Macron

Pronunciation

• RP enPR: măkʹrŏn, IPA: /ˈmækɹɒn/, /ˈmeɪkɹɒn/

Origin

From the Ancient Greek μακρόν, neuter form of μακρός (makros, "long") (English macro-).

Full definition of macron

Noun

1. (orthography) A short, straight, horizontal diacritical mark (¯) placed over any of various letters. It usually is used to indicate that the pronunciation of the vowel is long; in Mandarin pinyin (Chinese), it indicates the first tone, e.g. chūzūchē.
• 1986: Peter V. Jones and Keith C. Sidwell, Reading Latin: Grammar, vocabulary and exercises, Introduction — General notes (note 1), page 2 (22^nd printing (2007); Cambridge University Press; ISBN 9780521286220)All vowels are pronounced short unless marked with a ¯ (macron) over them. So observe different vowel length of ‘i ’ in, e.g., fÄ«lia, etc. It may be helpful, but is not essential, to mark macra in your exercises.

Usage notes

The pronunciation (with a short, rather than a long, a) is the one that is etymologically consistent in terms of vowel quantity; the α in μακρόν is pronounced short, as .

Macra is a rare plural.

Related terms

• macro-