This tag is for questions about the sounds, intonation, and stress of how words are uttered or produced.
6
votes
3answers
1k views
Pronunciation of “of”
Is "of" always supposed to be pronounced with the v sound (like "ov")? Or does it depend on the region (e.g. US, UK) or maybe on the word that follows the preposition?
For example, how would you ...
3
votes
1answer
150 views
“dispatch” v “despatch” [closed]
Using it in the example of:
Can you log despatch and delivery of documents?
Three questions:
Is despatch a misspelling of dispatch that made its way into the dictionary? Could I use dispatch ...
1
vote
1answer
539 views
difference between American and British /ӕ/ sound
When I presented British /ӕ/ sound to three Korean English-familiar persons online - they are doing answering English-related questions activities [case 1; case 2], and asked what sound it’s like /ӕ/ ...
3
votes
1answer
823 views
When to use -Ites / Ians / Ish / An / Ni / Ese / Elsh / Er [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Are there any rules governing what we call people from different countries?
I have some confusion regarding usage of suffixes such as -ites / -ians / -ish.
For example: ...
5
votes
1answer
177 views
How do you pronounce coitus? [closed]
Everywhere I've checked for pronunciations online it's CO-IT-TUS. Every time I've heard someone use it in real life it's COY-TIS. Since so many people pronounce it in the latter form, does that mean ...
8
votes
6answers
2k views
Difference in pronunciation between “your” and “you're”?
I'm a native English speaker (Texas counts, I suppose), and I pronounce "your" to rhyme with "core", and "you're" to rhyme with "cure". Is it just me or did I pick this up somewhere?
11
votes
3answers
7k views
Why is the 'w' silent in “sword”?
In RP English, the 'w' in "sword" is silent. Wiktionary suggests /sɔːd/ and /soʊrd/.
Why? Are there other words like this? The 'w' is pronounced in words like "swollen", "swoop", "sworn" and "swore".
...
5
votes
1answer
120 views
Why does the “e” in judge vanish in the word “judgment”?
The in the word "judgment", the "e" from "judge" is absent. Three questions on this:
Why is this?
Is there a name for such a contraction?
How and why does the "g" still retain its "soft" ...
4
votes
3answers
399 views
How should “aargh” really be pronounced?
The common interjections "argh!", "aargh!", "aaargh!", etc., is pronounced, as far as I know, the same as "aaa!" For most of my life, however, I (and I imagine many other second language speakers) ...
10
votes
8answers
2k views
Is there a rule for the correct pronunciation of words starting with “ex”?
The following words are pronounced starting with an iks / igz:
extent [ɪkˈstent]
expect [ɪk'spekt]
exterminate [ɪk'stɜːmɪneɪt]
external [ɪkˈstɜːn(ə)l]
exhaust [ɪg'zɔːst]
examine [ɪg'zæmɪn]
...
3
votes
4answers
270 views
Why does “contrary” have two different pronunciations?
I have the impression all Anglophones pronounce contrary with stress on the second syllable (cont-RARE-ee) when applied to a person's actions or disposition, as in:
Mary Mary quite contrary,
How ...
-1
votes
2answers
272 views
Why are “put” and “but” different in their pronunciation? [closed]
Why are "put" and "but" different in their pronunciation?
2
votes
6answers
5k views
What is the correct pronunciation of the word “processes”?
What is the correct pronunciation of the word processes because in my company some say it as "process-eez" and some say it "process-ess"?
I am confused, because my mother tongue is not English.
3
votes
1answer
187 views
What is the proper pronunciation of “kitten?”
The American Heritage Dictionary says 'KIT-n' but speakers in my locale (west coast US) say 'Ki with short i, glottal stop, n.' There is no 't' sound. Do we speak slang, a dialect, or are we ...
2
votes
2answers
353 views
New Orleans Accent
I'd heard that New Orleans residents are more New York- than Southern-sounding. Recently, I saw some of the Khan Academy videos, and noticed that Salman Khan, who, as Wikipedia says, is from New ...
1
vote
1answer
132 views
Pedagogue vs. pedagogy vs. pedagogical
How do people choose to pronounce the -agogue suffix in these three words?
pedagogue
pedagogy
pedagogical
The first is a reasonably common word and its suffix is surely consistently ...
