Why is sugar spelled without an h?
Etymologists are unsure about why the transition from the French sucre to the English sugar has resulted in the pronunciation of it with an sh instead of s sound. Some have theorised that this is because sugar was initially pronounced syugar, leading it to become an sh sound as it has in sure and pressure.
Why is sure pronounced with SH?
Why does s sound like it is saying “sh” in sure? In “sure,” the /s/ sound “assimilates” to the following U sound, taking a shape closer to that sound and pronounced in the same area of the mouth so that it is easier to say. Other sounds, such as /t/, /d/, and /z/, also assimilate before a U in some words.
What is the hardest letter to pronounce in English?
“R” is the hardest single letter sound to master. Many English speakers never do. In British English, it’s omitted entirely when it’s in the middle or at the end of words, and many English speakers substitute a “W” sound which is actually very close.
Why are English vowels so complicated?
Essentially, linguists believe that over the course of three centuries, from around the 15th to 18th century, the pronunciation of long vowels of English changed so that they were pronounced using a lower part of the tongue and mouth to a higher part.
How do you pronounce the w sound in a word?
In most words the /w/ sound is simply spelled with the letter w but some. words need wh. In some parts of the UK, especially Scotland, you will still hear words such as. when pronounced as /hwen/, wheel pronounced as /hweel/. However, most times, you cannot hear a clue to help with the spelling.
Why is the word ‘sword’ pronounced with a W?
Just a theory: As sword is a thing of knights and noblemen. The silent w may be due to Norman-French pronunciation habits and this pronunciation was generally accepted.
Why is not there in some words?
In three cases, andsƿarian > answer, sƿeord > sword, tƿa > two, is there, but not pronounced. On the other hand, (or its OE <ƿ>) is not there in some words because they were not pronounced by the time printing took over: OE sƿilch > such, sƿa > so
Is it possible to pronounce the /W/ as a hypercorrection?
I have actually heard someone pronounce the /w/, and not facetiously. It must be rather rare, though, and I might say it’s a hypercorrection. In any case, my guess is that [wɔ] and [wo] have a tendency to become [ɔː] and [oʊ] in the neighbourhood of consonants such as [s] that don’t change much in the presence of labialisation.