The Grammarphobia Blog: You have no idear! (2024)

FAQs

Why do people pronounce idea ider? ›

It's likely because those speakers have pronounced rhotic accents, which means that they generate an 'r' sound as part of certain vowels. Edit: It's also common in non-rhotic accents to have an 'r' appear in certain circ*mstances.

Why do Brits say idear? This happens when the following word begins with a vowel sound - it's not easy to pronounce two consecutive vowel sounds in many British English accents, so we put in what's called an “intrusive R” to facilitate pronunciation. For example: “The idea is blah blah blah.”

To use another example, the same speaker would say, “New York isn't fah,” but “New York isn't far away.” Such speakers are basically using the “r” to link what they pronounce as two vowel sounds. Linguists have called this phenomenon the “linking r.”

Critics have occasionally objected to the one-word form, but many respected writers have used it. The same is true of the forms whoever, whenever, wherever, and however. In adjectival uses, however, only the one-word form is used: Take whatever (not what ever) books you need.

Elusive “R”

In the past, the silent “r” was considered a sign of immigrants or the lower class, therefore, it was stigmatized. While still popular, the number of New Yorkers that drop the “r” is dwindling.

The intrusive R in “warsh” is most commonly associated with a dialect of American English known as the Midland dialect.

For Wyld, the loss of r began in eastern England in the mid-15th century, and by the mid-16th century it had spread to both other consonants and the London vernacular. Hill (1940), on the other hand, describes a loss of the pronunciation of /r/ in the 14th century.

No English authorities described loss of /r/ in the standard language before the mid-18th century, and many did not fully accept it until the 1790s.

Water is pronounced "waw-tuh"

New Yorkers drop the "R" here.

New York Accent “AW”

As you might already notice that in the most common words New Yorkers say differently, you will hear the “aw” emphasized in words like coffee, talk, and water. This happens with words that have “au”, “aw”, “of”, “ou”, “ar”, and “or” to name some (I am sure there are more)!

How do New Yorkers say orange? ›

Ms. MacKenzie said "forest" and "orange" are pronounced FORE-ist and OR-inge in Connecticut, but as FAR-ist and ARE-inge in New York.

The term is used either to dismiss a previous statement and express indifference or in affirmation of a previous statement as "whatever will be will be". An interjection of "whatever" can be considered offensive and impolite or it can be considered affirming.

Anyone as a pronoun meaning “anybody” or “any person at all” is written as one word: Does anyone have the correct time? The two-word phrase any one means “any single member of a group of persons or things” and is often followed by of: Can any one of the members type?

The Oldest Word in the World. It is believed the first spoken word was “Aa,” which meant hey. “Aa” is thought to have first been spoken by an australopithecine in Ethiopia over a million years ago.

Rhotacism is a speech impediment that is defined by the lack of ability, or difficulty in, pronouncing the sound R. Some speech pathologists, those who work with speech impediments may call this impediment de-rhotacization because the sounds don't become rhotic, rather they lose their rhotic quality.

British English is non-rhotic. The letter "r" is not pronounced after vowels, unless it is also followed by a vowel.

#1 Challenging Word – February

The first word up is February. Many English speakers, even native English speakers, are challenged when they pronounce that first “r.” So, they reduce the “r” in spoken language and pronounce it as feb-you-air-ee instead of feb-roo-air-ee.

“One of the main reasons why Boston and its hinterland are r-less is that a lot of the original settlers of the region were from East Anglia, in the southeast of England, which is where not pronouncing the r started off,” he says. “A lot of the original colonists were already r-less, even if most of Britain wasn't.”

Most scholars have roughly located “split off” point between American and British English as the mid-18th-Century. There are some clear exceptions.

Reminder: The r is always pronounced in American English, even at the end of words, like in more, far, mother, and before a consonant, like in morning, survive and thirty.

Is the American accent the original British accent? ›

In all reality, the standard British accent was the one that changed significantly in the last two centuries while the American accent stayed more or less the same. During the American Revolution, the English language started to change in Britain. A new wealthy sector emerged during the industrial revolution.

These are known as 'rhotic' speakers. English accents that follow the silent < r > rule are known as 'non-rhotic', and these include most accents in England, Wales, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.

English accents that contain silent ⟨r⟩ are 'non-rhotic'; these include most English accents in England, Wales, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. Accents in which every ⟨r⟩ is pronounced are 'rhotic', and these include most accents in USA, Canada, Ireland, Northern Ireland and Scotland.

Here's what we discovered. The phenomenon itself is known as “T-glottalization.” It occurs when a speaker swallows the T sound in a word rather than speaking it aloud. We hear it when words like “kitten” and “water” are pronounced like “KIH-en” and “WAH-er.”

