Phonological history of English consonant clusters
History and description of |
English pronunciation |
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Historical stages |
General development |
Development of vowels |
Development of consonants |
Variable features |
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The
H-cluster reductions
The H-cluster reductions are various consonant reductions that have occurred in the history of English, involving consonant clusters beginning with /h/ that have lost the /h/ (or become reduced to /h/) in some or all dialects.
Reductions of /hw/
The cluster /hw/ (spelled ⟨wh⟩ since Middle English) has been subject to two kinds of reduction:
- Reduction to /h/ before rounded vowels (due to /hw/ being perceived as a /h/ with the labialization characteristic of that environment). This occurred with the word how in the Old English period, and with who, whom and whose in Middle English(the latter words having had an unrounded vowel in Old English).
- Reduction to /w/, a development that has affected the speech of the great majority of English speakers, causing them to pronounce ⟨wh-⟩ the same as ⟨w-⟩ (sometimes called the wine–whine merger or Ireland, and some Southern American English.
Reduction of /hl/, /hr/ and /hn/
The Old English consonant clusters /hl/, /hr/ and /hn/ were reduced to /l/, /r/, and /n/ in Middle English. For example, Old English hlāf, hring and hnutu become loaf, ring and nut in Modern English.
Reduction of /hj/
In some dialects of English the cluster /hj/ is reduced to /j/,
Y-cluster reductions
Y-cluster reductions are reductions of clusters ending with the
This change from /ɪu/ to /juː/, which had occurred in London by the end of the 17th century, did not take place in all dialects. A few dialects, notably in
The diphthongs /juː/ or /ɪʊ̯/ are most commonly indicated by the spellings eu, ew, uCV (where C is any consonant and V is any vowel), ue and ui, as in feud, few, mute, cue and suit, while the historical monophthong /uː/ is commonly indicated by the spellings oo and ou, as in moon and soup.
Yod-dropping
Yod-dropping is the elision of the /j/ from certain syllable-initial clusters of the type described above. Particular cases of yod-dropping may affect all or some of the dialects that have the relevant clusters.
The change of [ɪ] to [j] in these positions (as described above) produced some clusters which would have been difficult or impossible to pronounce, which led to what John Wells calls Early Yod Dropping in which the [j] was elided in the following environments:[5]
- After /ʃ, tʃ, dʒ/, for example chute /ʃuːt/, chew /tʃuː/, juice /dʒuːs/
- After /j/, for example yew /juː/ (compare [jɪʊ̯] in some conservative dialects)
- After /r/, for example rude /ruːd/
- After stop+/l/ clusters, for example blue /bluː/
The previously mentioned accents that did not have the [ɪ]→[j] change were not subject to this process. Thus, for example, in much Welsh English pairs like chews/choose, yew/you and threw/through remain distinct: the first member of each pair has the diphthong /ɪʊ̯/, while the second member has /uː/:[6]
- chews /tʃɪʊ̯z/, choose /tʃuːz/
- yew /jɪʊ̯/, you /juː/
- threw /θrɪʊ̯/, through /θruː/
Conversely, an initial /j/ does not appear in Welsh English before /iː/ in words such as yeast and yield.[7]
Many varieties of English have extended yod-dropping to the following environments if the /j/ is in the same syllable as the preceding consonant:
- After /s/, for example suit /suːt/
- After /l/, for example lute /ˈluːt/
- After /z/, for example Zeus /ˈzuːs/
- After /θ/, for example enthuse /ɛnˈθuːz/
Yod-dropping in the above environments used to be considered nonstandard in England but now also occurs by educated
The lack of yod-dropping in those contexts has occasionally been held to be a shibboleth distinguishing Canadians from Americans. However, in a survey conducted in the Golden Horseshoe area of Southern Ontario in 1994, over 80% of respondents under the age of 40 pronounced student and news without yod.[9]
General American thus undergoes yod-dropping after all alveolar consonants. A few accents of American English, such as working-class Southern American English, however, preserve the distinction in pairs like do/dew because, like in the Welsh English dialects discussed above, they retain a diphthong /ɪʊ̯/ in words in which RP has /juː/: /lut~lɪʊ̯t/, /du~dɪʊ̯/, etc.[10]
However, in words like annual, menu, volume, Matthew, continue, etc., with a syllable break before the /j/, there is no yod-dropping. The same applies accordingly to British and other accents; the yod is often dropped after initial /l/, for example, but it is not dropped in words like volume or value. (British speakers omit the /j/ in figure, but most Americans retain it.)
