"Ci??"?

[ElNegrote]

I'm reading and translating some poems by the Dominican poet Mateo Morrison, and I came across the following line:

"Telas que ci?? a su cuerpo"

I have done some searching for this verb "ci?ar" both in printed and online dictionaries (like Diccionarios de Espa?ol's site) but cannot find any definitions. I think I can figure it out contextually, but does anyone know this term?

Muchas gracias!

 

[Norma Rosa]

I'm reading and translating some poems by the Dominican poet Mateo Morrison, and I came across the following line:

"Telas que ci?? a su cuerpo"

I have done some searching for this verb "ci?ar" both in printed and online dictionaries (like Diccionarios de Espa?ol's site) but cannot find any definitions. I think I can figure it out contextually, but does anyone know this term?

Muchas gracias!

The verb is "ce?ir". It means: To adjust
It is an irregular verb. The line you provide uses it in the past tense.

 

[ElNegrote]

The verb is "ce?ir". It means: To adjust
It is an irregular verb. The line you provide uses it in the past tense.

Thanks so much, Norma!

May I ask, why if it's a verb that ends in "-ir" does it not have the "i?" in the preterite? Why isn't it "ci?i??" Or is it just the case with this verb? Are there other "-ir" suffix verbs that do this?

(BTW, I just looked it up and saw how irregular it is. "Yo ci?o-->que ella ci?a-->yo ce??-->la tela me ci??, etc.)

It does appear to have the meaning of "cling" as well, but since "telas" is plural and the verb is singular, I think Morrison may mean that the woman (the movie star Dorothy Dandridge) "adjusts" (or adapts) the fabric to her skin, while the original Spanish conveys the verb's polysemy (adjust + cling to).

 

[Norma Rosa]

Thanks so much, Norma!

May I ask, why if it's a verb that ends in "-ir" does it not have the "i?" in the preterite? Why isn't it "ci?i??" Or is it just the case with this verb? Are there other "-ir" suffix verbs that do this?

(BTW, I just looked it up and saw how irregular it is. "Yo ci?o-->que ella ci?a-->yo ce??-->la tela me ci??, etc.)

It does appear to have the meaning of "cling" as well, but since "telas" is plural and the verb is singular, I think Morrison may mean that the woman (the movie star Dorothy Dandridge) "adjusts" (or adapts) the fabric to her skin, while the original Spanish conveys the verb's polysemy (adjust + cling to).

Yes, "ce?ir" also means to cling. Also, to adhere, tighten.
1. (to cling to, to adhere) Hay que ce?irse a las reglas del foro. One has to adhere to the rules of the forum.

2. (to tighten) "C??ete bien los cordones de los zapatos. Tighten (up?) your shoe laces.

There is a handful of verbs that follow the same pattern:
bru?ir, zambullir(se), escabullir(se), gru?ir, pla?ir, tullir

More to come regarding spelling.
Norma

 

[Norma Rosa]

May I ask, why if it's a verb that ends in "-ir" does it not have the "i?" in the preterite? Why isn't it "ci?i??" Or is it just the case with this verb? Are there other "-ir" suffix verbs that do this?

The loss of the diphthong "i?" or "ie" is due to the previous palatal sound
[? or ll].

re?ir: ri??, ri?eron (and not ri?i? or ri?ieron)

zambullir: zambull?, zambulleron (and not zambulli? or zambullieron)

 

[ElNegrote]

The loss of the diphthong "i?" or "ie" is due to the previous palatal sound
[? or ll].

re?ir: ri??, ri?eron (and not ri?i? or ri?ieron)

zambullir: zambull?, zambulleron (and not zambulli? or zambullieron)

Thanks for pointing this rule out, Norma Rosa.