4
votes
3answers
1k views
Words whose pronunciation remains the same with the last four letters removed
A friend told me that the English word queue is the only word whose pronunciation remains the same when the last four letters are removed.
I tried to think of others, but just couldn't. However, I ...
4
votes
4answers
5k views
Why do some English speakers pronounce “fête” as “fate”?
In French, from whom we’ve borrowed the word, it’s /fɛt/ “fet”.
But if we pronounced it as if it were an English word after dropping the accent, it would be /fi:t/ “feet”.
Yet the pronunciation we ...
3
votes
4answers
683 views
How to pronounce “worried”?
I have no idea whatsoever about IPA, so I apologise now for any ambiguity or difficult-to-understand-ness in this question.
Me and a friend both disagree on the correct pronunciation of "worried". I ...
3
votes
1answer
191 views
When a consonant and a vowel meet together, from where the sound start?
By IPA chart in Wikipedia,
[m] is made, up in front of the mouth, and [ɑ] down at the back.
In this case, where do you say [ma] is made? I mean, is [ma] made in the middle of the both positions of ...
0
votes
1answer
88 views
When two open-front vowels meet, does one become, typically, weaker?
. . . at last [ət-lӕst] . . [audio source]
I guess, from the two lots’ pronunciations, that when [ӕ] is accompanied by [ӕ], one which is lesser important in meaning becomes weaker and change into a ...
1
vote
3answers
931 views
Do “here” and “hear” have the same phonetic transcription in the same country?
Is there any accent that makes a distinction when pronuncing “here” and “hear”?
From Wiktionary:
Here
(UK) /hɪə(ɹ)/
(US) /hɪɹ/
Hear
(UK) /hɪə(ɹ)/
(US) IPA: /hiːɹ/
So, according to that, US ...
5
votes
2answers
480 views
Pronunciation of GUI in British English
I've heard a lot of Americans pronounce abbreviations like GUI as goo-ey. Is this the same with British English, or is it more common to spell out the word, like gee-you-eye?
8
votes
3answers
1k views
Pronunciation of vowel in vague as [æ] instead of [eɪ]
I have a friend who pronounces the vowel in plague, vague, and bagel as [æ] instead of the standard [eɪ] (so plague rhymes with flag, for instance). Interestingly, he apparently can't tell the ...
2
votes
6answers
2k views
If enough people say “supposably” instead of “supposedly”
"Supposably" sounds awful (to my ear) and I'm surprised at how often I hear it said. How often would it have to be used within the general population for it to become an acceptable alternative ...
4
votes
3answers
489 views
Difference in starting pronunciations of “station” and “sun”
Why do some English speakers have different starting pronunciations of station and sun? Station is pronounced as e-station while sun simply as sun. Is the difference due to the fact that the second ...
2
votes
4answers
133 views
Why numbers are sometimes pronounced as individual numbers?
456
four hundred fifty-six.
four, five, six.
Is there any rule or something? Is the second one just for faster pronunciation?
2
votes
1answer
131 views
Waiteen for waiting
While it's reasonably common for people to drop the g in words such as waiting, hating, and dating, I seem to be stumbling upon a number of Americans additionally drawing out the final syllable of ...
8
votes
1answer
2k views
Why is “blood” pronounced the way it is?
I mean, why isn't it pronounced "blue-d" rather than "blud". And this applies to "flood" too, but not "glood" or "clood" I imagine.
9
votes
0answers
116 views
Pronunciation of '-ing' endings as '-een' [duplicate]
Recently my daughter told us she’d had a supply teacher at school because her regular teacher was “at home pukin’.”
The pronunciation of the -ing ending as in’ [ɪn] (rather than [ɪŋ]) seems to be ...
14
votes
3answers
625 views
What's the history of the pronunciation of Delphi?
There appear to be two ways to pronounce the last syllable based on deeply held beliefs and cultural divides and assumptions:
Phi fi fo fum
Fee phi fo fum?
I've heard that (2) is the American ...
2
votes
1answer
229 views
What’s the difference between /ӕ/ and /ɑ/?
. . . alibis . . . appetite . . . rather . . . Mark . . . [audio source]
The first two a’s are different in their phonetic symbols in the dictionaries from the other two, but I can’t differentiate. ...
6
votes
4answers
588 views
Which syllable is stressed in the word “nineteen”?
