[e]→[ʌ]Certainty: 3/5Commonality: 3/5
Close-mid front unrounded vowel to Open-mid back unrounded vowel
The close-mid front unrounded vowel [e] lowers to the open-mid front unrounded vowel [ɛ], a vowel lowering process attested in two distinct modes: (1) as a synchronic allophone — in French, /e/ is realized as [ɛ] before consonants in word-final position; (2) as a diachronic change — Latin [e] lowered to [ɛ] in open syllables during the development of Old Romance. The two types should not be conflated: the allophonic variant is conditioned by phonological context and remains reversible within the grammar, while the historical change was permanent.
Phonetic Effects
Vowel Lowering
Language Examples
[e]→[ɛ]— Lowering of Latin [e] in certain phonological contexts during the development to Old Romance languages.
[e]→[ɛ]— Dialectal lowering of close-mid front vowels in open syllables and before consonant clusters.
[e]→[ɛ]— Allophonic lowering of /e/ before consonants in word-final position and in rapid speech.
Related Transformations
More Romance Shifts
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