Questions tagged [pronunciation]
for questions about the sound, stress, or intonation of spoken words.
1
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2answers
52 views
How do I say “/” in a presentation? [duplicate]
Do I say "Slash" or do I just ignore the / all together? I have a powerpoint presentation coming up and I can't figure out how to say / for my presentation.
0
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0answers
27 views
Pronunciation that affects
When we elide "t" sound from words like "accidents", how native English speakers speak it, as "accidens" or "accidenz"?
1
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2answers
68 views
The pronunciation of the word 'junta'
I am just wondering if there is a historical explanation for the two different ways of pronouncing junta, a word of Spanish origin, with /h/ as in American English and with /dƷ/ in British English.
2
votes
1answer
57 views
How do you pronounce the word Shaman?
I found 2 American pronunciation samples on Forvo, and they said /ˈʃæmən/ (audio), I wonder if British people say /ˈʃeɪmən/ (audio), or not? Could you please tell me something about that?
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0answers
34 views
10
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4answers
6k views
What is the English pronunciation of “pain au chocolat”?
How do Brits and Americans pronounce pain au chocolat?
0
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3answers
59 views
How do you say 1/1024th [on hold]
Is there such a fraction in English as: "1/1024th" and if so, how is it pronounced? I can't image we say: "One thousand and twenty fourth" Maybe the correct way is to write it without the "th" and say ...
-1
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0answers
31 views
Pronunciation /d/, /t/ or /id/ Please help! [duplicate]
I have a problem with pronouncing the word 'sunbathed' and it's been bugging me for a while now. Does it end with a /t/,/d/ or a /id/ sound ? Thank you
1
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0answers
39 views
how do you pronounce a rolling “o” as in “so” or “no”?
I noticed that in New Zealand most people pronounce "o" at the end of "no" or "so" in a rather rolled manner - something closer to [our] instead of simple [ou]. For example, lady in this video does ...
1
vote
1answer
49 views
Orthograpy of /æ/ in unstressed syllables
Some words like:
magnificent /mæɡˈnɪfəsənt/, anesthesia /ˌæn.əs.ˈθi.ʒə/, acrobat /ˈæk.ɹo.bæt/
accidentally /ˌæksəˈdɛnt(ə)li/, aluminium /ˌæl(j)uˈmɪn.j.əm/, satisfaction /sætɪsˈfækʃən/
have an ...
2
votes
2answers
51 views
Pronunciation: vowels before dark L (Any accent)
To native speakers of English, how do you compare a vowel before a dark L and one without a dark L. Example words:
gold, goal, sold, soul, hole, hold, bowl, bold
go, so, ho, bow(noun)
.
...
-1
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2answers
64 views
Wight and Wiht is white?
Wight is pronounced "white". Wight can be found as "wiht". I have heard people pronounce this as "wit". Is this mispronounced or for example dutch white = WIT?
1
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1answer
69 views
Reason behind Oxford Dictionaries's IPA transcription?
For some reason or another, I was looking at the Oxford Dictionaries definition for ailurophile (cat-lover).
Then I noticed that, underneath its Pronunciation header, it gives the IPA transcript as
...
1
vote
1answer
51 views
Pronunciation of the -ate suffix
I've noticed that a few words may be both a noun and an adjective, remain spelt the same, but change the pronunciation of -ate to ət or āt. Sometimes the meanings are related, others they are not.
...
0
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0answers
46 views
how to pronunce “ with” in the sentence of “ tea, a drink with jam aand bread”
For me it's quite hard to pronounce with correctly, especially when I try to say the sentence " tea, a drink with jam and bread" (in the song sing of "Do-Re-Mi - Julie Andrews")
Do you have any ...
1
vote
1answer
47 views
Ed ending as an adjective sounds differently
why the adjective "learned" sounds differently when describing "behavior" and "man"?
a learned behavior (d sound)
a learned man (id sound)
Many thanks
3
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1answer
96 views
I pronounce question as kweshtin. Is my pronunciation wrong?
I've lived in Houston,TX for about 10 years and after that I moved to the ME and I've made friends since then. Whenever they heard me say kweshtin they told me my pronunciation was weird. I told them ...