Additionally, there is no /j/ in British pronunciations of coupon and Pulitzer, /ˈkuːpɒn/ and /ˈpʊlɪtsə/ respectively, but many American speakers keep the yod, realizing them as /ˈkjuːpɒn/ and /ˈpjuːlɪtsər/, although Pulitzer with the pew sound is widely incorrect.[11][12]
In New Zealand and to some extent Australian English, debut is mainly pronounced without the yod as /ˈdæebʉː/.[13]
Yod-dropping after /t/, /d/, and /n/ was also a traditional feature of Cockney speech, which continues to be the case after /n/, but now, after /t/ and /d/, yod-coalescence is now more common.[14]
Some
/ɪʊ̯/ | /uː/ | IPA | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
brewed | brood | ˈbruːd | |
brume | broom | ˈbruːm | |
chews | choose | ˈtʃuːz | |
chute | shoot | ˈʃuːt | |
drupe | droop | ˈdruːp | |
rheum | room | ˈruːm | |
rude | rood | ˈruːd | |
rue | roo | ˈruː | |
ruse | roos | ˈruːz | |
threw | through | ˈθruː | |
yew | you | ˈjuː | |
yule | you'll | ˈjuːl |
/ɪʊ̯/ | /uː/ | IPA | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
Blume | bloom | ˈbluːm | |
glume | gloom | ˈgluːm | |
Lewis | Louis | ˈluːɪs | |
lieu | loo | ˈluː | |
lieu | Lou | ˈluː | |
Luke |
look | ˈluːk | With foot–goose merger .
|
lune | loon | ˈluːn | |
lute | loot | ˈluːt | |
slew | slough | ˈsluː | |
slue | slough | ˈsluː | |
sue | Sioux | ˈsuː | |
suit | soot | ˈsuːt | With foot–goose merger .
|
/ɪʊ̯/ | /uː/ | IPA | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
adieu | ado | əˈduː | |
dew | do | ˈduː | |
Dewar | doer | ˈduːər | |
due | do | ˈduː | |
dune | Doon | ˈduːn | |
knew | nu | ˈnuː | |
new | nu | ˈnuː | |
tune | toon | ˈtuːn |
/ɪʊ̯/ | /uː/ | IPA | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
beaut | boot | ˈbuːt | |
beauty | booty | ˈbuːti | |
butte | boot | ˈbuːt | |
cue | coo | ˈkuː | |
cute | coot | ˈkuːt | |
feud | food | ˈfuːd | |
few | foo | ˈfuː | |
fuel | fool | ˈfuːl | With vile–vial merger .
|
hew | who | ˈhuː | |
hews | who's | ˈhuːz | |
hews | whose | ˈhuːz | |
hue | who | ˈhuː | |
hues | who's | ˈhuːz | |
hues | whose | ˈhuːz | |
Hugh | who | ˈhuː | |
Hughes | who's | ˈhuːz | |
Hughes | whose | ˈhuːz | |
Kew | coo | ˈkuː | |
kyu | coo | ˈkuː | |
mew | moo | ˈmuː | |
mew | moue | ˈmuː | |
mewed | mood | ˈmuːd | |
muse | moos | ˈmuːz | |
muse | moues | ˈmuːz | |
mute | moot | ˈmuːt | |
pew | poo | ˈpuː | |
pule | pool | ˈpuːl | |
pure | poor | ˈpʊə(r) | |
Q; cue | coo | ˈkuː | |
que | coo | ˈkuː | |
queue | coo | ˈkuː |
Yod-coalescence
Yod-coalescence is a process that
Unlike yod-dropping, yod-coalescence frequently occurs with clusters that would be considered to span a syllable boundary and so commonly occurs before unstressed syllables. For example, in educate, the /dj/ cluster would not usually be subject to yod-dropping in General American, as the /d/ is assigned to the previous syllable, but it commonly coalesces to [dʒ]. Here are a few examples of yod-coalescence universal in all English dialects:
- /tj/ → [tʃ] in most words ending -ture, such as nature [ˈneɪtʃəɹ]
- /dj/ → [dʒ] in soldier [ˈsoʊldʒəɹ]
- /sj/ → [ʃ] in words ending with -ssure such as pressure [ˈpɹɛʃəɹ] (also in words ending with consonant+sure, consonant+sion, -tion)
- /zj/ → [ʒ] in words ending vowel+sure such as measure [ˈmɛʒəɹ] (also vowel+sion)
In some other words, the coalesced pronunciation is common in English dialects around the world, but an older non-coalesced form still exists among some speakers of standard British English:
- educate [ˈɛdʒʊkeɪt] (also in standard RP: [ˈɛdjʊkeɪt])
- azure [ˈæʒɚ] (also in RP [ˈæzjə])
- issue [ˈɪʃuː] (also in RP [ˈɪsjuː]), the intermediate form [ˈɪʃjuː] being also common
Coalescence can even occur across word boundaries, as in the colloquial "gotcha" /ˈɡɒtʃə/ (for got you /ˈɡɒtju/) and "whatcha" /ˈwɒtʃə/ (for what're you /ˈwɒtərjə/).
