noun
- words or particles that are pronounced as part of the preceding word and cannot stand alone
Usage: linguistics; grammar
Examples
- In English, contractions like ‘ll in ‘I’ll’ contain enclitics.
- The word ‘n’t’ in ‘can’t’ is one of the most common enclitics.
- Ancient Greek had many enclitics that attached to the end of words.
- Linguists study how enclitics affect word stress patterns.
- Some languages have more enclitics than others.
- The enclitic ‘ve in ‘I’ve’ represents the word ‘have’.