Myzostomum (mizostomum)

[NL., and have the form of a flattened disk. Siebold, 1843, after Myzostoma of Leuckart, 1827. IMG:content-1181.png:[blocks in formation] The value of the character has been the same through the whole history of its use. It stands for the "dental" nasal, the nasal sound corresponding to d and t, as does m to b and p. and ng to gand k. This sound, namely, implies for its formation the same check or mute-contact as d and t, with sonant vibration of the vocal cords as in d, and further with unclosure of the pa age from the mouth into the nose, and nasal resonance there. Among the nasals, it is by far the most common in English pronunciation (more than twice as common as m, and eight times as common as ng ). While all the nasals are semivocalic or liquid, n is the only one which (like 1, but not more than half as often) is used with vocalic value in syllable-making: namely, in unaccented syllables, where an accompanying vowel, formerly uttered, is now silenced: examples are token, rotten, open, le on, reason, oven; such form, on an average, about one in eight hundred of English syllables. The sign n has no variety of sounds; but before ch, j. in the same syllable (as in inch, hinge ) it takes on a slightly modified-a palatalized-character; and similarly it is gutturalized, or pronounced as ny, before k and g (hard), as in ink, finger; and its digraph ng (see G ) is the usual representative of the guttural or back-palatal nasal, which in none of our alphabets has a letter to itself. N is doubled under the same circumstances as other consonants, and in a few words (as kiln, damn, hymn) is silent. In the phonetic history of our family of languages, n is on the whole a constant sound: that is to say, there is no other sound into which it pa es on a large scale; but its lo , with accompanying vowel-modification, has been a frequent proce . 2. As a medieval numeral, 90, and with a stroke over it (N), 90,000.-3. In chem., the symbol for nitrogen.-4. [l. c. or cap.] In math., an indefinite constant whole number, number, especially the degree of a quantic or an equation, or the cla of a curve.-5. An abbreviation ( a ) of north or northern; (b) [l. c.] of noun (so used in this work); (c) [l. c.] of neuter; (d) [l. c.] of nail (or nails ), a measure. na (nä), adv. An obsolete or dialectal (Scotch) form of no1. Na. In chem., the symbol for sodium (NL. na trium). N. A. An abbreviation ( a ) of North America, or North American; ( b ) of National Academy, or National Academician; (c) in microscopy, of numerical aperture (see objective ).