(Untitled)

[sacramentalist]

Do you pronounce "toward" with one or two syllables? Dictionary.com says one. Has my English been out of step with the rest of the world?

Also, do you pronounce the t in kitchen? I argue it's there. My grade 2 teacher says no. It's time I lay this to rest.

If Mrs Laforet is still alive, imma gonna prank call her.

Comments

[ecosopher]

With two. I think with one is an Americanism (but I could be wrong -- pretty sure everyone here says it with two. Also we add an 's' to the end).

How else can you say kitchen without pronouncing the t? Kishen?

You should totally prank call her, and just repeat 'kitchen' over and over.

[sacramentalist]

I noticed this because untoward is pronounced "un-tawrd" on dictionary.com . I think this is wrong.

[pen_grunt]

See...when it's untoward I almost always do un-tow-ord. But toward is just tward.

[ecosopher]

Yeah, I pronounce untoward with three distinct syllables too.

[pen_grunt]

Toward as one, most of the time (I argue that one can take poetic license with that).

Kitchen...the t is very faint, but there.

Do you pronounce hard ts in button?

[sacramentalist]

It's not a hard t, but a distinct pause. But the rest is sloppy, I guess, "Butn".

My accent is a hybrid of US and Canadian influences, eh?

[pen_grunt]

I'm not sure where the break is region-wise, but d's slightly stronger accent means he pronounces button as butt-in (very distinct ts) while everyone else I know does the glottal flop thing so it's a very soft t. Butn.

[sacramentalist]

I can't judge "tawrd", as I'm lazy with the syllables. Honestly, I didn't realize the 2nd syllable in Dorothy until later in life. I kind of thought it was "Darr-thee". And Wizard of Oz, they clearly pronounce the 2nd syllable, so I don't know where I picked that up. And many people say "pam-plet" instead of "pam-flet". But that's their per-aw-guh-tive.

[tediousandbrief]

Normally, I pronounce it with one syllable.

The "t" in kitchen is silent.

[sacramentalist]

You're in Illinois?

[tediousandbrief]

Northwest Indiana.

And, as we are talking about silent letters, the "s" in "Illinois" is silent, too.

[sacramentalist]

Tell that to Sufjan Stevens, hoosier!

[libco]

Two syllables but very slurry. Almost but not quite t'ward

[sacramentalist]

Way to sit on the fence, lady! Haha

[bronnyelsp]

Tuh-WARD. (Schwa in the unstressed syllable.). I don't know if the "t" is silent. It's not there as a "t," but it's part of the "ch" sound, like in "pitch." But then, that rhymes with "rich." So, yeah, I guess it is silent.

[sacramentalist]

You're fancy. Do you syllablize suffixes, ie, "...like a strip-ed pair of pants." My sister does. And she very distinctly pronounces the t in kit-ten.