umlaut
n
(a) [U] (in Germanic languages) vowel change in related forms of a word, shown by two dots over the vowel in one of them, eg der Mann/die Manner (= the man/the men) in German (日耳曼語(yǔ)系中的)元音變化(在元音上加兩點(diǎn)作為標(biāo)志, 如德語(yǔ)中的 der Mann/die Manner).
(b) [C] sign (consistingof two dots) that shows this 變音符(標(biāo)示上述元音變化的兩點(diǎn)). Cf 參看 diaeresis.