In certain English accents, yod-coalescence also occurs in stressed syllables, as in tune and dune. That occurs in Australian, Cockney, Estuary English, Zimbabwean English, some speakers of Hiberno-English, Newfoundland English, South African English, and to a certain extent[16] in New Zealand English, RP,[17] many speakers in Scottish English, and even some varieties of English in Asia, like Philippine English (many speakers because of the influence by the phonology of their mother languages). That results in pronunciations such as the following:
- dew/due [dʒuː] (RP: [djuː])
- tune [tʃuːn] (RP: [tjuːn])
In certain varieties such as Australian, Ugandan, and some RP,[17] stressed [sj, zj] can also coalesce:
- resume [ɹəˈʒuːm] (RP: [ɹɪˈzjuːm])
- assume [əˈʃuːm] (RP: [əˈsjuːm])
That can lead to additional homophony; for instance, dew and due come to be pronounced the same as Jew.
Yod-coalescence has traditionally been resisted in Received Pronunciation. It has certainly become established in words of the first group listed above (nature, soldier, pressure etc.), but it is not yet universal in those of the second group (educate etc.), and it does not generally occur in those of the third group (dew, tune etc.).[18]
/ɪu/ | /juː/ | IPA | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
deuce | juice | ˈdʒuːs | |
dew | Jew | ˈdʒuː | |
dewed | Jude | ˈdʒuːd | |
dual | jewel | ˈdʒuːəl | |
due | Jew | ˈdʒuː | |
duel | jewel | ˈdʒuːəl | |
duke | juke | ˈdʒuːk | |
duly | Julie | ˈdʒuːli | |
dune | June | ˈdʒuːn | |
duty | Judy | ˈdʒuːɾi | With intervocalic alveolar flapping .
|
sue | shoe | ˈʃuː | |
sue | shoo | ˈʃuː | |
suit | chute | ˈʃuːt | |
suit | shoot | ˈʃuːt | |
'tude | chewed | ˈtʃuːd |
See also
Other initial cluster reductions
Reduction of /wr/ and /wl/
Old and Middle English had an initial /wr/ cluster (note that /r/ does not denote [
As a result of this reduction, pairs of words like rap and wrap, rite and write, etc. are
Old English also had a cluster /wl/, which reduced to /l/ during Middle English. For example, the word lisp derives from Old English wlisp(ian).
Reduction of /kn/
Middle English initial /kn/ is reduced in modern English to /n/, making pairs like knot/not and knight/night homophones.
The /kn/ cluster was spelled cn- in Old English; this changed to kn- in Middle English, and this spelling survives in Modern English, despite the loss of the /k/ sound. Cognates in other Germanic languages usually still sound the initial /k/. For example, the Old English ancestor of knee was cnēo, pronounced /kneːo̯/, and the cognate word in Modern German is Knie, pronounced /kniː/.
Most dialects of English reduced the initial cluster /kn/ to /n/ relatively recently; the change seems to have taken place in educated English during the 17th century.[21] Several German-language grammars of English from the late 17th and early 18th centuries transcribed English kn- as tn-, dn-, implying that a stage of assimilation (or perhaps debuccalization to /ʔn/) preceded that of complete reduction.[22]
The cluster is preserved in some Scots dialects,[23] and Alexander John Ellis recorded it in parts of the Northern English counties of Cumbria and Northumberland in the late nineteenth century.[24]
Reduction of /ɡn/
The Middle English initial cluster /ɡn/ is reduced to /n/ in Modern English. Like the reduction of /kn/, this seems to have taken place during the seventeenth century.[25] The change affected words like gnat, gnostic, gnome, etc., the spelling with gn- being retained despite the loss of the /ɡ/ sound. The cluster is preserved in some Scots dialects.[23]
The song The Gnu jokes about this silent g and other silent letters in English. In fact the g in gnu may always have been silent in English, since this loanword did not enter the language until the late 18th century.[26] The trumpeter Kenny Wheeler wrote a composition titled Gnu High, a pun on "new high".
