§11. Quantity

The Quantity of the Syllable is important for the position of the accent and in versification.

a. A syllable containing a long vowel or a diphthong is said to be long by nature: as, mā-ter, aes, au-la.

b. A syllable containing a short vowel followed by two consonants (except a mute before l or r) or by a double consonant (x, z) is said to be long by position, but the vowel is pronounced short: as, est, ter-ra, sax-um, Me-zen-tius.

c. A syllable containing a short vowel followed by a mute before l or r is properly short, but may be used as long in verse. Such a syllable is said to be common.

d. A syllable whose vowel is a, e, o, or u, followed by consonant i, is long whether the vowel itself is long or short: as, â-iō, mâ-ior, pê-ius.

In such cases the length of the syllable is indicated in this book by a circumflex on the vowel.

e. In some compounds of iaciō (as, in-iciō) the consonant i of the simple verb was probably pronounced (though not written). Thus the first syllable was long by position: as, in-iciō (for in-iiciō). See § 6. d.

In such cases the length of the syllable is not indicated in this book by a circumflex on the vowel.

f. When a syllable is long by position the quantity of the vowel is not always determinable. The vowel should be pronounced short unless it is known to be long.