Things you always wanted to know the answer to [Vol. 5]
Discussion
I'm a native English speaker. Yet we have some very strange pronunciation.
For example, i is u, e is i or u, a can be i or not.
Deck becomes dick, eggs become icx, can becomes kin, seven becomes sivin and ten becomes tin. Fish and chips becomes fush and chups.
And then words have different meanings, a dairy is a corner shop. Doesn't matter if it sells dairy products or not. Sweets are lollies, whether there's any lolly or not. Flip flops are jandals (Japanese sandals) and the Aussies call them thongs.
All very confusing!
For example, i is u, e is i or u, a can be i or not.
Deck becomes dick, eggs become icx, can becomes kin, seven becomes sivin and ten becomes tin. Fish and chips becomes fush and chups.
And then words have different meanings, a dairy is a corner shop. Doesn't matter if it sells dairy products or not. Sweets are lollies, whether there's any lolly or not. Flip flops are jandals (Japanese sandals) and the Aussies call them thongs.
All very confusing!
I think there's a difference between using correct pronunciation of foreign words and adopting an exaggerated accent for no reason, which is something that my ears only hear English people doing. I can pronounce "Didier Deschamps" correctly without a French accent. My 'p' might be a bit harsh, but Europeans often speak using English words but their native letter sounds (e.g. a Spanish 'j' or a German 'w') and it's still perfectly understandable and basically perfect conversational English. I don't think they sound stupid, but I think English-speaking people think themselves stupid without trying really hard to sound like they're genuinely French, Spanish, etc.
British insecurity, clearly!
British insecurity, clearly!
Edited by horsemeatscandal on Thursday 4th July 08:56
I learned Norwegian while living there in the 70s. I wouldn't claim complete fluency but I got very proficient. Many years later I knew a Norwegian lady who had married a Brit and settled here. She liked to talk with me in her own language but, coming from Oslo, she thought my heavy Bergen accent was hilarious. I wasn't even aware of it.
Similarly Mrs 404s South American cousins are highly amused by my Andaluciano Spanish.
But I have no trouble being understood and that's the whole point of the exercise isn't it?
Except Newfies. No idea what they're on about even when they claim to be speaking English.
Similarly Mrs 404s South American cousins are highly amused by my Andaluciano Spanish.
But I have no trouble being understood and that's the whole point of the exercise isn't it?
Except Newfies. No idea what they're on about even when they claim to be speaking English.
Jordie Barretts sock said:
I'm a native English speaker. Yet we have some very strange pronunciation.
For example, i is u, e is i or u, a can be i or not.
Deck becomes dick, eggs become icx, can becomes kin, seven becomes sivin and ten becomes tin. Fish and chips becomes fush and chups.
And then words have different meanings, a dairy is a corner shop. Doesn't matter if it sells dairy products or not. Sweets are lollies, whether there's any lolly or not. Flip flops are jandals (Japanese sandals) and the Aussies call them thongs.
All very confusing!
I hail from 3 degrees Lat North of you & share those linguistic peculiarities. I reckon a lot of people speaking the same ( at least nominally) language understand people better in a foreign setting when they're familiar with that foreign setting's film & tv.For example, i is u, e is i or u, a can be i or not.
Deck becomes dick, eggs become icx, can becomes kin, seven becomes sivin and ten becomes tin. Fish and chips becomes fush and chups.
And then words have different meanings, a dairy is a corner shop. Doesn't matter if it sells dairy products or not. Sweets are lollies, whether there's any lolly or not. Flip flops are jandals (Japanese sandals) and the Aussies call them thongs.
All very confusing!
I can understand English & American ( seen loads of it on the tube, from Coro/ Trainspotting etc to Hillstreet Blues/ Clint Eastwood etc).
However, when I first went to USA ( Boston) I had to say everything 3 times, really slowly to be understood. Nobody in Boston has seen TVNZ product/ is familiar with Kiwispeak.
I've also lived in Germany, the regional differences are huge - same as within the UK. A Geordie sounds nothing like person from southern Kent. Having seen tv shows from both, I can understand both without difficulty. A former girlfriend from Denver couldn't cope with Trainspotting at all.
paua said:
However, when I first went to USA ( Boston) I had to say everything 3 times, really slowly to be understood. Nobody in Boston has seen TVNZ product/ is familiar with Kiwispeak.
That's a good point. Loads of people in the UK struggle to understand some of the stronger accents from other areas of the same country. I have to temper my Cumbrian accent in some places; it's not particularly strong but I've had a few confused looks before. Maddest English-speaking accent I ever heard was in Limerick. I love an accent but they're dying out. One of the many reasons I don't like going to Manchester anymore is because the Manc accent is disappearing and being replaced that generic, upspeak-y, university student voice. Felt a bit like that last time I was in Newcastle, made me sad.
horsemeatscandal said:
One of the many reasons I don't like going to Manchester anymore is because the Manc accent is disappearing and being replaced that generic, upspeak-y, university student voice. Felt a bit like that last time I was in Newcastle, made me sad.