S-cluster reductions
In some types of
spit | → 'pit | [ˈspɪt] | → [ˈpʰɪt] |
stomach | → 'tomach | [ˈstʌmək] | → [ˈtʰʌmək] |
spend | → 'pen | [ˈspɛnd] | → [ˈpʰɛn] (also affected by final cluster reduction) |
squeeze | → 'queeze | [ˈskwiːz] | → [ˈkʰw̥iːz] |
According to Wells, these reductions occur only in the broadest creole.[27]
Final cluster reductions
NG-coalescence
NG-coalescence is a historical sound change by which the final cluster /nɡ/, pronounced [ŋɡ] (the /n/ being realized as a
The change in fact applies not only at the end of a word, but generally at the end of a
In other cases (when it is not morpheme-final), word-internal -ng- does not show the effects of coalescence, and the pronunciation [ŋɡ] is retained, as in finger and angle. This means that the words finger and singer do not rhyme in most modern varieties of English, although they did in Middle English. The process of NG-coalescence might therefore be referred to as the singer–finger
Some accents, however, do not show the full effects of NG-coalescence as described above. In these accents, sing may be found with [ŋɡ], and singer may rhyme with finger.
It is also associated with some American English accents in the New York City area.[30]
On the other hand, in some accents of the west of Scotland and Ulster, NG-coalescence is extended to morpheme-internal position, so that finger is pronounced /ˈfɪŋər/ (cf. Dutch vinger /ˈvɪŋər/), thus rhyming with singer (although the [ɡ] is not dropped before a stressed syllable, as in engage).
It is because of NG-coalescence that /ŋ/ is now normally regarded one of the
The above-mentioned accents which lack NG-coalescence may more easily be analyzed as lacking a phoneme /ŋ/. The same may apply to those where NG-coalescence is extended to morpheme-internal position, since here a more consistent [ɡ]-deletion rule can be formulated.[31]
G-dropping
G-dropping is a popular name for the feature of speech whereby /n/ is used in place of the standard /ŋ/ in
Relative to the great majority of modern dialects, which have
The pronunciation with /n/ rather than /ŋ/ is a long-established one. Old English verbs had a
Today, G-dropping is a feature of colloquial and non-standard speech of all regions, including stereotypically of
The fact that the /n/ pronunciation was formerly associated with certain upper-class speech is reflected in the phrase huntin’, shootin’ and fishin’ (used in referring to country
- Shepherd, what art thou pursuing,
- Heedless running to thy ruin?
which was presumably pronounced "shepherd, what art thou pursuin', heedless runnin' to thy ruin", although this would sound very odd in an opera today. Similarly, in the poetry of Jonathan Swift (1667–1745), -ing forms consistently rhyme with words ending in /ɪn/, as in this verse of A Ballad on the Game of Traffic, where "lining" rhymes with "fine in":
- But Weston has a new-cast gown
- On Sundays to be fine in,
- And, if she can but win a crown,
- 'Twill just new dye the lining.
Reduction of /mb/ and /mn/
In later Middle English, the final cluster /mb/ was reduced to just /m/ (the plum-plumb merger). This affects words such as lamb and plumb, as well as derived forms with suffixes, such as lambs, lambing, plumbed, plumber.
By analogy with words like these, certain other words ending in /m/, which had no historical /b/ sound, had a silent letter ⟨b⟩ added to their spelling by way of hypercorrection. Such words include limb and crumb.[35]
Where the final cluster /mn/ occurred, this was reduced to /m/ (the him-hymn merger), as in column, autumn, damn, solemn. (Compare French automne, where the cluster has been reduced to /n/.) Both sounds are nonetheless still pronounced before vowels in certain derivatives, such as columnar, autumnal, damnation, solemnity.
