якать

Etymology

я (ja) +‎ -кать (-katʹ)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈjakətʲ]

Verb

я́кать • (jákatʹ) impf (perfective я́кнуть)

1. (linguistics) to pronounce an unstressed /e/ or /a/ after a palatalised consonant before the stressed syllable as /a/ rather than /i/, e.g. несли́ (neslí) is pronounced [nʲas⁽ʲ⁾ˈlʲi], not [nʲɪs⁽ʲ⁾ˈlʲi]. This occurs in some Russian dialects (only where а́канье (ákanʹje) is also present) and in standard Belarusian.
2. (colloquial) to use too much the pronoun я (ja, “I, me”), i.e. talk too much about oneself