This is a good point.The university accent is wrongly aligned with being a 'posh' accent. All that's happened is a bunch of kids from all over the place arrive in one place and live there for a few years. Accents are neutralised to enable a lad from Newcastle to understand a lass from Plymouth and some mates from Wales and a tutor from Kent. What you end up with is this neutral accent. More kids going to uni means more of this in society and whether we like it or not, how we speak is influenced by those around us.
My wife is a Yorkshire lass (though hasn't lived there since she was 12) but I find myself using words like Baahth (Bath) or Gaaghse (Grass) which obviously is wrong, the correct Essex pronunciation as anyone knows is Barf and Grarse
horsemeatscandal said:
That's a good point. Loads of people in the UK struggle to understand some of the stronger accents from other areas of the same country.
My wife is Irish and one of our friends is Scottish. Amusingly they share very similar sense of humour and clearly have some sort of 'Celtic connection'.That said, when he's had a few beers and his Glaswegian accent thickens a bit, she can't understand a word he's saying!
Does anyone know if the colour of the front door at 10 Downing Street could be changed to show the colour of the current party in power? Being black it makes the place look dull and dreary at the best of times. For example if Labour were to win the election would they be allowed to give the front door a new coat of red paint along with some hanging baskets to brighten the place up a little? 
Gladers01 said:
Does anyone know if the colour of the front door at 10 Downing Street could be changed to show the colour of the current party in power? Being black it makes the place look dull and dreary at the best of times. For example if Labour were to win the election would they be allowed to give the front door a new coat of red paint along with some hanging baskets to brighten the place up a little?
It's a listed building so they would have to ask the conservation officer at Westminster Council, who would probably say no.hidetheelephants said:
Gladers01 said:
Does anyone know if the colour of the front door at 10 Downing Street could be changed to show the colour of the current party in power? Being black it makes the place look dull and dreary at the best of times. For example if Labour were to win the election would they be allowed to give the front door a new coat of red paint along with some hanging baskets to brighten the place up a little?
It's a listed building so they would have to ask the conservation officer at Westminster Council, who would probably say no.The thing I always wanted to know the answer to since voting at lunchtime is why there was a masked nutter with both a semi-pro camera and a body cam filming everyone going into the polling station ?
I challenged him and he muttered something about it being for interest only. I don't think my ward has any interesting candidates living in it so there isn't any journalist angle, and presumably he would have claimed that if so.
Newc said:
Crown estate though, no ? So lots of planning regs don't apply.
The thing I always wanted to know the answer to since voting at lunchtime is why there was a masked nutter with both a semi-pro camera and a body cam filming everyone going into the polling station ?
I challenged him and he muttered something about it being for interest only. I don't think my ward has any interesting candidates living in it so there isn't any journalist angle, and presumably he would have claimed that if so.
As you say, nutter, likely with full tinfoil wardrobe, and with a pocket full of permanent markers to issue to 'prevent' electoral officers amending ballot papers...The thing I always wanted to know the answer to since voting at lunchtime is why there was a masked nutter with both a semi-pro camera and a body cam filming everyone going into the polling station ?
I challenged him and he muttered something about it being for interest only. I don't think my ward has any interesting candidates living in it so there isn't any journalist angle, and presumably he would have claimed that if so.
Gladers01 said:
Does anyone know if the colour of the front door at 10 Downing Street could be changed to show the colour of the current party in power? Being black it makes the place look dull and dreary at the best of times. For example if Labour were to win the election would they be allowed to give the front door a new coat of red paint along with some hanging baskets to brighten the place up a little?
I think there are rules about using govermnet property for political campaignin purposes so this might apply. Usually you hear about it when MP's 'accidentally' send campaign letters to their constituents with parlimentary letterheads and postage.Johnspex said:
Definitely not something I've always wanted to know as it only happened about noon today. I was in North Devon looking towards the sky but I don't know in which direction and I saw a large passenger aircraft being escorted by 4 fighters.
Any idea what I might have seen?
RAF air-to-air tankers are a militarised version of the Airbus A330, at least one of them has a union-jack livery so probably looks quite civilian.Any idea what I might have seen?
hidetheelephants said:
Johnspex said:
Definitely not something I've always wanted to know as it only happened about noon today. I was in North Devon looking towards the sky but I don't know in which direction and I saw a large passenger aircraft being escorted by 4 fighters.
Any idea what I might have seen?
RAF air-to-air tankers are a militarised version of the Airbus A330, at least one of them has a union-jack livery so probably looks quite civilian.Any idea what I might have seen?
https://www.raf.mod.uk/news/articles/vip-raf-voyag...
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