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Joined: Dec 2000
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Dec 2000
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Whilst on different pronunciations, it's interesting that North Americans say Lootenn't for Lieutenant whilst English people say Leftenant. I would say Lyewtenant or L'tenant.
Don't the English pronounce it one way for Navy lieutenants and the other for Army lieutenants?
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Joined: Feb 2008
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old hand
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old hand
Joined: Feb 2008
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Whilst on different pronunciations, it's interesting that North Americans say Lootenn't for Lieutenant whilst English people say Leftenant. I would say Lyewtenant or L'tenant.
Don't the English pronounce it one way for Navy lieutenants and the other for Army lieutenants? From wikipedia: "British naval tradition preserved an intermediate pronunciation: /lə'tɛnənt/. This is not recognized as current by the OED, however, and by 1954 the Royal Canadian Navy, at least, regarded it as "obsolescent" even while regarding "the army's 'LEF-tenant'" to be "a corruption of the worst sort"." There is no certainty as to where the labial 'f' or 'v' ending variants on the first syllable came from. OED rejects the idea that it was in Middle English from a French variant on lieu, loef. It seems more likely that it was a spelling pronunciation because 'u' and 'v' used to be interchangeable, but there is no consensus on that either.
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Joined: Feb 2008
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old hand
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old hand
Joined: Feb 2008
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boatswain (bosun); rowlock (rollock); I've always wondered why we have bosun but not coxsun (coxun?). Rowlock is "pronounced" oarlock in the US, but do you mean rollock more like ralick? I'm not sure from your spelling what is meant. In my speech, I can barely distinguish between row lock, rollock, and roll lock. I would say roll'ck (rɔlək). You would probably pronounce that rahl'ck.
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Joined: Jun 2002
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Jun 2002
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I always set the other letters down before I try to write another.
formerly known as etaoin...
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