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Original poster

How many syllables in the word "world"?

167 replies

LaPerduta · 30/07/2023 10:21

Inspired by another thread, I'm interested in words which are pronounced differently in different accents by native English speakers in the UK and Ireland.

I only realised recently that some people pronounce "none" the same as "non", rather than "nun".

In Scotland some people pronounce "pattern" as "pattron". Iron is "eye-ron" rather than "eye-un".

There must be many more...

OP posts:
tabulahrasa · 30/07/2023 21:54

Consonants, no condiments 😐

PurpleParrotfish · 30/07/2023 22:15

There’s a song I like, called Merry Go Round, by Kacey Musgraves, that is based on the fact that in her US accent Mary, merry and marry are all pronounced the same. I didn’t really think about it and then it came up in this video about American accents (or it might have been the second video). A bit off topic but great if you’re interested in accents.

Accent Expert Gives a Tour of U.S. Accents - (Part One) | WIRED

Dialect coach Erik Singer takes us on a tour of different accents across English-speaking North America. Erik and a host of other linguists and language expe...

https://youtu.be/H1KP4ztKK0A

Iwasjustasking · 30/07/2023 22:26

black country here, none definitely is the same as non but we also say mom not mum! I pronounce shoes with two syllables (shoe-es) say day instead of didn’t (I day go there) and say doe instead of don’t! Common as muck me!!!

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Iwasjustasking · 30/07/2023 22:27

Oh and we also say Libree for library, cutelree for cutlery and veg-tabul for vegetable!

Runnersandtoms · 30/07/2023 22:40

dementedpixie · 30/07/2023 14:57

Poem = po-yum
I cant say it any other way!

That's nothing like the word I know. My pronunciation would be more like poe-im. Where does the y come in????

Flounder2022 · 30/07/2023 22:44

Findyourneutralspace · 30/07/2023 10:58

One in world - just one vowel.

@ElectricToothbrush wait till you hear that some people say one to rhyme with won. There’s a lot of regional variation in the way words are pronounced.

Eh, doesn't everyone?? 🙈

tabulahrasa · 30/07/2023 22:48

Runnersandtoms · 30/07/2023 22:40

That's nothing like the word I know. My pronunciation would be more like poe-im. Where does the y come in????

Show quote history

https://vm.tiktok.com/ZGJb66Hff/

In the middle... 😂

Flounder2022 · 30/07/2023 22:49

barbieseyebrows · 30/07/2023 15:32

One, won and nun 🤷🏽‍♀️

I'm from Belfast

All the same to me

"He won one race"

Sounds like "he won won(one) race"

'One One was a race horse. Two two was one too. One One won one race. Two Two won one too' a poem from my childhood 😅

All pronounced the same to me too!

Flounder2022 · 30/07/2023 22:54

Thighdentitycrisis · 30/07/2023 21:14

1 1 was a racehorse
2 2 was 1, 2
1 1, 1 1 race
2 2 1 1 2

can anyone remember this rhyme?

Yes!!!

RootbeerLolly · 30/07/2023 22:56

I work in the black country and they say 'dowun' rather than 'down', and 'gooing' rather than 'going'. Bloody yam yams. 😂

Hungrycaterpillarsmummy · 30/07/2023 22:57

I'm Scottish and it's two.

Your iron comment..no, just no...it's not "eye-un". Its an eye-ron. Iron
Never heard a Scottish person say pattron for pattern either.

RootbeerLolly · 30/07/2023 23:02

Eye-ron? No chance. 😂

Hungrycaterpillarsmummy · 30/07/2023 23:10

Its certainly not eye-un

Eye-un man. 🤣🤣

SavvyMaria · 30/07/2023 23:12

Hungrycaterpillarsmummy · 30/07/2023 22:57

I'm Scottish and it's two.

Your iron comment..no, just no...it's not "eye-un". Its an eye-ron. Iron
Never heard a Scottish person say pattron for pattern either.

Scottish and it's eyern so sort of one syllable.

My MIL (also Scottish) says pattron, blows my mind.

Hungrycaterpillarsmummy · 30/07/2023 23:13

I keep saying iron out loud now.

