Local words or phrases that you hate

[shoney]

I think the PP's point was no one in the NY area would ever say "in LI". And since Ray Romano is from here he should know that.

I'm not the PP but I agree.

TMZ has a habit of saying it as well. "We caught so and so in Long Island over the weekend." It should be "on Long Island Or in the Hamptons".

I guess the opposite is true of "the city", aka Manhattan.

we go to the city.
my husband works in the city.

You would not say "on the city or on Manhattan".

 

[shoney]

There is a big difference between Don and Dawn.

There is also a clear difference between mary, merry and marry for us.


I found this youtube clip that tries to explain the differences....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LulbKb5fOgc

 

[KristaTX]

Interesting-do they sound the same to you when people who pronounce them differently say them? They are long a, short e, short a to me.

Either I can't distinguish the sounds, or I've never been around anyone who pronounces Mary/merry/marry differently.

So do people in some parts of the U.S. pronounce Mary and/or marry like how British people say Harry (rhyming with "tarry" as in the black sticky stuff)? I'm thinking of how Hermione says Harry Potter's first name. Is that how you say Mary and or marry?

 

[msjprincess]

Either I can't distinguish the sounds, or I've never been around anyone who pronounces Mary/merry/marry differently.

So do people in some parts of the U.S. pronounce Mary and/or marry like how British people say Harry (rhyming with "tarry" as in the black sticky stuff)? I'm thinking of how Hermione says Harry Potter's first name. Is that how you say Mary and or marry?

Mary rhymes with hairy and dairy
Marry rhymes with Harry and Barry
Merry rhymes with very and berry

 

[KristaTX]

Mary rhymes with hairy and dairy Marry rhymes with Harry and Barry Merry rhymes with very and berry

That doesn't help those of us for whom every single one of those words completely rhymes . This always comes up in these threads!

 

[JVL1018]

Either I can't distinguish the sounds, or I've never been around anyone who pronounces Mary/merry/marry differently. So do people in some parts of the U.S. pronounce Mary and/or marry like how British people say Harry (rhyming with "tarry" as in the black sticky stuff)? I'm thinking of how Hermione says Harry Potter's first name. Is that how you say Mary and or marry?

I say Mary like a female horse plus an Ee sound: Mare-Ee
I say marry like Harry and Barry, not like tarry though. LOL hmm.. Kind of like a sheep's Baaaa sound-marry

 

[shoney]

That doesn't help those of us for whom every single one of those words completely rhymes . This always comes up in these threads!

LOl...it is so hard to explain.

I found this explanation on youtube. (it does contain f-bombs)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kk55w0M6Kl8


Here is another less colorful one...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=py0gxuv48iUhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kk55w0M6Kl8

 

[mumto3girls]

That doesn't help those of us for whom every single one of those words completely rhymes . This always comes up in these threads!

Yes! For me, every one of this words rhymes and Don and Dawn also sound exactly the same. I am off to watch the you tube video up thread to educate myself!

 

[EMom]

Ahhhh.....the Mary, merry, marry debate. In the part of TX I am from, Mary and merry sound the same, but marry is very different. The first two are "eh" and the third is "ah." As for Dawn and Don, they are virtually the same, except Dawn has a longer, more drawn out "ahhh." To pronounce it with the "w" sound would require contortion and an imitation of the women on Coffee Talk.

 

[cybrkitn]

I'm not the PP but I agree.

TMZ has a habit of saying it as well. "We caught so and so in Long Island over the weekend." It should be "on Long Island Or in the Hamptons".

I guess the opposite is true of "the city", aka Manhattan.

we go to the city.
my husband works in the city.

You would not say "on the city or on Manhattan".

I say I live "on" Long Island and use "in" the City when visiting NYC.

 

[cybrkitn]

I also usually say Dawn and Don and ahhh and awe the same way, but I *can*say them differently if I try. I do say awwww (as in cute kittens) slightly differently from ahhh and awe. But if I do that do Dawn I sound like I'm on the old "Coffee Talk" SNL skit . "Cawwwfeee".

Now that would be with a real heavy accent! I don't say it that heavy. I say it as "C-Off-E".

<singing> I say "two-may-toe" you say "two-mot-toe", let's call the whole thing off.

Sorry, I couldn't resist

 

[DisneyDreamer2504]

Okay, so I had to watch a bunch of those videos, and read a few articles on dialects to really understand. To me, they are all the same and it never occurred to me that others would say them differently, or feel so strongly about it. If I were speaking to someone and they spoke that way, I'd think.....what a strange accent! I think that I speak without much accent of any kind, though the longer I live in nyc that is changing somewhat. When looking through regional pronunciations, I found that I use many of the examples interchangeably. No one is really wrong or right though! I am curious how foreigners are taught these things....no wonder so many think our language is ridiculous!

 

[msjprincess]

Okay, so I had to watch a bunch of those videos, and read a few articles on dialects to really understand. To me, they are all the same and it never occurred to me that others would say them differently, or feel so strongly about it. If I were speaking to someone and they spoke that way, I'd think.....what a strange accent! I think that I speak without much accent of any kind, though the longer I live in nyc that is changing somewhat. When looking through regional pronunciations, I found that I use many of the examples interchangeably. No one is really wrong or right though! I am curious how foreigners are taught these things....no wonder so many think our language is ridiculous!

Really? You live in NY, and you've never heard anyone pronounce Mary, merry and marry 3 different ways. I've lived in the NYC area for almost 50 years and I've never heard anyone from here pronounce them the same way.

 

[DisneyDreamer2504]

Really? You live in NY, and you've never heard anyone pronounce Mary, merry and marry 3 different ways. I've lived in the NYC area for almost 50 years and I've never heard anyone from here pronounce them the same way.

I'm sure I have, but only thought that it sounded strange, not that they were differentiating between words. I can hear the difference, but can't make my mouth form them. I guess I've always thought of those kind of pronunciations as personal preference.

 

[KaLyn]

I'm sitting here talking to myself lol.

Don
Dawn

Barry
Berry

Marry
Mary
Merry

Each group of words sound identical to me.

 

[Dizneefamily+4]

I'm sitting here talking to myself lol.

Don
Dawn

Barry
Berry

Marry
Mary
Merry

Each group of words sound identical to me.

Don and Dawn sound completely different to me (but I get how, depending on your accent/region, they could sound the same.) But the Barry/Berry and Marry/Mary/Merry all sound the same to me (and again, I could pronounce them differently if I try.) Just goes to show how different all of our dialects are!

 

[Luvchefmic]

I think the PP's point was no one in the NY area would ever say "in LI". And since Ray Romano is from here he should know that.

I like him but still think it is dopey to say living IN the island Thanks

 

[njmom47]

Mary rhymes with hairy and dairy
Marry rhymes with Harry and Barry
Merry rhymes with very and berry

I agree!

But I also say "cawfee" and "wadder" so what do I know?
On a side note, ds spent some time with some kids from SE Pennsylvania and he commented on the long "o" sound, such as "phoune" and "houme."

 

[cybrkitn]

OP, sorry if I kind of steered your thread in a different direction

 

[JennaDeeDooDah]

Mary rhymes with hairy and dairy
Marry rhymes with Harry and Barry
Merry rhymes with very and berry

I think all 9 of these word rhyme.