syllable Analysis & Rules:

Division Rules Applied:

• Vowel-Initial Syllable Rule: Syllables typically begin with a vowel sound.
• Consonant-Initial Syllable Rule: Syllables can begin with a consonant sound, especially after a vowel.
• Nasal Vowel Rule: Nasal vowels form their own syllables.
• Avoid Consonant Cluster Breaks: Consonant clusters are generally kept together unless they are easily separable in pronunciation.

Special Considerations:

• The compound nature of the word requires careful consideration of the boundaries between the constituent parts.
• Liaison, while phonetically relevant, does not alter the underlying syllabification.