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Tag Archives: pronunciation

November 28, 2021
by Graham
0 comments

Omicron

The only pronunciation I’ve heard for this letter of the Greek alphabet since it was used for the name of the latest Coronavirus variant stresses the first letter, which is being pronounced to rhyme with both ohm and Tom indiscriminately. … Continue reading →

Categories: Language | Tags: broadcasting, english, Greek, pronunciation | Permalink

November 6, 2021
by Graham
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Two deliberately created alternative pronunciations?

During the past week, I lstened to a fascinating radio programme which included a contribution by the world expert on meerkat behaviour, Tim Clutton-Brock. I was surprised that he pronounced the word for their mating behaviour as /pɒliˈgaɪnəs/. As always … Continue reading →

Categories: Language | Tags: english, pronunciation | Permalink

September 2, 2021
by Graham
2 Comments

/s/ – apical or laminal

I’ve been asked about the pronunciation of /s/ in initial strings of /str/. I know that it is common to pronounce it with a post-alveolar, apical articulation in Glasgow and London (David Abercrombie was talking about its occurrence in Glasgow … Continue reading →

Categories: Language | Tags: accent, dialect, english, pronunciation, words | Permalink

August 26, 2021
by Graham
0 comments

A new development in English phonology?

With the increasing number of BBC journalists who have South Asian heritage, we are hearing an ever greater number of examples of a non-traditional pronunciation of the orthographic symbol {t} in words of South Asian origin. I’m thinking in particular, … Continue reading →

Categories: Language | Tags: bbc, broadcasting, english, pronunciation | Permalink

January 19, 2021
by Graham
4 Comments

The Queen’s English – literally

Serendipitously, not long after writing my last post, I watched a TV programme called “The Queen: in her own words“, which, as it said on the tin, included many examples of her speaking, the extracts used coming from the whole … Continue reading →

Categories: Language | Tags: accent, english, pronunciation | Permalink

November 28, 2020
by Graham
3 Comments

Accentism

It’s interesting to read that the French are adding “accent discrimination” to their equality laws. In Britain, we seem to be getting past the stage of despising people for the way they speak. When I joined the BBC in 1979, … Continue reading →

Categories: French, Language | Tags: accent, pronunciation, social standing | Permalink

September 22, 2020
by Graham
3 Comments

How do you pronounce ‘GH’?

We’re all accustomed to the many ways that the letter combination ‘ough’ is pronounced in English, depending on the word: cough, rough, though, through, thought, Slough, and the whimsical hiccough. But the letters -gh- by themselves are only pronounced in … Continue reading →

Categories: Language | Tags: pronunciation | Permalink

May 11, 2020
by Graham
0 comments

Course and Sauce

My friend Alec is taking the opportunity of being locked down to catch up on some reading he’d been intending to get round to for the last fifty or so years, and has reached D H Lawrence. In “Lost Girls”, … Continue reading →

Categories: Language | Tags: dialect, english, pronunciation, speech | Permalink

March 7, 2020
by Graham
2 Comments

Coronavirus

This seems an unlikely heading for a post from me – how can this possibly have any interest for pronunciation nerds? Until this week, I have only heard a single pronunciation for this – the ‘obvious’ one: koROHna(virus). (I’m sorry … Continue reading →

Categories: Language, Names | Tags: english, family name, place names, pronunciation, speech, spelling | Permalink

February 14, 2020
by Graham
3 Comments

Buttigieg

We’re all going to have to get used to this, apparently, odd name in the coming months as Pete Buttigieg tries to become the next president of the US. I think it’s an interesting case, not because the name itself … Continue reading →

Categories: Language, Names | Tags: english, family name, pronunciation, speech, spelling | Permalink

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  • What is “Classical” Music?
  • Omicron
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  • Notify, mandate and sanction
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  • A new development in English phonology?
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