Phonemically

Part of speech: adverb

Definitions

1. Concerning the symbolic representation of individual sound units in language
2. In a manner that deals with the distinct sounds used in spoken language
3. With reference to marking or analyzing speech sounds as single speech units

Etymology: "Phonemically" is simply "phonemic" with the adverbial ending "-ally" attached. The adjective "phonemic" is built from "phoneme," a term that came into English through French from Greek "phōnēma," meaning "a sound" or "utterance," itself derived from "phōnein," to speak or sound. The "-ic" suffix gives the sense "relating to," so "phonemic" describes what relates to phonemes, the smallest units of sound that distinguish one word from another in a language, such as the "p" in "pat" versus the "b" in "bat." The adverb adds "-ally," the common English ending that turns an adjective ending in "-ic" into a description of manner. So "phonemically" describes an action or analysis carried out in terms of those distinct sounds. A transcription written phonemically records only the sounds that change meaning, while a phonetic transcription records every subtle variation in pronunciation.