M (letter)

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M, m is a letter of the Latin alphabet. It is the thirteenth letter of most variants, being placed after L and before N, as is the case for instance in the English alphabet. Its English name is pronounced [ˈem], em, as in em dash (—).

M is also the Roman numeral representing the number 1000.

Use in English[edit]

m is a hum, pronounced with the lips and voice, typical of infants: mmmm! Màmà! múmmy, mòther, míx, mâke, mòuse rat, moûsse dessert = moôse elk.

• The accents show stress and pronunciation (see English spellings): A: sát, mâde, pàrk, cāst (cást/càst), åll, ãir; E: ére, êar, vèin, fërn; I: sít, mîne, skì, bïrd; O: sóng, môde, lòve, wörd, ŏr; OO: moôn, foòt; U: sún, mûse, fùll, pürr; W: neŵ, ẁant; Y: gým, mŷ, keỳ, mÿrrh.

It is only doubled in the middle of words, to keep the preceding vowel short: súmmer, slímmer, slímmed, slímming (cf. slím), dilémma, dúmmy, múmmy, lémming, accómmodate.

It begins consonant clusters: émber, ámbling, ámbry, amnêsty, émpty, Húmphrey, ámple, impréss.

And it likes to add a silent b at the end of some words: thúmb, lámb, cômb, númb, dúmb, tomb (*toôm). But not usually: slím, trím, whám, pómpom, támtám, thém, drêam, wårm, hím, húm, próblem, Ádam, hêlium, têdium, thêorem, sêrum.

The prefixes in- and con- become im- and com- before p: impâtient, impàrtial, impráctical, complête, compônent, cómposíte, compôse.

Silent m occurs in mnemónic *nemónic, cf. silent n in åutumn.

The double m following the double c in accommodátion (cf. commódity) is notorious.

mp is pronounced as n in comptrôller (= contrôller).

In Sàmhaín, mh has a w sound or is silent: *Sà(w)in.

Scientific uses[edit]

• M prefix: mega, 1 000 000 in normal usage, 1 048 576 in computing
• m: mass
• m- prefix: old chemical notation, meta