I agree with Katherine. Breaking down the word into "depend" or "dependent" doesn't seem to help because each is hyphenated differently (as "de-pend" but "in-de-pend-ent").
As a writer/editor, I can say only that this is a tossup! Our language is still evolving.
Thi-s i-s fuckin-g r-idi-culou-us.
ReplyDeleteI'm reluctant to disagree with Webster, but since depend is hyphenated as de-pend, I'll bet 50 cents on independ-ent.
ReplyDeleteOTOH, we do have pen-dant, so maybe MW is right.
I agree with Katherine. Breaking down the word into "depend" or "dependent" doesn't seem to help because each is hyphenated differently (as "de-pend" but "in-de-pend-ent").
ReplyDeleteAs a writer/editor, I can say only that this is a tossup! Our language is still evolving.