[k]→[i]Certainty: 5/5Commonality: 4/5

Voiceless velar plosive to Close front unrounded vowel

The shift from [k] to [i] is a form of vocalization that typically occurs in consonant clusters or intervocalic positions. In the transition from Latin to French, the velar stop weakened into a palatal glide [j], which eventually merged with the vowel system as [i].

Phonetic Effects

Vocalization, Palatalization, Diphthongization

Language Examples

Latin to French Romance

FACTUM [kt]→fait [i/ɛ]— The velar stop vocalized into a palatal glide.

PLACERE [k]→plaisir [i]— Intervocalic lenition and vocalization.

French to English Loans Germanic

FACTUM (via fait)→feat— English borrowed the vocalized form from Old French.

Related Transformations

Reverse Alternative: Palatalization to Affricate

More Romance Shifts

[ã] → [õ] — Raising [a] → [ã] — Assimilatory Nasalization [a] → [∅] — Elision [a] → [ʔ] — Glottalization [a] → [ə] — Vowel Reduction

Sources & References

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