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par·ox·y·tone

(pă-rŏksĭ-tōn′)

adj.

Having an acute accent on the next to last syllable. Used of some words in Greek and certain Romance languages, such as French and Portuguese.

A paroxytone word.

[Greek paroxutonos : para-, beside; see PARA-¹ + oxutonos, oxytone; see OXYTONE.]

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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