Here's my two cents as an American:
1) The word "address" (as in name, phone, address information). Should it be pronounced as ADD-ress (emphasis on "add") or add-RESS (emphases on "ress")? I could have sworn I've heard both of these. I've heard my college professor say, "please provide your name, phone and add-RESS." Then the next day I hear someone ask me, "what's your ADD-ress?" I'm confused. It's the same word (the noun, not the verb).
When address is used as a verb -- to address an assembly or address someone in conversation, I always stress the second syllable -- uh-DRESS.
However, when used as a noun, either pronunciation is perfectly acceptable and mainly a matter of personal choice. I say ADD-ress usually, but not always. So don't stress about this one -- like route and either, it can have two pronunciations and neither is more correct than the other.
2) The "W-" question words (why, what, where, when). Native speakers of American English always seem to begin these words with a slight aspirated H-sound, believe it or not. It's not my imagination. I consistently hear Americans say "h-why," "h-what," "h-when." In contrast, I always pronounce these normally, starting with the 'w' sound. Is this not
American?
As Lazar says, this is mainly a Southern tendency. Most other Americans just use the W-sound.
3) The expression "Bah! Humbug." Which of the following does this mean: Boredom, and Disbelief? Would you say this if you found something boring/dull, or would you say this to express disbelief, as in "Nonsense" or "No way"?
Lazar hit this nail on the head as well -- it's a direct Dickens reference and is only used in a certain specific context. Otherwise, it's not in common use at all.
4) Is there really a distinction between the sounds of "pool" and "pull", "fool" and "full." I ask this because my college professor (as American as they come!) often mixes them up himself. He'll often say "pool as in P-O-O-L" to make it clear what he's talking about. This tells me that the sounds are indeed almost identical even to most American-born people.
No idea what your professor is talking about. The vowel sounds in pull and pool and full and fool are very distinct in America, and I've personally never heard them confused with each other. It's not a matter of pool being pulled out into two syllables, either. They are simply as different as rat and rate.
There are a couple of words that are occasionally pronounced with either vowel, like wolf and roof, but the long OO (long U) pronunciation is far more common in those words, and the alternate pronunciation is more of a regionalism. I have never heard variations in pool or fool, though.
1) The word "address" (as in name, phone, address information). Should it be pronounced as ADD-ress (emphasis on "add") or add-RESS (emphases on "ress")? I could have sworn I've heard both of these. I've heard my college professor say, "please provide your name, phone and add-RESS." Then the next day I hear someone ask me, "what's your ADD-ress?" I'm confused. It's the same word (the noun, not the verb).
When address is used as a verb -- to address an assembly or address someone in conversation, I always stress the second syllable -- uh-DRESS.
However, when used as a noun, either pronunciation is perfectly acceptable and mainly a matter of personal choice. I say ADD-ress usually, but not always. So don't stress about this one -- like route and either, it can have two pronunciations and neither is more correct than the other.
2) The "W-" question words (why, what, where, when). Native speakers of American English always seem to begin these words with a slight aspirated H-sound, believe it or not. It's not my imagination. I consistently hear Americans say "h-why," "h-what," "h-when." In contrast, I always pronounce these normally, starting with the 'w' sound. Is this not
American?
As Lazar says, this is mainly a Southern tendency. Most other Americans just use the W-sound.
3) The expression "Bah! Humbug." Which of the following does this mean: Boredom, and Disbelief? Would you say this if you found something boring/dull, or would you say this to express disbelief, as in "Nonsense" or "No way"?
Lazar hit this nail on the head as well -- it's a direct Dickens reference and is only used in a certain specific context. Otherwise, it's not in common use at all.
4) Is there really a distinction between the sounds of "pool" and "pull", "fool" and "full." I ask this because my college professor (as American as they come!) often mixes them up himself. He'll often say "pool as in P-O-O-L" to make it clear what he's talking about. This tells me that the sounds are indeed almost identical even to most American-born people.
No idea what your professor is talking about. The vowel sounds in pull and pool and full and fool are very distinct in America, and I've personally never heard them confused with each other. It's not a matter of pool being pulled out into two syllables, either. They are simply as different as rat and rate.
There are a couple of words that are occasionally pronounced with either vowel, like wolf and roof, but the long OO (long U) pronunciation is far more common in those words, and the alternate pronunciation is more of a regionalism. I have never heard variations in pool or fool, though.