Submitted 1 day ago by LadyButterfly@piefed.blahaj.zone to memes@sopuli.xyz
https://piefed.cdn.blahaj.zone/posts/Hk/fJ/HkfJxM7vw4Fru9i.jpg
Amusement
It was the silent p in pterodactyl that said everything, not her silence.
You’re stuck in your head again, over-analyzing sentence structure, aren’t you she expressed with a mere glance.
I’m not really even in this conversation. She added with a blink. No doubt about it.
It’s not silent if I pronounce it, and I always have. Thank you.
As you should. Unless you pronounce the word helicopter as “helico’ter” too, as they share the same root word; pteron.
The reason why the p in “pterodactyl” is silent is because the consonant cluster /pt/ isn’t allowed as the initial part of a syllable
When words are borrowed into English but have consonant clusters like this, English simplifies the cluster (in this case, /pt/ becomes /t/)
However, if the consonant cluster is preceded by a vowel, it splits up and the first consonant becomes the coda (final part) of the preceding syllable
So while it might have been he-li-co-pter in Greek, it became he-li-cop-ter in English
This also explains the silent g in “phlegm” and why it’s pronounced in “phlegmatic”
But pterosaurs weren’t dinosaurs 🤔
Every know there is Pee in a pterodactyl. Every body pees
Tuuktuuk@piefed.ee 1 day ago
Well, at least that line went without a dinosaur reference.
It’s a good.beginning!