I have two ways of saying it I've discovered!
eye-ern which is more dragged out at the end.
And eye-ron said quickly

underneaththeash · 30/07/2023 23:14

LaPerduta · 30/07/2023 10:21

Inspired by another thread, I'm interested in words which are pronounced differently in different accents by native English speakers in the UK and Ireland.

I only realised recently that some people pronounce "none" the same as "non", rather than "nun".

In Scotland some people pronounce "pattern" as "pattron". Iron is "eye-ron" rather than "eye-un".

There must be many more...

Tp me Pattern is Pat-un and Iron is Aye-un (but there is a soft r sound it it) I'm from manchester, but have in the south for a bit.

Hungrycaterpillarsmummy · 30/07/2023 23:15

@SavvyMaria yes, eyern! I just noted that in my last post!

Pattron? That would do my head in hearing that.
Its like people saying "axe" I stead of "ask". Wtf

BrandyandGinger · 30/07/2023 23:16

I'm Irish and none rhymes with gun for me. One is pronounced 'wan'. Scone rhymes with bone. It doesn't make any sense if you think about it.
I've definitely heard older people here use patt-ron for pattern.
I don't think I say either film or fill-um, probably something in between.
Accents are very interesting.

Shinyandnew1 · 30/07/2023 23:21

RootbeerLolly · 30/07/2023 22:56

I work in the black country and they say 'dowun' rather than 'down', and 'gooing' rather than 'going'. Bloody yam yams. 😂

We have friends near the Black Country and their little boy says the word green with two syllables-it’s really cute! Gree-uhn!

Flounder2022 · 30/07/2023 23:33

Hungrycaterpillarsmummy · 30/07/2023 22:57

I'm Scottish and it's two.

Your iron comment..no, just no...it's not "eye-un". Its an eye-ron. Iron
Never heard a Scottish person say pattron for pattern either.

It's an eye-urn 😂

Newname211 · 30/07/2023 23:43

Hungrycaterpillarsmummy · 30/07/2023 22:57

I'm Scottish and it's two.

Your iron comment..no, just no...it's not "eye-un". Its an eye-ron. Iron
Never heard a Scottish person say pattron for pattern either.

I say iron like eye-urn.

patter-en for pattern.

wurrr-uld has two syllables.

Newname211 · 30/07/2023 23:43

Flounder2022 · 30/07/2023 23:33

It's an eye-urn 😂

Show quote history

We posted the same pronunciation at the same time!

Glasgow?

JockTamsonsBairns · 31/07/2023 00:20

WhenIWasAFieldMyself · 30/07/2023 16:12

There very probably aren't. They're just longer long vowels.

People are getting confused as to what syllables are.

@JockTamsonsBairns "towel" has 2 syllables because it has 2 vowel sounds. Not because you're Scottish. "world" still only has one, despite the R being pronounced in your accent and thus the word being lengthened.

Show quote history

This is interesting. My DH and two younger (teen) DCs are from the SE of England, and their pronunciation of 'towel' only has one syllable - so, "tahl".
For me, it's definitely two - tow-wel.

Glad to know my pronunciation is correct! 😂

JockTamsonsBairns · 31/07/2023 00:22

Newname211 · 30/07/2023 23:43

We posted the same pronunciation at the same time!

Glasgow?

Show quote history

I'm from Glasgow, and I say eye-urn.

DH says ahrn

DrFoxtrot · 31/07/2023 01:07

None and non rhyme for me - same as gone/ shone. (NW England)

Have a look at at the foot/ strut split - whether these two words rhyme for you. I ended up in a vowel pronunciation wormhole. And what is interesting is that the northern English pronunciation of oo/u is the original pronunciation and that the southern English way came later, separating the sound into the two vowel sounds in words like foot and strut.

And the way people pronounced words over the last 1000 years is not the same as now. Some words would be unrecognisable to our ears.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/PhonologicalhistoryyofEnglishhclosebackk_vowels#:~:text=The%20FOOT%E2%80%93%20STRUT%20split%20is,some%20varieties%20of%20Hiberno%2DEnglish.