"lenite" meaning in English

See lenite in All languages combined, or Wiktionary

Verb

IPA: /ˈliːnaɪt/, /ləˈnaɪt/ Forms: lenites [present, singular, third-person], leniting [participle, present], lenited [participle, past], lenited [past]
Etymology: Back-formation from lenition. Etymology templates: {{back-formation|en|lenition}} Back-formation from lenition Head templates: {{en-verb}} lenite (third-person singular simple present lenites, present participle leniting, simple past and past participle lenited)
  1. (phonetics, phonology, transitive) To cause (a consonant) to undergo lenition. Tags: transitive Translations (cause a consonant to undergo lenition): lenieren (German), séimhigh (Irish), sèimhich (Scottish Gaelic), lenizar (english: p. us.) (Spanish), lenificar (Spanish)
    Sense id: en-lenite-en-verb-apxF~s8- Categories (other): Phonetics, Phonology, English back-formations, English entries with incorrect language header, Entries with translation boxes, Terms with German translations, Terms with Irish translations, Terms with Scottish Gaelic translations, Terms with Spanish translations Disambiguation of English back-formations: 56 44 Disambiguation of English entries with incorrect language header: 87 13 Disambiguation of Entries with translation boxes: 80 20 Disambiguation of Terms with German translations: 84 16 Disambiguation of Terms with Irish translations: 83 17 Disambiguation of Terms with Scottish Gaelic translations: 83 17 Disambiguation of Terms with Spanish translations: 82 18 Topics: human-sciences, linguistics, phonetics, phonology, sciences Disambiguation of 'cause a consonant to undergo lenition': 70 30
  2. (phonetics, phonology, intransitive) To undergo lenition. Tags: intransitive
    Sense id: en-lenite-en-verb-VdGD8Gk9 Categories (other): Phonetics, Phonology Topics: human-sciences, linguistics, phonetics, phonology, sciences
The following are not (yet) sense-disambiguated
Derived forms: unlenited