Generalized final cluster reduction
General reduction of final consonant clusters occurs in
Examples are:
test | → tes' | [tɛst] | → [tɛs(ˑ)] |
desk | → des' | [dɛsk] | → [dɛs(ˑ)] |
hand | → han' | [hænd] | → [hæn(ˑ)] |
send | → sen' | [sɛnd] | → [sɛn(ˑ)] |
left | → lef' | [lɛft] | → [lɛf(ˑ)] |
wasp | → was' | [wɒsp] | → [wɒs(ˑ)] |
The plurals of test and desk may become tesses and desses by the same rule that gives plural messes from singular mess.[36][37][38][39]
Medial cluster reductions
When a consonant cluster ending in a
Historically, similar reductions have taken place before syllabic consonants in certain words, leading to the silent ⟨t⟩ in words like castle and listen. This change took place around the 17th century. In the word often, the [t] sound later came to be re-inserted by some speakers as a spelling pronunciation.[41]
An earlier reduction that took place in early Middle English was the
Consonant insertions
Prince–prints merger
For many speakers, an
The epenthesis is a natural consequence of the transition from the nasal [n] to the fricative [s]; if the raising of the soft palate (which converts a nasal to an oral sound) is completed before the release of the tongue tip (which enables a fricative sound), an intervening stop [t] naturally results.[42] The merger of /ns/ and /nts/ is not necessarily complete, however; the duration of the epenthetic [t] in /ns/ has been found to be often shorter (and the [n] longer) than in the underlying cluster /nts/.[43] Some speakers preserve a clearer distinction, with prince having [ns], and prints having [nts] or [nʔs]. The epenthesis does not occur between syllables, in words like consider.[44]
Other insertions
The merger of /nz/ and /ndz/ is also possible, making bans and pens sound like bands and pends. However, this is less common than the merger of /ns/ and /nts/ described above, and in rapid speech may involve the elision of the /d/ from /ndz/ rather than epenthesis in /nz/.[45]
Epenthesis of a stop between a nasal and a fricative can also occur in other environments, for example:
- /nʃ/ may become /ntʃ/ (so pinscher is often pronounced like pincher)
- /ms/ may become /mps/ (so Samson becomes "Sampson", hamster becomes "hampster")
- /ŋs/ may become /ŋks/ (so Kingston becomes "kinkston")[45]
Epenthesis may also happen in the cluster /ls/, which then becomes /lts/, so else rhymes with belts.
An epenthetic [p] often intervenes in the cluster /mt/ in the word dreamt, making it rhyme with attempt.
Some originally epenthetic consonants have become part of the established pronunciation of words. This applies, for instance, to the /b/ in words like thimble, grumble and scramble.[35]
For the insertion of glottal stops before certain consonants, see Glottalization below.
fricative
|
affricate
|
IPA | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
Aaron's | errands | ˈɛrən(d)z | With Mary-marry-merry merger .
|
-ance | -ants | -ən(t)s | |
ANSI |
antsy | ˈæn(t)si | |
bans | bands | ˈbæn(d)z | |
Ben's | bends | ˈbɛn(d)z | |
bines | binds | ˈbaɪn(d)z | |
brans | brands | ˈbræn(d)z | |
bunce | bunts | ˈbʌn(t)s | |
Bynes | binds | ˈbaɪn(d)z | |
chance | chants | ˈtʃæn(t)s, ˈtʃɑːn(t)s | |
dense | dents | ˈdɛn(t)s | |
dense | dints | ˈdɛn(t)s | With pen-pin merger .
|
-ence | -ents | -ən(t)s | |
Erin's | errands | ˈɛrən(d)z | With weak vowel merger .
|
fines | finds | ˈfaɪn(d)z | |
fens | fends | ˈfɛn(d)z | |
Finns | fends | ˈfɪn(d)z | With pen-pin merger .
|
fins | fends | ˈfɪn(d)z | With pen-pin merger .
|
glans | glands | ˈɡlæn(d)z | |
Hans | hands | ˈhæn(d)z | Hans may also be pronounced /ˈhɑːnz/ or /ˈhɑːns/. |
Heinz | hinds | ˈhaɪn(d)z | Heinz may also be pronounced /ˈhaɪnts/. |
hence | hints | ˈhɪn(t)s | With pen-pin merger .
|
Hines | hinds | ˈhaɪn(d)z | |
inns | ends | ˈɪn(d)z | With pen-pin merger .
|
ins | ends | ˈɪn(d)z | With pen-pin merger .
