''Aaron'' and ''Erin'' are different for me:
Aaron = /{r@n/
Erin = /ErIn/
Aaron = /{r@n/
Erin = /ErIn/
Pronouncing ''marry'' and ''Mary'' as /me@ri/ is not silly.
<<I wasn't asking if it surprised you that I distinguish ''horse'' and ''hoarse', but if it surprised you that I actually had thought for a while that the rhyme on the Mr. Ed song ''horse'' and ''course'' was just a lousy attempt at rhyming.>>
No, I think a reaction like that can be expected when somebody has never heard of a certain phonemic merger before. I think that my reaction to the flea and tick medication commercial, for example, was similar.
No, I think a reaction like that can be expected when somebody has never heard of a certain phonemic merger before. I think that my reaction to the flea and tick medication commercial, for example, was similar.
British ''marry'' and ''Mary'' sound mahry [mari] to my ears. but merry is [meri].
<<British ''marry'' and ''Mary'' sound mahry [mari] to my ears. but merry is [meri].>>
I don't know of anywhere in Britain where "marry" and "Mary" are the same, though there may be somewhere.
In my accent "marry" is [marI] and "merry" is [mErI]. "Mary" is somewhere in between (but closer to "merry") and has a considerably longer vowel.
I don't know of anywhere in Britain where "marry" and "Mary" are the same, though there may be somewhere.
In my accent "marry" is [marI] and "merry" is [mErI]. "Mary" is somewhere in between (but closer to "merry") and has a considerably longer vowel.
<<I don't know of anywhere in Britain where "marry" and "Mary" are the same, though there may be somewhere.>>
No, I've never heard of the Mary-merry-marry merger occurring (even partially) in Britain.
<<In my accent "marry" is [marI] and "merry" is [mErI]. "Mary" is somewhere in between (but closer to "merry") and has a considerably longer vowel.>>
The conventional British transcription for "Mary" is [mE@rI].
No, I've never heard of the Mary-merry-marry merger occurring (even partially) in Britain.
<<In my accent "marry" is [marI] and "merry" is [mErI]. "Mary" is somewhere in between (but closer to "merry") and has a considerably longer vowel.>>
The conventional British transcription for "Mary" is [mE@rI].
I was made fun of because i pronounce mail and male the same. what accents make a fine distinction between the 2???
As for "mail" and "male", I myself don't know of any North American English dialects which distinguish the two at all.
<<I was made fun of because i pronounce mail and male the same. what accents make a fine distinction between the 2???>>
<<As for "mail" and "male", I myself don't know of any North American English dialects which distinguish the two at all.>>
I pronounce ''mail'' and ''male'' differently, but I'm not from North America.
<<As for "mail" and "male", I myself don't know of any North American English dialects which distinguish the two at all.>>
I pronounce ''mail'' and ''male'' differently, but I'm not from North America.
<<I pronounce ''mail'' and ''male'' differently, but I'm not from North America.>>
Is that you, Don/Space Flight?
Is that you, Don/Space Flight?
I'm an American from a region of the United States in which all three of ''Mary'', ''marry'' and ''merry'' are pronounced differently.
<<I was made fun of because i pronounce mail and male the same. what accents make a fine distinction between the 2???>>
Who made fun of you? Was it one person, or a group of people?
Who made fun of you? Was it one person, or a group of people?
<<No, I'm not Don/Space Flight. Why do you ask?>>
Because he's had a habit of making up different personas and having conversations with himself. The most significant of his personas (Don) was somebody who made the "mail-male" distinction. It's a pretty rare distinction even in the British Isles, so I just felt a little suspicious...
Because he's had a habit of making up different personas and having conversations with himself. The most significant of his personas (Don) was somebody who made the "mail-male" distinction. It's a pretty rare distinction even in the British Isles, so I just felt a little suspicious...