pneumonia
You said Old English. It's Greek.
How that family writes these sounds
| a bare /n/, /t/, /s/, /z/ at the start | put the silent letter back on the front: pn-, pt-, ps-, mn-, x-pneumonia, pterodactyl, psalm, mnemonic, xylophone |
What gives it away on the page
| ps-, pn-, pt-, mn-, x- | Initial clusters English can't actually pronounce, so it silences the first letter.psalm, pneumonia, pterodactyl, mnemonic, xylophone |
Placing it without the spelling
| science, medicine, technical coinage | Greekphotograph, chemistry, system, pneumonia |
| a medical or technical word starting with a bare /n/, /t/, /s/, or /z/ | Greek — the letter you can't hear comes firstpneumonia, pterodactyl, psalm, xylophone |
Another word → · the full story of pneumonia · Greek in the guide