At the ends of words, Americans often use a stopped T. This means they move the tongue into position for the /t/, but they don't release the air.

Biscuit (UK) / Cookie (US)

In the US, cookies are flat, round snacks made of sweet dough. In the UK, these are generally called biscuits, although people do call the bigger, softer kind cookies, too.

5. “Fuhgeddabouit!” File this one under “I'm walking here!” Nobody from New York actually says either of these things. 6. “Avenue of the Americas.” We'll meet you on Sixth and 14th, OK?

Published 25 May 2022. Pronunciation Insights, Research and Linguistics. Anyone who has heard the Queen's speeches will recognise her distinctive British accent. This is RP – 'Received Pronunciation'.

What is New York slang for money? ›

Guap. This New York slang word usually means money. “Don't forget to count all your guap before you clock out tonight.”

Most North American English speakers pronounce the word bag with the same vowel as in the word back [æ], but many Wisconsinites pronounce bag with the same vowel as bagel [e:].

More specifically, New England (including Boston). If you look at the breakdown by state in the survey you cite, around 82% of the people pronounce "ant" and "aunt" the same in New York and New Jersey, while only 14% do in Massachusetts. I'm from Massachusetts. I say Ahnt.

impolite, bad-mannered, ill-mannered, mannerless, unmannerly, and discourteous. A word that suggests that a person doesn't know how to interact with others—or doesn't care how they do—is tactless. Words that suggest a more active, deliberate rudeness are disrespectful, insolent, and impertinent.

Conversation. Depending on the context of the conversation using the word “o*kay” to respond to a short/long text can be viewed as being rude/dismissive by the person you are talking to. Sometimes more is expected of you than mere acknowledgment.

anything , anything that, whatsoever (formal), anyway , anyhow. Sense: Adverb: no matter what. Synonyms: no matter what, regardless of what, never mind, never mind how much, however much, whichever. Sense: Adverb: anyway.

Person is expressed through the different personal pronouns, such as “I” (first-person pronoun), “you” (second-person pronoun), and “they” (third-person pronoun).

In that case, what's the longest word in the English language dictionary? It's pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis.

It is perfectly okay to be happily single and enjoy yourself. In fact, it is healthy to focus on creating a full, happy life, whether you're single or in a relationship. There are many enjoyable aspects of being single. You can enjoy meaningful, fulfilling connections no matter what your relationship status is.

Taking all of Genesis 1:2 as background information ("When in the beginning God created the heavens and the earth, the earth being untamed and shapeless, God said, Let there be light!").

What is the oldest English word still in use? ›

Scientists at the University of Reading have discovered that 'I', 'we', 'who' and the numbers '1', '2' and '3' are amongst the oldest words, not only in English, but across all Indo-European languages.

[ideˈar] Full verb table transitive verb. imaginar) to imagine , think up.

Etymology. The word idea comes from Greek ἰδέα idea "form, pattern," from the root of ἰδεῖν idein, "to see."

In some cases, it may be linked to tongue-tie (ankyloglossia). Tongue-tie may limit the range of tongue movements, which is critical for pronouncing /r/. Another possible reason a person has trouble pronouncing the r sound is a speech sound disorder that affects the mouth and lip placement.

The catalogue number of each release begins with "RKID", which stands for "our kid"; Northern England slang to refer to a brother.

What is r in slang text? "Romantic" is the most common definition for /R on Snapchat, WhatsApp, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok. /R.

A few common abbreviations found on your repair estimate include R & R (remove and replace) and R & I (remove and install).

For Wyld, the loss of r began in eastern England in the mid-15th century, and by the mid-16th century it had spread to both other consonants and the London vernacular. Hill (1940), on the other hand, describes a loss of the pronunciation of /r/ in the 14th century.

R was possibly pronounced like a trill (like sometimes in Spanish, or by some Scottish English speakers), or as a flap (like a trill, but only once - like by some Irish speakers, or in most cases in Spanish), or similarly to how it is pronounced in Southern British English or General American today.

The word onomatopoeia is a jumble of vowels and is probably the most difficult English word to pronounce. It is pronounced [on-uh-mat-uh–pee–uh], and it defines a word that imitates a sound.

What is the hardest R word to say? ›

murderer. As we noted earlier, the R sound in English can be tricky. That's what makes murderer, with its three R sounds particularly difficult to pronounce. The word is pronounced [ mur-der-er ].

Rhotacism is a speech impediment that is defined by the lack of ability, or difficulty in, pronouncing the sound R. Some speech pathologists, those who work with speech impediments may call this impediment de-rhotacization because the sounds don't become rhotic, rather they lose their rhotic quality.

The word for the practice of pronouncing 'r' as 'w' (or indeed pronouncing 'r' in any strange or exaggerated way) is "rhotacism" (or "rotacism").