|
intense | intents | ɪnˈtɛn(t)s | |
Kines |
kinds | ˈkaɪn(d)z | |
LANs | lands | ˈlæn(d)z | |
lens | lends | ˈlɛn(d)z | |
men's | mends | ˈmɛn(d)z | |
mince | mints | ˈmɪn(t)s | |
mines | minds | ˈmaɪn(d)z | |
N's; ens | ends | ˈɛn(d)z | |
patience | patients | ˈpeɪʃən(t)s | |
pawns | ponds | ˈpɑn(d)z | With cot-caught merger .
|
pens | pends | ˈpɛn(d)z | |
pins | pends | ˈpɪn(d)z | With pen-pin merger .
|
ponce | ponts | ˈpɑn(t)s | |
pons | ponds | ˈpɑn(d)z | |
presence | presents | ˈprɛzən(t)s | |
prince | prints | ˈprɪn(t)s | |
rinse | rents | ˈrɪn(t)s | With pen-pin merger .
|
sans | sands | ˈsæn(d)z | |
sense | cents | ˈsɛn(t)s | |
sense | scents | ˈsɛn(t)s | |
since | cents | ˈsɪn(t)s | With pen-pin merger .
|
since | scents | ˈsɪn(t)s | With pen-pin merger .
|
spins | spends | ˈspɪn(d)z | With pen-pin merger .
|
Stan's | stands | ˈstæn(d)z | |
tens | tends | ˈtɛn(d)z | |
tense | tents | ˈtɛn(t)s | |
tense | tints | ˈtɪn(t)s | With pen-pin merger .
|
tins | tends | ˈtɪn(d)z | With pen-pin merger .
|
Vince | vents | ˈvɪn(t)s | With pen-pin merger .
|
wans | wands | ˈwɑn(d)z | |
wens | wends | ˈwɛn(d)z | |
wens | winds (n.) | ˈwɪn(d)z | With pen-pin merger .
|
wince | Wentz | ˈwɪn(t)s | With pen-pin merger .
|
whence | Wentz | ˈwɪn(t)s | With wine-whine merger .
|
whines | winds (v.) | ˈwaɪn(d)z | With wine-whine merger .
|
wines | winds (v.) | ˈwaɪn(d)z | |
wins | wends | ˈwɪn(d)z | With pen-pin merger .
|
wins | winds (n.) | ˈwɪn(d)z | |
wyns, wynns | wends | ˈwɪn(d)z | With pen-pin merger .
|
wyns, wynns | winds (n.) | ˈwɪn(d)z |
Alterations of clusters
Assimilation
In English as in other languages,
Glottalization
While there are many accents (such as
Another possibility is pre-glottalization (or glottal reinforcement), where a glottal stop is inserted before a syllable-final stop, rather than replacing it. That can happen before /p/, /t/ and /k/ or also before the affricate /tʃ/. It can occur in RP in the same environments as those mentioned above, without the final restriction so a glottal stop may appear before the /t/, as in mattress. It can also occur before a pause as in quite! spoken alone but not in quite easy. In the case of /tʃ/, pre-glottalization is common even before a vowel, as in teacher.[48]
According to Wells, this pre-glottalization originated in the 20th century (at least, it was not recorded until then). Glottalization of /t/ spread rapidly during the 20th century.[47]
S-cluster metathesis
Final consonant clusters starting with /s/ sometimes undergo metathesis, meaning that the order of the consonants is switched. For example, the word ask may be pronounced like "ax", with the /k/ and the /s/ switched.
This example has a long history: the Old English verb áscian also appeared as acsian, and both forms continued into Middle English, the latter, metathesizing to "ask". The form axe appears in Chaucer: "I axe, why the fyfte man Was nought housband to the Samaritan?" (
S-cluster metathesis has been observed in some forms of
ask | → /ˈæks/ |
grasp | → /ˈɡræps/ |
wasp | → /ˈwɑps/ |
gasp | → /ˈɡæps/ |
Merger of /str/ and /skr/
For some speakers of
The form has been found to occur in Gullah and in the speech of some young African Americans born in the Southern United States. It is reported to be a highly stigmatized feature, with children who use it often being referred to speech pathologists.[52]
Yod-rhotacization
Yod-rhotacization is a process that occurs for some
beautiful | → [ˈbruɾɪfl̩] |
cute | → [krut] |
music | → [ˈmruzɪk] |
Compare yod-dropping and yod-coalescence, described above (and also the coil–curl merger, which features the reverse process, /r/ → /j/).
