aqueduct
English
Etymology
Adapted from the Latin aquaeductus (“conveyance of water”), from aqua (“water”) + dūcō (“I lead”, “I bring”); compare the French aqueduc.
Pronunciation
Usage notes
The newer IPA(key): /ˈɑk-/ pronunciation (prescriptive based on the Latin etymology) has been objected to by some commentators.[1]
Noun
aqueduct (plural aqueducts)
- An artificial channel that is constructed to convey water from one location to another.
- A structure carrying water over a river or depression, especially in regards to ancient aqueducts.
- (anatomy) A structure conveying fluid, such as the cerebral aqueduct or vestibular aqueduct.
Derived terms
Translations
an artificial channel conveying water
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a structure carrying water
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References
- Charles Harrington Elster (2005), “aqueduct AK-wi̱-duhkt”, in The Big Book of Beastly Mispronunciations: The Complete Opinionated Guide for the Careful Speaker, second edition, New York, N.Y.: Houghton Mifflin Company, →ISBN, page 36:
- I wish I could state, as I did in the first edition of this book, that AK-wi̱-duhkt (AK- as in sack) is the only recognized pronunciation. Unfortunately, the editors of Encarta (2001) and NOA (2001) have been seduced by the popular, broad-a variant AH-kwuh-duhkt (AH- as in father), and they apparently were so taken with its pseudo-Latin charm that they didn’t merely list it; they listed it first. However, the latest editions of the other major current American dictionaries — WNW 4 (1999), American Heritage 4 (2000), RHWC (2001), and M-W 11 (2003) — continue to countenance only AK-kwi̱-duhkt, which has always been and still is the only cultivated pronunciation. / (In case you’re wondering, aqueduct begins with aque- instead of aqua- because it comes from the Latin aquae, the genitive of aqua, water.)
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