Transcription and pronunciation of the 'un-' prefix in General American English
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1
What's the correct transcription and pronunciation of the 'un-' prefix in General American English?
Cambridge Online dictionary provides the following transcription: /ʌn/
It's the same in words with this prefix: /ʌnˈdu/.
Why do they use the /ʌ/ and not the /ə/ (schwa)? It's the /ə/ sound that typically occurs in unstressed syllables.
Thank you.
pronunciation prefixes ipa negative-prefixes
asked Apr 2 at 13:14
IrinaIrina
8717
|
show 1 more comment
1
What's the correct transcription and pronunciation of the 'un-' prefix in General American English?
Cambridge Online dictionary provides the following transcription: /ʌn/
It's the same in words with this prefix: /ʌnˈdu/.
Why do they use the /ʌ/ and not the /ə/ (schwa)? It's the /ə/ sound that typically occurs in unstressed syllables.
Thank you.
pronunciation prefixes ipa negative-prefixes
asked Apr 2 at 13:14
IrinaIrina
8717
3
Your example undue has stress on both syllables, it seems to me. (Perhaps a secondary stress in the first syllable, but not unstressed.) Indeed, that often occurs... unwashed, unknown, unclean. This may explain Cambridge Online Dictionary.
– GEdgar
Apr 2 at 13:25
1
The prefix un- usually has secondary stress, so it's not reduced to a schwa: unable is not an exact homophone of enable. (Although since the majority of Americans pronounce schwa and /ʌ/ with the same vowel, the distinction will often be quite subtle. Many, if not all, of the rest of us, me included, use /ʌ/ and not /ə/ in un-.)
– Peter Shor
Apr 2 at 13:46
1
Phonemically, there's no difference between /ə/ and /ʌ/. They both name the same phoneme, at least in American English. [ʌ] -- the phone, not the phoneme -- is the allophone that occurs with primary stress, while [ə], shading off to [ɨ] or syllabic resonants, occurs most often as the allophone without primary stress. On the basic principle that the most common allophone should be the name of the phoneme, I use /ə/ instead of /ʌ/. Also, people vary considerably in their individual pronunciation of reduced vowels; individual variation usually swamps "official" pronunciations.
– John Lawler
Apr 2 at 14:48
1
@JohnLawler: so do you pronounce unable and enable in exactly the same way? For me, that's a minimal pair between /ʌ/ and /ə/.
– Peter Shor
Apr 2 at 16:35
Depends on what preceded it. If it was be or to (among the most common choices), they'd both decay to a syllabic nasal following the /y/ or /w/, and be indistinguishable outside of context.
– John Lawler
Apr 2 at 18:44
|
show 1 more comment
1
1
1
1
What's the correct transcription and pronunciation of the 'un-' prefix in General American English?
Cambridge Online dictionary provides the following transcription: /ʌn/
It's the same in words with this prefix: /ʌnˈdu/.
Why do they use the /ʌ/ and not the /ə/ (schwa)? It's the /ə/ sound that typically occurs in unstressed syllables.
Thank you.
pronunciation prefixes ipa negative-prefixes
asked Apr 2 at 13:14
IrinaIrina
8717
What's the correct transcription and pronunciation of the 'un-' prefix in General American English?
Cambridge Online dictionary provides the following transcription: /ʌn/
It's the same in words with this prefix: /ʌnˈdu/.
Why do they use the /ʌ/ and not the /ə/ (schwa)? It's the /ə/ sound that typically occurs in unstressed syllables.
Thank you.
pronunciation prefixes ipa negative-prefixes
pronunciation prefixes ipa negative-prefixes
asked Apr 2 at 13:14
IrinaIrina
8717
asked Apr 2 at 13:14
IrinaIrina
8717
asked Apr 2 at 13:14
IrinaIrina
8717
asked Apr 2 at 13:14
IrinaIrina
8717
asked Apr 2 at 13:14
IrinaIrina
8717
8717
3
Your example undue has stress on both syllables, it seems to me. (Perhaps a secondary stress in the first syllable, but not unstressed.) Indeed, that often occurs... unwashed, unknown, unclean. This may explain Cambridge Online Dictionary.
