Cambridge
camb·ridge
noun
a university in England
a city in Massachusetts just north of Boston; site of Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Origin
From late Middle English Cambrigge, Caumbrigge, from earlier Cantebrigge, Cauntebrigge, from Old English Grante bryċġ, Granta-briċġ, Grantanbryċġ (“Granta bridge”). The river name Granta is probably of Celtic origin. The modern pronunciation with /eɪ/ develops from Middle English /aː/, which develops from earlier /au̯/ before /m/ (as in Middle English chambre for earlier chaumbre). By Middle English when the name of the settlement had changed to "Cantebrigge" and eventually "Cambridge", the lower stretches of the River Granta were renamed Cam by back-formation from Cambridge.
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WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.