See also
- Phonological history of the English language
- Phonological history of English consonants
- Phonological history of English fricatives and affricates
- H-dropping
References
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2005-03-20. Retrieved 2005-06-14.
{{cite web}}
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- ^ Wells (1982), p. 207.
- ^ Wells (1982), p. 385.
- ISBN 0-340-70608-2.
- ^ Wells (1982), p. 206.
- S2CID 144942447.
- ^ ISBN 3-11-016746-8.
- ^ Duryee, Tricia (6 November 2011). "A Nation Divided on How to Say the Word "Coupon"". All Things D. Dow Jones & Company Inc.
- ^ "FAQ". The Pulitzer Prizes. Columbia University.
24. How is 'Pulitzer' pronounced? The correct pronunciation is 'PULL it sir.'
- ISBN 9783110208412.
- ^ Wells (1982), p. 330.
- ^ Wells (1982), p. 338.
- ISBN 9783110175325.
- ^ a b Why some say CHUBE and some say TOOB, retrieved 2023-05-04
- ^ Wells (1982), p. 247.
- ^ Jespersen, O., A Modern English Grammar on Historical Principles, vol. 1, 12.81-82.
- ^ "Ellis Atlas survival of distinction between wr- and r-". www.lel.ed.ac.uk. Retrieved 2022-05-08.
- ^ Jespersen, O., A Modern English Grammar on Historical Principles, vol. 1, 12.71.
- ^ Vietor, Wilhelm: Elemente der Phonetik und Orthoepie des Deutschen, Englischen und Französischen, 2nd ed., Heilbronn, 1887, p. 171
- ^ a b "Wir Ain Leed - Mid Northern Scots". Scots Online. Retrieved 21 March 2020.
- ^ "Ellis Atlas survival of distinction between kn- and n-". www.lel.ed.ac.uk. Retrieved 2022-05-08.
- ^ Jespersen, O., A Modern English Grammar on Historical Principles, vol. 1, 12.72.
- ^ The first recorded use of the word gnu in English dates back to 1777, according to Merriam-Webster's dictionary.
- ^ Wells (1982), p. 567.
- ^ Wells (1982), p. 188.
- ^ Bailey, George (15 December 2020). "Insertion and deletion in Northern English (ng): Interacting innovations in the life cycle of phonological processes". Journal of Linguistics. Cambridge University Press.
- ^ Wells (1982), pp. 189, 366.
- ^ Wells (1982), pp. 60–64.
- ^ Wells (1982), p. 262.
- ^ Wyld, H.C., A History of Modern Colloquial English, Blackwell 1936, cited in Wells (1982), p. 262.
- ^ Wells (1982), pp. 17, 19, 26.
- ^ a b Liberman, Anatoly (21 October 2009). "The Oddest and Dumbest English Spellings, Part 15, With a Note on Words and Things". OUP. Retrieved 28 January 2015.
- ^ a b c "Phonological Features of African American Vernacular English (AAVE)". www.rehabmed.ualberta.ca. March 17, 2001.
- ^ HLW: Word Forms: Processes: English Accents
- ^ List of AAVE features contrasting with MUSE Archived 2006-06-22 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Ebonics Notes and Discussion
- ^ Denham, K., Lobeck, A., Linguistics for Everyone: An Introduction, Cengage Learning 2012, p. 162.
- ^ Algeo, J., Butcher, C. The Origins and Development of the English Language, Cengage Learning 2013, p. 49.
- ^ Wells (1982), p. 95.
- ^ Yu, A.C.L., in The Blackwell Companion to Phonology, Wiley 2011, p. 1906.
- ^ Wells, J.C., "Some day my prints will come", John Wells's Phonetic Blog, 25 August 2010.
- ^ a b Alan Cruttenden, Gimson's Pronunciation of English, Routledge 2013, p. 99.
- ^ Nathan, G.S., Phonology: A Cognitive Grammar Introduction, John Benjamins Publishing 2008, pp. 77–78.
- ^ a b Wells (1982), p. 261.
- ^ Wells (1982), p. 260.
- ^ Online Etymology Dictionary - Ask
- ISBN 978-1-4331-2926-1.
- ISBN 978-0521891387.
- ^ Dandy, E.B., Black Communications: Breaking Down the Barriers, African American Images, 1991, p. 44.