– GEdgar
Apr 2 at 13:25
1
The prefix un- usually has secondary stress, so it's not reduced to a schwa: unable is not an exact homophone of enable. (Although since the majority of Americans pronounce schwa and /ʌ/ with the same vowel, the distinction will often be quite subtle. Many, if not all, of the rest of us, me included, use /ʌ/ and not /ə/ in un-.)
– Peter Shor
Apr 2 at 13:46
1
Phonemically, there's no difference between /ə/ and /ʌ/. They both name the same phoneme, at least in American English. [ʌ] -- the phone, not the phoneme -- is the allophone that occurs with primary stress, while [ə], shading off to [ɨ] or syllabic resonants, occurs most often as the allophone without primary stress. On the basic principle that the most common allophone should be the name of the phoneme, I use /ə/ instead of /ʌ/. Also, people vary considerably in their individual pronunciation of reduced vowels; individual variation usually swamps "official" pronunciations.
– John Lawler
Apr 2 at 14:48
1
@JohnLawler: so do you pronounce unable and enable in exactly the same way? For me, that's a minimal pair between /ʌ/ and /ə/.
– Peter Shor
Apr 2 at 16:35
Depends on what preceded it. If it was be or to (among the most common choices), they'd both decay to a syllabic nasal following the /y/ or /w/, and be indistinguishable outside of context.
– John Lawler
Apr 2 at 18:44
|
show 1 more comment
3
Your example undue has stress on both syllables, it seems to me. (Perhaps a secondary stress in the first syllable, but not unstressed.) Indeed, that often occurs... unwashed, unknown, unclean. This may explain Cambridge Online Dictionary.
– GEdgar
Apr 2 at 13:25
1
The prefix un- usually has secondary stress, so it's not reduced to a schwa: unable is not an exact homophone of enable. (Although since the majority of Americans pronounce schwa and /ʌ/ with the same vowel, the distinction will often be quite subtle. Many, if not all, of the rest of us, me included, use /ʌ/ and not /ə/ in un-.)
– Peter Shor
Apr 2 at 13:46
1
Phonemically, there's no difference between /ə/ and /ʌ/. They both name the same phoneme, at least in American English. [ʌ] -- the phone, not the phoneme -- is the allophone that occurs with primary stress, while [ə], shading off to [ɨ] or syllabic resonants, occurs most often as the allophone without primary stress. On the basic principle that the most common allophone should be the name of the phoneme, I use /ə/ instead of /ʌ/. Also, people vary considerably in their individual pronunciation of reduced vowels; individual variation usually swamps "official" pronunciations.
– John Lawler
Apr 2 at 14:48
1
@JohnLawler: so do you pronounce unable and enable in exactly the same way? For me, that's a minimal pair between /ʌ/ and /ə/.
– Peter Shor
Apr 2 at 16:35
Depends on what preceded it. If it was be or to (among the most common choices), they'd both decay to a syllabic nasal following the /y/ or /w/, and be indistinguishable outside of context.
– John Lawler
Apr 2 at 18:44
3
3
Your example undue has stress on both syllables, it seems to me. (Perhaps a secondary stress in the first syllable, but not unstressed.) Indeed, that often occurs... unwashed, unknown, unclean. This may explain Cambridge Online Dictionary.
– GEdgar
Apr 2 at 13:25
Your example undue has stress on both syllables, it seems to me. (Perhaps a secondary stress in the first syllable, but not unstressed.) Indeed, that often occurs... unwashed, unknown, unclean. This may explain Cambridge Online Dictionary.
– GEdgar
Apr 2 at 13:25
1
1
The prefix un- usually has secondary stress, so it's not reduced to a schwa: unable is not an exact homophone of enable. (Although since the majority of Americans pronounce schwa and /ʌ/ with the same vowel, the distinction will often be quite subtle. Many, if not all, of the rest of us, me included, use /ʌ/ and not /ə/ in un-.)
