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If tidal constituents with frequencies of one, two, three, and four cycles per day (respectively, periods of one, a half, a third, and a fourth of a day) were to be termed systematically based on numeral prefixes, would any of the following sets be internally inconsistent:

  1. diurnal, dudiurnal, tridiurnal, quadridiurnal (Latin cardinal)
  2. diurnal, bidiurnal, terdiurnal, quaterdiurnal (Latin multiples)
  3. diurnal, duodiurnal, tridiurnal, tetradiurnal (Greek cardinal)
  4. diurnal, diplodiurnal, triplodiurnal, tetrapodiurnal (Greek multiples)
  5. diurnal, half-diurnal, third-diurnal, fourth-diurnal (English fractions)
  6. diurnal, semidiurnal, trientdiurnal, quadrantdiurnal (Latin fractions)
  7. diurnal, hemidiurnal, tritodiurnal, tetartodiurnal (Greek fractions)

So far I've only found inconsistent sets, even in authoritative texts:

  • diurnal, semidiurnal, third-diurnal, quarter-diurnal 2
  • diurnal, semidiurnal, terdiurnal, quarter-diurnal 3
  • diurnal, semidiurnal, third-diurnal, fourth-diurnal 4
  • diurnal, semidiurnal, terdiurnal, quaterdiurnal 5

The inconsistency arises from: mixing Latin, Greek, or English prefixes; and mixing the half-day period with the two-cycle per day frequency.

Thanks.

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    Is there anything wrong with inconsistent prefixes? We use triangles, quadrilaterals and pentagons, from Latin and Greek. I don't see anybody calling for us to use quintalateral or tetragon.
    – Peter Shor
    Commented Jan 28, 2020 at 2:16
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    The next question then is: which inconsistent set should be adopted -- for example, in Wikipedia? en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theory_of_tides#Tidal_constituents
    – Felipe G. Nievinski
    Commented Jan 28, 2020 at 2:21
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    Surely you want a set of words that are easily understood, not necessarily etymologically consistent?
    – CJ Dennis
    Commented Jan 29, 2020 at 0:04

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