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tmesis

Syllabification: (tme·sis)
Pronunciation: /təˈmēsis/
Definition of tmesis

noun (plural tmeses /-sēz/)

  • the separation of parts of a compound word by an intervening word or words, heard mainly in informal speech (e.g., a whole nother story; shove it back any-old-where in the pile).

Origin:

mid 16th century: from Greek tmēsis 'cutting', from temnein 'to cut'

tmesis in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of tmesis in the British & World English dictionary

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