is it 'bin' and 'et' or 'been' and 'ate'?

Question

Some people (many on tv) say 'bin' instead of 'been' and 'et instead of 'ate'. Is this correct?

Answer 1

In the dictionary I have here, both pronunciations of "been" ("bin" and "bean") are given, but for "ate" it has only "et".

I think the normal pronunciation (weak form) of "been" is "bin" and we use "bean" (the strong form) for emphasis, as in:

-Are you going to the shop?
-No, I've just BEEN.

I would add that I'm talking about British English.

Answer 2

I thought that 'bin' was the correct pronunciation of 'been' but I do know that that's one of the words that ends up on regional dialect surveys. I've always said 'bin' and I can't really pronounce it any other way. Would another pronunciation be similar to 'bean'?

I've rarely heard someone say 'et, rather than 'ate'. 'et is not correct. Most everyone I know says 'ate' (sounds like 'eight')

Answer 3

I would say "bin" and "ate".

I don't think I have ever heard a person from the US (who is not affecting an accent) say "BEEN" as if it were the word "BEAN." I think "bin" is an extremely common pronunciation, at least in the US. In some parts of English they may say "bean."

As for "et" vs "ate", I think "et" is accepted by most people as non-standard; this doesn't imply that nobody uses it, however. People may say jokingly "I still ain't et!" but I think most people would not find it standard.

Answer 4

I say bin and et.

To the people who comment about "ate" being the more RP/correct/Queen's English version - I'd actually dispute this. Aristocratic and period use was always "et" - Jane Austen uses it, as do many Victorian authors. You can also hear it in old BBC Radio broadcasts, which were typically very "posh".

Answer 5

Well it's not received pronunciation to say 'bin' and 'et', I think it is supposed to be 'been' and 'ate.' Some people are lazy in their speech, or it may be their dialect, also, I guess we have to recognise languages change and develop with the times, words are said differently now to how they would of been in 1900 say, maybe 'bin' and 'et' is the way forward

Answer 6

I speak in received pronunciation (RP, the 'Queen's English') and say 'been' (as in bean) for been and 'et' for ate, as did most traditional RP speakers. (My Shorter Oxford English Dictionary says "et, occas. eit"). But even if 'et' is the 'old correct' pronunciation, many RP speakers and most Southern English speakers now say 'eit' - it's the 'new correct' pronunciation and 'et' sounds a bit old-fashioned.

I believe that 'eit' was originally a 'spelling pronunciation', a pronunciation adopted by people because they thought their own pronunciation wrong because it didn't match the spelling of the word. I forget the source - possibly the language column in the Spectator.

'eit' is also the standard US pronunciation of ate - see the Columbia Guide to Standard American English.

Answer 7

I say bin and et. But then Im a Northerner. I also miss out 'the' and substitute it with 't' eg 'Im goin into 't' kitchen. I miss off aitches (h's) at the beginning of words too. Nonetheless, having had an excellent education, I can construct a grammatical and correctly spelled sentence when necessary. But it's all a sham, Im as common as muck.

Answer 8

John L is completely right. A few hundred years ago it was correct to say 'ate', then the fashion changed in RP to 'et' and it appears to have changed back now.

Answer 9

Yeh.It depends on were you come from.Different pronunciations for different parts of the country.It's called regional dialect and many would argue that to pronounce the words like this is wrong but it treally is a matter of opinion.

Answer 10

ich BIN einzelkind!! ET je suis fils unique