– Peter Shor
Apr 2 at 13:46
The prefix un- usually has secondary stress, so it's not reduced to a schwa: unable is not an exact homophone of enable. (Although since the majority of Americans pronounce schwa and /ʌ/ with the same vowel, the distinction will often be quite subtle. Many, if not all, of the rest of us, me included, use /ʌ/ and not /ə/ in un-.)
– Peter Shor
Apr 2 at 13:46
1
1
Phonemically, there's no difference between /ə/ and /ʌ/. They both name the same phoneme, at least in American English. [ʌ] -- the phone, not the phoneme -- is the allophone that occurs with primary stress, while [ə], shading off to [ɨ] or syllabic resonants, occurs most often as the allophone without primary stress. On the basic principle that the most common allophone should be the name of the phoneme, I use /ə/ instead of /ʌ/. Also, people vary considerably in their individual pronunciation of reduced vowels; individual variation usually swamps "official" pronunciations.
– John Lawler
Apr 2 at 14:48
Phonemically, there's no difference between /ə/ and /ʌ/. They both name the same phoneme, at least in American English. [ʌ] -- the phone, not the phoneme -- is the allophone that occurs with primary stress, while [ə], shading off to [ɨ] or syllabic resonants, occurs most often as the allophone without primary stress. On the basic principle that the most common allophone should be the name of the phoneme, I use /ə/ instead of /ʌ/. Also, people vary considerably in their individual pronunciation of reduced vowels; individual variation usually swamps "official" pronunciations.
– John Lawler
Apr 2 at 14:48
1
1
@JohnLawler: so do you pronounce unable and enable in exactly the same way? For me, that's a minimal pair between /ʌ/ and /ə/.
– Peter Shor
Apr 2 at 16:35
@JohnLawler: so do you pronounce unable and enable in exactly the same way? For me, that's a minimal pair between /ʌ/ and /ə/.
– Peter Shor
Apr 2 at 16:35
Depends on what preceded it. If it was be or to (among the most common choices), they'd both decay to a syllabic nasal following the /y/ or /w/, and be indistinguishable outside of context.
– John Lawler
Apr 2 at 18:44
Depends on what preceded it. If it was be or to (among the most common choices), they'd both decay to a syllabic nasal following the /y/ or /w/, and be indistinguishable outside of context.
– John Lawler
Apr 2 at 18:44
|
show 1 more comment
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3
Your example undue has stress on both syllables, it seems to me. (Perhaps a secondary stress in the first syllable, but not unstressed.) Indeed, that often occurs... unwashed, unknown, unclean. This may explain Cambridge Online Dictionary.
– GEdgar
Apr 2 at 13:25
1
The prefix un- usually has secondary stress, so it's not reduced to a schwa: unable is not an exact homophone of enable. (Although since the majority of Americans pronounce schwa and /ʌ/ with the same vowel, the distinction will often be quite subtle. Many, if not all, of the rest of us, me included, use /ʌ/ and not /ə/ in un-.)
– Peter Shor
Apr 2 at 13:46
1
Phonemically, there's no difference between /ə/ and /ʌ/. They both name the same phoneme, at least in American English. [ʌ] -- the phone, not the phoneme -- is the allophone that occurs with primary stress, while [ə], shading off to [ɨ] or syllabic resonants, occurs most often as the allophone without primary stress. On the basic principle that the most common allophone should be the name of the phoneme, I use /ə/ instead of /ʌ/. Also, people vary considerably in their individual pronunciation of reduced vowels; individual variation usually swamps "official" pronunciations.
– John Lawler
Apr 2 at 14:48
1
@JohnLawler: so do you pronounce unable and enable in exactly the same way? For me, that's a minimal pair between /ʌ/ and /ə/.
– Peter Shor
Apr 2 at 16:35
Depends on what preceded it. If it was be or to (among the most common choices), they'd both decay to a syllabic nasal following the /y/ or /w/, and be indistinguishable outside of context.
– John Lawler
Apr 2 at 18:44