Hyphenation ofmeerderheidsgroepen

Linguistic Analysis of "meerderheidsgroepen" (Dutch)

1. Examination & Pronunciation:

The word "meerderheidsgroepen" (majority groups) is a complex noun in Dutch. Its pronunciation involves several vowel and consonant clusters, typical of Dutch morphology. The 'd' in 'meerder' is often pronounced as a soft 't' sound in casual speech, but for formal analysis, we'll consider the standard pronunciation.

2. Syllable Division:

Following Dutch syllabification rules, which prioritize vowel sounds and avoid splitting diphthongs or consonant clusters where possible, the word breaks down as follows (see "syllable_division" in the JSON output).

3. Morphemic Analysis:

• meerder-: Root. Origin: Germanic, related to 'meer' (more) and 'der' (comparative suffix). Function: Forms the comparative aspect, meaning 'more' or 'majority'.
• -heids: Suffix. Origin: Germanic. Function: Nominalizing suffix, turning an adjective or comparative into a noun.
• -groep-: Root. Origin: Germanic. Function: Noun root meaning 'group'.
• -en: Suffix. Origin: Germanic. Function: Plural marker for nouns.

4. Stress Identification:

Dutch stress is generally on the penultimate (second-to-last) syllable. In this case, the primary stress falls on "-der-".

5. Phonetic Transcription:

/ˈmeːrdərˌɦɛitsˈɣrupə(n)/

6. Edge Case Review:

Dutch allows for some flexibility in pronunciation, particularly with schwa sounds. The final '-en' can be reduced to a schwa /ə(n)/ or even elided in rapid speech. The 'g' sound can vary regionally between a voiced velar fricative /ɣ/ and a voiced velar stop /ɡ/.

7. Grammatical Role:

"Meerderheidsgroepen" functions exclusively as a noun (plural). Syllabification and stress remain consistent regardless of its grammatical context within a sentence.

8. Definition & Semantics:

• Definition: Groups that constitute the majority of a population or set.
• Translation: Majority groups
• Grammatical Category: Noun (plural)
• Synonyms: 'meerderheden', 'grote groepen'
• Antonyms: 'minderheidsgroepen' (minority groups)
• Examples:
  • "De meerderheidsgroepen in het land steunen de nieuwe wet." (The majority groups in the country support the new law.)
  • "Het beleid is gericht op het beschermen van de rechten van alle meerderheidsgroepen en minderheidsgroepen." (The policy aims to protect the rights of all majority and minority groups.)

9. Phonological Comparison:

• 'wereldberoemd' (world-famous): 'we-reld-be-roemd'. Similar syllable structure with consonant clusters. Stress on 'reld'.
• 'arbeidsmarkt' (labor market): 'ar-beids-markt'. Similar in having multiple syllables and consonant clusters. Stress on 'beids'.
• 'onderwijsbeleid' (education policy): 'on-der-wijs-be-leid'. Similar in having compound structure and multiple syllables. Stress on 'wijs'.

The differences in syllable division arise from the specific consonant and vowel sequences in each word, adhering to the Dutch rule of maximizing onsets and avoiding syllable-internal consonant clusters where possible.