#92211
01/15/2003 7:29 PM
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Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 5
stranger
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stranger
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 5 |
What is the word for the letter "U"? I know letters in the English alphabet have names: B=bee, C=cee, H=aitch, J=jay, and so on. Here's why I want to know: a guy I work with has claimed there are four elements to this homophone: wright, rite, right, & write, and that is the only homophone with four spellings. A lot rides on my finding that "U" is spelled differently from you, ewe, or yew.
davy jones
davy jones
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#92212
01/15/2003 9:16 PM
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Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 6,511
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 6,511 |
I can't think of another spelling (but wait -- surely others will chime in). I do want to tell you how wonderful I think it is to have a co-worker who thinks about such things!  Welcome.
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#92213
01/15/2003 10:18 PM
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Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 13,858
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 13,858 |
Dear wentworth: I searched but was unable to find "names" for the letters, Just short
approximations of how they are said. My dictionary gives pronunciation "yoo".
Isn't that as good as the "names" you gave?
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#92214
01/15/2003 11:51 PM
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Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 10,542
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 10,542 |
I'd have to agree with dr. bill: there is no "standard" spelling, esp. for the vowels, which you could say spell their own name!
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#92215
01/16/2003 8:53 AM
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Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 1,027
old hand
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old hand
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 1,027 |
Hi Wentworth,
"U" is spelled differently from you, ewe, or yew. Your bet hinges on the question of whether a letter of the alphabet is a bona fide word, because homophones refer to words. Your concept of "names" for letters is probably not widely accepted.
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#92216
01/16/2003 10:45 AM
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Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 13,803
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 13,803 |
Your concept of "names" for letters is probably not widely accepted.
OED lists cee as the name for the letter C and aitch for the letter H. I found no letter names starting with double and a few others I would have expected to find, namely jay and ay, were absent, but certainly the concept of letter names is not totally unknown. Greek, Hebrew and Arabic have full up sets of registered letter names.
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#92217
01/16/2003 3:37 PM
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Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 5
stranger
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stranger
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 5 |
Yeah, I know 'name' was not a particularly apt designation, and I really didn't mean it as a concept; 'word' is the word I meant. Thanks.
davy jones
davy jones
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#92218
01/16/2003 4:07 PM
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Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 13,803
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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'name' was not a particularly apt designation
I don't see anything wrong with 'name', but that's not the point of the question. The question is whether there are more homophones with four or more variant spellings than just [rait].
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#92219
01/16/2003 5:40 PM
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Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 1,156
old hand
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old hand
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 1,156 |
[rait]
or [r {small-letter-which-looks-like-a-capital-lambda} it] if you're Canadian.
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#92220
02/05/2003 2:41 PM
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Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 13,803
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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If you're still around, wentworth, you might consider, ay, aye, eye and I. They're all in Merriam-Webster, but be warned that you have to go to the second entry on aye to get the homophonic one.
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#92221
02/05/2003 2:57 PM
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Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 13,858
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 13,858 |
Dear wentworth: Faldage is giving yew good advice.
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