The dictionaries list both possibilities to stress nineteen (or any other -teen, for that matter): ,nine-teen and nine-'teen.
Are the two pronunciations completely interchangeable, a matter of ...
1
vote
3answers
1k views
Do Americans pronounce “Ellen” and “Alan” in the same way?
Do Americans pronounce "Ellen" and "Alan" in the same way? I am especially concerned with the first vowel.
EDIT:
Here is a quote that may be a case in point:
Being a Brit also, the names "Ellen" ...
2
votes
1answer
321 views
Syllable Count for Apparent Monosyllabic Words
How many syllables are there in "child," "wild," and field"? If we look at the dictionary, it will tell us that these are monosyllabic words. There appear, however, to be diphthongs in each of these ...
0
votes
2answers
199 views
Pronunciation of “twenty” in US English
I often hear how people from the United States pronounce "twenty" as "twonny" in movies, etc. Why? Is this an alternative pronunciation?
5
votes
3answers
448 views
How to stress any word properly?
Personally I think stress is one of the hardest things. There are thousands of words around, so most likely I cannot remember all stress-marks of every word then pronounce them exactly. Is it so ...
16
votes
2answers
329 views
Why is 'worthy' pronounced with a /ði/ unlike 'healthy', 'wealthy' and 'stealthy'?
I don't know how 'worthy' came to be pronounced with a /ði/ whereas 'healthy', 'wealthy', 'stealthy' etc., are pronounced with a /θi/. I am aware that theories of pronunciation in English are far too ...
1
vote
1answer
245 views
Learn correct English pronunciation by non-verbal facial expressions [closed]
I met a guy who was born deaf and learned to pronounce and speak English by watching peoples muscle structure change in their face (i.e., their cheeks moving and lips being manipulated) Is there a way ...
1
vote
1answer
226 views
What pronunciation does Google dictionary use?
I generally use the "define" Google search tool to find what a word means, and how it should be pronounced correctly. Unlike websites like thefreedictionary.com, Google doesn't tell you what ...
5
votes
1answer
163 views
Cardinal British Dates - A Kiwi Original?
I had never heard the use of cardinal numbers in dates when speaking until I moved to New Zealand. It seems particularly prevalent in TV and radio advertising, but doesn't seem to follow either ...
0
votes
0answers
185 views
Why people pronounce “two” in a weird way? [closed]
Usually I hear people saying "two" with accented extended singing-like weird sound. Why is that? I am sure there must be a story behind it.
I am not confident that you can easily understand my ...
11
votes
3answers
13k views
Correct pronunciation of “herbs”
In the past, I used to say "Herbs", then I was corrected and told that the "H" is muted and one should say "Erbs". Watching some video, the instructor keeps saying "Herbs". What is the right ...
3
votes
1answer
106 views
What is modifying the “i” in Thumbelina and Carolina to alter its pronuciation?
While helping my daughter read (she is 5) we encountered two names in a story, Thumbelina and Carolina. The way I've come to pronounce the last four letters of "Thumbelina" is "LEE NAH" and the same ...
0
votes
1answer
368 views
Term for words that sound alike but have different meanings and spellings [closed]
What is the term for words that sound alike but have different spellings and meanings? For example, there and their.
3
votes
3answers
146 views
Pronunciation of “lib”
I've been a computer programmer for many years, and recently my father has been learning computer programming. Programmers often times will use a folder called "lib."
Not a native English speaker, ...
-2
votes
1answer
186 views
Pronunciation of 'Superman'
How do you pronounce the word, Superman?
For example the pronunciation of man seems equal in American and British English. But this is not the case for Superman. It seems that in American English, it ...
3
votes
1answer
108 views
How to understand the pronunciation of “nod” and “node”?
As we know, "nod" pronounces /nɒd/ while "node" pronounces /nəʊd/ (In US style?).
So why does the extra "e" change the vocal of letter "o" entirely?
My mother language is Chinese, therefore, it ...
1
vote
1answer
267 views
Difference in pronunciation between “won't” and “want” [closed]
Which is the difference in pronunciation between "won't" and "want"?
6
votes
2answers
2k views
Why is “one” pronounced as “wan”, not “oh-ne”?
Why is one pronounced as "wan", not "oh-ne"? Why are the spelling and pronunciation of one so strange?
In French, one is written as un, and pronounced as "oe" (with nasal sound). The sound is similar ...
