Why do we say it -
01-25-20, 05:35 PM
#1
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Why do we say it -
Why is bicycle pronounced "bi-sickle" but motorcycle is pronounced "motor-sikel"?
01-25-20, 05:42 PM
#2
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Why ask why?
01-25-20, 06:12 PM
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Arlo Guthrie says motor-sickle here:
Frank Zappa says by-sikel here:
(This is really pretty funny, IMO)
Frank Zappa says by-sikel here:
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01-25-20, 07:38 PM
#8
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I remember the Steve Allen show with Frank Zappa. He was also on " What's My Line ". I saw Zappa twice, 3 weeks apart, 1973 or '74. First at the Chicago Auditorium and then at NIU Fieldhouse. Great musician and showman. A Lot of props and stage antics.
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01-25-20, 09:05 PM
#9
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Originally Posted by BobbyG
Interesting but I can't buy it, partly because that "unstressed syllable" idea is a crock, and partly because I never hear the referenced schwa sound - it's always a short "i" in bicycle.
Also "sickle: is just as easy to say as "cycle" no matter how many syllables so why isn't it "motorsickle"? I know that some dialects do have motorsickle but why isn't it the normal way? Bicycles obviously predated motorcycles - where did it change?
Last edited by wphamilton; 01-25-20 at 09:10 PM.
01-25-20, 09:15 PM
#10
Non omnino gravis
Syllables, and what syllable the stress falls on.
bi-sick-uhl
tri-sick-uhl
mo-tor-sigh-kuhl
bi-sick-uhl
tri-sick-uhl
mo-tor-sigh-kuhl
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01-25-20, 09:21 PM
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I pronounce it “motorbike.” Problem solved.
01-25-20, 09:28 PM
#12
Non omnino gravis
And then I remembered Wesley from 30 Rock, and his use of the non-word "footcycle," which I would say as foot-sigh-kuhl-- with the stress on the middle syllable.
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01-25-20, 10:43 PM
#13
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Originally Posted by DrIsotope
Syllables, and what syllable the stress falls on.
bi-sick-uhl
tri-sick-uhl
mo-tor-sigh-kuhl
bi-sick-uhl
tri-sick-uhl
mo-tor-sigh-kuhl
01-25-20, 10:47 PM
#14
Non omnino gravis
Well, "encite" isn't a word. Insight and incite are both words. The former is from the Low German, and the latter from French.
The emphasis is on the first syllable in one and the second in the other, because they have utterly different meanings, and come from different roots.
Motorcycle and bicycle share a suffix, from the same origin.
The emphasis is on the first syllable in one and the second in the other, because they have utterly different meanings, and come from different roots.
Motorcycle and bicycle share a suffix, from the same origin.
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01-25-20, 11:27 PM
#15
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Originally Posted by DrIsotope
Syllables, and what syllable the stress falls on.
bi-sick-uhl
tri-sick-uhl
mo-tor-sigh-kuhl
bi-sick-uhl
tri-sick-uhl
mo-tor-sigh-kuhl
It's pretty much because it rolls off the tongue better this way.
01-26-20, 12:08 AM
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a motor biker might be psycho for driving such a small vehicle along with larger motorized vehicles capable of the same speeds.
a cyclists could have poor health, & rather becoming down with a sickness, they choose to ride for better health.
a cyclists could have poor health, & rather becoming down with a sickness, they choose to ride for better health.
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01-26-20, 04:48 AM
#17
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Originally Posted by DrIsotope
Syllables, and what syllable the stress falls on.
bi-sick-uhl
tri-sick-uhl
mo-tor-sigh-kuhl
bi-sick-uhl
tri-sick-uhl
mo-tor-sigh-kuhl
On the other hand, the word "cyclical" is pronounced with a long i sound by the British, and a short i sound by Americans, but it doesn't come up in conversation very often.
01-26-20, 05:17 AM
#18
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I sikel on my bi-sickels.
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01-26-20, 06:07 AM
#19
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Thread Starter
Originally Posted by DrIsotope
Well, "encite" isn't a word. Insight and incite are both words. The former is from the Low German, and the latter from French.
The emphasis is on the first syllable in one and the second in the other, because they have utterly different meanings, and come from different roots.
Motorcycle and bicycle share a suffix, from the same origin.
The emphasis is on the first syllable in one and the second in the other, because they have utterly different meanings, and come from different roots.
Motorcycle and bicycle share a suffix, from the same origin.
)
01-26-20, 06:14 AM
#20
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Originally Posted by livedarklions
That's not really a good explanation because one can stress or not stress a long "i" sound. There's definitely a vowel shift in "bicycle" and "tricycle". My guess is that the repeated long "i" sound just sounds awkward to most people.
On the other hand, the word "cyclical" is pronounced with a long i sound by the British, and a short i sound by Americans, but it doesn't come up in conversation very often.
On the other hand, the word "cyclical" is pronounced with a long i sound by the British, and a short i sound by Americans, but it doesn't come up in conversation very often.
I don't think it has anything to do with the phonetic rules (which don't work anyway), nor with etymology especially since both words share origins. Somewhere it changed from sickle to sigh-kal, and it's a puzzle. Keeping me up at night.
01-26-20, 06:52 AM
#21
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Don’t think I’ve ever thought about it or used either word verbally. I just say bike. If a distinction needs to be made I will say motorbike sport bike mountain bike etc
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01-26-20, 07:27 AM
#24
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Originally Posted by freeranger
So, should people who ride bicycles be called "sicklists?"
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