0
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2answers
71 views
Do average native-speakers have difficulties in correctly pronouncing science-related words? [closed]
Do average native-speakers have difficulties in correctly pronouncing science-related words ( e.g. 'coelenterate' or 'chelicerae')?
0
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1answer
39 views
British / American poetry appreciation
Do native poetry enthusiast pay attention to British vs. American pronunciation when enjoying poetry?
As I understand, there could be differences in rhythm and rhyme depending on the given accent, ...
1
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0answers
69 views
Connected speech resources
I am very interested in British pronunciation, so I am looking for resources about connected speech and IPA in general.
The ideal would be a book with the transcription of dialogues or just ...
13
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5answers
4k views
Why is 'diphthong' pronounced the way it is?
According to Wiktionary, the word comes:
From French diphtongue, from Ancient Greek δίφθογγος (díphthongos,
“two sounds”), from δίς (dís, “twice”) + φθόγγος (phthóngos, “sound”)
Separated into ...
-1
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1answer
86 views
How to read a letter 'j'? [closed]
Usually I read the letter as 'jot'. But it feels like I am the only one who does. Especially when it comes to maths.
I was wondering are there any non-'jay' cases. Guys in comments genuinely ...
1
vote
1answer
39 views
Sentence stress
I'm struggling to understand the sentence stress in the following sentences:
Why don’t we watch a comedy film? I'm pretty sure that 'don't', 'watch', 'comedy', and 'film' are stressed; why is a wh-...
0
votes
1answer
54 views
The pronunciation of “divisor”
unfortunately, it seems as though my English level remains to be that of a foreigner, as was exemplified by me misapprehending the pronunciation of the word "divisor". Somehow, my instincts (which ...
1
vote
1answer
83 views
Pronunciation of short-lived to rhyme with short-dived. Are there any identifiable factors for this pronunciation?
My question is about people who pronounce "-lived" in "short-lived" to rhyme with "dived" rather than "sieved".
I'd just like to say I've only ever heard "long-lived" pronounced in this way from ...
7
votes
2answers
339 views
The Newjersey Turnpike
In pronunciation of the name of the New Jersey Turnpike, there is no stress in either syllable of the word "Jersey," as though New Jersey were actually one word. Is this a common phenomenon that ...
0
votes
1answer
58 views
Pronunciation of the letter 'A' [duplicate]
I've always wondered why some English speakers pronounce the letter 'A' differently.
For Example:
A (Ah) Boat
Or
A (Ay) Boat
I hope you guys know what I mean.
So, why's that??
Thanks in advance....
0
votes
1answer
57 views
Deciding pronunciation of new words that don't obey natural rules of a language
This question was sparked by considering the "word": pwn.
"Pawn" and "-pone" are both existing written form and vocalizations, but "pown" pronounced like "pone" is not a valid written form. It exists ...
3
votes
2answers
108 views
How is 'wl-' pronounced?
How is 'wl-' pronounced at the beginning of a word?
Of course, you just don't pronounce it at all, because there is no English word that begins that way and if there were, well, that's just not ...
9
votes
2answers
292 views
Why is Indian English usually rhotic?
It seems that speakers of Indian English generally speak with a rhotic accent, pronouncing an [r] in all cases where spelled, whereas a speaker of British English would leave it off in postvocalic ...
10
votes
2answers
3k views
Do people still use the traditional pronunciation of “zoology” so it starts with “zo” not “zu”?
I hear the "zoo" /zu/ in "zoology" (/zuːˈɒlədʒi/, /zuˈɑlədʒi/) almost universally now. I think I’m the only one left saying /zo/ in "zo-ology" (/zoˈɑlədʒi/, /zoʊˈɑlədʒi/, /zəʊˈɒlədʒi/). Am I alone?
20
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4answers
4k views
Why do we spell the word “who” with a silent “w” when it isn’t needed?
If we spelled who without the W – making it ho like with do and to — it could still make sense, so why is there a silent W in the word who?
1
vote
2answers
129 views
American English pronunciation of 't' after 'n'
As a native British English speaker I often notice what seems to be an omission of the "t" sound by American speakers when the letter follows an "n".
Examples:
Interview ---> Innerview
Internet --->...
