Hyphenation ofsous-alimentant

Analysis of "sous-alimentant"

1. Pronunciation: The word "sous-alimentant" is pronounced approximately as /su.za.li.mɑ̃.tɑ̃/.

2. Syllable Division: The syllable division, adhering to the rule of maximizing onsets and avoiding stranded consonants, is as follows:

3. Morphemic Analysis:

• Prefix: sous- (Latin origin, meaning "under," "below"). Morphological function: intensifier, indicating deficiency.
• Root: aliment- (Latin alimentum, meaning "nourishment," "food"). Morphological function: provides the core meaning related to nutrition.
• Suffix: -ant (Latin origin, present participle suffix). Morphological function: indicates an ongoing action or state.

4. Stress Identification: The primary stress falls on the final syllable: /su.za.li.mɑ̃.tɑ̃/.

5. Phonetic Transcription: /su.za.li.mɑ̃.tɑ̃/

6. Edge Case Review: French syllabification generally avoids consonant clusters at the end of syllables. However, nasal vowels often create apparent clusters. The 'nt' at the end is a common occurrence and doesn't violate any rules.

7. Grammatical Role: "sous-alimentant" functions primarily as an adjective (describing something or someone as undernourished) or as the present participle of the verb "sous-alimenter" (to undernourish). The syllabification remains consistent regardless of its grammatical role.

8. Definition & Semantics:

• Definition: Causing or suffering from insufficient nourishment.
• Translation: Undernourishing, underfeeding, malnourished.
• Grammatical Category: Adjective/Present Participle
• Synonyms: malnutritif, dénutritif
• Antonyms: nourrissant, alimentant
• Examples:
  • "Les enfants souffrent de malnutrition à cause d'une alimentation sous-alimentant." (The children suffer from malnutrition due to an undernourishing diet.)
  • "Une politique sous-alimentant la population." (A policy undernourishing the population.)

9. Phonological Comparison:

• "alimentaire" (aliment-aire): Syllables: a-li-men-taire. Similar structure with the root "aliment-". Stress on the final syllable.
• "sous-marin" (sous-ma-rin): Syllables: sous-ma-rin. Shares the prefix "sous-". Stress on the final syllable.
• "important" (im-por-tant): Syllables: im-por-tant. Similar ending "-ant" and stress on the final syllable.

Syllable Breakdown Details:

• sou-: /su/ - Open syllable. Rule: Initial syllable, vowel followed by consonant. No exceptions.
• -sa-: /za/ - Open syllable. Rule: Vowel between consonants. No exceptions.
• -li-: /li/ - Open syllable. Rule: Vowel between consonants. No exceptions.
• -mɑ̃-: /mɑ̃/ - Closed syllable with nasal vowel. Rule: Nasal vowel followed by consonant. Exception: Nasal vowels can sometimes form syllables on their own.
• -tɑ̃: /tɑ̃/ - Closed syllable with nasal vowel. Rule: Consonant followed by nasal vowel. Stress falls here. No exceptions.

Exceptions/Special Cases:

• The nasal vowels /ɑ̃/ and /ɔ̃/ can sometimes create syllable boundaries that are less clear-cut, but in this case, they are clearly part of the syllables they appear in.
• The hyphenated structure "sous-" is a standard feature of French compound words and doesn't affect the syllabification rules.

Division Rules Applied:

• Maximize Onsets: French prefers to include as many consonants as possible in the onset of a syllable.
• Avoid Stranded Consonants: Consonants are generally not left at the end of a syllable unless they are part of a consonant cluster.
• Vowel-Centric Syllables: Each syllable generally contains a vowel sound.