Who pronounces "often" with "t"?

Question

In school we were taught that the right prounanciation of the word "often" is /'ofn/, but i heard ppl who say it with /t/,like Alice Cooper in one song for instance:-) So,i was wondering- in which part of the world ppl say /'oftn/?

Answer 1

During the 15th century English experienced a widespread loss of certain consonant sounds within consonant clusters, [...] the (t) in chestnut and often. In this way the consonant clusters were simplified and made easier to articulate. With the rise of public education and literacy and, consequently, people's awareness of spelling in the 19th century, sounds that had become silent sometimes were restored, as is the case with the t in often, which is now frequently pronounced. In other similar words, such as soften and listen, the t generally remains silent.

Answer 2

It's all a matter of dialects, along with personal pronounciation. I say it /oftĨn/, but it could have a very wide range. Voiceless stops like "T" get weakened or dropped alot in mid word, as it's just a hassle to pronounce, especially if it's following another stop.

I like questions like this. I would have guessed that I'd have pronounced it with an /ɛ/ rather than an /I/ until I sounded it out loud. Linguistics is fun!

Answer 3

um, I would say probably the British, maaaybe the Australians? But even though I pronounce often as "ofn" when I talk normally, when I sing I would say "of-t-en" with the -t-.

Probably a result of over-enunciating while singing?

Answer 4

According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the 't' is not pronounced. May be different in the US.

Answer 5

the Right is /ofen/

but i find some people in the school was saying "t" and the reason was very silly .....they don't want to forget the letter " t" as worrying of the exam date for not forgetting it

Answer 6

in case you're bearing on a city, city, river, state or different place outdoors of the borders of Kansas it fairly is stated as in occasion a million. in case you're bearing on the comparable in Kansas it fairly is stated as in occasion 2. in case you settle with each and every of the posters that say it fairly is solely stated as in occasion a million, then your faculties have failed you miserably......

Answer 7

Who pronounces that way?:

1) Foreign speakers

2) Natives who somehow got the idea in their heads that the written word dictates pronunciation. Also the kind of people who are so obsessed with "whom" and "my friends and I" (vs. "me and my friends") that they overuse them when they are not supposed to even by "grammar rules."

Answer 8

well i say it both ways, like when i'm at work, i say it with "T" and when i'm home i have a lazy tongue and say it "ofn"

Answer 9

I say often with the t.

Answer 10

Um... you should say it with a "t", that's why it has one.
I don't know who would teach that.
Well, I guess in school I had a teacher who said "acrost" and "heighth" - which is not a word!!