Why do Americans say words with a 'T' sound, like it has a 'D' in it?
Example..'Scotty'..they say 'Scoddy'
WHY ???????????????????????????????
and words begining with 'Tu', like 'Tuesday'...they say 'Toosday', not the more normal English version of it, pronounced as 'Choosday'.
Anyone who can explain this to me, please do !!!
2007-10-02 01:58:15 · 10 answers · asked by Anonymous in Education & Reference ➔ Words & Wordplay
Good observation, but hardly a complete one. Amongst anglophones there are many permutations of word usage and pronunciation. American linguistics have a particularly large gamut. In New York City, the place where jets land is the "aihpawt", not airport. Eastern Europeans frequently turn the "th" blend into a "d"...."give me dat dere". In the south, you may celebrate turning a year older on your "birfday". In this case the "th" becomes an "f". Then there are the made-up words. The plural of "you" may be said as" y'all". Throughout the southwest, a mixture of English and Spanish referred to as "Spanglish" is widely used.
Note - none of these observations are meant in any derogatory sense. They are just observations I think most would acknowledge as true.
2007-10-02 02:42:36 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Sure, but Scotty doesn't really have a "d" sound. It has a kind of flap, like the one found in the word "ladder." It's a quick touch of the tongue on the roof of the mouth.
And now Tuesday. Ballet dancers in America wear tutus, not chewchews, and we whistle a happy tune, not a happy chune. If we need help with our studies, we hire a tutor, not a chewtor. British people undoubtedly say Chewsday for some important reason, but I just don't know what it might be... Maybe it has something to do with the Tudor Monarchs, or is that the Chewdoor Monarchs?
2007-10-02 09:18:35 · answer #2 · answered by Insanity 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
As for the double consanant in Scotty (tt), it is just a matter of diction and dialect. Americans do not put as much emphasis on the syllables as the British do. We are saying the double t, but it sounds like d. As for Tuesday, the normal English version in America is pronouncing the T as a T. I need you to explain why you would pronounce a T as a CH? So, different country, different pronunciation.
2007-10-02 09:04:05 · answer #3 · answered by Smooch The Pooch 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
People have different accents for the English language all over the world in every different country where English is spoken.
Just take a trip around London alone and you will find at least 10 different styles of inflections, accents, colloquialisms and word usage.
Why do Scottish people say "mean" when they mean "main"?
Same thing.
2007-10-02 09:09:27 · answer #4 · answered by KD 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Different regions of the U.S. have different pronunciations. Our pronunciations are heavily influence by people from all parts of the world who come to the U.S. to live, and so you will see a wide variety of pronunciations.
As to "normal" pronunciations - linguists have determined that American English is a lot closer to what was spoken before the two countries diverged (especially in the southern U.S.), that that presently spoken in England - so it's a little silly to try and call any pronunciation "normal," "abnormal," "right," or "wrong" - we're all just different.
2007-10-02 10:11:51 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
London and Glasgow are a lot closer than London and New York; yet the differences in speech - at least among educated people , are even greater. I realize that the World would be a far better place if everybody did things your way. Alas, other people think their ways are pretty good too.
2007-10-02 09:10:05 · answer #6 · answered by picador 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You're describing a "Brooklyn" accent (a part of New York City). Regional accents are said to be disappearing in the USA, but they are far from gone at this time.
2007-10-02 17:03:16 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
You are listening to one group of people from the USA who have a particular accent. Generalizing and putting every single person in the USA in that group is naive. Not everyone in the USA speaks with that accent.
That would be like saying all people from the UK have bad teeth. A bad sterotype and generalization.
2007-10-02 09:06:27 · answer #8 · answered by thunder2sys 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
English is spoken differently in different countries. The languages developed by themselves and were not chosen by the people.
Can we asoom that?
2007-10-02 10:42:17 · answer #9 · answered by cidyah 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
What Americans are YOU talking to? I know know any who do any of this. Where are you located at? "America" is a big place. There is no one way that they talk. Just remember this: accents are relative. YOU have one and say things that THEY thing is odd, too! I guarantee it.
2007-10-02 09:03:24 · answer #10 · answered by Mr. Taco 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