4
votes
2answers
233 views
Peculiar pronunciation of 'architecture'
Watching a footage from 1928-9 i noticed that the narrator pronounced architecture as ['a:tʃitektʃə] instead of the modern ['a:Kitektʃə].
Is this known to be the standard American pronunciation of ...
4
votes
2answers
107 views
Should “ohmmeter” be stressed on the first or second syllables, or both?
Question:
Which syllable or syllables are stressed in the word ohmmeter?
Context:
I tried to say the word ohmmeter out loud today and realized I am unsure of the correct pronunciation. The double m ...
3
votes
1answer
95 views
Is there a linguistic term for pronouncing card as “kerd” or hard as “herd”?
I notice this in some people from Northern Illinois and Iowa and am wondering if this is a well documented phenomenon.
What most Americans would pronounce as "ar" is instead pronounced as something ...
1
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0answers
14 views
Why is pronunciation of rough and though different? [duplicate]
Why is "ough" pronounced so differently in rough and though and thought?
1
vote
0answers
70 views
Pronunciation of “inquiry” with first syllable stress?
I am an American and I always pronounce “inquiry” with second syllable stress. After hearing more and more Americans say it with first syllable stres, along with British people saying it the way I do,...
8
votes
3answers
663 views
You becoming 'CHU' and 'JU'
I know for over a fact that the word "YOU" when the word before its a T or a 'D' sound it can change to a CH sound or a J sound, but I've ALWAYS wonder why does that happen?
So, I want you= aɪ wɑnt ...
20
votes
2answers
1k views
“Extra W” sound in words
I've wonder that in some sentences, or words, even though phonetically you don't have a 'W' sound, you can still hear some type of extra w' sound. So for example.
The phrase: "Do it". /du ɪt/ will ...
2
votes
1answer
71 views
Devoicing 'Voiced consonants' to their counterparts
So, lately I've been really interested in the 'DEVOICING 'Voiced Consonants to thei r counterparts'. I've been doing many studies painstakingly, so I would like to share it with you, and you can tell ...
2
votes
1answer
53 views
“origin” pronunciation in the word “originate”
Why is the first part of the word originate pronounced differently than the standalone word origin?
origin = /ˈôrəjən/
originate = /əˈrijəˌnāt/
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0answers
39 views
Pronunciation of 's after word ending in “is”, “es”
Alexis's sister. Is it pronounced Alec sis sister or Alec sis sis sister?
0
votes
1answer
42 views
Phoneticised alphabet letters [duplicate]
Do all letters of the English alphabet have phoneticised dictionary entries? I'm thinking of the word Vee for the letter V or Zed for the letter Z? For example is there an entry for H? Aitch?
0
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1answer
44 views
is first syllable stress on “frequent” becomming the norm for verb form? [closed]
several TV shows lately have put the stress on first syllable in the verb form of "frequent". I looked up several dictionary/pronunciation sites and they only give first syllable emphasis option for ...
0
votes
2answers
68 views
Cristóvão Colombo's name in America [closed]
How do American people usually pronounce Cristóvão Colombo's name?
For example, do Americans say "Cristopher"? Is that a correct version of this?
Or do they pronounce it like in my country (Brazil, ...
0
votes
1answer
99 views
“25th December” vs “25 December”: Should I use ordinals or cardinals for the day of the month?
In one of the IELTS listening tests, there is a fill-out-the-blank question reading:
The museum is not open on ___.
My answer was “25th December”. However, the official answer is “25 ...
4
votes
1answer
91 views
Do Americans pronounce “transient” as \ˈtran(t)-sh(ē-)ənt\?
Merriam-Webster pronounces "transient" as \ˈtran(t)-sh(ē-)ənt\.
However, most Americans pronounce it as \ˈtran-zē-ənt\.
1
vote
0answers
64 views
Swearing: English or French? [closed]
This may not be the correct forum for the question, so I apologize if I'm merely cluttering the place up.
Though I am far from fluent in French, I have spent enough time staying with family in Paris ...
1
vote
2answers
130 views
Dark L in unstressed syllables
I was wondering. I was reading in one forum about the dark L someone said about how you can also have a dark L in an unstressed syllable so a word like only (ˈoʊnli) will actually have dark L.
Can ...
