LONG S

Concise Oxford Companion to the English Language | 1998 | 486 words | Copyright

LONG S. Formerly, a variant of the lower-case LETTER s (roman form-ſ, italic ʃ) in initial and medial positions in words, such as ʃin for sin, ʃleep for sleep, ʃhall for shall, himʃelf for himself, graʃs for grass, thouʃand for thousand, conʃcience for conscience poʃʃeʃs for possess. After 1800, the greater convenience of s for all positions prevailed, and ʃ fell into disuse in English. See ALPHABET, ESH.

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TOM McARTHUR. "LONG S." Concise Oxford Companion to the English Language. 1998. Encyclopedia.com. 11 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

TOM McARTHUR. "LONG S." Concise Oxford Companion to the English Language. 1998. Encyclopedia.com. (February 11, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O29-LONGS.html

TOM McARTHUR. "LONG S." Concise Oxford Companion to the English Language. 1998. Retrieved February 11, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O29-LONGS.html

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