In the course of ME many new devices were introduces into the system of spelling; some of them reflected the sound changes which had been completed or were still in progress in ME; others were graphic replacements of OE letters by new letters and digraphs.
In ME the runic letters passed out of use. Thorn – þ – and the crossed d – đ, ð – were replaced by digraph th, “wyne” > double u – w -, shwa fell into disuse;
French influence: ou, ie, ch;
Wider use of digraphs: sch/ssh, dg, wh, oo, ee, gh;
When u stood close to n, m, v it was replaced by o to indicate short u (lufu - love);
y was used as equivalent of i;
ou and ow were interchangeable.
The letters th and s indicated voiced sounds between vowels, and voiceless sounds – initially, finally and next to other voiceless consonant.
Long sounds in ME texts are often shown by double letters or digraphs. The length of the vowel can be inferred from the nature of the syllable.
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