Broadening affected Standard English extremely inconsistently. It seems to have been favored when was adjacent to labial consonants or . It is apparent that it occurred most commonly in short words, especially monosyllables, that were common and well-established in English at the time broadening took place (c. 1500–1650). Words of 3 or more syllables were hardly ever subject to broadening. Learned words, neologisms (such as "gas", first found in the late 17th century), and Latinate or Greek borrowings were rarely broadened.