Inflected forms

{
  "derived": [
    {
      "_dis1": "0 0",
      "word": "unlenited"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "lenition"
      },
      "expansion": "Back-formation from lenition",
      "name": "back-formation"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_text": "Back-formation from lenition.",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "lenites",
      "tags": [
        "present",
        "singular",
        "third-person"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "leniting",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "present"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "lenited",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "past"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "lenited",
      "tags": [
        "past"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "lenite (third-person singular simple present lenites, present participle leniting, simple past and past participle lenited)",
      "name": "en-verb"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "verb",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "langcode": "en",
          "name": "Phonetics",
          "orig": "en:Phonetics",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "langcode": "en",
          "name": "Phonology",
          "orig": "en:Phonology",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "56 44",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English back-formations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "87 13",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "80 20",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Entries with translation boxes",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "84 16",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with German translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "83 17",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Irish translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "83 17",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Scottish Gaelic translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "82 18",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Spanish translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "bold_text_offsets": [
            [
              17,
              24
            ]
          ],
          "text": "This environment lenites \"m\" to \"mh\".",
          "type": "example"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To cause (a consonant) to undergo lenition."
      ],
      "id": "en-lenite-en-verb-apxF~s8-",
      "links": [
        [
          "phonetics",
          "phonetics"
        ],
        [
          "phonology",
          "phonology"
        ],
        [
          "consonant",
          "consonant"
        ],
        [
          "lenition",
          "lenition"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(phonetics, phonology, transitive) To cause (a consonant) to undergo lenition."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "transitive"
      ],
      "topics": [
        "human-sciences",
        "linguistics",
        "phonetics",
        "phonology",
        "sciences"
      ],
      "translations": [
        {
          "_dis1": "70 30",
          "code": "de",
          "lang": "German",
          "lang_code": "de",
          "sense": "cause a consonant to undergo lenition",
          "word": "lenieren"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "70 30",
          "code": "ga",
          "lang": "Irish",
          "lang_code": "ga",
          "sense": "cause a consonant to undergo lenition",
          "word": "séimhigh"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "70 30",
          "code": "gd",
          "lang": "Scottish Gaelic",
          "lang_code": "gd",
          "sense": "cause a consonant to undergo lenition",
          "word": "sèimhich"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "70 30",
          "code": "es",
          "english": "p. us.",
          "lang": "Spanish",
          "lang_code": "es",
          "sense": "cause a consonant to undergo lenition",
          "translation": "p. us.",
          "word": "lenizar"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "70 30",
          "code": "es",
          "lang": "Spanish",
          "lang_code": "es",
          "sense": "cause a consonant to undergo lenition",
          "word": "lenificar"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "langcode": "en",
          "name": "Phonetics",
          "orig": "en:Phonetics",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "langcode": "en",
          "name": "Phonology",
          "orig": "en:Phonology",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "bold_text_offsets": [
            [
              4,
              11
            ]
          ],
          "text": "\"M\" lenites to \"mh\".",
          "type": "example"
        },
        {
          "bold_text_offsets": [
            [
              143,
              150
            ]
          ],
          "ref": "2025, Cid Swanenvleugel, The Pre-Roman Elements of the Sardinian Lexicon, page 265:",
          "text": "The initial g- in several of the forms is due to reanalysis from syntactic constructions in which the initial k- preceded by a vowel regularly lenites.",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To undergo lenition."
      ],
      "id": "en-lenite-en-verb-VdGD8Gk9",
      "links": [
        [
          "phonetics",
          "phonetics"
        ],
        [
          "phonology",
          "phonology"
        ],
        [
          "lenition",
          "lenition"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(phonetics, phonology, intransitive) To undergo lenition."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "intransitive"
      ],
      "topics": [
        "human-sciences",
        "linguistics",
        "phonetics",
        "phonology",
        "sciences"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "ipa": "/ˈliːnaɪt/"
    },
    {
      "ipa": "/ləˈnaɪt/"
    }
  ],
  "word": "lenite"
}
{
  "categories": [
    "English back-formations",
    "English entries with incorrect language header",
    "English lemmas",
    "English verbs",
    "Entries with translation boxes",
    "Pages with 3 entries",
    "Pages with entries",
    "Terms with German translations",
    "Terms with Irish translations",
    "Terms with Scottish Gaelic translations",
    "Terms with Spanish translations"
  ],
  "derived": [
    {
      "word": "unlenited"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "lenition"
      },
      "expansion": "Back-formation from lenition",
      "name": "back-formation"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_text": "Back-formation from lenition.",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "lenites",
      "tags": [
        "present",
        "singular",
        "third-person"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "leniting",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "present"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "lenited",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "past"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "lenited",
      "tags": [
        "past"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "lenite (third-person singular simple present lenites, present participle leniting, simple past and past participle lenited)",
      "name": "en-verb"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "verb",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "English terms with usage examples",
        "English transitive verbs",
        "en:Phonetics",
        "en:Phonology"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "bold_text_offsets": [
            [
              17,
              24
            ]
          ],
          "text": "This environment lenites \"m\" to \"mh\".",
          "type": "example"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To cause (a consonant) to undergo lenition."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "phonetics",
          "phonetics"
        ],
        [
          "phonology",
          "phonology"
        ],
        [
          "consonant",
          "consonant"
        ],
        [
          "lenition",
          "lenition"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(phonetics, phonology, transitive) To cause (a consonant) to undergo lenition."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "transitive"
      ],
      "topics": [
        "human-sciences",
        "linguistics",
        "phonetics",
        "phonology",
        "sciences"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        "English intransitive verbs",
        "English terms with quotations",
        "English terms with usage examples",
        "en:Phonetics",
        "en:Phonology"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "bold_text_offsets": [
            [
              4,
              11
            ]
          ],
          "text": "\"M\" lenites to \"mh\".",
          "type": "example"
        },
        {
          "bold_text_offsets": [
            [
              143,
              150
            ]
          ],
          "ref": "2025, Cid Swanenvleugel, The Pre-Roman Elements of the Sardinian Lexicon, page 265:",
          "text": "The initial g- in several of the forms is due to reanalysis from syntactic constructions in which the initial k- preceded by a vowel regularly lenites.",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To undergo lenition."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "phonetics",
          "phonetics"
        ],
        [
          "phonology",
          "phonology"
        ],
        [
          "lenition",
          "lenition"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(phonetics, phonology, intransitive) To undergo lenition."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "intransitive"
      ],
      "topics": [
        "human-sciences",
        "linguistics",
        "phonetics",
        "phonology",
        "sciences"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "ipa": "/ˈliːnaɪt/"
    },
    {
      "ipa": "/ləˈnaɪt/"
    }
  ],
  "translations": [
    {
      "code": "de",
      "lang": "German",
      "lang_code": "de",
      "sense": "cause a consonant to undergo lenition",
      "word": "lenieren"
    },
    {
      "code": "ga",
      "lang": "Irish",
      "lang_code": "ga",
      "sense": "cause a consonant to undergo lenition",
      "word": "séimhigh"
    },
    {
      "code": "gd",
      "lang": "Scottish Gaelic",
      "lang_code": "gd",
      "sense": "cause a consonant to undergo lenition",
      "word": "sèimhich"
    },
    {
      "code": "es",
      "english": "p. us.",
      "lang": "Spanish",
      "lang_code": "es",
      "sense": "cause a consonant to undergo lenition",
      "translation": "p. us.",
      "word": "lenizar"
    },
    {
      "code": "es",
      "lang": "Spanish",
      "lang_code": "es",
      "sense": "cause a consonant to undergo lenition",
      "word": "lenificar"
    }
  ],
  "word": "lenite"
}

Download raw JSONL data for lenite meaning in English (3.3kB)


This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2026-02-19 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2026-02-01 using wiktextract (f492ef9 and 59dc20b). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

If you use this data in academic research, please cite Tatu Ylonen: Wiktextract: Wiktionary as Machine-Readable Structured Data, Proceedings of the 13th Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC), pp. 1317-1325, Marseille, 20-25 June 2022. Linking to the relevant page(s) under https://kaikki.org would also be greatly appreciated.