ˈgrimz- noun
Usage: usually capitalized G & often capitalized L
Etymology: after Jacob Grimm died 1863 German philologist
1.
a. : a statement in historical linguistics: Proto-Indo-European voiceless stops became Proto-Germanic voiceless fricatives (as in Greek pyr, treis, kardia compared with English fire, three, heart ), Proto-Indo-European voiced stops became Proto-Germanic voiceless stops (as in Old Slavic jablŭko, Greek dyo, genos compared with English apple, two, kin ), and Proto-Indo-European voiced aspirated stops became Proto-Germanic voiced fricatives (as in Sanskrit nābhi, madhya “mid”, Latin helvus compared with English navel, Old Norse mithr “mid”, English yellow ), and then Proto-Germanic voiceless stops became High German affricates or voiceless fricatives (as in English pound, open, ten, eat, corn, make compared with German pfund, offen, zehn, essen, Upper German kchorn, German machen ) and Proto-Germanic voiced stops (coming from Proto-Germanic voiced fricatives) became High German voiceless stops (as in English rib, middle, Dutch egge “edge” compared with German rippe, mittel “means”, ecke “corner”)
b. : a statement in historical linguistics: Proto-Indo-European voiceless stops became Proto-Germanic voiceless fricatives (as in Greek pyr, treis, kardia compared with English fire, three, heart ), Proto-Indo-European voiced stops became Proto-Germanic voiceless stops (as in Old Slavic jablŭko, Greek dyo, genos compared with English apple, two, kin ), and Proto-Indo-European voiced aspirated stops became Proto-Germanic voiced fricatives (as in Sanskrit nābhi, madhya “mid”, Latin helvus compared with English navel, Old Norse mithr “mid”, English yellow )
2.
a. : consonant shift 3
b. : consonant shift 1