A Book About Words

by G. F. Graham

Another phenomenon of a certain class of words is the use of an initial s, to give them an intensive meaning. This may be observed in the following cases:—

knap	snap		deep	steep
lash	slash		nip	snip
mash	smash		rip	strip
plash	splash		din	stun
quash	squash		pike	spike
lack	slack		wipe	sweep
lain	slain		light	slight
lay	slay		pout	spout
melt	smelt		hoot	shout
meet	smite		rub	scrub
reach	stretch		tumble	stumble
well	swell		cut	scud

A large class of English words beginning with s followed by a consonant are derived from French, where they are spelled with an e or es initial; as:—

French.	English.		French.	English.
écarlate	scarlet		espion	spy
échafaud	scaffold		épinard	spinach
échantillon	scantling		épine	spine
écharfe	scarf		esprit	spirit
espace	space		écrivain	scrivener
étrange	strange		échorcher	scorch
escadron	squadron		école	school
esclave	slave		éponge	sponge
étage	stage		époux	spouse
état	state		estomac	stomach
étendard	standard		étroit	strait
espèce	species

According to some French philologists, when the s in any of these French words is pronounced, it is a sign that the word is of later introduction.

It may be observed of the letter h (initial) that it is never mute in Germanic words, and that whenever it is mute in English, the word is of French derivation.

Thus we have:—

French (mute).			German (aspirate).
Honneur	honour		hart	hard
Héritier	heir		Herz	heart
Honnête	honest		Heide	heath
Heure	hour		Hitze	heat
Humeur	humour		Hoffnung	hope, &c.

The h initial was prefixed to many Saxon words where it has now disappeared from the English. This was chiefly before the liquids l, n, and r.