5. Coma, beside com, con, co ＜ quōmŏ(do), apparently owes its -a to the analogy of the adverbs bona and mala and other adverbs of manner. For a different explanation, see J. Vising in the Tobler Festschrift (Abhandlungen Herrn Prof. Dr. Tobler… dargebracht, 1895), p. 113.
6. E seems to have been inserted in the second person singular of some verbs, to distinguish it from the third person: co(g)nōscis ＞ conọisses, co(g)nōscit ＞ conọis.
52. When the fall of the vowel would have resulted in an undesirable consonant group at the end of a word, the vowel was retained as an indistinct e: dŭbĭto ＞ dọpte, lŭcrum ＞ lọgre.
The principal groups that call for a supporting vowel are: (1) a consonant and a liquid; (2) a labial and a dental; (3) in proparoxytones, a consonant and a c´ or c originally separated by the vowel of the penult; (4) in proparoxytones, a consonant and an m or n originally separated by the vowel of the penult. Ex.: ĭnter ＞ ẹntre; aptum ＞ apte; ✱dōdĕcim ＞ dọtze, jūdĭco ＞ iütge; ✱Jacŏmus ＞ Iacmes, asĭnum ＞ asne.
If the word was a paroxytone, and the first consonant was a palatal and the second an r, the supporting vowel stood between the two: major ＞ maier, mĕlior ＞ męlher, mŭlier ＞ mọlher, pĕjor ＞ pęier, sĕnior ＞ sęnher. Otherwise the supporting vowel followed the consonant group.
The four classes of groups (aside from the palatal + r just mentioned) will now be examined in detail:—
(1) Examples: alter ＞ autre, Carŏlus ＞ Carles, dŭplus ＞ dọbles, ✱ĕssĕre ＞ ęstre, fabrum ＞ fabre, ✱mĕr(ŭ)lum ＞ męrle, nŏster ＞ nǫstre, pauper ＞ paubre, pŏp(ŭ)lum ＞ pǫble, pōnĕre ＞ pọnre, recĭpĕre ＞ recẹbre, rŭmpĕre ＞ rọmpre, tŏllĕre ＞ tǫlre, vŏlvĕre ＞ vǫlvre; mascŭlum ＞ mascle, etc.; flēb(ĭ)lem ＞ frẹble, etc. Under this head is included r-r (cŭrrere ＞ cọrre, quærĕre ＞ quęrre), but not ll and rr (bĕllum ＞ bęl, fĕrrum ＞ fęr). In Provençal the first element was often changed, later than the 8th century, into a vowel, original b and v becoming u, and d, t, c, g, and y being turned to i: bĭbĕre ＞ bẹure, scrībĕre ＞ escriure, ✱mŏvĕre ＞ mǫure, plŏvĕre ＞ plǫure, vīvĕre ＞ viure; latro ＞ laire, matrem ＞ maire, radĕre ＞ raire, ✱rīdĕre ＞ rire, vĭtrum ＞ vẹire; desīdĕro ＞ desire, etc.; amātor ＞ amaire, servītor ＞ servire, etc.; dīcĕre ＞ dire, dūcĕre ＞ düire, facĕre ＞ faire, gracĭlem ＞ graile, ✱tacĕre ＞ taire; frīgĕre ＞ frire, weigăro gaire, lĕgĕre ＞ lęire; bajŭlum ＞ baile. Apparent exceptions to the rule are intervocalic cl, gl, which were probably reduced to single consonants before the 8th century: ŏc(ŭ)lum ＞ ǫlh, vĭg(ĭ)lo ＞ vẹlh.
1. The rare forms frair, mair, pair, Peir (still used in Gascony), beside regular fraire, maire, paire, Peire, are probably due to proclitic use; so sor beside sorre ＜ sŏror, and possibly faur beside faure ＜ faber. The learned albir = albire ＜ arbĭtrium may be due to the analogy of other double forms. Dimerc for dimercre (§ [17], 2) perhaps follows dimenc.
2. Rr requires a vowel in a few dialects: corre = cor ＜ cŭrrit, ferre = fer ＜ fĕrrum, torre = tor ＜ tŭrrem.