from
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
Diacritic \Di`a*crit"ic\, Diacritical \Di`a*crit"ic*al\, a. [Gr.
?, fr. ? to separate, distinguish; dia` through + ? to
separate. See {Critic}.]
That separates or distinguishes; -- applied to points or
marks used to distinguish letters of similar form, or
different sounds of the same letter, as, [=a], [a^], [aum],
[=o], [o^], etc. "Diacritical points." --Sir W. Jones.
[1913 Webster]
A glance at this typography will reveal great
difficulties, which diacritical marks necessarily throw
in the way of both printer and writer. --A. J. Ellis.
[1913 Webster]