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#85039 10/28/02 08:04 PM
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jture Offline OP
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Maybe this one's been beaten to death already ... we're all acquainted with the variant pronunciations of "[n]either" ([n]ee-ther, [n]eye-ther). Is it a regional thing? Sign me, ever-curious. :-)


#85040 10/28/02 08:31 PM
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wwh Offline
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Dear jture:Thumb your nose at anybody who questions propriety of your post. We undoubtedly
have discussed it in past, but looking it up is so laborious it is unreasonable to demand it.
And there are many newcomers who may enjoy discussing it. My dictionary gives long e,
but I have heard it both ways.


#85041 10/29/02 12:35 AM
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Maybe this one's been beaten to death already

Dunno, jture - new to me. Quick Search didn't turn up anything, but it's difficult to suss what to search for.

"You say eether, I say eye-ther
You say neether, I say neye-ther..."

I reckon it is a regional thing, with the "-eye-" sound slightly more prevalent over this side of the Pond (along with Tom-ah-to, keeping to the song ). Don't know how it pans out over that side of the Pond though. Local variations, I expect, as over here.


#85042 10/29/02 11:58 AM
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It must be a couple of years back that we had a discussion on this one, so it time enough to disinter it.

I'd agree with shona that "(n)eye-ther" is more prevalent in the UK, but (to continue the litotes usage ) "(n)ee-ther" is not uncommon.
And it seems to be based on personal preference, rather than on a regional or class base - the latter sometimes being a consideration over here, although much less so than in the past.


#85043 10/29/02 12:06 PM
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I tend to flip-flop, depending on context. Probably because the emphasis changes with pronunciation, I feel a different version "fits" better in different cases:

I don't like this weather. - Me NEE-ther!

Well, that's NEYE-ther here nor there


I think I used NEYE-ther in set phrases and NEE-ther otherwise.


#85044 10/29/02 10:04 PM
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And then there's the problem of treating it as either/or. When the Irishman was asked whether it was pronounced "ee-ther" or "eye-ther," as the story goes, he replied "Faith, and it's nay-ther!" (It's hard to type an Irish accent!)

#85045 10/30/02 11:40 AM
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> it's nay-ther!

LOL - those nay-sayers, really! I'm like Bean too - I use both versions depending on the phrasing, emphases, the current position of the constellation of Lyra, and pretty much anything else.


#85046 10/30/02 01:16 PM
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I remember my Mom singing that po-tay-to po-tah-to, to-may-to, to-mah-to, ee-ther, eye-ther song to me at a very early age. Maybe that's why I'm a swich hitter.


#85047 10/30/02 08:53 PM
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Pop me in the slot with Bean and by - I vary my pronunciation of both as well.


#85048 10/31/02 12:16 AM
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me three. or is that four?



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