Page:Gesenius' Hebrew Grammar (1910 Kautzsch-Cowley edition).djvu/79

 to show that it has a stronger sound. On the other hand a horizontal stroke over a consonant is a sign that it has not the stronger sound. According to the different purposes for which it is used the point is either , a sign of strengthening ; or , a sign of the harder pronunciation of certain consonants ; or , a sign to bring out the full consonantal value of letters which otherwise serve as vowel letters, especially in the case of at the end of the word.  The, which excludes the insertion of any of these points, has almost entirely gone out of use in our printed texts.

Cf. Graetz, ‘Die mannigfache Anwendung u. Bedeut. des Dagesch,’ in, 1887, pp. 425 ff. and 473 ff.

1., a point standing in the middle of a consonant, denotes, according to , the strengthening of a consonant, e.g. ; or  the harder pronunciation of the letters.  For a variety of the latter, now rarely used in our printed texts, see.

The root in Syriac means  (with sharp iron); hence the name  is commonly explained, solely with reference to its form, by puncture, point. But the names of all similar signs are derived rather from their grammatical significance. Accordingly may in the Masora have the sense: , i.e. to  a letter, as well as to harden it, i.e. to pronounce it as hard and without aspiration. would then be a sign of sharpening and hardening (like, as ), for which purposes a prick of the pen, or puncture, was selected. The opposite of is, , and.

2. In grammar, the sign of strengthening, is the more important. It may be compared to the sicilicus of the Latins (Lucul̂us for Lucullus) or to the stroke over m̄ and n̄. In the unpointed text it is omitted, like the vowels and other reading signs.

For the different kinds of, see.