re: #208 Cato the Elder

There is simply no way under the rules of English pronunciation that “noo-kyew-luhr” could ever be correct. Or do you think “noo-kyew-luss” is also a valid option for “nucleus”?

Lewis and Short record that the earliest spelling of the Latin nucleus, “kernel” was nuculeus, a diminutive of nux, “nut.” The related nucula, small nut, was also attested as a female name.

A quick search of the OED finds dozens of words ending in -cular, in particular, the adjectival forms of nouns ending in -cle or -cule, deriving from the Latin diminutive suffix -culus. There are NO words (aside from compounds of the adjective clear) ending in -clear except nuclear and compounds thereof.

comment? Is this guy full of it?