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and is it still elision when whole chunks of words fall out?

i think of chitterlings(spoken: chittlins) or the town in the UK (lots of letters)- (spoken:) chumley.

(i recognize the bunch of letters that has is now called Chumley, but i can't remember at all how its spelled)

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 Originally Posted By: latishya
 Originally Posted By: The Pook

Actually to correct what I said earlier, I think from memory that elision only refers to vowels disappearing. I can't remember the word for consonants going.


The OED online does not make that distinction:

1. The action of dropping out or suppressing: a. a letter or syllable in pronunciation; b. a passage in a book or connecting links in discourse. Also, an instance of either of these. Also fig.

Well there ya go, as is so often the case, the only time I'm wrong is when I think I was wrong but I was right all along!

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 Originally Posted By: of troy
and is it still elision when whole chunks of words fall out?

i think of chitterlings(spoken: chittlins) or the town in the UK (lots of letters)- (spoken:) chumley.

(i recognize the bunch of letters that has is now called Chumley, but i can't remember at all how its spelled)

That would be Chalmondely. It's a boy's name also. Yes, pronounced Chumley.

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Reminds me of my cousin's name, St. John. We've never, ever called him that; it's "Sinjin". Brits! ;0)

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Re: Singin

Oh yes, lots of words morph like that

waistcoat (Long A/long O-> morphs to weskit (schwa/short i!)
(in US there are 2 words-waistcoat (said as spelled), and weskit, a synonym!)

grindstone (pronounces as spelled in much of the US, but in UK grinstin.. (short i/short i)

same with Hempstead (in much of US Hemp (like the fiber) and stead (like Instead)
In UK hemp it morphs into something i recognize when said.. but (i forget!) how those guys over there say it!

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 Originally Posted By: The Pook
That would be Chalmondely.

I've also seen Cholmondeley and even Chalmondesleigh.

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 Originally Posted By: of troy
Re: Singin

Oh yes, lots of words morph like that

waistcoat (Long A/long O-> morphs to weskit (schwa/short i!)
(in US there are 2 words-waistcoat (said as spelled), and weskit, a synonym!)

grindstone (pronounces as spelled in much of the US, but in UK grinstin.. (short i/short i)

Not to mention forecastle (focsle); boatswain (bosun); rowlock (rollock); forward (forr'd) and other nautical contractions.

Americans often pronounce forehead as fore head, but most of the rest of the English speaking world probably says "forrid."

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And cupboard is pronounced cubb'rd, but, with the possible exception of fo'csle none of the spellings have changed.

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 Originally Posted By: Faldage
And cupboard is pronounced cubb'rd, but, with the possible exception of fo'csle none of the spellings have changed.

Actually I've seen bosun spelled that way often.

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.

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 Originally Posted By: The Pook
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.

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