When I was growing up we pronounced the word AUNT as "ant". For the last several decades I've noticed that many people, including in films , pronounce AUNT as "ont". Where did that come from and how do you pronounce it ?
I think "ont" is common in areas where they have maintained closer ties to British heritage. We always said "ant." Old time actors and actresses used to have a different way of saying many things. Maybe it was a carry over from old stage performances.
One that confuses me is "short-lived." I always said "lived" as in, "I lived in an apartment." Some people pronounce "lived" with a long i, as is "alive" I guess both are acceptable.
Funny, I was just thinking of this subject a while ago regarding the word "again." With one exception, everyone I've known pronounces it uh-gen. Only one friend pronounced it ā-gain. edit to add: The second way is pronounced with 3 syllables: ā-gā-in Regarding "aunt"...I was raised on the opposite side of the track from people who pronounced it "ont." I say "ant."
How about "route?" I am strange; when I'm referring to a highway, I say "root" (Route 66), but when I'm asking for directions I say "rowt." Hmmmm.
I used both, as goofy as that sounds. I'm trying to think if there are certain contexts for each pronunciation, or if I do it randomly. I'm kinda thinking that I would use the "lived in an apartment" pronunciation if I were referring to an event, and the "alive" [life] pronunciation if I were referring to a living creature/behaviour.
Pleasure, for me, it's not "pleh-zure" because it's not a "z" sound. It's an "s" sound, but more like "pleh-shuer," but with a soft "s" sound.
Yeh, I tried to work a "szh" sound in there. I guess I could have looked up the phonetic spelling(s). plEzhUHR ple-zhər plezh-er Interesting how zh represents a hard sh sound.
I have to say, I have never heard anyone say "play-zure." And "vase" is pronounced vace... not vahse.
I was watching an old movie last night when a character pronounced "pleasure" that way. I'm not certain I had ever heard it like that before, either. And I agree about the flower container...unless I got one for sale. Then it's a vahse.